Alex Bregman has come alive for the Chicago Cubs—at the perfect time

The Chicago Cubs went out and got the third baseman of their dreams this past offseason when they signed three-time All-Star Alex Bregman to a 5-year, $175 million contract.

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Right now, he’s performing above and beyond expectations in all areas of his game and seeming to be worth every penny spent on him. Last night in Washington, he had a career game against the Nationals, going 3-for-3 with 3 home runs, 2 walks, and 7 RBIs.

Over the first half of the season, though, many fans expressed some extreme buyer’s remorse when it came to the 32-year-old acquisition.

Headed into the All-Star break, Bregman was slashing .241/.336/.359 with just 9 home runs and an OPS of .696—and that was following a big 4-RBI, one home run, 3-for-5 game the day before the break.

Bregman on fire

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Since the mid-season rest, though, the third baseman has been on fire. Overall, in the 24 games since then, he’s slashing .313/.387/.606 with 7 home runs and a .994 OPS. The numbers have been absolutely ridiculous when you focus in more closely. Just this last week, he’s hitting .440 with 5 home runs and 13 RBIs.

But Wednesday’s game was the highlight of this late-season run.

“(Bregman) definitely drove the bus today…you can’t fake it through 162 games…it’s a credit to how he works every single day,” manager Craig Counsell told reporters after the game. “Just relentless with his search to be himself and to be the best version of himself. He will never give you an inch on that.”

Bregman’s turnaround wasn’t some random flipping of a switch, though. As is usually the case with the career perfectionist, the reawakening came after some long hours studying video of his swing from archives dating back to his Double-A days, most recently with Ben Martin, the Cubs’ major league development assistant.

Hard work, dedication, and lots of video

“We went through the archives for this, from way back in the day, to look at all the changes of how I’ve kind of loaded throughout my career,” Bregman told media. “We were watching Double-A Corpus Christi video two nights ago in my room, 1 o’clock, Ben and I.”

Even when things were at their worst and he was starting to get buried under frustrations from failed expectations, Bregman contributed with his glove and with his clubhouse leadership, never doubting his ability to turn things around at the plate.

“You’ve just got to keep going,” he told reporters on Wednesday. “You’ve got to figure out what’s going on and address it. I feel like the last month or so has been a step in the right direction, but really the last two days have been a real step in the right direction.”

Bregman is getting hot at the perfect time of the season for the Cubs, too. The playoffs are not too far off.

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Source: https://www.chicitysports.com/chicago-cubs-alex-bregman-has-come-alive-playoffs-third-base-hot-streak/