For the first time all season, Cubs right fielder Kyle Tucker was out of the lineup Monday.
Tucker had started all 59 of the Cubs’ games before the series opener against the Nationals. He’s served as the designated hitter in five games, his only partial breaks.
The jammed finger on his right hand, which he hurt on an awkward slide Sunday, ended that streak of consecutive games.
“It was pretty sore [Monday,]” manager Craig Counsell said of the off day. “So that was our indication that today was not going to be likely. So we’re trying to give it as much time without banging on it right now.”
As of Counsell’s comments before the game Tuesday, Tucker had not tried swinging, resting the injury to address the swelling in his hand. Counsell said it had improved compared to the day before but estimated that Tucker would still need “another day or two” before returning.
Counsell said he was confident that Tucker would not need to go on the injured list.
Entering Tuesday, Tucker ranked seventh among qualified National League hitters in OPS (.918) and fifth in on-base percentage (.394).
He was caught stealing for the first time on Sunday, with his right hand getting stuck in the damp dirt and twisting
With Tucker out, Seiya Suzuki started in right field and hit second in the order. Justin Turner took Suzuki’s regular spot at DH.
Top of the order
It’s no accident that Suzuki entered Tuesday leading the National League in RBI with 52. Two factors combined to put him at the top of the list.
“He’s off to a great start,” Counsell said. “This definitely is the best start [to a season] he’s had in his career. Benefiting from a lineup around him and players around him who are playing really well, which means he’s hitting runners on base a lot. Every hitter wants at-bats with runners on base.”
Suzuki often bats third, behind Tucker and Ian Happ (.343), who both get on base at a high clip. And with either Michael Busch or Pete Crow-Armstrong batting behind him, Suzuki usually has left-handed batters on either side.
“That’s led to some good matchups, too,” Counsell said. “He’s done a great job against left-handed pitching. So it’s all connected, and that’s where the guys around you can make those subtle differences.”
Suzuki entered Tuesday with a 1.192 OPS against left-handed pitchers, good for the sixth best mark in the majors (minimum 30 plate appearances).
Tucker’s injury will temporarily disrupt that top-of-the-order flow, but Crow-Armstrong provided a solution Tuesday. With him moving up to third in the order, Suzuki still hit between two lefties. And Crow-Armstrong barely trailed Suzuki in RBI entering Tuesday, with 51.
Trade connections
Crow-Armstrong recorded his first hit off former Cubs pitcher Trevor Williams, who the Cubs sent to the Mets along with shortstop Javy Báez in the 2021 trade for Crow-Armstrong.
Crow-Armstrong legged out a double on a line drive to right field in the fourth inning Tuesday. Prior to that hit, he’d gone 0-for-3 with three strikeouts against Williams.
