A first at third base for Madrigal
GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Dodgers’ first two batters Sunday hit grounders to Nick Madrigal, who was playing third base for the first time in his pro career. He fielded both smoothly for two quick outs.
“It was nice to put it to use, all the hard work I’ve done this offseason,” Madrigal said after coming out of the Cubs’ 9-4 loss to the Dodgers. “I had a little bit of jitters right before the game, but once I got the first ball, I felt comfortable afterwards.”
Madrigal has played second base for most of his career, but with the Cubs signing shortstop Dansby Swanson in the offseason and moving Nico Hoerner from short to second, Madrigal has been working out at third.
The first grounder, off Miguel Rojas’ bat, had Madrigal ranging to his left. But the second required footwork a second baseman is never going to use. Dodgers star Freddie Freeman hit a soft grounder up the third-base line. Madrigal charged the ball and threw off one foot to beat Freeman at first base.
“That’s something I’ve definitely worked on a ton,” he said, “charging it, one hand and throwing off balance. And I felt like I just kind of let my instincts take over.”
Madrigal heaped praise on the Cubs’ coaching staff for helping him with the transition, but he also picked up a key piece of advice from a clip of Hall of Famer Scott Rolen on MLB Network about a month ago. Rolen, in dress pants and a button-down shirt with a glove on his hand, broke down the fundamentals of playing third base.
“This is one thing that I learned that is never taught, overlooked, maybe it’s common knowledge,” he said before explaining the difference in a third baseman’s eye path on each pitch. A middle infielder will track the ball from the pitcher to home plate, but a third baseman doesn’t have time to do that.
Rolen would focus on the pitcher until he started his delivery. Then the eighttime Gold Glover would shift his sightline to the front of the hitting zone.
“That’s helped me a ton because you don’t really think of those things being new to the position,” Madrigal said. “It sounds like it’s something small, but initially, right when I did that, I felt way more comfortable.”
At the plate, Madrigal drove in the Cubs’ second run, hitting a soft line drive into shallow center field for a single.
It also helps that Madrigal is 1½ years removed from the hamstring surgery that ended his 2021 season.
“I’m feeling really good at the plate, and defensively I feel like it’s all coming together, my body’s in a completely different spot this year compared to last year,” Madrigal said. “And just looking forward to what’s ahead.”
Suzuki under evaluation
Outfielder Seiya Suzuki, whom the Cubs scratched from the lineup Saturday with left oblique tightness, was scheduled to undergo imaging Sunday.
“Wait and see what information the imaging gives us back,” manager David
Ross said, “and plan from there.”