Dansby Swanson started this season like he forgot how to hit. Through two months, the Cubs shortstop was a black hole in the lineup, slumping his way to a batting average that made you wonder if he’d ever find his timing again. Then something flipped.
Over his last 10 games, Swanson has been hitting .366 with eight home runs. Not good. Historic.
According to Codify, Swanson is just the fifth player in MLB history to drive in 26 or more runs over a 10-game span during the regular season. The other four guys on that list? Mel Ott, Lou Gehrig (who did it twice), Jimmie Foxx and Joe DiMaggio. That’s four Hall of Famers, all of whom accomplished this feat before 1940. Nobody had done it since DiMaggio in 1939. Until now.
A hot streak for the ages
Think about that. Eighty-five years. Players like Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth — none of them matched this in a 10-game window. It’s the kind of stat that feels like a trivia night trick question. But it’s real. Swanson is mashing right now, and he’s doing it in a way that hasn’t been seen since the Great Depression ended.
That said, the overall numbers are still ugly. Swanson is hitting .210 with a .300 on-base percentage and .431 slugging across 83 games. He’s got 16 homers and 10 doubles, but the consistency has been all over the place. He’s either scorching hot or ice cold. There hasn’t been much in between.
The trick now is balance. Swanson is a two-time All-Star for a reason — he knows how to adjust. But the Cubs need him to stay productive even when this heater inevitably cools off. Chicago’s offense can’t afford extended cold streaks from a middle-of-the-order guy making $25 million a year.
The Cubs are 49-38, sitting second in the NL Central, five games back of the Brewers. They’ve got the Cardinals coming to town Friday at 4:05 PM EST. Swanson will be in the lineup, and right now, you’d be crazy to pitch to him.
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