Mike Tauchman’s big-league profession has taken him coast to coast.
Five major-league seasons with three groups has introduced him to 24 major-league ballparks. One specifically, although, has eluded him. Tauchman is attempting to rectify the Wrigley Field omission within the subsequent month. For the Palatine native who grew up a Cubs fan, Tauchman’s alternative to make the opening-day roster grew exponentially when the staff misplaced proper fielder Seiya Suzuki for the beginning of the season due to an indirect harm.
Tauchman, 32, homered in Saturday’s 5-2 win towards the Los Angeles Dodgers, enhancing to 7-for-21 (.333) this spring with three extra-base hits, two RBIs, six runs scored and three stolen bases in 10 video games.
Tauchman spent 2022 within the Korean Baseball Organization the place he posted a .289/.366/.430 line and hit 37 doubles and 12 dwelling runs in 144 video games. At occasions Tauchman needed to depend on himself due to the language barrier, although his staff, the Hanwha Eagles, had a pair coaches who spoke English, which aided within the transition. He discovered easy methods to self-assess and make changes on his personal with out the protection internet of the assets out there to gamers in Major League Baseball. He considers his one season in South Korea to be an general very constructive expertise.
Tauchman’s capacity to deal with all three outfield positions places him on a front-runner path to the Cubs’ opening-day roster. Manager David Ross mentioned Saturday that he gained’t use left fielder Ian Happ in heart discipline because the back-up possibility on days Cody Bellinger isn’t within the lineup. Tauchman made 129 begins in heart discipline for Hanwha final 12 months and began 11 video games there in 2021 with the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants.
“Everybody wants to have a great spring, but there’s obviously a bigger picture,” Tauchman informed the Tribune on Saturday. “I want to come in, try to show my skill set, show everybody what you can do because you watch on TV or you hear about it, but you always want to make a good impression so I feel good with where I’m at.”
Two stalls to the appropriate of Tauchman’s within the Cubs spring clubhouse resides lefty reliever Ryan Borucki, a Mundelein High School graduate whose quest to open the season in Chicago comes after a stress response in his arm prematurely ended his 2022 season with the Seattle Mariners. Borucki, 28, has struck out seven and walked one batter in 4⅓ innings this spring; two of his three runs allowed got here in his outing Friday towards the White Sox. It marked solely the fourth time he has thrown in a recreation since Aug. 8.
Borucki took it gradual within the offseason as he labored again from his harm and began his throwing program a pair weeks behind his traditional schedule.
Since signing a minor-league cope with the Cubs in January, Borucki added a sweeping slider to his repertoire. He continues to be getting comfy on the mound after final 12 months’s harm and attempting to include the slider in spring video games.
“My arm is really bouncing back well, which is my No. 1 priority,” Borucki informed the Tribune on Saturday. “Obviously I’m competing for a job. I want to show the best version. I know there’s going to be some bumps in the road, but I’m going out there to compete for a job. My biggest thing is making sure I’m feeling good.”
In the final 30 years, 35 Illinois-born gamers have appeared in a recreation for the Cubs, in keeping with staff historian Ed Hartig. Tauchman and Borucki, non-roster invitees, are vying to be the following.
“This is the team I grew up cheering for, so feeling like there might be an opportunity here was something that was too good to pass up,” Tauchman mentioned. “It would be special.”
Borucki supplied a sly smile when requested whether or not he rooted for the Cubs or Sox as a child.
“I’ll plead the fifth on that one,” he replied.
“As anyone in Chicago knows, it’s a Cubs city, so this is definitely the team to play for in Chicago because the fan base is crazy. I was a White Sox fan growing up — ‘05 was a great time — but since then it’s been Cubs fans all around as a North Side suburbs guy. … The passion and just how much this team means to so many people in this city, it’s like, how can you not want to be part of this?”
As Tauchman and Borucki give attention to constructing their case to interrupt camp with the staff in 3½ weeks, their Chicago-area roots join them in one other method: They are die-hard Bears followers.
“I don’t miss a game,” Borucki mentioned. “I’ve watched the Bears at a wedding before.”
The Bears’ commerce Friday of the No. 1 choose to the Carolina Panthers, which netted them choose Nos. 9 and 61, a 2024 first-round choose, a 2025 second-round choose and extensive receiver D.J. Moore, earned constructive opinions from each gamers.
“There was like a month stretch when Justin Fields was the best player in the NFL last year, I thought — I had him on my fantasy team, too, and it was awesome,” Tauchman mentioned. “It’s exciting. I think the NFL is better when the Bears are good. Obviously Sundays are more fun when the Bears are good. It seems like they have a plan.”
Tauchman desires to see the Bears proceed so as to add extra weapons for Fields after getting Moore to be their new No. 1 receiver. Borucki fired off texts to family and friends after listening to of the commerce. He’s a giant Moore fan and is hopeful Bears basic supervisor Ryan Poles can observe the transfer with a powerful draft. Borucki joked he has belief points after witnessing how earlier Bears GMs’ trades have fared.
“But this one seems like it’s pretty good with everything I’ve been reading, everybody says we’ve won the trade so … now it’s up to Justin Fields,” Borucki mentioned. “Let’s see if he can really show he can throw the ball. We all know he’s a really great runner. But they’re building around him, which is fun.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com
