There wasn’t much to hold on to, but at least two good and fun things happened during the closing of baseball: (1) Ian Happ became an incredibly outspoken, thoughtful, and personable voice for the Cubs and baseball, and (2) Anthony Rizzo dropped a whopping 25 pounds.
Those two good and fun things came together this afternoon when the Cubs players got to work. Not only was Rizzo there and showing off the shattered new physique, but Happ was taking note and giving compliments:
Happ in Rizzo’s slimmer physique (2/2):
“It’s very nice to see him shrink down. He looks absolutely wonderful. His pop right now, I don’t want to oversell it, but his pop right now is: he’s strong; he’s very strong.” https://t.co/mtHaYQ4ZO5
– Gordon Wittenmyer (@GDubCub) July 3, 2020
Rizzo says he was already in good shape by entering Spring Training, but when things closed, he knew he was going to use that time to over-augment or focus on grinding (NBCSC). So he and quality control coach Mike Napoli took responsibility, with each losing 25 pounds in the past few months.
Rizzo really looks impressively fit:
A slender @ ARizzo44 pic.twitter.com/iprElOv4xu
– Mark Gonzales (@MDGonzales) July 3, 2020
And as long as you have any concerns about weight loss and a power drop, don’t worry. Yes, some weight, mass, and muscle helps with a little extra distance, but it’s mostly about bat speed, sweep, and contact angle. In general, when a guy gets fitter, it’s a good thing across the board, including plate work and overall health throughout the season.
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