Outfielder Kyle Tucker has been better than advertised.
That’s saying something, considering the Cubs acquired him in an offseason trade with expectations that he would be the All-Star, Silver Slugger, MVP-type player he was during his time with the Astros.
But Tucker has lived up to the hype — and then some — in his first month playing regular-season games in a Cubs uniform.
Entering the Cubs’ 3-2, 11-inning loss Sunday to the Diamondbacks, he led the majors with 22 runs scored, led the National League with 23 RBI and led the Cubs with six home runs, 29 hits, eight doubles and 16 walks. If it weren’t for catcher Carson Kelly’s out-of-nowhere monster start to the season and his 1.675 OPS, Tucker would be the one dropping jaws with his 1.054 mark.
In other words, while some fans might have been hoping for a free-agent signing that broke the bank and others still might be bummed about the long-term implications of president Jed Hoyer shipping the Cubs’ first-round draft pick last summer to the Astros, there’s no doubting the front office’s acquisition of Tucker has been a rousing success so far, helping to power MLB’s highest-scoring offense and make the Cubs appear capable of chasing their championship-level goals.
‘‘He’s an elite offensive player, and he’s continued to be so this year,’’ manager Craig Counsell said before the game Sunday. ‘‘His at-bats produce runs. [For the hitters] around him, there’s traffic. It’s better to hit with guys on base. Not every team has offensive players this good, Most teams don’t, and that’s a really nice thing to have. He’s off to a great start, and that’s always a plus, too. But he’s been a big deal, no question about it.’’
‘‘Obviously, the production speaks for itself. But just his confidence as a player is contagious,’’ second baseman Nico Hoerner told the Sun-Times on Saturday. ‘‘He’s someone who shows up, and it feels like he expects to have success every single time he steps to the plate or gets to the ballpark. He’s played the game at the highest level for a long time and had success on the biggest stages. That’s a great guy to have on your team.’’
Tucker has been in the middle of everything for these Cubs. During a particularly scalding four-game stretch in the first week of the season, he went 10-for-18 with four homers, four doubles, nine RBI and nine runs scored.
Tucker’s arrival figured to help an offense that struggled for long stretches last season. Thanks to his presence and the production at the bottom of the order from Kelly and others, Counsell said he thinks the Cubs are in a better position to sustain offensive success than they were a year ago.
‘‘When you go through something like last year, the offensive struggles . . . it shakes you a little bit, for sure,’’ Counsell said. ‘‘A star player, he adds wins himself. That’s the big thing. What he does for the players around him, there’s traffic more, it’s attention from the other team, it’s attention from the other pitcher, things like that.
‘‘It just puts you in good positions, and we’ve benefitted from it so far, for sure.’’
The big question remains how long Tucker’s tenure with the Cubs will last. It figures to be a seasonlong wonder whether they will be able to sign him to the type of massive contract other stars have received.
Right now, however, it’s all about what Tucker is doing at the plate. And, so far, that has been an awful lot.