Baseball players are creatures of habit, slaves to a routine that must be followed explicitly in order to allow them to perform at their peak capacity. The need for more structure was expressed during last season’s exit interviews, leading to Joe Maddon creating lineups a series at a time instead of game by game. One of the most vocal Cubs when it comes to craving regular playing time is Addison Russell, who talked about a lack of experience at second base leading to mental miscues and credited everyday reps at Iowa for his hot hitting there.
“I felt like I got back to the original me,” Russell said after posting a 1.