Where Has Robinson Cano’s Bat Gone?

Robinson Cano has been an anchor for this Mariners offense and Mariners defense since the very first game of the season against the Angels. He is currently on pace to hit for his 2nd-highest season average of his career, and has provided plenty of flashy plays at second base that he makes look easy.

Cano is currently third in batting average in the American League behind Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros and Victor Martinez of the Detroit Tigers.

However, Cano has been slowing down just a bit in recent games. In the last 7 days Cano has been batting .250/.318/.450 with 5 hits, a double and a home run, and 1 RBI in 20 at-bats. Now these numbers are by no means terrible, but they’re also not the numbers you want from your $240 million dollar man as your team goes into the stretch run with a chance at a playoff spot for the first time in a long time.

Now I am not doubting Cano, nor am I ragging on his play. He is a superstar and he’s shown it throughout the season. I just want to make it known that Cano hasn’t been very Robinson Cano of late.

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Am I concerned? Not entirely. I do know that Cano has walked almost as many times as he has struck out this season (51 walks to 59 strikeouts), and that is something only elite hitters do. But it’s imperative that the guys hitting behind Cano– Kendrys Morales and Kyle Seager— drive in the runs when he and Dustin Ackley and Austin Jackson are getting on base ahead of them. Walks are great but they don’t count for much when they’re not being driven in for runs.

If nothing else Robinson Cano is going through a bit of a rough patch at the plate, something that should be shaken off here in the next couple of days.

The M’s need him now more than ever, as they head off on a 7-game roadtrip to Texas and Oakland to face their AL West rival Athletics and Rangers. And seeing how the Rangers have already started playing the part of spoiler earlier this week taking a series in Seattle, the M’s are going to need Cano to drive that average back up, drive in runs, and help carry this team offensively into the postseason.