Dustin Kelly: Mike Tauchman brings 'stability' to Cubs

(670 The Score) Early on this season, the Cubs have played for long stretches without key hitters in outfielder Cody Bellinger and outfielder Seiya Suzuki. Outfielder Ian Happ and shortstop Dansby Swanson have also struggled at the plate, but the Cubs still manage to sit in a first-place tie in the NL Central as of Thursday morning.

That’s in part thanks to veteran outfielder Mike Tauchman, who has stepped into a role near the top of the Cubs’ lineup and been a catalyst for his team. Tauchman has a .402 on-base percentage that has made him quite valuable to the Cubs, and hitting coach Dustin Kelly has a great admiration for how he handles his business each day.

“Tauch is underappreciated, for sure,” Kelly told the Mully & Haugh Show on Wednesday. “I mean, he doesn’t get nearly the amount of love or notoriety that he probably really deserves for not only when those guys are healthy but what he’s able to do. The great thing about Tauch is nothing has really changed. He hasn’t changed his game and he hasn’t changed his at-bat or what he’s trying to do because he’s hitting higher up in the lineup or there’s a couple guys that are out. That’s probably the most impressive part about what he does. He came up last year and really did the same thing.

“It was a professional at-bat that gave him some length. He’s handled lefties really good this year as well. He just doesn’t change. You just know when he goes up there, he has a really solid plan, he’s incredibly smart, he knows when to take chances and when to back down, and he’s shown that. It’s an Ian Happ-quality at-bat. There’s length in there. He doesn’t chase a ton of pitches. He’s not up there looking to pull the ball and put it in the seats, but he has the ability to do that.

“He’s just brought a ton of stability to that part of the lineup. I think it’s been great for Michael Busch to see that quality of at-bat, Pete Crow-Armstrong to see that quality at-bat and knowing that you don’t have to go up there and ambush the first pitch if you’re able to see some pitches, know what the pitcher is trying to do and how is he trying to get me out, and then on the flip side how am I going to attack this guy? Tauch does a really good job of doing that for us.”

After an off day Thursday, the Cubs open a three-game series against the Pirates on Friday evening in Pittsburgh. First pitch is set for 5:40 p.m. CT, and the game can be heard on 670 The Score or by downloading the Audacy app.