MLB PLAYER NEWS

Cubs strive to solve Castro’s hitting woes

The Sports Xchange

July 28, 2015 at 1:16 am.

The Cubs need Starlin Castro (13) to start hitting. David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

The Cubs need Starlin Castro (13) to start hitting. David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

CHICAGO — Figuring out how to jumpstart shortstop Starlin Castro’s bat is one of the Chicago Cubs’ current priorities.

Manager Joe Maddon and hitting coach John Mallee both worked with Castro in the Wrigley Field batting cage several hours before Monday’s series opener with the Colorado Rockies.

Something seemed to click later Monday night, as Castro went 2-for-4 to snap a three-game hitless skid as the Cubs beat the Rockies 9-8.

He delivered a two-run single in the fourth inning and scored a run in the sixth.

“A lot of times when a major league guy is out of whack, it’s nothing obvious or glaring,” Maddon said. “It’s normally subtle. That’s why it’s so difficult to get to back sometimes.”

Castro is struggling through the worst season of his six-year career. He is batting .236 after Monday’s game, nearly 60 points below last year.

And he is not the only slumping Cub.

“We really haven’t hit as a team since the end of May,” Cubs president Theo Epstein said. “So it’s been a slump that’s lasted a month and a half, and through some guts and some great pitching, we’ve kept our heads above water.”

Third baseman Kris Bryant, who saw his average dip to .252 and was hitting .083 in the homestead entering Monday, also participated in extra work.

He then went 2-for-5 and clubbed a two-run, walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.

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