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Bearcats in the Big Leagues: Take a Break

In this week's episode, Josh Harrison hits reset, Ian Happ cools and Ryan Atkinson gets his first professional taste of defeat.

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Josh Harrison

A few days of rest and relaxation may be just what Harrison needs. The All-Star break has already featured some ridiculous home run totals from Giancarlo Stanton and a Royal All-Star Game, but Harrison was not a participant in the festivities. Hopefully, that will help him hit the ground running (or more appropriately, hitting) when the MLB season kicks back into gear on Friday.

In less than a month, Harrison’s batting average has dropped nearly 30 points, tumbling to .274 on Sunday after he flew out as a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the ninth in a 6-5 loss to the Chicago Cubs. That .274 mark is the lowest his average has been since he was hitting .256 on April 15. His slash line (.274/.304/.373) is now far below his numbers from last season (.287/.327/.390) and well short of his All-Star caliber effort in 2014 (.315/.347/.490). While there is no longer an All-Star game appearance to chase, Harrison will undoubtedly be pushing himself to get hot again as the Pittsburgh Pirates try to keep themselves in the playoff hunt. They are currently 46-43, 7.5 games back from the first-place Chicago Cubs in the National League Central and 1.5 games out of the wild card.

Ian Happ

The prodigious start to Happ’s Double-A run with the Tennessee Smokies has hit a bit of a speed bump. He has just one hit in his last 16 at-bats and only three RBI during the last week. In the last 10 games, he is hitting just .225, which has driven his slash line down to less spectacular heights (.355/.391/.532). I say less spectacular because those are still excellent numbers, just not as excellent as they were a week ago.

Tony Campana

The former Bearcat played in just one game this week, going 1-for-3 out of the eight-hole in the Charlotte Knights’ 5-4 win over the Gwinnett Braves on Sunday.

Connor Walsh

Walsh remains on the seven-day DL for the Winstom-Salem Dash.

Ryan Atkinson

After a stellar outing in his professional debut, Atkinson struggled, allowing five earned runs on four hits and two walks across 3 1/3 innings against the Great Falls Voyagers this past Saturday. The Missoula Osprey right-hander took the loss in the 11-1 defeat. If there is one bright spot, he did flash some swing-and-miss stuff, fanning five batters.