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Bryant's hot-hitting ways reignited by switching bats

Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Kris Bryant is on fire.

On Thursday, he hit his seventh home run of the season and fourth in five games. Part of that could be attributed to the Chicago Cubs' most recent opponent in the Miami Marlins. But another part, at least in a narrative sense, may be linked to a broken bat.

On April 26, Bryant broke his lumber in a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. He replaced it with an Axe Bat (it has a handle shaped like an axe's) and immediately hit a home run. He's been using it ever since.

"It was just one day, ‘I’m going to bring this (Axe Bat) as my extra,'" Bryant said, according to Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic. "Usually when you break your bat, it’s when you put a ball in play and you’re out or get a hit or whatever. It’s not a foul ball. So the bat boy brings it to me and I’m like, ‘OK, I’m just going to use this.’ First swing, home run. And I was like, 'Oh, OK, I’ll stick with it.’ And I have since then and I just feel really good about my swing."

Entering that game against the D-Backs, Bryant was slashing .232/.364/.366 with one home run in 99 plate appearances on the season. Since then, he's hit six bombs in 12 games and looks closer to the 2016 MVP than he has in some time.

For now, he's embracing the superstitious tradition of baseball by sticking with the new bat. Bryant credits the added control he has due to the unique grip.

"I’ve always been big into trying different things," Bryant said. "Just to give them a go, see if it works for me and what I feel from it. A different model, a different bat company, a different type of wood, anything like that. This is something else that I’m trying. And it’s working."

Of course, it's not the first time someone has gone to great lengths to find the perfect bat to improve results at the plate.

Bryant's doesn't have as memorable a moniker, however, simply dubbing his the "Bryant Handle." His Axe Bat is apparently a combination of styles used by Mookie Betts and Carlos Correa.

As goes Bryant, so go the Cubs. Since switching bats, Chicago is 10-2 and have surged into sole possession of first place in the National League Central.

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