Cubs Star Kyle Tucker Breaks Long-Standing Home Run Drought. Can He Heat Back Up?

Much of the conversation surrounding the Chicago Cubs recently has been about Kyle Tucker; and not for positive reasons like early in the season.

The star outfielder -- who was in the midst of the NL MVP race at the beginning of the year -- has seen his performance crater during the latter stages of the summer, prompting some in the Wrigley Field faithful to shockingly boo him.

It was later revealed that Tucker has been dealing with some type of fracture in his hand, which could explain why his numbers declined at such a noticeable rate. But beyond the questions about if he will re-sign with the Cubs in free agency during the upcoming winter, the worry is about if he can regain the form he had at the beginning of the season to help Chicago compete for a championship in 2025.

Manager Craig Counsell has started to give Tucker some more days off, but against the Los Angeles Angels to get their road weekend series underway, the slugger was back in the lineup looking to make an impact for the Cubs.

He did exactly that in the first inning with a solo home run to give Chicago a 1-0 lead.

Touch 'em all, King Tuck! pic.twitter.com/Z9qMcpXyeu
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 23, 2025

What made this home run notable beyond it being a first-inning blast that got Chicago out to an early lead is that this was Tucker's first longball since July 19, a drought that spanned 25 games and 90 at-bats before he stepped into the batter's box on Friday.

On the season, Tucker has now hit 19 home runs with 63 RBI, solid numbers on the surface when throwing in his .258/.371/.448 slash line. But following the All-Star break, that is when he has looked like a shell of himself, slashing just .177/.325/.260 with numbers that are even worse in August.

Sometimes all a player needs to get going again is a moment, and the hope is that this solo shot to lead off the game for Tucker is the one that can get him back on the right track so he finishes the regular season with momentum leading into the playoffs.

Can Kyle Tucker Heat Back Up?

It's hard to answer that question with much certainty. Because even after Tucker hit the home run in his first at-bat of the game, he followed that up by going 0-for-3 in his next three plate appearances, striking out swinging in the third, flying out in the fifth and grounding out in the eighth.

Still, there's no doubt that seeing the star outfielder hit one over the fence is a positive sign, especially at a time where the conversation surrounding his injury and how that will affect his present and future is at a fever pitch.

Hopefully this gives Tucker the confidence that he can perform even with this hand issue, allowing him to become an impact player once again.

The Latest Chicago Cubs News