Chicago Cubs fans are all aware of Jason Hammel’s struggles during the second half of the season throughout his career. His ERA throughout the second half of the season has been an average of 1.16 runs higher than the opening half of the year.
This was most evident in 2015 when Hammel’s ERA jumped up to 5.10 after only being 2.86 before the All-Star break.
The Chicago pitcher has used his diet since the beginning of the 2015 off-season to address the issue.
While he experienced some struggles as the first half came to an end the last few weeks, his intentions have been focussed on a strong second half and he looks forward to having the strongest second half of his career this season, one that pushes all the way into the World Series.
The latest addition to his diet has been potato chips and a lot of them.
The camera might even be able to find him smashing a quick bag in between innings. Hammel is trying to find the right combination of sodium intake and hydration to fight against cramping he has been experiencing in both his hands and legs.
“For my cramps, if it’s a chronic thing, the doctor said eat potato chips because they have a lot of potassium and the sea salt helps retain water,” Hammel told reporters. “So I focussed on that over the break and ate a lot of potato chips, and I think it turned out pretty well.”
Throughout six innings Saturday against the Rangers, Hammel took the mound for six innings, striking out seven and only giving up one run on three hits.
We will have to wait for his next start to see if Hammel was just having a good day or the potato chip industry has found a new dominating spokesperson.
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