Let’s Talk About Ian Happ Batting Third and Why It Makes Sense *FOR NOW* ...Middle East

All in all, Ian Happ did not have a good day at the plate yesterday. There’s no sugarcoating a 1-5, 3K performance. It simply is what it is, even though, yeah, his flyout was knocked down a literal record-breaking 113 feet (it would have landed on Waveland on a NEUTRAL day, let alone with the wind blowing out). According to Mike Petriello, that was the most distance taken off by the wind in the weather tracking era. Alas.

That performance, especially the three strikeouts, had a lot of fans questioning again Ian Happ batting third in the Cubs lineup, which has sort of become a recurring theme of the last few seasons.

For the most part, even staunch Happ defenders feel that although we appreciate his contributions and overarching season-to-season consistency, there’s something just off about him batting in such a “key” spot in what is otherwise a very stout Cubs lineup.

Yesterday’s Cubs lineup:

Michael Busch, 1B Alex Bregman, 3B Ian Happ, LF Pete Crow-Armstrong, CF Nico Hoerner, 2B Carson Kelly, C Moises Ballesteros, DH Dansby Swanson, SS Matt Shaw, RF

Ian Happ’s Performance By Season

2017: 114 wRC+ (24 HRs) 2018: 106 wRC+ (15 HRs) 2019: 126 wRC+ (11 HRs) 2020: 132 wRC+ (12 HRs) 2021: 105 wRC+ (25 HRs) 2022: 122 wRC+ (17 HRs) 2023: 118 wRC+ (21 HRs) 2024: 121 wRC+ (25 HRs) 2025: 116 wRC+ (23 HRs) Career: 116 wRC+ (173 HRs)

So, do I think Ian Happ should be batting third?

No, in an ideal world, I don’t think that’s where he should be in *this* Cubs lineup.

But I also think it’s reasonable for him to be there right now for two key reasons:

(1) Seiya Suzuki is on the IL, which fundamentally changes the lineup. You cannot just ignore that. And (2) The two lefties who could or likely will swap spots with Happ long-term are either Pete Crow-Armstrong or Moises Ballesteros. The former was already batting cleanup and didn’t exactly finish strong last year. And the latter is a 22-year-old rookie, who shouldn’t have that much pressure right out of the gate (in my opinion).

So against righties, if Michael Busch is leading off and while Seiya Suzuki is out, Happ batting third actually makes plenty of sense, especially given his experience, switch-hitting, and generally expected level of production. And then, later, when Suzuki is back and/or one of PCA or Ballesteros (or both!) are showing some consistency, you can do something this:

Michael Busch, 1B – L Alex Bregman, 3B – R Pete Crow-Armstrong, CF – L Seiya Suzuki, RF – R Moises Ballesteros, DH – L Nico Hoerner, 2B – R Ian Happ, LF – L Dansby Swanson, SS – R Carson Kelly/Miguel Amaya, C – R

The lefty/righty balance is fantastic, you’ve got your best hitters up top, and you’ve got Ian Happ in the seventh spot, where he can easily be one of the best batters that low in an order.

Eventually, I do think we will get there. But for now, for the reasons stated above, I just don’t see why you’d bother with one of the other options. This is a very long season and just like it always takes time for the bullpen to sort itself out for one reason or another, the lineup is also a work in progress with circumstantial decisions to make on any given day.

But, hey, while we’re here, let me also lay out a vs lefties lineup, because why not.

Nico Hoerner, 2B Alex Bregman, 3B/DH Michael Busch, 1B Seiya Suzuki, RF Pete Crow-Armstrong, CF Ian Happ, LF Dansby Swanson, SS Kelly/Amaya, C – R Matt Shaw, DH/3B

I labeled Matt Shaw as the DH/3B, but I really think he can DH or give almost any other player a half-day of rest by covering their spot in the field. Could be Bregman, could be Suzuki, could be Happ, Hoerner, or even Swanson with Hoerner moving over. Hell, we saw him take some reps at 1B this Spring. So maybe Busch, too.

Of course, eventually, you might hope that Moises Ballesteros is swinging such an incredible bat against all pitchers that you don’t want to take him out, either. But not unlike Happ batting third for now, that seems like something you build UP to, not go for right out of the gate.

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