Because he’s been with the Chicago Cubs for so long, because his performance divides fans for reasons that always elude me, because he’s a veteran leader on the team, and because he has been struggling badly in a prominent spot in the lineup during this terrible stretch for the Cubs, it felt a bit like Ian Happ had become the avatar for all things bad about the offense lately. It certainly hasn’t ALL been Happ, but I do wonder if he ever felt a little more weight or pressure to turn a corner.
For those reasons, it just felt so perfect that Ian Happ, who’d already driven two in earlier in the game, got THE moment last night when the Cubs finally ended the ten-game losing streak. The Cubs tacked on from here, but this is when they took the lead for good:
IAN HAPP! 3-RUN HOME RUN ? pic.twitter.com/yfwgLKc7av
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) May 28, 2026If, God willing, the Cubs turn things back around from here and get themselves back to the team they can be, then we’ll probably always point to that Ian Happ homer as the moment that started it.
None of which is to say that Happ’s recent struggles are definitely over, much less that the entire team is now going to explode. I’m just saying that it felt like a big moment, and it felt like the right guy to have it.
Ian Happ rarely shows this much emotiongod damn he needed that pic.twitter.com/BBvWM6mUqT
— The Windy City Breakdown (@wcb_pod) May 28, 2026W pic.twitter.com/Ad7rKKvAxK
— Elise Menaker (@EliseMenaker) May 28, 2026The funny thing about all of this is that, on the season, Ian Happ’s numbers ONCE AGAIN look pretty much like they always do. He’s hitting .215/.346/.436 with a 123 wRC+ and a .346 wOBA, and guess what his career line is? .246/.343/.446/117 wRC+/.341 wOBA. He just does what he does, even if the way he gets there is unpredictable.
Speaking of which, I don’t know that Happ can KEEP producing at this level with a 32.1% strikeout rate, but he’s paired it with a huge spike in walks (15.8%) and power (.221 ISO, 15.8% barrel). Maybe he’s just become more of a three true outcome guy, and although that’s not always fun to watch, it does yield productivity (and a valuable player when it comes from a Gold Glove left fielder). I’ve been waiting for those trends to shift back closer to his career norms – because guys rarely change this much at age 31 – but we haven’t seen it yet.
The Statcast sliders can be overused, but in this case, they really do show you how extremely different Ian Happ – a long-established, veteran hitter – is from 2025:
To 2026:
Yet the total offensive value is virtually identical (70th percentile last year, 69th percentile this year). More than one way to get to the same value, but wow. Sooo much more barrel-hunting this year, at the expense of so many other layers. As I said, I just find this fascinating, and I look forward to seeing how it plays out.
Meanwhile, last night was Happ’s first game without a strikeout since May 14, the first game in the losing streak. Hopefully he’s about to go on a scorcher.
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