Commentary: Cubs middle of the lineup needs adjusting |
The Cubs have indeed turned their season around, and in large part, thanks to some of the decisions the Cubs have made regarding their roster. Calling up Mike Tauchman and Christopher Morel, naming Adbert Alzolay the closer and others.
However, one interesting character in the mix is Ian Happ. Happ has spent 90 games in the No. 3 hole but is batting just .239 and slugging a minuscule .365 out of that spot. Compare that to the Braves’ Austin Riley, who has hit third in 109 games this season. He, of course, has driven in 70 runs and is slugging .511 in baseball’s best lineup. Perhaps that isn’t fair so we can look at a different team. How about Nathanial Lowe? He’s also been hitting third for the Rangers for 109 games this season. He has driven in 62 runs and has a slugging percentage of .457 for Texas this year. But you can’t just pick the top teams in the MLB. The Cardinals and White Sox have some of the best players in the MLB batting third in Luis Robert or Paul Goldschmidt/Nolan Arenado. Even the worst team in baseball, Oakland A’s, has a more productive No. 3 hitter. Brant Rooker has played 49 games in the three spot and sports a .484 slugging in those games. In 54 games, the second-to-worst team in MLB Royals’ third hitter Salvador Perez is slugging .481. The number three spot is widely considered to be the lineup’s best hitter. Vlad Guerrero Jr., Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, and Yordan Alvarez are other hitters who hit third in lineups. The point is, the Cubs’ production out of the three-hole has been underwhelming at best. This is not a knock on Ian Happ; he is an All-Star player. He plays golden glove defense in left field and provides a solid MLB at-bat every time he steps up to the plate. Happ has had an up-and-down career to this point. He came up to the big leagues and became known as a high-power, low-contact utility man. After a trip to the minor leagues and strenuous work, he has turned himself into a high on-base, premium defender. His value to the team is underrated. Knowing you have a defender like him every day in left field is a massive sigh of relief for a pitcher. He also walks at an elite clip in the MLB and has one of the top on-base percentages in the MLB — he is not the run producer you need in the three-hole of your lineup. Happ lacks clutch in his system as well. He is hitting a measly .171 with no home runs in situations with two outs and runners in scoring position. Even without two outs, Happ has just one home run all season with runners in scoring position. Take Thursday’s 4-3 loss against New York, for example. The Cubs had runners on and even scratched a run across in the 9th as they tried to stage a comeback. The Mets walked Nico Hoerner, the Cubs 2 hitter, to put two runners on for Happ, who struck out to end the game. The opposing team is supposed to fear your three hitters, which they would if it had been Hoerner, Cody Bellinger, or even Dansby Swanson. But you do know that he is always a threat to get on base, just not always a threat to do damage. So why not adjust the batting order to play to Happ’s strengths more?
