PEORIA, Ariz. When David Ross manager David Ross put together his first series of the spring on Monday, he mentioned Anthony Rizzo in the first place. This is the same Rizzo who once declared himself in a familiar and humorous way as the greatest hit of all time.
No, there is no controversy surrounding Chicago.
There is a risk of reading too much into Spring Training setups, especially when games start and veterans are gradually working on the mix. The Cubs’ Cactus League start was a day off for oncoming Ian Happ, who took the lead last season and will stay there.
“Ian gets the opportunity to continue the role,” Ross said ahead of his team’s 1-0 win over the Padres. “It was a man who had a phenomenal year for the shortened season. He is still growing and discovering his strengths and weaknesses. I can see that he is getting better and better.”
At the start of Spring Training a year ago, Ross quickly declared Kris Bryant a first-time lead role. The driver liked the idea of Bryant’s mixture of power, basic ability and basic running on top of the order, and the star third baseman was on board the experiment.
The decision was made before the COVID-19 pandemic stopped the sport, leading to a disintegrating year with a shortened season. And during the 60-game sprint, Bryant was never at full strength. A variety of setbacks had an impact on his performance and time on the field, creating an opportunity for Happ.
Happ was in ninth place on the opening day on July 24 last season and launched a home game in a win over the Brewers. With such an emphasis on every win, Ross had to play the hot hand. On August 18, Happ was installed as the no. 1 hit, and he responds with a homer, two hits and two walks in his first game.
“[One thing] I really appreciate it about Rossy, because he’s going to make you walk there and keep you going, “Happ said. It was just a little bit different than in the past when I took the lead, and I think that’s what led to the consistent success of last year. ‘
Happ has said several times that he is the “burden” to distract from some of the Cubs’ other victims. To that end, Chicago has covered a kind of revolving door – in terms of staff and production – in the role of table over the past few years.
Keep in mind that the Cubs hit the lead from 2017 to 19 by 17 players (as far as the start is concerned). This comes after Dexter Fowler was an igniter during Chicago’s order to the World Series glory in ’16. Since Fowler’s retirement, the North Siders have been looking for consistency in the work.
Here’s a look at the Cubs’ lead production over the past five years:
2016: .267 / .381 / .434, 123 wRC +
2017: .246 / .324 / .422, 94 wRC +
2018: .302 / .366 / .454. 121 wRC +
2019: .212 / .294 / .383, 77 wRC +
2020: .211 / .307 / .418, 96 wRC +
Last year’s numbers are slightly misleading, as Bryant started with a .177 / .271 / .323 dash in his 16 as the leading man. Happ started 37 games in the role and hit .239 / .333 / .486 with a 119 wRC +. In 275 appearances in his career as a forward, Happ recorded a .809 OPS with 15 homers.
Last season, Happ scored .258 with 12 homers, 28 RBIs and a .866 OPS in 57 games, but in the last few weeks his overall performance has taken a toll.
Happ was struck in the eye by a nasty foul ball in Pittsburgh on September 3, missed a day and then belted two homers in his return on September 5 in the start of a double header against the Cardinals. Including the second game of the day, the midfielder hit .153 / .247 / .181 in 81 PAs for the rest of the regular season.
According to Happ, the eye issue is more of a mental setback than a physical one.
“It was definitely a difficult period of three weeks to end the year,” he said. “The eye was something that was a challenge, and more than anything, a mental challenge. Because if something like that happens, especially something that’s really important to your game, doubt can creep in pretty easily when things start to go sideways.”
Between the season and playoffs, Happ said he could use the undertime to check what was bothering him. What he found had more to do with the timing of his swing than anything else.
“I could see that there were problems being on time,” Happ explained. “I was able to correct the headline in our playoffs there. And I felt really good about making the adjustments. And this year’s goal will be to make it faster and faster mentally.”
As the forerunner, it will also be essential.
While Happ is a switch, Ross has some flexibility in how he can proceed with the setup from there. Whether Ross places right-handed Bryant second or Rizzo’s left-hand bat in that spot, the driver will have different ways of alternating right and left for balance.
‘We sit down [Happ] “At the top of the series to get in front of a few horses at the base,” Ross said. “As long as everyone stays healthy, we will work backwards from him.”