Happ went 1-for-2 with two walks and a run scored in Thursday's win over the Brewers.
Dansby Swanson starred for the Cubs with three hits in his team debut, but Happ was also effective from the No. 3 spot in the lineup. The outfielder batted a career-best .271 last season, which coincided with a career-low 23.2 percent strikeout rate. If Happ continues to show improved plate discipline, including taking walks, he should be in for another strong campaign in 2023.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Hits first spring home run
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Happ went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Sunday's Cactus League game against the Brewers.
Happ hit his first Cactus League home run in 22 at-bats, and he's now batting a robust .364 this spring with a 1.007 OPS. The outfielder delivered 17 long balls and a .782 OPS for the Cubs last season, and he's primed to serve as a key offensive piece for the team again in 2023. Happ may also bat leadoff on occasion this year, though he'll likely spend more time in a run-producing spot, with Nico Hoerner typically hitting first.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Could hit leadoff on occasion
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Happ may bat leadoff on occasion in 2023, though Nico Hoerner looks like the primary option for the role, Tony Andracki of Marquee Sports Network reports.
Hoerner has batted leadoff most frequently so far in Cactus League action, and manager David Ross seems to like the infielder as his tablesetter. However, Happ does have experience batting first during his tenure with the Cubs. Last year, he spent most of his time in the No. 3 spot, which set Happ up to record a career-high 72 RBI.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Agrees to one-year deal
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Happ signed a one-year, $10.85 million deal with the Cubs on Friday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
Happ's deal with the Cubs means he avoided arbitration and will now be a free agent following the 2023 season. He slashed .271/.342/.440 in the 2022 campaign, while accumulating 17 home runs and 72 RBI. The 28-year-old also went 9-for-13 on stolen base attempts. He projects to start in left field entering the year.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Three hits in win
Rotowire
Happ went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Sunday's win over the Reds.
Happ recorded his first three-hit game since Aug. 25 with his 42nd double of the season and two singles Sunday. Happ also recorded an RBI via a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the first inning to give him 72 on the season, a career high. Through 155 games this season, Happ is slashing .275/.347/.447.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Tallies two hits, two runs
Rotowire
Happ went 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored in Friday's win over the Reds.
Happ has been solid all season for the Cubs, as he's now batting .272, and he leads the team with 72 runs scored. He also paces the squad with 71 RBI, and his 17 home runs are good for third. Happ has cut down on strikeouts this year, which has helped him produce fairly consistently since Opening Day, and the .272 average would be a new career best.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Steals ninth base
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Happ went 2-for-5 with a double, a stolen base, a run scored and an RBI in an 8-3 win Sunday in Pittsburgh.
Happ doubled in the fifth and drove in a run with a single, stole second and scored in the seventh. It was the ninth stolen base of the year for the Mt. Lebanon native and his second this month. He continues to dominate his hometown club and has a .316/.405/.558 line in 310 career plate appearances against the Pirates.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Resting Wednesday
Rotowire
Happ isn't starting Wednesday against the Mets.
Happ started the last four games and went 4-for-14 with a home run, two doubles, three runs, two RBI and a stolen base. Nelson Velazquez (illness) will return to the lineup and start in left field Wednesday.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Takes deGrom deep in win
Rotowire
Happ went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Mets.
Happ got the second inning off with a bang as he took a 3-2 fastball from Jacob deGrom 407 feet to right field for his 17th long ball of the season. The solo shot got the Cubs on the board on their way to handing deGrom his second loss. Happ also recorded a base hit in the top of the fourth. The multi-hit effort was a positive sign for the switch hitter, as he had gone just 2-for-18 in his previous five games.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Doubles twice Saturday
Rotowire
Happ went 2-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI in Saturday's loss to the Giants.
The Cubs had just seven hits and two runs, but Happ still managed to have a productive night. The outfielder has had a solid season with an .802 OPS and 65 RBI across 135 games, and he's managed to up his batting average to .274 after hitting just .226 in 2021. Chicago is in a rebuilding mode, and Happ and Willson Contreras (ankle) have emerged as their clear veteran leaders this year.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Riding pine Friday
Rotowire
Happ isn't starting Friday against the Giants.
Happ is getting a breather after he went 1-for-15 with a solo home run, a walk and four strikeouts over the last four games. Nelson Velazquez will take over in left field and bat seventh.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Hits 16th home run
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Happ went 1-for-4 with a walk and a solo home run in Tuesday's 9-3 win over the Reds.
Happ got the scoring started for Chicago in the first inning with his 16th home run of the season. With just 27 team games remaining, the outfielder seems unlikely to match the career-best 25 long balls he recorded last year. However, Happ has increased his average and OPS in 2022 compared to 2021, so he's arguably been a more complete offensive player.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Scores twice on two hits
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Happ went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored in Saturday's loss to the Cardinals.
Happ continued his strong recent play, as he's now batting .333 over his last 10 games with two home runs, five doubles and nine runs scored. The outfielder has been a bright spot for the rebuilding Cubs, boosting his OPS to a solid .810 mark with the two-hit performance. He should continue to produce from the heart of Chicago's order.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Scores twice in loss
Rotowire
Happ went 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored in Sunday's 9-7 loss to the Brewers.
Happ keeps chugging along, as this was his third multi-hit effort in his last four games. He's easily set a new career high with 34 doubles this season, and his .279 batting average would be a new career best if it holds up. Happ has established himself as a fairly reliable, veteran presence in the middle of Chicago's lineup, giving him plenty of fantasy appeal the rest of the way.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Two-homer night
Rotowire
Happ went 2-for-4 with a pair of two-run home runs in a 4-3 extra-inning win over the Brewers on Friday.
Happ drove in all four of the Cubs' runs to give his team the close one-run victory. The two long balls give him 15 on the year to go along with 62 RBI. Happ's career-high RBI total came in 2017 when he accumulated 68. The 28-year-old left fielder is on pace to set a new career-best RBI mark with a little over a month remaining in the season.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Solo shot in loss
Rotowire
Happ went 1-for-4 with one homer, one RBI and one run scored in Sunday's loss against the Brewers.
Happ got the Cubs off to an early 1-0 lead with a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning against Brandon Woodruff, but it wasn't enough as the Cubs went on to lose 5-2. This was Happ's fourth round tripper in his last nine games and his 13th on the season. He now owns a .279/.353/.452 slash line and leads the Cubs in hits to go along with seven stolen bases.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Not included in Tuesday's lineup
Rotowire
Happ is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Nationals.
Happ went 14-for-38 (.368) with three homers over his last 10 games, but manager David Ross decided to hold him out with the Cubs employing an all-righty lineup against Nationals lefty Patrick Corbin. Nelson Velazquez will take Happ's place in left field.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Goes deep twice Monday
Rotowire
Happ went 2-for-3 with a walk and two solo home runs in Monday's loss to the Nationals.
Happ wore out Washington starter Josiah Gray, taking the righty deep in the first and fifth innings. It was Happ's first game this year with multiple home runs. The Chicago outfielder now has 12 long balls this season to go with a strong .815 OPS. Happ perhaps surprisingly stayed put at the trade headline, and he seems primed to finish the year strong for the Cubs.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: Picks up four RBI
Rotowire
Happ went 2-for-5 with a three-run homer and an RBI single in Saturday's win over Cincinnati.
Happ sent Nick Madrigal home on a single in the fifth inning, then sent Madrigal and Willson Contreras home on a three-run shot in the seventh. It was Happ's first home run of the month, his first since July 12, and his 10th of the season. The two-hit outing gives Happ four such performances in 10 games this month and extends his hit streak to five games. During that streak, Happ has gone 8-for-22, improving his batting average from .274 to .280 in the process.
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Cubs' Ian Happ: On bench for nightcap
Rotowire
Happ isn't starting the second game of Thursday's doubleheader against the Cardinals.
Happ started the first game of the twin bill and went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. He'll get a breather for the nightcap while Nelson Velazquez takes over in left field and bats sixth.
