The Chicago Cubs have been one of the most disappointing teams in all of Major League Baseball in 2024.
At 61-64, the Cubs are on the outside looking in at the real contenders in the National League. They aren't totally out of the playoff picture, currently sitting 5 1/2 games back in the Wild Card hunt, but they would have to play near-perfect baseball from this point forward.
For a team that collapsed down the stretch last season and set its sights on a division title in 2024, this year has been nothing short of a nightmare on the north side of Chicago. But that doesn't mean every member of the team has underperformed.
The Cubs' Ian Happ has had an excellent season in 2024. One of the most productive, yet understated veterans in the league, Happ typically does his job well without much recognition. But on Monday, the recognition came from a national insider.
Bradford Doolittle of ESPN, using a system comparing on-field results to All-Star and MVP recognition, rated Happ the number-one most underrated player in all of MLB based on the past four seasons.
"Happ made the National League All-Star team during his 4.2 bWAR season in 2022, but otherwise has been largely overlooked in the midseason balloting," Doolittle said. "(He) has been more consistently good than outstanding over his career and perhaps that has led to him being taken for granted."
Happ, 30, is in the middle of a typical season by his standards. He owns a .792 OPS, good for 19% above the adjusted league average, stands a good chance to set a new career-high in home runs with 22 at the moment, and plays quality defense in left field.
Doolittle also points out that Happ has won two consecutive Gold Gloves, so it's not as though the eight-year veteran gets no respect from the baseball groupthink. Nonetheless, he's never been in serious contention for MVP, so his winning contributions may go overlooked.
Though the Cubs have been a disappointment on the whole, Happ has done far more to help their success than hurt it this season. However, if Chicago wants to somehow sneak into the playoffs, they would likely need Happ to ascend to levels he's never quite reached before.
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