The 2018 Chicago Cubs season was set-up to be a championship season. The very first pitch did nothing to subside those expectations. But as Joe Maddon said with Dexter Fowler, “you go, we go,” and as such, the Cubs and leadoff hitter, Ian Happ, have caused more frustration than optimism since.
I am the president of the “it’s too early to pass judgment” fan club, as several of you that may read this have been on the opposite end of that comment from me. I firmly believe that the only conclusions that can be made are, Kris Bryant is really good at baseball, Javier Baez can make magic out of nothing, and baseball games can last more than nine innings.
Another conclusion that we are close to being able to make is, Ian Happ needs to change something in his approach.
Happ has a world of talent, and when right, he might get be a legit leadoff hitter. Right now Happ and his league-leading 47.2 strikeout percentage needs to sit down.
There is no secret here, the Cubs have had a hard time finding someone that can consistently reach base out of the leadoff spot. Now, I am not in the club that says the team needs a prototypical leadoff hitter. I do, however, think they need to find someone who gets on-base at a high rate. Happ is not that guy, right now.
What if I told you, they have that guy on the roster already?
This is a complete 180 from my previous thoughts, but right now, the best 162 game leadoff man on the team is, Albert Almora Jr. While batting leadoff, Almora is hitting .352 with a .400 OBP. Now this is a small sample size, but at least he is responding to the opportunities, conversely, Happ has seemingly shrunk in these moments.
There is more than just the lack of offensive production. With the lack of consistency from the offense and Happ, there is much more importance on playing great defense. Happ isn’t a very good defensive centerfielder. When you pair him and Kyle Schwarber from center to left, it doesn’t result in a strong defensive outfield. So when the offense might be at a disadvantage, the team is defensively at a disadvantage as well.
Almora fixes that issue also.
He is very possibly the most gifted defensive outfielder the team has – yes I am fully aware Jason Heyward is on the roster – and has performed offensively as well. Almora has an incredible sense for the game, great instincts, and gets a jump on the ball rivaled by only Heyward. He has played more championship level ball than anyone on the roster besides Jon Lester. His knowledge of the game cannot be understated.
Leadoff Spot
So far this season, Cubs leadoff hitters have not faired too well. The team has tried Ben Zobrist in that top spot. While he has given the club great plate appearances, he has a .200 OBP leading off. Happ hasn’t fared much better and has been given 10 games to prove his worth up top. Almora has outperformed both of them in his small amount of chances.
| Leadoff man | ||||
| PA | AVG | OBP | SLG | |
| Ian Happ | 47 | 0.186 | 0.255 | 0.302 |
| Albert Almora | 19 | 0.353 | 0.421 | 0.471 |
| Ben Zobrist | 5 | 0.000 | 0.200 | 0.000 |
I believe it is ok to question decisions made by Joe Maddon. It isn’t disrespectful, nor does it suggest you know more than he does. Hell, Joe himself wants to be asked the question and will gladly answer it. The leadoff hitter is an area which there is a reason to question him. Maybe Happ turns things around, but he has struck out 25 times in 47 PA, that is not good. It has nothing to do with putting a slugger up top, I like that idea. Or to do with not putting a guy that walks a lot up there. It has everything to do with leaving a guy up there failing to hit the ball at a 42.4% clip. That’s third worst in the major leagues.
I don’t care what Schwarber might hit. Albert Almora is the more valuable player. Get over your crush, #cubs, and play the best players.
— Joe Sheehan (@joe_sheehan) March 29, 2018
Joe needs to pencil Almora into the leadoff spot daily. Forget the platoons, I don’t care about Albert’s lifetime splits. He has earned his place. If Joe Sheehan will take Almora over Schwarber, it should be a no-brainer to take Albert over Happ.
