I bet a lot of Chicago Cubs fans were happy to see Ian Happ out of Tuesday night’s starting lineup, but then they immediately got pissed off when realizing who was replacing him in left field. The Tampa Bay Rays had a last-minute pitching change as Drew Rasmussen was scratched because he’s going to the hospital to be with his wife for the birth of their second child. Right-handed pitcher Mason Englert will be the opener.
Happ has either been slugging or striking out through the first 10 games of the season, as the switch-hitter has four home runs and two doubles, leading the everyday players with a .550 slugging %. However, Happ is also No. 1 in strikeouts on the Cubs with 18, which includes 11 in his last 22 plate appearances. Monday’s series opener against the Rays was filled with several moments that were used by Happ’s haters and defenders.
First, Happ missed a ball that led to a run in the third inning. Yet, as bad as it looked, that ball only had a 25% catch probability.
Then, later on, Happ made a great diving catch that saved a run from scoring.
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At the plate, Happ was the only Cubs player to reach base two times, as he walked and doubled. Yet, even after hitting a leadoff double in the sixth, Happ couldn’t stay clear of criticism as he didn’t score on Carson Kelly’s double to right-center field. Luckily, it didn’t end up costing the Cubs because Michael Busch hit a sac-fly, and Happ scored anyway.
We’ll see if it’s a full, off day for Happ, but Cubs fans can’t believe that Craig Counsell is starting Michael Conforto in left field.
Conforto has looked awful at the plate, and although it’s only an 11-plate-appearance sample, it’s been beyond ugly. The left-handed batter is 1-for-9, with five strikeouts and two walks. For some reason, the Cubs are refusing to give Dylan Carlson a start in the outfield early in the season. It might have only been spring training, but you would have thought that Carlson’s good showing in the Cactus League would have bought him at least one start by now, especially when you consider how bad Conforto has looked.
The offense has been brutal through 10 games, so Conforto starting isn’t at the top of the issues, but it certainly isn’t going to make fans any less pissed off.
