The pressure will always be ramped up on a high-priced free agent coming to a new team with World Series aspirations, and while Chicago Cubs fans were patient at first, things started to get a bit uncomfortable with Alex Bregman at the midpoint of the 2026 season. The third baseman wasn’t providing much on offense, becoming one of the poster boys for the team’s overall struggles hitting with runners in scoring position, and more troubling was Bregman’s lack of power, as he posted a meager .335 slugging % through June 28.
That was Bregman’s low point of the season, which also came during a game against the Milwaukee Brewers that drew a ton of fan backlash after the veteran did not run out of a ground ball that was bobbled in the middle of the infield. He was slashing .239/.336/.335 with only six home runs and 27 RBI in 82 games. Certainly not what Cubs fans were expecting when Bregman signed his five-year, $175 million contract in the offseason.
But Bregman has once again proven that his work ethic and ability to adjust during the season are what make him a very good baseball player because, believe it or not, the Cubs’ third baseman hasn’t only been the team’s best hitter since the All-Star break, Bregman’s been the best hitter in MLB.
In Friday’s series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Bregman was 3-for-4 at the plate. The right-handed hitter launched his 25th home run of the season and elevated his OPS to 1.039 in September.
🔥 Subscribe to the Untold Chicago YouTube channel to hear Chicago legends tell stories you’ve never seen in headlines — real moments, real experiences, straight from the athletes themselves.
Since the All-Star break, Bregman has a slash line of .304/.378/.613 with 16 home runs and a 171 wRC+. Those are the top offensive numbers in MLB dating back to July 17, ahead of Rafael Devers and Pete Crow-Armstrong, who comes in at a 164 wRC+ since the midsummer classic.
Oh, and while this post is about how great Bregman has been during the past couple of months, we also can’t ignore that Seiya Suzuki has been a top-10 hitter.
That’s three Cubs players in the top-10 of MLB, led by Bregman, who at one point this season was being called the worst free agent in franchise history.
Overall, Bregman has been a top-10 position player in MLB despite his slow first half. He’s up to a 4.9 fWAR, tied with Brice Turang for sixth-best. Among third basemen, Bregman is No. 1 alongside Junior Caminero.
The offense has come alive in the second half for Bregman, but one consistent aspect of his game has been his defense, which raises his overall value. He ranks first at his position in Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average with 13 and 8, respectively.
Turns out, Bregman has been exactly the player the Cubs thought they were getting when they signed him to the second-largest deal in franchise history.
