WATCH: Cubs rookie Ian Happ goes deep in debut for first major-league hit
Happ was the ninth overall pick in the 2015 draft, the last draft before the Cubs' meteoric rise
By
Mike Axisa
•
1 min read
Saturday afternoon the Chicago Cubs fell to the rival St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium (Cardinals 5, Cubs 3). The Cardinals currently sit atop the NL Central at 20-15. The Cubbies, meanwhile, are in fourth place at 18-18, 2 1/2 games back of St. Louis.
The Cubs are shorthanded right now, as Jason Heyward (finger) is on the disabled list and Jon Jay (back), Addison Russell (shoulder), and Kris Bryant (illness) are all day-to-day. The team needed to make a roster move to add a healthy player, so they called up top prospect Ian Happ.
Happ, 22, was the ninth overall pick in the 2015 amateur draft, the last draft before the Cubs emerged as a superpower. He hit .298/.362/.615 with nine home runs in 26 Triple-A games this season before being called up Saturday. Happ was thrown right to the wolves too. He started in right field and hit second in his first MLB game.
In the seventh inning, Happ rewarded his team's faith in him by hitting his first career big-league home run. The two-run shot was also his first MLB hit. Here's the video:
Overall, the switch-hitting Happ went 1 for 3 with a walk and the home run in Saturday's game. He also made an illegal takeout slide in the fifth inning that cost his team a run.
The Cubs have called up a small army of excellent young players in recent years -- those young players are the primary reason the Cubs are defending World Series champs, of course -- and Happ is the latest to go deep for his first MLB hit.
Happ joins recent Cubs rookies Castro, Baez, Soler, and Contreras in homering for their first MLB hits.
— Gold Coast Bank (@Darth_Stout) May 13, 2017
It is entirely possible Happ's call-up will only be temporary. He might only be around until Jay, Russell, and Bryant get healthy. That said, if he keeps socking dingers, the Cubs will find a way to keep Happ around, especially since he's versatile enough to play second base in addition to all three outfield spots.
