Recently, Duane Pesice of Bleed Cubbie Blue wrote that Happ’s inconsistency at the plate makes him controversial because he is such an all-around great player with Gold Glove defense. Pesice wrote:

“He has long stretches of hitless inadequacy, which are maddening, but he is always on base. “2026 Chicago Cubs player profiles: Ian Happ,” 2/4/26”

At the same time, Andrew Simon of MLB.com writes that “No one is close to Happ in terms of consistency on offense.” “Here’s why you can call Ian Happ ‘Mr. Consistent,’” 1/27/26.

Consistency for the switch-hitting Happ is a double-edged sword. Nowhere is this more obvious than in conflicting opinions about how effective he is as an offensive player. As the leadoff man, he has the distinction of being effective while at the same time, the spot is his toughest challenge.

Happ’s batted balls average balls in play (BABIP) as the leadoff man in 2025 are a marker for his performance:

        84 games
        394 PA’s
        15 doubles
        12 home runs
        50 bases on balls
        .244 batting average
        .266 BABIP

He gets on base by hitting into situations where his speed and athleticism result in a base hit or a home run. He is an excellent opportunist on the bases, making defenses pay for any mistakes and stealing six in 2025 – down from 13 in 2024.

When Happ bats almost anywhere else in the lineup besides leadoff, he hits at or above average; however, what he gains in contact, he loses in power, and most of his homeruns have come out of the leadoff spot. He’s more aggressive when leading off, batting .274 when swinging at the first pitch with seven home runs and a .751 OPS.

Since 2021, Happ has been the model of consistency for the Cubs and projects for more of the same:

Year	Plate Appearances	Home Runs	RBI	Stolen Bases	BABIP	Batting Average	OPS
ZiPS Projection	638	22	79	8	.293	.245	.714
2025	663	23	79	6	.288	.243	.782
2024	657	21	86	13	.299	.243	.762
2023	691	17	84	14	.299	.248	.791
2022	641	17	72	9	.336	.271	.781
2021	535	25	66	9	.281	.226	.757

Happ’s numbers are so consistent, with a few outliers just to prove he’s human. If we except 2021, he’s good for around 650-700 plate appearances a year, with a contact bat that feasts on mistakes.

As a righty against right-handed starters, he hits .261 with an .843 OPS – Mike Trout-like numbers – that is, as long as he’s ahead in the count. When facing a lefty starter or when behind in the count, Happ’s numbers dive, hence his ineffectiveness.

When Happ struggles at the plate, it’s likely to last a month, or in the case of 2025, months. He has the distinction of being equally effective and ineffective at the plate in long, consistent stretches:

Month	No. of Games Played	Home Runs	Batting Average	OPS
March/April	31	3	.265	.722
May	18	1	.243	.684
June	26	9	.208	.779
July	23	3	.179	.638
August	27	3	.258	.835

Happ had a long stretch in June and July where he struggled to hit but still managed to power his way through in June where he hit nine home runs. In July, however, Happ practically fell off the map offensively, only to rebound with a solid August.

Looking at Happ’s season as a macrocosm, Andrew Simon’s description below sums it up:

“The left fielder has been a human metronome over the past four seasons, at least as far as year-to-year performance goes. In fact, he might be the most consistent — or at least the most consistently good — regular player in the Majors over that span.”

Looking at Happ’s season as a microcosm, however, Happ achieves this overall consistency by overcoming long stretches of challenging results at the plate – he’s a beast when he’s got a hitter’s count, especially against ground ball pitchers.

ZiPS projects Happ to hit .245 with 22 homers and a .774 OPS – respectable numbers. With that being said, the Cubs would benefit from Happ outperforming not only his projections but his current level of play on offense. With the addition of Alex Bregman to the lineup, Happ will likely move out of the leadoff spot, perhaps to the third spot behind Bregman, leaving fans to speculate just how many runs Bregman and Happ could combine to produce for the Cubs in 2026.