Chicago Cubs Rookie Slugger’s Latest Award Validates Offseason Trade

The Chicago Cubs rolled the dice a bit to acquire Michael Busch and it has certainly paid off this season.

Sep 15, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch (29) gestures as he rounds the bases on a solo home run in the seventh inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. / Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Few Chicago Cubs fans knew who Michael Busch was when they traded for him and Yency Almonte late last year.

Now, he snapped a two-year drought for the club as he was named the National League Player of the Week on Monday.

Per the Chicago Tribune, he was the first Cubs position player to win the award since Seiya Suzuki won in April 2022.

Busch, the 26-year-old lefty playing his first full Major League season, had a big week as he slammed four home runs and drove in 11 runs with a .478 batting average. He also had a 1.087 slugging percentage in six games, with two doubles, a walk and seven runs scored.

For 141 games, Busch has a slash line of .255/.337/.450/.787 with 20 home runs and 63 RBI.

It’s not a bad payoff for the deal, as the Cubs traded two prospects, left-handed pitcher Jackson Ferris and outfielder Zyhir Hope to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Busch and Almonte, the latter of which is out for the season with an injury.

Busch was the Dodgers’ No. 2 prospect who showed he was able to play multiple infield positions but had an anemic slash line of .167/.247/.292/.539 in 27 MLB games last season.

But there was some question about where Busch would play when he arrived. He could play second base, but the Cubs had Nico Hoerner. He could play either corner infield spot, but the Cubs seemed committed to giving Christopher Morel some time at first base.

That experiment didn’t last long. After six weeks of the regular season, he led NL rookies in home runs and RBI and was an early Rookie of the Year candidate, along with teammate Shota Imanaga.

Now, with Isaac Paredes at third base and Morel no longer with the team, Busch would seem to have a solid spot for 2025 and beyond.

He was the Dodgers’ first-round pick in 2019 and he hit 79 minor-league home runs before the Dodgers brought him up. He showed there that he had the ability to hit for power.

While Chicago could still take a swing at a free agent at first base like the New York Mets’ Pete Alonso, the emergence of Busch as a consistent producer — and a newly-minted NL weekly award winner — makes it much less necessary for the Cubs to mount a full pursuit.

Plus, with Busch under team control and Hoerner, Paredes and shortstop Dansby Swanson all under contract or under team control, the Cubs have an intact infield heading into next season.