Chicago Cubs Star Expresses Confidence in Front Office, Teammates

A long-tenured Chicago Cubs player has expressed confidence in the direction the team is heading despite some struggles.

Sep 13, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Chicago Cubs left fielder Ian Happ (8) makes a catch in the third inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. / Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The Chicago Cubs' playoff hopes for the 2024 season are dwindling by the day.

Essentially, it will take an extended run of perfect play just to have a chance to advance and play some October baseball.

The Cubs entered the day six games behind the New York Mets, who are holding on to the final Wild Card spot in the National League. They would also need to leapfrog the Atlanta Braves, who they were five games behind.

Players on the team know their odds of making the postseason aren’t great.

The math isn’t in their favor, but that doesn’t mean they are going to stop trying to win ball games over the last two weeks of the season.

While the book hasn’t yet officially closed on the 2024 campaign, it is dangerously close. Some people are already taking a look into the what the future may hold.

One of the players who could be seeing his window to compete with the franchise beginning to close is Ian Happ.

He made his Major League debut in 2017 with the franchise and has turned into a key player for the team. An All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner, he is one of the longest-tenured players on the squad.

His career began the season after the curse was lifted and the Cubs took home the World Series. Anthony Rizzo, Javy Baez and Kris Bryant were all teammates of his that he saw move on and eventually come back to Wrigley Field as opponents.

Now 30 years old himself, could Happ be walking a similar path in the near future?

His contract runs for only two more seasons before he hits free agency at 32.

Despite what the perception may be about the franchise, he is confident in the front office and the teammates surrounding him will get things on track before a decision has to be made about his future.

“I believe in what our front office is doing,” Happ said, via Patrick Mooney of The Athletic before Friday’s game against the Colorado Rockies. “I believe in the guys in the room, the guys who are going to be here for the next two years after this. I believe in the young talent that’s come up. I believe in what we’ve put together. We had a month and a half, two months of bad performance as a group this year that has put us in the position where we’re (six) games out and looking up at it. It’s not for a lack of effort. I think you’ve seen what the group is capable of in the last two months. We’ll see where it ends up. But I have a lot of belief in the direction of the organization.”

How the team has performed over the last few weeks certainly gives people a feeling of "what if" about the 2024 season.

It will be interesting to see what direction the front office takes this winter as Chicago doesn’t seem far off from being a playoff team.

There were some rumors Happ was going to be on the move ahead of the deadline this year.

Those rumors could pick up again this winter if the front office opts to go a different route.