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36 articles
CHC • Infielder • #29
3 months ago
The Cubs have made only two lineup changes all series, dropping Ian Happ from third to fifth after Game 1 and initially using Justin Turner over Michael Busch against a left-handed opener in Game 3. Tonight’s lineup: Busch (1B), Nico Hoerner (2B), Kyle Tucker (DH), Seiya Suzuki (RF), Happ (LF), Carson Kelly (C), Pete Crow-Armstrong (CF), Dansby Swanson (SS) and Matt Shaw (3B).
CHC • Infielder • #29
3 months ago
Chicago will attempt to stave off elimination for the second straight contest at Wrigley Field by rolling out the exact same lineup, which features Busch in the leadoff spot to face Brewers ace Freddy Peralta. The 27-year-old slugger blasted a solo homer — his third postseason round-tripper — in the Cubs’ pivotal Game 3 win. Here’s the full lineup: Busch (1B), Nico Hoerner (2B), Kyle Tucker (DH), Seiya Suzuki (RF), Ian Happ (LF), Carson Kelly (C), Pete Crow-Armstrong (CF), Dansby Swanson (SS) and Matt Shaw (3B).
Source: MLB.com
CHC • Infielder • #29
3 months ago
Busch tied the game at 1-1 with his solo blast off a wholly ineffective Quinn Priester, and Chicago would score three more runs in the first frame. The 27-year-old has homered three times in the playoffs, and is slashing a healthy .300/.364/.750 in the process. Chicago remains alive, but faces another must-win game Thursday in Game 4.
CHC • Infielder • #29
4 months ago
The Cubs advance to face the division-rival Brewers in the NLDS. Busch led off the first inning with a single but was erased on a fielder’s choice. He also reached on an infield single to start the fifth inning before getting erased on a double play. The 27-year-old slugger then tagged Padres closer Robert Suarez for a 400-foot solo shot in the seventh inning that tacked on a valuable insurance run.
CHC • Infielder • #29
4 months ago
Busch led off the home half of the first inning with a single but was erased on a fielder’s choice. He also reached on an infield single to start the fifth inning before getting erased on a double play. The 27-year-old slugger then tagged Padres’ closer Robert Suarez for a 400-foot (107.0 mph EV) solo shot in the seventh inning that tacked on a valuable insurance run. The Cubs will now head to Milwaukee to take on the Brewers in the National League Division Series.
CHC • Infielder • #29
4 months ago
Busch got a little wind assistance on both homers, but that’s quite a day. It’s the 13th time this season a player has had four extra-base hits in a game. No Cub had done it since Willson Contreras on May 11, 2018. He’s up to 34 homers, the fourth-highest total ever for a Cubs first baseman. Derrek Lee had 46 in 2005 and 35 in 2009, and Ernie Banks had 37 in 1962.
CHC • Infielder • #29
4 months ago
Busch put the Cubs on the board in the third inning, taking Zack Littell deep for a solo home run. It was the 30th homer of the season for 27-year-old first baseman as he eclipses the 30-homer mark for the first time. He’s slashing .255/.335/.495 with 82 RBI across 564 plate appearances.
CHC • Infielder • #29
4 months ago
Busch took Pirates ace Paul Skenes deep to open the contest — his 29th round-tripper of the season — as part of an impressive three-hit performance out of the leadoff spot. The 27-year-old first baseman has gone deep in four of his last five contests and is on the precipice of eclipsing the 30-homer plateau for the first time in his career.
CHC • Infielder • #29
4 months ago
Busch’s 28th homer of the season got the Cubs on the board in the third inning, and it came off a mostly ineffective Braxton Ashcraft. Busch has also driven in 78 runs, and he’s done it while posting a very solid .819 OPS in his second season with the Cubbies.
CHC • Infielder • #29
5 months ago
The 27-year-old slugger briefly gave the Cubs a 3-2 advantage with his 412-foot (105.8 mph EV) solo shot on the 11th pitch of his at-bat against Logan Webb to lead off the sixth inning. That would wind up being the extent of their offense in the ballgame though. Busch is quietly having a terrific season for the Cubs, slashing .260/.340/.493 with a career-high 25 homers, 75 RBI and four stolen bases.
CHC • Infielder • #29
5 months ago
Busch’s double with the bases loaded in the third was the Cubs’ lone hit off Jacob Misiorowski. He has five RBI in his last two games and 12 RBI in spite of a .185 average during August.
CHC • Infielder • #29
5 months ago
Busch smacked a go-ahead RBI double off of Brandon Woodruff in the second inning, giving the Cubs a lead they would never relinquish. He also plated an insurance run with a ground out in the sixth inning that made it 4-1. The 27-year-old first baseman is having a very strong season offensively, slashing .258/.339/.494 with 24 homers, 70 RBI and four stolen bases in 454 plate appearances.
CHC • Infielder • #29
5 months ago
Busch scored the first run of the game in the first inning and then broke things wide open with a 374-foot home run off Andre Pallante that left the bat at 106.7 mph. The 27-year-old is now up to 22 home runs and 64 RBI with a .266/.351/.505 slash line. He still sits against lefties and doesn’t steal many bases, but there are few other complaints about his game from a fantasy perspective. He’s turning into a reliable and valuable 1B option.
CHC • Infielder • #29
6 months ago
Busch has homered twice in seven games as a leadoff man, but he’s just 5-for-30 with a 12/1 K/BB ratio from that spot. If the Cubs want to try something different there, they could go back to Ian Happ or give Nico Hoerner a shot.
CHC • Infielder • #29
6 months ago
Busch has been bumped up to the leadoff spot in Chicago’s lineup for the third consecutive game with Ian Happ continuing to bat in the middle of the order. The 27-year-old first baseman has put together an outstanding season so far, hitting .287/.374/.545 with 19 homers, 59 RBI and four steals through 91 games. He may lose out on some run-producing opportunities as the Cubs’ table-setter, but that should be offset by an uptick in the runs scored department.
Source: MLB.com
CHC • Infielder • #29
7 months ago
Busch has seven hits, including four homers, the last two days. His homer today was the first by a lefty off Matthew Liberatore this season. Busch is typically platooned with Justin Turner, and he came into the day just 6-for-43 against lefties this season, but yesterday’s massive game kept him in the lineup for this one. He’s up to sixth in the majors with a .939 OPS, and it’s going to be very difficult to keep him off the NL All-Star team,
CHC • Infielder • #29
7 months ago
Busch homered in each of his first two at-bats off Miles Mikolas as the Cubs set a franchise record with eight long balls. Seven of them were hit in the first three innings and Busch’s first two were absolutely crushed. They combined to travel 836 feet and each came against fastballs that were grooved right down the middle. Then, he hit a cheapie in the seventh inning off John King, but never got another plate appearance for a chance at what would’ve been a historic fourth homer. All four of his batted balls were hit at least 103 mph and he’s quietly been one of the best hitters in the National League to this point with 19 home runs, 59 RBI, and a .919 OPS. Overall, this has been an incredible breakout season for the 27-year-old first baseman.
CHC • Infielder • #29
7 months ago
The 109.6-mph liner to right in the second innings was Busch’s first ever homer in Busch Stadium. He later added a 106.3-mph single off Andre Pallante. Busch isn’t going to be an NL All-Star unless a couple of first basemen drop out, but he does have the numbers; he’s batting .311/.386/.608 with six homers in June, elevating his season OPS to .869.
CHC • Infielder • #29
7 months ago
Busch drew a walk to lead off the second inning and scored on a groundout before taking Emmerson Hancock deep for a three-run blast in the third to blow the game open. The 27-year-old slugger is up to 12 homers while hitting .272/.367/.509 with 44 RBI across 267 plate appearances.
CHC • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
There’s nothing wrong with the 27-year-old first baseman, he’s simply getting a breather with star southpaw Tarik Skubal toeing the slab for the Tigers. Justin Turner will start in his place at first base and will bat eighth for the Cubs on Friday evening.
Source: Chicago Cubs
CHC • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
Busch has five hits, including two homers, in two games this month, and his OPS is back up to .895 after a down month in May. It’s going to be really difficult for him to make the All-Star team in a league that also has Freddie Freeman, Pete Alonso, Bruce Harper and Matt Olson at first base, but he’ll deserve consideration if he maintains his current pace.
CHC • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
The Cubs faced lefties in five of seven games prior to today, and Busch sat in favor of Justin Turner all five times. Still, the bench time doesn’t seem to be bothering him. It’d be hard to blame him for feeling snubbed. Not only is he being platooned, but he’s also been dropped in the lineup against righties because of Pete Crow-Armstrong’s success. Meanwhile, he’s hitting .266/.366/.486, giving him about a 140 OPS+.
CLE • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
The Guardians needed some extra minor league infield depth in light of their injuries. Turconi, a 15th-round pick out of Wake Forest in 2022, was let go by the Blue Jays earlier his season after opening up 3-for-23 in Triple-A. He’s a career .248/.365/.360 hitter in 247 minor league games.
LAD • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Monday that Kopech will need at least three more rehab outings before potentially returning to Los Angeles’ bullpen. The hard-throwing 29-year-old has been on the shelf since spring training working his way back from a shoulder impingement.
Source: Matthew Moreno
LAD • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
Two of the three outs that Kopech recorded in the outing came via the strikeout and he threw 10 of his 14 total pitches for strikes. His fastball touched 99.7 mph twice during the ballgame. That’s a stark contrast to Friday’s appearance in which he walked all five hitters that he faced in his first rehab outing. It’s unclear how many more tune-ups he’ll need in the minor leagues before the Dodgers feel comfortable activating him from the injured list.
Source: Fabian Ardaya
LAD • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
Five walks on 23 pitches is scary stuff. Just one of the 23 was swung at, and it was fouled off. Hopefully, it will quickly prove to be aberration. Kopech has been sidelined by a shoulder impingement since the start of the season.
LAD • Infielder • #29
8 months ago
Kopech will work an inning as an opener in his first outing back. The 29-year-old is eligible to come off the 60-day injured list at the end of May, so there’s a decent chance he’ll be ready to help the Los Angeles bullpen for the first time in 2025 right around that timeframe.
Source: Eric Stephen
CHC • Infielder • #29
9 months ago
Busch doubled the Cubs’ lead from 4-0 to 8-0 with a bases-loaded homer — better known as a grand slam — off Quinn Priester in the second inning. He went hitless for the rest of the game, but if you hit a grand slam, you had a good day. Busch has homered six times, driven in 22 runs and forged an OPS of .894 over the first fifth of the season.
LAD • Infielder • #29
9 months ago
The 29-year-old right-hander has started facing live hitters at the team’s spring training complex in Arizona. Given the fact that he was recently shifted to the 60-day injured list, Kopech won’t be eligible to return until the end of May so the Dodgers are going to take their time as they build him back up on his rehab assignment.
Source: Fabian Ardaya
LAD • Infielder • #29
9 months ago
The 29-year-old right-hander has started facing live hitters at the team’s spring training complex in Arizona. Given the fact that he was recently shifted to the 60-day injured list, Kopech won’t be eligible to return until the end of May so the Dodgers are going to take their time as they build him back up on his rehab assignment.
Source: Fabian Ardaya