'He is the Chicago Cubs': Happ reflects on career after what may have been last game with team

CHICAGO – Ian Happ kept his small tradition going during the Cubs’ final home game of the regular season. As he has done in past years, the Cubs’ long-time outfielder wrapped a baseball in cash and threw it to the fans in Wrigley Field’s left-field bleachers. The first round of cold ones were on him.

The note scribbled on this year’s baseball carried a slightly different message:

“Thank you for 10 incredible years, for the positivity and unwavering support.”

Happ left the ballpark without knowing if that will be the last baseball he tosses into the bleachers as a member of the Cubs. The veteran outfielder is entering free agency after a decade in the big leagues with the only organization he has known, adding another layer to the feeling of missed opportunity that permeated through Petco Park on Wednesday.

With the Cubs’ two-game sweep at the hands of the Padres in the National League Wild Card Series, thoughts quickly turned to the offseason and the potential exits of a lengthy list of players in the room. Happ, in particular, left a number of teammates emotional as they considered that he may no longer be a part of the group.

“That’s a tough one,” said Dansby Swanson, who could only get those four words out as he fought back tears for 16 seconds on Wednesday night.

“He’s meant a lot to me,” Swanson finally continued. “I think he truly embodies what it means to wear the jersey. And I know he would probably never say that himself, but the tradition and legacy that I feel like he’s carried on from that '16 team, just the lessons that he has learned, he’s taught me a lot.

“He’s one of my longest friends that I’ve had here, so yeah, that probably speaks enough for itself. He embodies the Cubs more than anyone I know. He’s a big reason why I’m here, and I’m very thankful for him.”

Words like that meant a lot to Happ.

“That’s very nice,” he said. “I wanted to be an example for this franchise and wear it on my chest. I feel like I’ve done that, and I’m proud of that.”

The Cubs selected Happ with the ninth overall pick in the 2015 Draft and he reached the Majors by May of '17. Between, he watched as a Minor Leaguer as Chicago started to change the culture and expectations for the organization. Happ arrived with the last core that won the '16 World Series, lasted through a brief rebuild, and grew into a leader for this current team that reached the playoffs in the past two seasons.

Along the way, Happ embraced both the city of Chicago and the history of the Cubs, and felt he had a responsibility to pass on things he learned from the likes of Anthony Rizzo, Ben Zobrist, Jon Lester and Jason Heyward, among others, from the last core.

“Happer, he is the Chicago Cubs,” said center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong. “I know he loves this place and he kind of helped teach me how to love this place and play here. He’s played a very big role in this version of me so far up to this point.”

On the field, Happ has played in 1,295 games in his 10 seasons with Chicago, making an All-Star team in '22 and winning a Gold Glove for his work in left four times ('22-25). He is the only outfielder in Cubs history to have at least three Gold Gloves, and a fifth award is not out of the question for his showing this season, either.

Happ has the most home runs for a switch-hitter (197) in Cubs history and sits one shot outside the Top 10 career leaders for the franchise. He has topped 20 homers in six seasons, and is one of just nine Cubs players with at least 190 homers and 600 walks, joining Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Ryne Sandberg, Ron Santo, Gabby Hartnett, Sammy Sosa, Bill Nicholson and Rizzo.

“[He] truly embraced what it is to be a Cub in a really special way,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said on Friday. “We’ve grown to have a really, really great relationship. And I probably respect the way he plays baseball and thinks about baseball as much as anyone I’ve been around.”

Both Happ and right fielder Seiya Suzuki are set to become free agents, giving Hoyer plenty to think about in the coming weeks and months. Retaining both is unlikely, but Hoyer said “everything is on the table” at this point. He planned to sit down with Happ later this month to discuss the situation.

Happ was asked if he would like to return in '27.

“All I can say is I love being a Cub,” Happ said. “I’ve loved my time. I’ve loved the place, the people, Wrigley Field, the fan base. And it’s been truly special. I don’t think there’s a better place in baseball to play.”