Cardinal crusher: Did Busch have best year EVER vs. St Louis?

This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

CHICAGO -- Given that the history between the Cubs and Cardinals can be traced back into the 19th century, there is a wealth of events fueling one of sport’s biggest rivalries.

Hack Wilson going after a heckling fan in 1928. Fergie Jenkins going toe-to-toe with Bob Gibson on Opening Day in ‘71. The Ryne Sandberg Game in ‘84. Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa chasing down the single-season home run record in ‘98. The 2015 National League Division Series. St. Louis’ sweep of Chicago late in ‘19. The London Series in ‘23.

Now, you can add what Michael Busch did to the Cardinals throughout ‘25 to the list. There is a case to be made that the Cubs’ first baseman authored, pound-for-pound, the greatest single-season offensive performance in history against St. Louis.

“Anytime you can do it against anybody [it’s cool], honestly,” Busch said in September. “But from a fan base perspective, being able to do it against your rival makes it a little sweeter.”

THE STATS

Let’s start with the breakdown of Busch’s overall showing against St. Louis last season. In 12 games, the first baseman hit .438 (21-for-48) with a .481 on-base percentage, 1.146 slugging percentage and 1.627 OPS in 52 plate appearances. Within that, Busch compiled nine home runs, five doubles, one triple, 17 RBIs, 16 runs and 55 total bases.

THE FEATS

Busch’s signature game against the Cardinals was on July 4, when he launched three homers as part of a club-record, eight-homer afternoon for the North Siders. In that 11-3 win, he had four hits, five RBIs and 13 total bases. It was the third three-homer game in Cubs history against the Cardinals, joining Moises Alou (2003) and Hank Leiber (1939). Here’s a wild fact: all three of those games happened on the Fourth of July.

In a 7-3 win on Sept. 27, Busch again finished with 13 total bases and four hits, including a double, triple and two home runs. He was a single shy of a cycle in the eighth inning, when Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol called for Busch to be intentionally walked. The Wrigley Field faithful unleashed a raucous round of boos that rocked the old ballpark.

“I guess I’d be a little bit sick of watching him hit a lot of homers and all that kind of stuff, too,” Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson quipped after the game.

THE FACTS

When you dive into numbers, Busch’s showing starts to look not only like one of the best performances by a Cubs batter in the long, storied rivalry with the Cardinals, but one of the single greatest one-year outbursts against St. Louis ever.

• Using a minimum of 50 plate appearances, Busch’s .438 average is the third-highest mark in a season against the Cardinals in Cubs history, trailing only Rogers Hornsby (.506 in 1929) and Lenny Randle (.469 in 1980). Busch ranks 31st in MLB history, while Hornsby holds the overall record.

• Busch’s 1.146 slugging percentage and 1.627 OPS are both the single-season franchise record and MLB record (min. 50 PAs) against the Cardinals. Hornsby’s incredible 1929 showing checks in at second for Chicago (.938 SLG and 1.508 OPS), while Cincinnati’s Scott Schebler is second on the list for all MLB hitters (1.022 SLG and 1.522 OPS in 2017).

• Busch is the only Cubs batter to have at least 13 total bases twice in a game in the same season – let alone against the same opponent. There are only four other Cubs players (Ernie Banks, Dave Kingman, Alfonso Soriano and Kris Bryant) to even have two such games in their careers with the ballclub.

• There have only been seven players in MLB history to have a pair of games in the same year with 13-plus total bases. The list includes Kyle Schwarber (2024), Alex Rodriguez (2005), Geronimo Berroa (1996), Joe Carter (1986), Willie Mays (1961) and Joe DiMaggio (1948). Busch is the only one to do so against the same team.

• There have been 33 players to have multiple games with two-plus homers in the same season against St. Louis. Only nine of those also included four-plus RBIs in each game. Add at least four hits and Busch becomes the only player on record with two such games in the same year against the Cardinals.

• Busch tied Banks (1955) and Wilson (1929) for the Cubs’ record for homers (nine) in a season against St. Louis. That said, he did so in far fewer games or plate appearances. Banks belted his in 102 PAs across 22 games, while Wilson achieved his mark in 97 PAs and 21 games. The MLB record is 10 by Cy Williams of the Phillies in 1923 (19 games and 81 PAs).

• Busch’s 17 RBIs were the most by a Cubs hitter in one year against the Cardinals since 2015 (Starlin Castro, 19). Busch’s 55 total bases marked the most since 1992 (Sandberg, 55). His 15 extra-base hits were the most since 1954 (Gene Baker, 16).

• And just for fun, Busch became the first player named Busch (or Bush) to launch a home run in any iteration of Busch Stadium in St. Louis. He currently has a 2-0 lead on every other person past, present or future with that surname. You have MLB.com stat guru Sarah Langs to thank for that one.

It is tough to argue with Sandberg’s incredible day in ‘84 -- with a pair of clutch homers off Hall of Famer Bruce Sutter -- as perhaps the best single game for a Cubs batter against the Cardinals. And what Hornsby did in ‘29 (.506/.570/.938 with 18 extra-base hits, 31 RBIs and 76 total bases in 21 games) was jaw-dropping.

But for years to come, plenty of hitters -- Cubs or otherwise -- will probably have “first since Michael Busch in 2025” attached to any feats accomplished against the Cardinals.