(670 The Score) Cubs left fielder Ian Happ understands the advanced metrics in the game of baseball and uses them to help himself as a player.
That was the case this past offseason, when Happ wanted to study his defensive metrics, which hadn't recognized him as a strong defender. He spent time better recognizing what goes into those numbers and began working to improve. Now a month-and-a-half into a new season, Happ ranks fourth in ultimate zone rating (UZR) among all left fielders in MLB, according to Fangraphs.
On the Dan Bernstein Show on Monday morning, Happ explained that improvement is the byproduct of his work this offseason.
“I did a full breakdown of the things metrically that I’m good at and things that I’m not good at,” Happ said. “I had really good jumps and reactions as far as time, and route efficiency wasn’t kind of my strength. Jon Jay was a guy that I played with in ‘17 and I really respected the way he went about his work. I thought that what he did with jumps and being in the right spots all the time was super, super impressive. We talked through what his process was, how he worked on that, I tried changing some of that stuff in spring training.
“Having an understanding for what I do well, I'm good at coming in on balls, I'm good at moving laterally. Going back isn’t necessarily my strong suit. So, how that plays into my position and how it plays into the way I think about my breaks off the bat.
“Playing one spot helps too. It’s just kind of been a collection of putting all those things together.”
The Cubs open a seven-game homestand Monday as they host the Pirates at Wrigley Field.
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