Fond memories rush back for Chicago Cubs' Ian Happ in return to South Bend

SOUTH BEND — Monday was a day of reflection for Chicago Cubs outfielder Ian Happ.

The two-time Gold Glove winner was at the South Bend Cubs game for a special meet-and-greet. Happ threw out the ceremonial first pitch before signing autographs for an hour. More than a thousand people stood in line for an hour or longer to get the signature of the Chicago Cubs everyday left fielder.

“I didn’t have a beard,” Happ quipped about when he was last here year nine years ago. “You think about all those moments, and I was talking to (the current team) earlier in the locker room — in 2015, coming into this organization, it was a really special time to be a Cub. … It’s a really cool part of the journey you get to reflect on.”

Happ shared what else he told the South Bend Cubs prospects ahead of the High-A team’s series opener with the Peoria Chiefs.

“The most important thing that we can ask of these guys is when they come to work every day, they’re working to get themselves better to help us win,” Happ said. “That was something that was a huge mantra when I was in the minor leagues: it was all about getting to the big leagues to help the Chicago Cubs win baseball games.”

Happ was drafted in the first round of the 2015 MLB Draft by the Chicago Cubs. After playing for the Eugene Emeralds in the Northwest League for a month, Happ was promoted to South Bend for the final 38 games of the 2015 campaign. In that time, he batted .241 with nine doubles and 22 RBI.

Even though his stint in South Bend was brief, Happ has fond memories of his time here.

“The atmosphere here was always awesome,” Happ said. “There were always sold-out crowds in that summer. I think we were setting records for attendance, and it was every game there’d be a new record for attendance. It was just a really fun time to be part of the organization.”

Happ quickly moved through the Chicago Cubs’ farm system, eventually making it to the big leagues in May 2017. He’s stayed at the major league level since, outside the first few months of the 2019 campaign when he was at Triple-A Iowa.

Happ was selected to the National League All-Star team in 2022. His home run against the San Francisco Giants last week made him the Chicago Cubs’ all-time leader for homers by a switch-hitter with 136.

While Happ has been playing well lately, the Chicago Cubs have been scuffling as a whole the last two months, sitting with a record of 39-46 at the start of this week. They were 11.5 games behind the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers through this past Sunday’s action.

Happ acknowledged that being able to take a step back Monday from a frustrating season was a good thing.

“One of my favorite baseball movies is ‘The Rookie,’ and he goes to a little league game and kind of sits there and watches,” Happ said. “And I’ve always thought about, during the season when you’re in the middle of a hard stretch, being able to get away from it and have an appreciation for the fact we do get to play a game for a living. I think, just walking around here, you feel that.”