Chicago Cubs have one 2022 Gold Glove Award nomination

The Chicago Cubs had a bad season. They were a losing team for the second straight season and they really weren’t that smart at the 2022 MLB Trade Deadline. However, there were plenty of good things that came out of the year as they showed flashes of the future at times.

One of the players that they were expected to move at the deadline was Ian Happ. Along with Willson Contreras, it felt like they were as good as gone. Sometimes, things don’t go as planned as the Cubs kept him to finish out the season.

Happ was an All-Star for the first time in his career because he was so good in the first half of the season. His bat was outstanding as he slashed .271/.342/.440 for an OPS of .781. He had 17 home runs and 72 RBIs to go with 72 runs scored and nine stolen bases.

He also played an outstanding left field this year with his glove. On Thursday, it was announced that Happ is being rewarded for his efforts as he is nominated for the National League Gold Glove at the left field position.

The Chicago Cubs have one player nominated for a Gold Glove Award in 2022.

That is a tremendous honor in this league because playing good defense will get you in the manager’s good grace. If you can’t hit but play great defense, there is a place for you. When you can do both well like Happ, you can be a part of a championship-level squad.

Also nominated with Ian Happ in left field is David Peralta (who played with both the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays in 2022) and Christian Yelich (Milwaukee Brewers). It is a great list of outfielders there and each of them deserves to win.

There is a big-time former Cubs star that was nominated as well. Anthony Rizzo is nominated in the American League for first base along with AL Batting Champion Luis Arraez and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. It will be interesting to see if the long-time beloved Cub can take this one.

Happ may or may not be back with the Cubs in 2023 but the best guess is that he is. They didn’t move him this year and they have control of him so if they are trying to be a good team, it certainly doesn’t hurt to keep him.

With this Gold Glove nomination next to his offensive stats, you can see how good he is. He can only hope that he keeps it up next season as well.