Michael Busch is doing things we've only rarely seen from a Cubs first baseman

The Chicago Cubs have a rich history of great first basemen playing at Wrigley Field, from the legendary Cap Anson, who still leads the franchise in hits, runs, doubles, RBI and WAR, to Mr. Cub himself, Ernie Banks, in his later years. It took a minute for the team to find a successor to their last great player at the position, the captain of the curse-breaking 2016 team, Anthony Rizzo, but Michael Busch is now filling that role admirably. His first-half performance this year is not only impressive, but it already rivals some of the best seasons put up by the Cubs' biggest sluggers at first.

In 90 games and 340 plate appearances so far, Busch has a 160 wRC+ with a slash line of .290/.375/.550. Over a full season, that'd be good fifth all-time among all Cubs first basemen, only beaten by two seasons from Anson, Phil Cavarretta's marvelous 1945 MVP season, and Derrek Lee's monstrous 170 wRC+ campaign in 2005. Rizzo's only season that comes particularly close to that number came in 2014, when he posted a 155 wRC+ with a .286/.386/.527 line. When looking at first halves specifically, only Lee in 2005 and Rizzo in 2015 and 2016 have been on a better pace.

Perhaps the biggest changes for Busch from his rookie outing to now have been an increase in slugging (.440 in 2024) and a noted decrease in strikeout percentage (28.6% to 22.6%). In the first stat, his current season also ranks fifth all-time, only being out-slugged by Lee in 2005 and 2009, Jim Hickman in 1970, and Ray Grimes in 1922. A look at isolated power (ISO) specifically moves Busch up one more spot with .260, placing him only behind Hickman and Lee. Few in Cubs history can match up to the overall offense and thump the lefty brings with his bat.

Let's go one step further. Much has been made about Busch's struggles to hit left-handed pitching and how the Cubs protect him against southpaws. Well, there's a good reason for that because of the first basemen in team history with available splits, he leads by a country mile in wRC+ against right-handers. The only batter in spitting distance of his 179 wRC+ mark is Lee in 2005 with a 167 against righties. Granted, Busch has far fewer plate appearances, but it underscores the absurd pace he's been on so far.

Michael Busch has been more than worth the trade for the Cubs

The Cubs took a bit of a risk when trading for Busch and Yency Almonte from the Dodgers in 2024. The move cost them one of their most promising young pitching prospects in Jackson Ferris. Since then, Zyhir Hope, originally the secondary piece of the deal, has also exploded to become the #36 prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline, causing some consternation about the team's ability to assess their own talent.

Busch, despite his top prospect pedigree, only hit .167/.247/.292 with a 47 wRC+ in his 81 plate appearances in Los Angeles. Yet, not unlike Rizzo before him, a change of scenery and more runway to prove himself has been transformative. It's hard to feel bad about how that deal turned out when, so far, he owns a .256/.342/.465/126 wRC+ for his career. Coupled with a strong glove that has recorded 2 defensive runs saved so far, and some real changes to his game that have contributed to his success, there's reason to believe his best days are still ahead of him. And he's still under control until 2030.

What the 27-year-old lefty has done is nothing short of incredible and is a big reason why the Cubs have been so successful. His transformation into a superstar hitter, alongside Kyle Tucker, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Seiya Suzuki, has given the team a fearsome middle of the order fans have been waiting for. Again, like Rizzo before him, Busch figures to be at the heart of the long-fabled next great Cubs team for years to come.