Will 2026 be the year the Cubs finally let Michael Busch face left-handed pitching?

Michael Busch is a great first baseman. The Chicago Cubs have believed that since trading Jackson Ferris and Zyhir Hope for him (and Yency Almonte), and he proved all remaining naysayers wrong with his postseason performance in 2025.

Running a .261/.343/.523 (140 wRC+) batting line in the regular season and .296/.387/.741 (202 wRC+) in the playoffs is sure to put Busch in the Cubs' front office's good graces, but will they buy into his breakout enough to finally let him hit against left-handed pitchers?

Busch's splits were severe this past season, as his wRC+ plummeted from 151 against righties to 81 against southpaws. His ostensible platoon partner, Justin Turner, experienced the same splits in reverse (16 wRC+ versus righties, 112 wRC+ versus lefties).

Following the Cubs' decision to decline his option, though, Turner is now a free agent and looks unlikely to return. Instead of using a roster spot in 2026 on another platoon bat, might the Cubs benefit from trotting Busch out to the cold corner on an everyday basis?

Michael Busch has earned the full-time first base job for Cubs in 2026

According to FanGraphs' fWAR, Busch was the fourth-most valuable first baseman in the league in 2025, behind only Matt Olson, Nick Kurtz and Freddie Freeman.

That alone should earn him unimpeded access to 162 games if he remains healthy, but as Marquee Sports Network points out, the team's depth behind him is also pretty shoddy.

Right now, Jonathon Long is the clear-cut backup at first base. The 23-year-old prospect played 115 games at the position in Triple-A Iowa in 2025 while hitting .305/.404/.479 (131 wRC+) with 20 home runs. However, the right-handed hitter had reverse splits, posting a .791 OPS against lefties and a .914 OPS against righties (the same phenomenon was true last year).

Alternatively, the Cubs could deploy Moises Ballesteros as Busch's backup after he posted a 143 wRC+ in 20 games after being called up. However, he's only started 44 games at the position in his professional career, and he lacks the frame (he's 5'8") to be a reliable target for infielders to throw to.

In effect, the Cubs may be faced with the choice of bringing in another veteran platoon bat (where is Patrick Wisdom when you need him) or trusting their franchise first baseman to handle full-time duties. The decision shouldn't be hard -- especially with Long and Ballesteros around in case of emergency -- but we'll see if the Cubs make it difficult this offseason.