Chicago Cubs Hitter of the Month: May 2024

It was a ROUGH month for the Cubs hitters in May - not one single player on the team posted an OPS above .800 (Cody Bellinger reached exactly that mark). Christopher Morel led the team in home runs with six, though he supplied an ugly .183/.319/.387 slash line in 93 at-bats. The Cubs had more batters post an OPS below .600 (eight) than players with an OPS above .700 (six) last month.

So… yeah. We’re not exactly picking from the hottest bunch in the world. Yet, the show must go on, and at least a couple of hitters provided a glimmer of hope in the barren offensive wasteland that is the 2024 Chicago Cubs. These are North Side Baseball’s top Cubs hitters from the month of May.

Honorable Mentions
3B/1B Patrick Wisdom: 43 ABs, .233/.306/.442, 114 OPS+, 2 HR, 6 RBI
In case you didn’t believe me when I said it was a slow month for the bats, may I present Patrick Wisdom as one of the Cubs’ five best hitters last month. That’s not to take anything away from the lefty-crushing corner infielder, but given his relatively small sample size and limited contributions besides his home run power, Wisdom’s placement on this list is more of an indictment of the roster than praise for the 32-year-old. Nevertheless, the Cubs need him to continue producing while playing the weak-side of the first and third base platoon, lest they have another black hole in their lineup.

1B Michael Busch: 72 ABs, .208/.337/.375, 106 OPS+, 2 HR, 6 RBI
Last month’s hitter of the month, Busch was solid when called upon in May. His power took a nosedive compared to April, though even that month’s surge was fueled by a ridiculous five-homers-in-five-games stretch. Notably, Busch’s OPS is 215 points higher in wins than losses - when he plays well, the Cubs tend to follow.

April's Top 3 Cubs Hitters of the Month

#3 2B Nico Hoerner: 84 ABs, .250/.351/.393, 116 OPS+, 2 HR, 8 RBI
Nico Hoerner going down with injury at the same time as Dansby Swanson is where I trace the Cubs’ profound offensive struggles back to, but ever since returning from left hamstring tightness, he’s been the same excellent second baseman Cubs fans know and love.

Hoerner is back to stealing bases (five in five attempts last month) and hitting for a bit of power. His defense has been sterling yet again. On a team full of struggling players, Hoerner’s consistency has shone through like a ray of light in the darkness. A fun fact for those who enjoy lineup composition debates: when leading off a game for the Cubs, Hoerner is slashing .385/.407/.654 in 27 plate appearances.

#2 OF Ian Happ: 91 ABs, .231/.317/.462, 122 OPS+, 5 HR, 12 RBI
Happ started out frigid this season, posting a .647 OPS in March/April and struggling even worse in the first 10 or so days of May. Starting on May 16, though, Happ has been on one of his patented heaters.

All of his home runs this month came after that cutoff date, and he got on base at least once in all but three of the games he’s started since then. In pure Happian fashion, most of that damage came against the Reds and Pirates, but the opponent doesn’t matter when a team is struggling this badly across the board. If this award were just focused on the past two weeks, Happ would have won this competition running away - he’s lifted his season OPS by more than 50 points in that span.

#1 OF Cody Bellinger: 93 ABs, .290/.327/.473, 128 OPS+, 3 HR, 9 RBI

Despite going on the IL with broken ribs late last month, Bellinger returned looking as healthy and spry as ever.

Strong defense, a consistent plate approach, and being a genuine threat in the lineup has made Bellinger by far the team’s most important hitter heading into June. If he can supply a little more over-the-wall pop as the weather heats up, Bellinger will have a chance to match last season’s impressive 134 wRC+ (he’s up to 118 as of June 1). Interestingly, Bellinger has been much better away from Wrigley Field this season: his batting average (.286 on the road, .228 at home), OPS (.814 to .738), and OPS+ (136 to 106) are far better in opposing team’s ballparks this season.

Not the most exciting statistics for Cubs hitters in May, but what do you think of this ranking? Are these the correct choices?