By the time Chicago Cubs outfielder Ian Happ was born, Boog Powell had already finished his Major League Baseball career for 17 years, but the two are now linked in birthday history.
Happ celebrated his 30th birthday on Monday, August 12, as his Cubs lost 9-8 to the Cleveland Guardians. Happ hit one home run and drew three walks in five batting appearances. According to OptaSTATS, he became the first player to hit three home runs and walk three on his birthday since Powell did it in 1970.
If you’re looking for fun facts, this is admittedly a bit far-fetched.
But that’s baseball, and baseball is weird and entertaining. And Happ has accomplished home run feats like this before. The Cubs are two games under .500, and Happ had a .156 batting average in August before the game. Maybe he just needs a nice birthday — and his third home run in four games — to get going.
Sarah Langs of MLB.com had another tip: Happ is the first player since 1900 to hit a home run and record multiple outfield assists on his birthday. The guy knows how to party.
It hasn’t been a career year for Happ, but it could be a career-high home run season. Happ has just a .230 batting average in 113 games, but hit his 20th home run on Monday. That puts him on pace to hit 27 this season, which would surpass his career high of 25 he set in 2021.
Ian Happ is in a giving mood around his birthday
It may be time for Happ to celebrate, but this month he’s in the giving mood. On August 8, former Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright posted a video to X showing the parting gift Happ sent him.
The Cub gave everything for his former opponent.
Wainwright unpacked the packagewith a handwritten note from Happ first revealed. The legendary Cardinal was quick to mention that Happ had hit more home runs against him than any other batter in his career (Happ hit .389 with seven home runs against Wainwright).
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“He stopped giving me home run gifts, and he sent me a package to congratulate me on my retirement,” Wainwright joked. “He was probably pretty sad that I was retiring.”
Happ ended his note with, “Eddie and I thought this would be a great challenge for your retirement.”
Wainwright dug a little deeper and found another handwritten note, this time from “Eddie.” That is, diehard Chicago Cubs fan and Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder. The package itself contained an Eddie Vedder ukulele songbook and a brand new ukulele signed by Vedder.
“You made me a Cubs fan for a few minutes,” Wainwright told the camera. “Ian, incredible work, thank you.”
