MILWAUKEE – Sitting in the visitors’ dugout at American Family Field on Friday evening, Cubs manager Craig Counsell smirked when a reporter asked about the offensive growth of Michael Busch over the last two seasons.
“It’s funny,” Counsell said. “We’ve had very few questions about Michael Busch, and I don’t know what his OPS is, .900-ish? That’s Michael Busch, right? Somehow, he’s producing and nobody actually asks about him.”
Counsell’s reaction proved prescient, as Busch launched a grand slam to back six strong innings from Ben Brown and help fuel the Cubs’ 10-0 victory over the rival Brewers in the opener of this series. After Busch’s heroics, Pete Crow-Armstrong went out and belted a pair of homers, marking his third multi-homer showing of the season.
As the “P-C-A!” chants made their way up to Milwaukee, it was easy to see why Busch has hovered just out of the spotlight. Between Crow-Armstrong’s electric start and the overwhelming production from Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki, Chicago’s first baseman has not garnered nearly as much attention.
“There’s a consistency to it that almost makes you not realize how good he is,” Counsell said.
Crow-Armstrong was asked about Busch flying under the radar a bit this season.
“Shoot, I mean, he got his grand slam today,” Crow-Armstrong said. “He deserved that one.”
Crow-Armstrong reminded the gathered reporters that Busch had a potential grand slam robbed by Dodgers center fielder Andy Pages on April 12 in Los Angeles.
In the second on Friday, Brewers righty Quinn Priester fired an 0-1 curveball to Busch that flirted with the outer edge for a called strike. The pitcher returned to a near-identical offering on the next pitch and the Cubs' first baseman went on the attack. He launched it the opposite way for the first grand slam of his Major League career.
“It was kind of nice to have seen it the pitch before that,” Busch said of the curveball he crushed. “I just tried to get something in the air and get a sac fly, at least.”
The baseball was secured in a plastic case in Busch’s locker after the win.
“I’ll probably give it to my dad,” Busch said with a smile. “He takes a little better care of [mementos] than I do, and that’s saying a lot.”
In his 31 games this season, Busch has hit .278/.366/.528 with six homers, seven doubles and 22 RBIs. That “.900-ish” OPS is currently sitting at .894 for the first baseman, who has been situated in the Nos. 4-5 spots of the order most often this season.
“I feel like I’ve done a decent job,” Busch said, “just trying to minimize the lows and stay as consistent as I can throughout the season. Month one is done, but I’m kind of moving on to the next one. Just keep going.”
Crow-Armstrong punctuated the early scoring – the Cubs pushed nine across the plate through the opening two frames – with a two-out solo homer off Priester in the second. The center fielder added a shot to the second deck in right field against reliever Joel Payamps in the seventh, giving Crow-Armstrong eight homers in his last 16 games.
In that 16-game stretch, Crow-Armstrong has been on a wild offensive tear, hitting .349/.359/.857 with six stolen bases, 14 runs scored, 15 extra-base hits and 18 RBIs for the Cubs.
“It’s so easy to hit in this lineup,” Crow-Armstrong said. “I just feel so confident going up to the plate in the seven-hole. You talk about flying under the radar. I feel like I can hide in there, in a way, because it’s so easy to want to go have a good at-bat when you’ve got eight other guys that can really do it behind you and in front of you.”
This marked the Cubs’ eighth game with at least 10 runs scored this season and the latest flurry pushed the North Siders to 202 runs on the year. This represents the fastest a Cubs team has eclipsed 200 runs (33 games) since the 1938 squad (203 runs in 33 games).
Busch may not steal headlines or attract the most attention, but he has continued to play a crucial part in that team-wide performance.
“That’s Michael Busch, man,” Crow-Armstrong said. “Buschy, he’s so true to himself and so enjoyable to be around. His energy and the presence he kind of holds in this clubhouse is just awesome. I’m glad he got that grand slam. He deserved it, for sure.”