Former Cincinnati Bearcats standout Ian Happ was not traded by the Chicago Cubs, one of the biggest surprises as the MLB trade deadline passed Tuesday.
Happ was drawing interest from the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres, according to a report via Twitter late Monday from Jon Heyman of the New York Post and MLB Network. Last Tuesday, ESPN's Jeff Passan reported that Happ was likely to be traded by the Cubs within the week.
USA TODAY's Bob Nightengale wrote that the Cubs were among the biggest losers at the deadline:
More from Nightengale:
Remember that emotional scene when the Cubs gave All-Star catcher Willson Contreras a standing ovation, with Contreras crying in the arms of teammate Ian Happ, thanking the Cubs for all of the memories?
Well, it turned out to be nothing more than a dress rehearsal.
Contreras is back. So is Happ.
The only players to leave on Tuesday were relievers David Robertson to the Phillies and Mychal Givens to the Mets.
Cubs president Jed Hoyer put a high price tag on Contreras and Happ, and when no one blinked, Hoyer decided to simply keep them. Happ still is under club control for another year, but Contreras is a free agent, and won’t be returning.
Happ made an outstanding catch at the wall in the Cubs' first game after the deadline:
The Athletic's Patrick Mooney reported earlier last week that the Cubs hadn't initiated contract talks with Happ. The Athletic's Dennis Lin reported last month that the Padres expressed interest in adding Happ and Cubs catcher Willson Contreras in a trade.
Earlier this season, Happ earned his first All-Star Game selection in six Major League Baseball seasons - all with the Cubs.
Happ, 27, entered Monday with a .279 batting average with nine homers, 25 doubles and 46 RBIs this season.
In 284 career plate appearances against the Reds, Happ is hitting .297 with 24 homers, 56 RBIs and an OPS of 1.082. He's hit .333 with 15 HRs and 32 RBIs in 149 plate appearances at Great American Ball Park, with an OPS of 1.222.
Happ, the Cubs' first-round draft pick (ninth overall) in June 2015 out of UC, is one of 13 players on MLB rosters from Greater Cincinnati high schools, UC or Xavier University.
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