The Chicago Cubs have played mediocre baseball across the first two weeks.

The North Siders currently sit at 6-6 in the standings, and a lot hasn’t gone the Cubs way to begin the season. The team’s starting pitching depth is being tested early, the bullpen has struggled, and the offense hasn’t exactly clicked yet. 

Although the offense started to heat up in the final two games against the Rays, there are a few Cubs hitters who haven’t done much in the early going. Michael Busch, Alex Bregman, and Pete Crow-Armstrong in particular are not off to great offensive starts. 

So, let’s dive into the panic level on three Cubs hitters and determine if things will eventually turn around for them. 

It has been a weird start to the year for Busch. He is batting just .140 (6-for-43) with two doubles, two RBI, seven walks, and eight strikeouts across his first 12 games and is currently in a 0-for-22 slump at the plate. 

The most notable thing about Busch right now is that he simply isn't hitting the ball hard. Last year, the Cubs first baseman ranked in the 90th percentile in average exit velocity, 95th percentile in barrel rate, 96th percentile in launch angle sweet spot rate, and 76th percentile in hard-hit rate. 

This year, those metrics are down. His average exit velocity (86.3 mph), barrel rate (2.8%), launch angle sweet spot rate (22.2%), and hard-hit rate (33.3%) are all noticeably down. His bat speed (67.7 mph) is also 1.9 mph slower than a season ago. 

However, there’s no reason to panic about Busch’s bat yet. He is still pulling the ball in the air at an elite clip (22.2%) and has a 94th percentile squared-up rate. As the weather warms up, the hits will start to come for him. 

Panic Level: 3/10

Bregman hasn’t really made a strong first impression on his new team. The three-time All-Star is hitting only .188 (9-for-48) with three home runs, one double, three RBI, and six walks in his first 12 games with the Cubs. 

But there is no reason to panic about Bregman’s slow start. This has become the norm for the veteran in recent years. He hit just .195 with four home runs and 15 RBI across the first 34 games in 2023 and then batted .189 with one home run and 11 RBI across the first 33 games in 2024. 

In both of those seasons, Bregman finished with above a .260 batting average, hit at least 25 home runs, and drove in upward of 75 runs. The 32-year-old veteran will be just fine moving forward. 

He has also gotten a bit unlucky at the plate in the early going, as both his average exit velocity (92.5 mph) and hard-hit rate (55%) rank in the 15% of the league through the first two weeks. Better days are definitely ahead for Bregman at the plate. 

Panic Level: 2/10 

After posting poor hitting numbers in the second half of the 2025 season, it was important for Crow-Armstrong to get off to a strong start this year. Unfortunately, the Cubs center fielder has struggled out of the gate. 

He is batting .234 (11-for-47) with just one home run, four RBI, two walks, and 13 strikeouts across 12 games. Crow-Armstrong is still chasing pitches outside the zone at a high rate (45.4%), and his barrel rate (5.7%) is down so far this season. 

The biggest concern with Crow-Armstrong’s bat right now is the fact that he isn’t pulling the ball in the air as much. The 24-year-old posted an elite 30.2% pull air rate last year, but that number is only at 17.1% across the first two weeks. 

However, it’s too small a sample size to fully panic on Crow-Armstrong yet. His bat speed is up 1.2 mph from last year, and he is hitting the ball hard. He ranks in the 84th percentile in average exit velocity (92.4 mph) and 76th percentile in hard-hit rate (48.6%). 

Panic Level: 5/10