MILWAUKEE — As Ian Happ put the finishing touches on his pregame routine and grabbed his gear to head back into the clubhouse Friday afternoon, a Cubs fan hanging out behind the third-base dugout at Miller Park shouted, "Welcome back, Ian! We love you!"
Roughly 45 minutes later, Happ made a nice sliding catch down the left-field line to rob Mike Moustakas of a hit and ending the first inning for Kyle Hendricks.
It was Happ's first start in the big leagues since Sept. 29 of last season, as he has spent all of this year in Triple-A Iowa working on making adjustments offensively and defensively.