Alex Bregman has gone from being the Cubs’ supposed stabilizer to the player drawing the loudest frustration in Chicago.
Halfway through the 2026 season, the third baseman is still searching for anything close to a groove. He’s been a below-average hitter, he’s been awful with runners in scoring position, and now he’s giving fans another reason to turn on him: not running hard out of the batter’s box.
That latest flashpoint came in the Cubs’ 4-3 win over the Brewers on Sunday, a game Chicago had to grind out in 10 innings to take the series. Bregman did start the game-ending 5-4-3 double play, but at the plate it was another rough night. He finished 0-for-4 and went 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position.
The play that really set people off came in the sixth. Pete Crow-Armstrong worked a walk off Brandon Woodruff and then swiped second.
Bregman followed with a slow chopper to Brewers shortstop Cooper Pratt, who briefly lost the ball but recovered in time to throw him out. Bregman was beaten by a full step at first.
The problem, though, was the effort getting down the line. On replay, you can see Bregman not fully busting it until he notices the bobble, and by then the chance is gone.
Alex Bregman could have been safe after the Brewers bobbled the ball but he didn’t run out of the box hard pic.twitter.com/uJoLpPXcZ5
- Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) June 28, 2026
Jim Deshaies called it out, and it’s the kind of play that sticks with a fan base already sour on a struggling player. Against a pitcher like Woodruff, every extra base and every loose ball matters.
If Bregman sprints immediately, there’s a real chance he reaches safely. Instead, the out stood, and Milwaukee answered by bringing in a left-handed reliever to face Michael Busch with two outs.
Bregman had already missed another chance earlier in the game. In the third inning, with two runners aboard, he struck out.
The numbers around the situation are ugly. Bregman is hitting .163 with runners in scoring position, going 15-for-92 in those spots. Among 179 qualified hitters, his 34 wRC+ ranks fourth-worst in MLB in those situations this season.
The overall line is just as harsh. His .335 slugging percentage is only better than Brett Baty among everyday third basemen, and he has only six home runs in 82 games.
That’s the sort of production that wears thin fast, but the hustle issue makes it worse. Fans can live with slumps. They have a much harder time swallowing a player who looks like he isn’t putting everything into a ground ball, especially when that player is supposed to be one of the club’s leadership pieces and was brought in as the big free-agent addition.
Cubs fans have seen this movie before, too. Kyle Tucker became public enemy number one last summer after his second-half spiral, and Bregman is starting to tread into the same territory. He’s signed for five years, and the message from the stands is getting louder: he needs to turn it around quickly.
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