Tangent: Ten years averaging league-average starter would be a good thing.
1. We'll struggle to find league average within our current system.
2. Career-average-league-average is perhaps worse than it sounds, I think. Most guys have lesser years before they retire at the end which depresses their career WAR/year average. So to end up career-average despite the bad old years implies a group of above-average years during career prime. Usually earlier in career while still controlled by original team and when value/$$ is favorable.
Caveat: I know it's early, maybe it will all flip later. But, first impressions suggest that the Cubs missed on the Happ pick and that he's very unlikely to be any good. When you're whiffing 1/3 of your AB in short season/low-A, it's not going to get easier versus the next three step of minors and then the massive step to the majors. 19:1 K/HR doesn't project well.
I think they just missed on the scouting this time. I don't imagine the Cub scouts who valued him as an almost-full-slot #9 pick did so expecting this. He was drafted based on proven, experienced college bat. Not a raw projectable hitter; not a defensive wizard who doesn't need to hit much; not a HR-smasher who can afford 200 K's. Hitting was supposed to be his best attribute; without that, not much to fall back on.
I understand this goes with Blue's point. The expectation should have been nothing, so getting nothing should be no surprise.