LAKEVIEW — “The Compound,” the player-led sports podcast co-hosted by Chicago Cubs outfielder Ian Happ and fellow professional ballplayer Dakota Mekkes, was born out of boredom.

When the 2020 MLB season was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Happ was in Arizona with his spring training roommates Mekkes, Nico Hoerner and Zack Short, all looking for a creative outlet and a way to stay engaged with fans.

Five years and hundreds of episodes later, the podcast they launched is still going strong. On Saturday, Happ, Mekkes and producer Tom Prizeman will be live at the Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Ave., to record an episode of “The Compound” with special guests, including Cubs breakout star Pete Crow-Armstrong.

Credit: The Compound, Music Box Theater

The name of the podcast comes from the name of the group chat the four players created when they were living in the same rental house a few blocks away from where the Cubs train in Arizona.

Happ had been staying in the guest house, and after Mekkes, Hoerner and Short came over for dinner one night, they liked the setup so much they asked to move into the main house.

“It’s literally the best of a bad situation, and we’re thankful where we are right now,” Short told the Des Moines Register in 2020.

“The Compound” is part of a growing trend of athlete-first podcasts where players are able to take ownership of their stories and communicate with fans more directly.

Podcasts also create a way for professional athletes to speak on their own terms, providing a medium where they can have more autonomy in a space typically dominated by talking heads, hot takes, aggregated news and highlight reels.

In an age where social media and streaming platforms have reshaped the media landscape, active athlete-led shows like “New Heights” with Jason and Travis Kelce, Mookie Betts’ “On Base,” and Draymond Green’s “The Draymond Green Show” have all carved out massive audiences.

Happ and his co-hosts saw the same opportunity back in 2020.

“I think players are hungry to connect with the fans,” Happ told Forbes in 2021. “Players want to do a better job of promoting themselves and the sport.”

River Skrbina, 10, attends a baseball game between the Chicago Cubs and the San Francisco Giants at Wrigley Field on Wednesday, June 19, 2024. Credit: Joel Angel Juarez/Block Club Chicago

Podcasting isn’t the only off-field adventure Happ has explored since becoming a Cub. Over the past few years, he launched Quarantine Coffee with Connect Roasters to support COVID-19 relief efforts, coordinated a $7,500 donation to Rush University Medical Center and partnered with Obvious Shirts on charitable merch.

Saturday’s podcast taping could not have come at a better time as the Cubs are playing exceptionally good baseball with a division-leading 35-21 record.

Crow-Armstrong, Saturday’s podcast guest, is drawing early MVP buzz and has been one of the highlights of the Cubs’ season.

For fans who want to hear directly from one of the team’s brightest young stars and get a behind-the-scenes look at the Cubs clubhouse from the players themselves, visit the Music Box’s website for $25 general admission tickets.

Doors for the event open at 6:30 p.m. The podcast will start 7 p.m.

Listen to the Block Club Chicago podcast: