SEATTLE — Alex Bregman is showing why the Chicago Cubs pursued him as a free agent over two separate offseasons, bending their projection models for a 32-year-old third baseman with intangible qualities while changing their financial procedures to close a five-year, $175 million deal.To understand the organization’s rationale, you can also simply listen to the boos at opposing stadiums.“He’s been the kind of hitter that every team wants on their side,” Cubs infielder Nico Hoerner said, “and doesn’t want up against them in big moments.”Just the mention of Bregman’s name during Saturday afternoon’s pregame lineup announcements prompted jeering at T-Mobile Park, the home of the Seattle Mariners, an American League West rival that finished behind the Houston Astros in each of Bregman’s eight full seasons with his old team.Who should win NL MVP?Joe CrisalliThose experiences bring a sense of perspective amid the Cubs’ back-to-back walk-off losses this weekend in the Pacific Northwest.The boos repeatedly rang out Friday night when Bregman stepped into the batter’s box during Seattle’s 10-inning victory. The Cubs extended that game with the help of two home runs from Bregman: one off Mariners starter Emerson Hancock that stayed inside the left-field foul pole, and another against All-Star closer Andrés Muñoz in the ninth inning.Bregman then disrupted the major-league debut of Seattle’s Kade Anderson, the baseball industry’s best pitching prospect. Back-to-back home runs by Bregman and Michael Busch during Anderson’s third time through the order put the Cubs in position to beat the Mariners. Until closer Jacob Webb’s blown save in the ninth inning of a 5-4 loss.“We feel like we’re never out of it,” Bregman said. “How this offense was built is grinder at-bat after grinder at-bat, guys that can hit the ball from line to line, work counts, get on base. Guys are mature in their approach to not try to do too much.”This continued Bregman’s second-half surge (.973 OPS). His solid on-base percentage and Gold Glove-caliber defense could compensate only so much for his early lack of power, a previously missing element in what the Cubs projected to be a dynamic lineup.