Kris Bryant was a shining star in Chicago, as he helped lead the Cubs to their first World Series in over a century back in 2016. Unfortunately, Bryant’s career has since taken a rough turn thanks to his decision to leave Chicago in free agency, and the eventual injuries he suffered as a member of the Colorado Rockies.
Bryant accrued 10 years of MLB service time this week. It’s a monumental accomplishment for any player, let alone one of Bryant’s stature who has spent much of the past few seasons on the injured list. Bryant was recently diagnosed with a degenerative back injury, and his quotes describing said ailment are genuinely heartbreaking.
“I want to be on the field. I want to play the game. I want to talk to doctors, see if there’s anything else we can do. But I’m not gonna give up,” Bryant said. “A back surgery is a pretty big surgery. Obviously, I’m not an expert on it. Maybe I should be by now, with all the problems I’ve had. I want to see all my options, too … so that I’m not, like, in constant pain and nauseous, where I can’t eat, which was the situation today. I just woke up not feeling great, so it’s just extremely frustrating.”
Kris Bryant’s service time achievement is great news, but sad for Cubs fans
Bryant went on to say that he knows he’s not that 23-year-old kid anymore with the Chicago Cubs. When Jed Hoyer and Chicago initially decided to trade Bryant, it was met with anger from Cubs fans who weren’t ready to move on from a bygone era. Hoyer was cutthroat, dealing the likes of Bryant, Javy Baez and Anthony Rizzo, among others. Hoyer deemed it a necessary evil, even if all three of those players can get a free beer in Wrigleyville for the rest of their lives.
While Cubs and Rockies fans have to be thrilled Bryant reached a decade of service time, if only because of the pension and health benefits alone, it’s a reminder of what could’ve been in Chicago. Bryant once played the game with nothing but enthusiasm and love for the sport. These days, here’s how he describes his usual process at the plate.
“I get through two at-bats and then I get to the third at-bat and I’m like, ‘Oh, this isn’t good.’ And then the fourth at-bat, I’m like, ‘I just got to get this at-bat over within the first couple of swings.’ And that’s not a great spot to be. I’m not doing myself or the team any good service if I don’t speak up. Then the next day you get up and it’s like, ‘I can’t move,'” Bryant continued.
Baseball was always fun for KB, especially at Wrigley. He may have reached his breaking point.
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