KB: The Most Impactful Player The Cubs Could Add
The Chicago Cubs had a very rough second half of the 2018 baseball season, and that was mostly due to an offense that was downright offensive. Until the end of July, the Cubs had slashed .265/.345/.423 and scored an average of 5.01 runs per game. From August on, the team slashed a very poor .244/.310/.385 while only scoring 4.03 runs a game. If you look to just September, the Cubs slashed a putrid .235/.300/.363.
So it shouldn’t be a huge surprise that the Cubs would be interested in adding to their offense in a HUGE way this offseason. Those rumors have caused mass panic over the idea that the Cubs could elect to sign free agent Bryce Harper or even baseball’s bad boy, Manny Machado. Fans have also clamored over the thoughts of bringing in a guy like Andrew McCutchen or even a Michael Brantley this offseason, and potentially trading for someone like Whitt Merrifeild.
Those are all great solutions to the Cubs offensive woes, and each of them would add potency and consistency to a Cubs offense that just lacked that special “it factor” in 2018. But there is one addition that the 2019 Cubs could make that will trump all of those previously named ideas – a healthy Kris Bryant.
Many fans forget, the 2018 baseball season started with Bryant looking like a potential MVP candidate in the National League. Even with teammate Javier Baez putting on a show, Bryant’s production was keeping the team afloat as they awaited their starting pitching to come around.
On May 19th, Bryant was slashing .305/.427/.583 and was on pace for 33 home runs. As an example, at that same point Baez was slashing just .256/.289/.543.
Why did I recall May 19th? Well, that’s when Bryant hurt his shoulder.
After that point Bryant hit the disabled list twice and slashed an abysmal .252/.338/.382 and would have paced to hit 12 home runs at his power rate at that point. Power wasn’t the only factor though, he just wasn’t getting on as much, when he was getting on he wasn’t scoring. He wasn’t hitting as many doubles, he just wasn’t the same player.
I don’t know if it was ignorance, a lack of faith, assuming that the second half Bryant was who he is, but many Cubs fans almost seemed to write him off as someone that isn’t a productive hitter. That misidentification carried over to the offseason as there have been far too many people hoping that the Cubs find a way to trade Bryant.
Not only is even entertaining the idea of trading Bryant close to the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard in sports – gaining Bryant back, at 100% in 2019, will be the biggest addition ANY team will have next season.
Kris Bryant is a .950 OPS hitter in the major leagues. Between the 2015-2017 seasons, Bryant has hit 94 home runs, an average of 31 a season. He improved his average and on base percentage from 2015, to 2016, and again to 2017. He’s reduced his strikeout percentage every year since he’s been in the bigs. From 2015 through the end of 2018, Bryant led the National League in WAR (23.1), was third in all baseball, and even after a 2018 season in which he posted a bad (for Bryant) 2.3 WAR, he still owns the fourth highest WAR since the 2015 season.
Basically what I am saying is, statistically, based on total player worth, Kris Bryant has performed as the fourth best player in ALL baseball since his promotion in 2015. How in the actual F could anyone wish to trade that level of player?
But for all of those reasons above, that is why Bryant will be the biggest addition to the Cubs this season. His ability to drive the ball to all fields, his ability to work counts, and finally, once again, having a dynamic power bat in the lineup which loosens the rest of the order up. Having a healthy Bryant is much more important to the Cubs that signing Harper or Machado or anyone else. He’s the most dynamic hitter in the NL and will make everything roll much better.
Imagine if Baez had another hitter to take some pressure off? If pitchers needed to worry about Bryant’s bat as well as Baez!? This opens things up so much more for both of them. A pitcher needs to make pitches to Bryant (who would likely be hitting second) to ensure that they don’t give up a big hit or walk him. That leads the way to Anthony Rizzo, who was surprisingly the Cubs best hitter from June on. Then Baez is waiting in the wings in the clean-up spot and a pitcher knowing if they make a mistake to him, the game could be out of reach real quick.
Regardless of what the Cubs do in free agency, Bryant is the most impactful bat they can add this winter.
