Kris Bryant raked in the minors. Then he raked in spring training. But the Cubs sent him down to start the season so he could rake for them in 2021 instead of for another team. So he raked in the minors again. And now he’s being called up to finally get his rake on in MLB. Get excited.
The 23-year-old third baseman is being promoted from Triple-A Iowa and is expected to make his major-league debut this afternoon against the Padres and James Shields. Bryant got the news last night:
Bryant’s spring demotion, despite clearly being the Cubs’ best hitter in camp, made him the center of a contentious but ultimately meaningless fight with agent Scott Boras and the MLBPA on one side, and the Cubs and MLB on the other. A player accrues a full year of service time if he’s in the majors for 172 days of the 183-day season; the Cubs waited 12 days before putting Bryant on the roster, and as a result, he’s not eligible for free agency until 2021.
But that’s something to work out in the next round of collective bargaining. For now, we can just be glad that we finally get to watch the can’t-miss prospect hit.