Kris Bryant is the reigning National League MVP, but that doesn't mean at least a few Chicago Cubs fans aren't overreacting to his slow start to the 2017 season. The Cubs were able to leave St. Louis with a series win, following a come from behind 6-4 victory on Thursday, however, Bryant didn't have much success against the Cardinals' pitching staff. The two-time All-Star is 0-for-13, with six strikeouts after the first three games of the year. Yeah, it's no big deal, but it's the beginning of the season, so the early slump is more noticeable.
So, maybe you're a little worried, you really shouldn't be, but this might help ease any angst you may have. The last MVP to start 0-for-13 or worse was also a Cubs player and guess what, Ryne Sandberg turned out to be pretty good.
What a crazy coincidence, right? Anyway, here's a little more about Sandberg's 1985 season. Again, Sandberg was the 1984 National League MVP and put up a slash line of .314/.367/.520, with 19 home runs and 114 runs scored. Then, to start 1985, Sandberg was 0-for-13, before finally getting a double against the Montreal Expos in the fourth game of the season to snap his hitless streak. How did Sandberg finish the 1985 season following his 0-for-13 slump? Pretty damn good. The Hall of Famer hit 26 home runs, which at the time was his career best, while almost matching his MVP slash line at .305/.364/.504. At ease yet? Well, Bryant is no stranger to getting off to slow starts and Cubs fans have already seen him win Rookie of the Year and MVP. So, don't panic. In 2016, Bryant was 3-for-17 in the first four games and if you remember back to his rookie year his debut featured three strikeouts against James Shields. Then, Bryant had nine hits over the next five games. The great thing about the Cubs is that they can handle one of their big stars going through slumps and still win. We saw that in St. Louis, where Bryant was hitless in the series, but the Cubs still managed to take 2-of-3. Unlike the majority of teams that rely on one or two players, the Cubs can have Bryant or Anthony Rizzo struggle and be fine because guys like Kyle Schwarber, Ben Zobrist and more can pick up their teammates. The Cubs don't just have depth, they have star-studded depth.
Loading comments...