Chicago Cubs: Kris Bryant’s clutch struggles stand out from week one

Despite snapping his season-opening 0-for-13 streak, Chicago Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant has come up empty in clutch situations several times in the first week.

After the showdown with the St. Louis Cardinals to open the season, Chicago Cubs fans were in a dead panic. Kris Bryant, the reigning National League MVP, was hitless.

Cue pandemonium.

But, as he always has, Bryant shook off the rust and heated up. In the season’s first week, the former Rookie of the Year is batting .267/.371/.367 with four runs batted in and a pair of stolen bases.

"“I realize that this is part of being a big-leaguer,” Bryant told CSN Chicago over the weekend, “to deal with the 0-for-12s and the 0-for-13s and the bad stretches and just knowing that it’s going to turn around, because it always does. It’s part of a learning process. I’m planting the seeds to keep learning, and taking notes in the back of my head.”"

In his nearly two years in the big leagues, Bryant has largely avoided the pitfalls of prolonged slumps. Probably his worst month-stretch came as the 2016 season drew to an end. Over the season’s final month, the slugger batted just .221/.296/.375 – a drastic cool down from his 1.220 OPS month of August.

It’s not hard to figure out how he took home National League MVP honors. He showed the ability to be remarkably consistent – in just his second year in the bigs.

Early clutch struggles for KB

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Over the first week, Bryant has come up with the bases loaded three separate times – only to fail to notch a hit in each instance.

The latest, which came late in Monday’s walk-off win over the Dodgers at Wrigley, certainly left a bitter taste in everyone’s mouth. It hasn’t just been with the bags loaded, either. With runners in scoring position this year, Bryant is batting just .182/.182/.273 – thanks to a 2-for-11 mark.

To be sure, it’s not where he wants to be. Even more encouraging, though, is if you’re a betting man, his rebounding his a pretty safe bet to make. Last season in such situations, he batted .263/.366/.474. He also racked up roughly half of his RBI with runners in scoring position.

Early-season struggles aren’t anything new. We’re not talking about reinventing the wheel. All players – young and old – go through these stretches. But, if recent performances are any indication, this cold spell might be drawing to a close for Bryant.

Heating up at the dish

Over his last four games, Bryant has a pair of three-hit games and is batting .471. It’s hardly coincidence that, over that same stretch, the Cubs are 3-1. Furthermore, the team has outscored opponents by a 22-14 margin.

His infield partner, Anthony Rizzo, showed signs of smart hitting on Monday, as well. Delivering the game-winning, opposite-field single, the first baseman took down one of the best closers in the game today. Right off the bat, he choked up on the bat with his two-strike approach, dropping a ball into left for his first RBI of the season.

Next: Could shortstop Russell be a leadoff man soon?

Getting Bryzzo rolling will help Chicago get out of the gates quickly. This offense has picked up the slack, due partially to a solid Jason Heyward and clutch Addison Russell, but they need their big boppers to really get moving.