Chicago Cubs: Quit with the Kris Bryant pessimism, Cubs fans

Chicago Cubs: First adversities for the Cubs star

Considering how maturely and eloquently Bryant has handled himself as a member of the organization, it is sometimes easy to forget that he is only 26 years old. His whole persona is built on consistency, from the influence of his father, Mike Bryant, to marrying his high school sweetheart.

His playing career has been no different. Bryant hardly missed a game at San Diego University, and missed just 21 games from 2015 to 17, establishing himself as an everyday superstar almost as soon as he was called up from Triple-A Iowa in April 2015.

This season, Bryant missed nearly three times the number of games as he had in the last three years combined. Likewise, Bryant was hit by a pitch 17 times this season, just one off of his 2016 total but in 242 fewer plate appearances. That takes a toll on a player not just physically, but psychologically, as well.

Take last year’s NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton, for example. In September 2014, Stanton was hit in the face by a pitch, causing him to miss the rest of the season. In late June 2015, he was hit by another pitch that led to a shattered wrist and ended his season. The 2016 season saw Stanton post career-lows in both batting average and on-base percentage while the slugger struck out in nearly 30 percent of his plate appearances.

But in 2017, Stanton posted one of the most historic seasons on record with 59 homers and 132 RBI while playing in a career-high 159 games, proving that injuries are merely an obstacle.

This is Bryant’s first real brush with adversity, but given his makeup and talent, there is no reason why he cannot respond in a similar fashion to Stanton and return to MVP form.