Chicago Cubs: For Kris Bryant, leadership is key in 2019

Chicago Cubs: It begins with 17

When Theo Epstein and company drafted Kris Bryant, he was drafted to be the face of this franchise. He has responded valiantly in his first four years in the major leagues. Rookie of the Year, MVP, and World Champion are all titles Bryant can claim, and they are well deserved.

Now that there is a realistic chance the Cubs could miss out on a big name free agent, admittedly Bryce Harper, Bryant once again stepping into that role is what is most important. There are many young stars on this team no doubt. However, when most people think of the Chicago Cubs, they immediately think of Bryant.

The stars are aligned for him to rebound strongly this season, and Fangraphs believes Bryant will return to the top in overall production, finishing as the sixth best offensive player in the league. Bryant is someone who can hopefully and with certainty bounce back from adversity. Let us hope it is the case and this team can get back to its roots, led by Bryant, to avoid us scratching our heads about the lack of movement on the free agent market and the final thought of what could have been.