Three takeaways for the Chicago Cubs after a rough weekend series

Chicago Cubs: Another tough luck injury for the 2016 NL MVP

As if losing two of three to the Cincinnati Reds wasn’t bad enough, the Cubs also lost Kris Bryant on Sunday, after he collided with Jason Heyward while the two ran down a fly ball in the alley.

"“He’s doing OK. He’s still under evaluation,” Maddon said told MLB.com after the loss. “We don’t know exactly what we’re dealing with with this whole thing yet. But we’re trying to talk with the docs and him to find out exactly where we’re at. So, I don’t have anything new to report yet.”"

At a bare minimum, I don’t expect to see Bryant in the Cubs lineup on Monday afternoon in Houston. In my mind, there’s no way he bounces back after undergoing concussion protocol to start less than 24 hours later – especially with his history of injuries, including head-specific ones. Don’t forget, he took a pitch off the head in Colorado last year that cost him some time, as well.

On the year, Bryant has bounced back from a slow start to become one of the Cubs’ top offensive threats once more. He ranks fourth on the team in OPS, trailing Victor Caratini (who missed a good chunk of the year due to injury), Willson Contreras and Anthony Rizzo. His 34 RBI rank second among Chicago players – and his 37 strikeouts to 33 walks stand out as a testament to just how well he’s seeing the ball.

We don’t know how long Bryant will be sidelined this time around. But Chicago fans haven’t forgotten how lost and overmatched he looked at the plate on the heels of multiple injuries last year and if he struggles after coming back from Sunday’s collision, you can bet the same Kris Bryant naysayers will be back in force in a hurry.