Former Cubs star Kris Bryant sounds like he regrets signing with the Rockies

Early on in his MLB career, Kris Bryant appeared on a Hall of Fame trajectory. In his first two seasons, he won NL Rookie of the Year, NL MVP and helped the Cubs erase a 108-year championship drought. He quickly became the face of the franchise, immediately living up to the tremendous amount of hype that surrounded him as he worked his way up prospect rankings prior to his debut.

Bryant recently spoke to The Athletic (subscription required) about his career to this point, which has spanned the highest of highs back in 2015 and 2016 and the lowest of lows, appearing in a combined 122 games in the two years since signing his seven-year, $182 million deal with the Colorado Rockies.

When that signing was announced, everyone was shocked. It made little sense to see a player with a resume like this willingly choose to go with a franchise that had shown a complete lack of commitment to winning in recent years. It sounds like Bryant himself might already have some regret about the decision, based on his comments.

Bryant said he started getting anxious about not signing when players reported to spring training back in 2022 - and that played a role in his decision to sign with the Rockies, a team that has won 90 games just once since 2010.

“It’s like, ‘Oh shoot, I need to get there,’” Bryant said. “There were other teams interested, but I didn’t want to wait around. … It was a completely different situation for a lot of free agents at the time. I guess I didn’t do as much research into the prospects as I could.”

Rockies, Kris Bryant are stuck with each other - for better or worse

With five years left on the deal, both sides are stuck with one another - and it seems highly unlikely Colorado will punch a postseason ticket during that time. The Rockies are projected to have the worst record in MLB by Fangraphs this year at 64-98 and even if Bryant returns to form, it won't be enough for this team to catch up to the Dodgers and Diamondbacks in the NL West.

Bryant has always been nothing but class when it comes to his relationship with the Cubs, both during his time in Chicago and after Jed Hoyer traded him to the Giants at the 2021 deadline. It's tough to see him struggle as much as he has the last two years - and these comments aren't likely to endear him to the Rockies franchise a whole lot.

But getting healthy and producing would go a long way toward smoothing things over in Colorado, though. Even playing on a losing team with no pressure or expectations, when you're not on the field or living up to the standard you have for yourself, it takes a toll. Bryant may have made the bed he's laying in out in Denver, but you still have to hope he still has some good years ahead of him.