After suggesting so much in the last year, Kris Bryant, the third base player of the Chicago Cubs, admitted that he doesn’t have as much fun playing baseball as he used to.
Bryant, 29, spoke to Red Line Radio, a Barstool podcast, and was asked if he was happy on the field.
“Sometimes not,” Bryant said. “It simply came to my notice then. The things I was hearing. The first rumors of exchange (in 2018) that began to appear really affected me. I find myself (thinking) “Man, is it fun already? Why I started playing this game because it was fun.
“There are many other things involved. You earn a lot of money, fame and all that. You have to go back to why you started playing.”
Bryant will become a free agent after next season, after reaching an agreement with the Cubs for $ 19.5 million by 2021. He has been the subject of commercial rumors because he and the team failed to agree on a deal on long term. He also heard criticism for his game, perhaps for the first time in his career. This led to the former MVP giving up his emotions at the end of the 2020 season.
“I don’t … ho,” Bryant said at that moment. “Not really. That’s a good answer. I’ve gotten over it. Sometimes I go out and go 4-4 and it’s not good enough for some people, so I don’t realize … ho”
Bryant only hit .203 last season, but he struggled with injuries and wasn’t the only Cub to fight in 2020. In fact, he had a few years of a few persistent illnesses that could have helped him not recover. in shape. .
Bryant is the only player in baseball history to have won the college player of the year, minor league player of the year award, rookie of the year and most valuable player in four consecutive seasons, from 2013 to 2016. But in recent years there has been a struggle, as he has become an element of the standard bearer, rightly or wrongly, of the chicken’s offensive misfortunes, especially in the post-season.
On the podcast, Bryant recalled the joy of meeting his father before hitting the set after hitting his first home run as a child. The six-year veteran wants to find that happiness in the game again, although he has indicated that more important things are happening in the world now.
“I woke up sitting there, ‘I don’t have that joy now,'” he said. “I am doing everything I can to get back to that place. This year has been very difficult for me personally, only statistically. I still had a good time (despite the COVID protocols and fights). Taking full advantage of a terrible situation “.