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Omg?

60 Years ago today, 4/17/1955, HOFer Roberto Clemente played in his first Major League game.

Exactly one year later on 4/17/1956, three future HOFers also played in their first Major League games. They were Luis Aparicio, Don Drysdale and Frank Robinson.

Now, am I saying that Kris Bryant is a future HOF player and that you should put aside everything in your life and watch his first game today at 1:20?

Yes!! That's exactly what I'm saying

Go Cubs!!

sunny, 75 degrees, wind blowing out. he good hit 5 homers with 12 rbis.

headhunters wrote:sunny, 75 degrees, wind blowing out. he good hit 5 homers with 12 rbis.

213 Players have hit a HR in their first MLB game.
Four of those players hit 2 HR's (JP Arencibia, Mark Quinn, Bert Campaneris, Bob Nieman)

Put Bryant down for at least three.

Then again, 39 years ago today, 4/17/1976, HOFer Mike Schmidt hit 4 HR's against the Cubs in Wrigley Field playing 3B..........

So yeah, Bryant will probably hit at least 4

Navel Lint wrote:

headhunters wrote:sunny, 75 degrees, wind blowing out. he good hit 5 homers with 12 rbis.

213 Players have hit a HR in their first MLB game.
Four of those players hit 2 HR's (JP Arencibia, Mark Quinn, Bert Campaneris, Bob Nieman)

Put Bryant down for at least three.

Then again, 39 years ago today, 4/17/1976, HOFer Mike Schmidt hit 4 HR's against the Cubs in Wrigley Field playing 3B..........

So yeah, Bryant will probably hit at least 4

He just has the weight of an entire city and fan-base on his shoulders and a 106 year World Series Championship drought looming. And they put him right in the #4 hole. No pressure. Damn though, he really lengthens that line-up and it is starting to look impressive with Soler, Rizzo, and Bryant and Castro now down in the #6 spot. Then add Addisson Russell sometime soon, possibly in the #2 hole and that line-up really lenghthens with good OBP guys and some serious POWER. Gonna be a fun summer on the Northside watching this team come together. Pumped.

COZ

From Rotuworld:

"Kris Bryant, recently called up, was traded today to the Atlanta Braves for Chris Johnson, Kelly Johnson, Jim Johnson and Braves prospect LHP Manny Banuelos."

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Just trying to give Russel a tiny shock...

bryant is WAAAAAAAY too good for the braves to be trading for- think castillo or coghlan.

btw- i predict this will be the last time in mlb history the cubs and sox both play in different games on a friday afternoon.

WTF Shields!!

How can you throw Curve, Change Up, Change Up to a Rookie???

This is a travesty.

Oh well, Cubs fans can still hitch their wagons to Kyle Schwarber.

Just for fun...What happens if the Cubs end any of the next six seasons in a tie for first place and play a 163rd game? I know the game counts as a regular-season game, but would that bump Bryant's service time by an extra day?

knuckleheads wrote:Just for fun...What happens if the Cubs end any of the next six seasons in a tie for first place and play a 163rd game? I know the game counts as a regular-season game, but would that bump Bryant's service time by an extra day?

This came up in the Fangraphs chat today. Jeff Sullivan suggested it wouldn't effect his service time.

10:42
Jeff Sullivan: “Major League service will be computed commencing with the date of the first regularly scheduled championship season game, through and including the date of the last regularly scheduled championship season game.”
10:42
Jeff Sullivan: I believe that means that, because a 163rd game wouldn’t be “regularly scheduled”, nothing would change

Navel Lint wrote:

headhunters wrote:sunny, 75 degrees, wind blowing out. he good hit 5 homers with 12 rbis.

213 Players have hit a HR in their first MLB game.
Four of those players hit 2 HR's (JP Arencibia, Mark Quinn, Bert Campaneris, Bob Nieman)

Put Bryant down for at least three.

Then again, 39 years ago today, 4/17/1976, HOFer Mike Schmidt hit 4 HR's against the Cubs in Wrigley Field playing 3B..........

So yeah, Bryant will probably hit at least 4

Yikes!!

Only 66.....oops, make that now 67 non-pitchers have struck-out 3 or more times in their first MLB game.

Only 4 non-pitchers have done it 4 times in first MLB game

The bright spot is that he's made two very nice defensive plays. That was a concern as much -- if not more -- than his strikeout rate coming into this game.

25-30 HR, .270/.280

Interesting to see how clubs are pitching him. He's getting the respect of a power-hitting veteran with very little to hit in the zone. Another walk in first AB tonight.

Throw out game 1 when he had too much adrenaline to lay off bad pitches ▬

10 PA
4 BB's and 3 Hits

Impressive as advertised.

KJ Duke wrote:Interesting to see how clubs are pitching him. He's getting the respect of a power-hitting veteran with very little to hit in the zone. Another walk in first AB tonight.

Throw out game 1 when he had too much adrenaline to lay off bad pitches ▬

10 PA
4 BB's and 3 Hits

Impressive as advertised.

Already respecting him as a fastball hitter and throwing him off-speed junk off the plate. After the first game, he's really been laying off those pitches. And damn if he and Soler didnt turn on 100 mph gas from Caminero. So nice to see hitters with good approaches, working counts, taking walks, but most importantly driving the ball when they get a favorable pitch/location. Soler, Rizzo, Bryant is a solid run-creating core. Would love to see a Schwarber type lefty in the five hole too. Really impressed with Soler's zone discipline as much as anyone.

COZ

I love what I've seen in terms of his ability to make adjustments at the plate. He didn't let the 0-fer on Friday impact him the next day or subsequent days. The kid can hit and we haven't really seen the power yet. I have him on one of my teams and really wish I had him on all of them. He's gonna be a lot of fun to watch in the summer when the ball starts flying out of Wrigley.

Center Fielder, Kris Bryant.
Tomas at third.
Russell at second.
Hanley in Left
If you can hit, you can play.

He might be a good fit in the outfield. He covers a lot of ground with those long strides.

DOUGHBOYS wrote:Center Fielder, Kris Bryant.
Tomas at third.
Russell at second.
Hanley in Left
If you can hit, you can play.

Unless Don Mattingly is your manager.

Alex Guerrero 16 AB 438 BA 1125 SLG
Scott Van Slyke 9 AB 412 BA 765 SLG

Juan Uribe 35 AB 229 BA 257 SLG
Carl Crawford 33 AB 242 BA 303 SLG

KJ Duke wrote:

DOUGHBOYS wrote:Center Fielder, Kris Bryant.
Tomas at third.
Russell at second.
Hanley in Left
If you can hit, you can play.

Unless Don Mattingly is your manager.

Alex Guerrero 16 AB 438 BA 1125 SLG
Scott Van Slyke 9 AB 412 BA 765 SLG

Juan Uribe 35 AB 229 BA 257 SLG
Carl Crawford 33 AB 242 BA 303 SLG

The Uribe love is flat out mystifying.
There are not many clubs where he would be the starting 3b.
Let alone with a fella like Guerrero pushing him.
I don't get Mattingly at all.

DOUGHBOYS wrote:Center Fielder, Kris Bryant.
Tomas at third.
Russell at second.
Hanley in Left
If you can hit, you can play.

It's a very interesting dichotomy going on with defense and offense right now.
With each passing season we are better able to measure/quantify individual defense and the 'runs saved' by each player.
The problem for the great defensive player, their 'runs saved' over a replacement player doesn't appear to be greater than the 'runs produced' by a great offensive player over a replacement level player.

In other words, the more we are able to determine just how valuable a great defensive player is, the less value we give him if he can't hit.

So yeah...
If you can hit, you can play.

But a different kind of offense. Hit the ball hard but carry a .220 BA, no problem. Kingman and his .236 would be no problem today.