The Bernstein Brief: Delaying Kris Bryant Promotion The Right Call For Cubs
By Dan Bernstein-
CBSChicago.com senior columnist
(CBS) The only pressure exerted by Kris Bryant's current home run binge is on people to understand that the Cubs are trying to be as good as possible for as long as possible.
If, as expected, they delay Bryant's 2015 major league service time by either 21 days (if he's on the 40-man roster) or 12 days (if not), it would mean another full year of cost-control on the back end of his contract -- through 2021 instead of 2020. It's no small thing, and it's far more important than a handful of games at the outset of a season that itself is merely the start of what has been declared the competition phase of a long reconstruction.
Agent Scott Boras recently told 670 The Score that the Cubs owe it to the fans to compete as soon as possible, using a populist stance to argue for hastening the inevitable windfall for him and his client. But Boras refuses to acknowledge what's bigger -- the Cubs' responsibility to fans to follow through on their stated commitment of sustained contention for World Series titles.
It's both good business and good baseball.
Every Arizona homer Bryant hits now should merely reinforce the wisdom of patience.
Dan Bernstein is a co-host of 670 The Score's "Boers and Bernstein Show" in afternoon drive. Follow him on Twitter @dan_bernstein and read more of his columns here.
