Kris Bryant isn’t the fastest runner in baseball, he’s not the fastest in the National League, hell he’s not even the fastest player on the Chicago Cubs, but speed isn’t everything. During Tuesday night’s 4-3 win over the Miami Marlins, Bryant showed off his base running prowess that according to Alex Rodriguez is the best in the world.
Yes, before we go further you’re right, Starlin Castro taking his sweet time to throw home definitely helped Bryant score the game-winning run in the eighth last night. However, Bryant beat the throw home in plenty of time, so even if Castro had gotten the throw off quicker it still would have been close.
Anyway, the point is that even with the Marlins infield playing in with Bryant at third and one out, he scored with ease on a ground ball to Castro at second.
There was no hesitation, the break from the third was good, the acceleration was great and the slide was perfect too by Bryant.
A-Rod called Kris Bryant the best base runner in the world. Here's another example why. #Cubs (also thanks for taking your time Starlin) pic.twitter.com/I5B5BG0IEx
— Pinwheels and Ivy Podcast (@PinwheelsIvyPod) May 9, 2018
Again, it wasn’t even close and if Castro doesn’t take his time Bryant probably still beats the throw.
These are the type of things that can’t be overlooked. Everyone, including myself, drools over the big power numbers, but Bryant does so much more than that. The base running is at the top of the list.
We all remember when Bryant scored from first base on a single during the 2016 World Series. The ability to basically steal runs with smart and aggressive running has been a staple for Bryant and the Cubs as a whole, but he’s definitely the poster boy for it.
