If reigning National League Most Valuable Player Award winner Kris Bryant were to hit the open market today, he would command much more than $1.05 million. But as the 25-year-old just completed his second season in the majors and is still not yet eligible for arbitration, the Cubs have the luxury of renewing Bryant’s contract on their terms. So they did, but they did decide to pay him $1.05 million, which is a record for a player who just completed his second year of service time, Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports. Angels outfielder Mike Trout had the previous record at $1 million.
The Cubs, you may recall, waited until April 17 of 2015 to call Bryant up rather than having him start the season on the 25-man roster. They did so in an attempt to limit his service time. It was such an obvious stunt that even the MLBPA monitored the situation. Bryant, of course, went on to win the NL Rookie of the Year Award, then followed that up by winning the MVP Award last year.
Bryant will become eligible for arbitration after this season. He’ll no doubt become significantly more expensive, so expect the Cubs to attempt to sign him to an extension that would cover most or all four of his arbitration-eligible years and even buy out 2022 and beyond, when he would become eligible for free agency.
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