Cubs, Kris Bryant Avoid Arbitration with $12.9 Million Salary

Kris Bryant set a record last season when he settled for a $10.85 million deal in his first year of arbitration. But when a shoulder injury limited his playing time and performance, it was clear his bump wouldn’t be as significant this time around. Even so, his $12.9 million salary is half a million more than had been projected.

The former Rookie of the Year and MVP is rounding back into form this winter and has returned to his familiar one-handed finish as he looks to forget 2018. And if he can come even close to replicating his performance over his first three seasons, his salary will be an incredible bargain.

The Cubs have now reached agreements with all of their seven elegible players: Bryant, Javy Baez, Kyle Hendricks, Kyle Schwarber, Addison Russell, Mike Montgomery, and Carl Edwards Jr. Based on what we’ve seen so far, they should end up coming in well below estimates, perhaps by $2.5 million or even a little more.

Given the oft-reported financial situation and the various issues at play with arbitration, it’s good to see everything getting settled so quickly. Now if they could just agree to some deals with players not already on the roster.