Kris Bryant's fast track to Wrigley Field legend: ‘I could have never really dreamed of being where I am right now'

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Kris Bryant doesn’t think the style of the Las Vegas home he bought and moved into in January naturally creates a man cave for a 17 Cubs jersey with gold numbers and letters. Even the National League’s reigning MVP would have to clear something like that with his wife, Jessica, before designing his own mini Hall of Fame.

“I had bought the World Series trophy,” Bryant said, referring to a smaller, replica version Tiffany & Co. makes. “There’s a perfect spot right when you walk in the house. There’s a foyer. You can put it on a table right there. ‘Can we put it here?’ My idea got shot down.”

The 2016 World Series banner flying next to Wrigley Field’s iconic scoreboard on Monday night represented both closure and a new beginning for generations of Cubs fans conditioned to expect disappointment. But Bryant never shows signs of frustration or lets you see him sweat, the balance of what super-agent Scott Boras has called the “classic fighter-pilot personality.”

No one sums up the franchise’s new identity more than Bryant, who shot a Red Bull commercial with a goat and got his own Adidas “WORTH THE WAIT” billboard in Wrigleyville before his big-league debut in April 2015.

Bryant is generally aware of the star-crossed history, but shrugged it off, because this is all he’s known in The Show: The Cubs have been under .500 just once, after last week’s Opening Night walk-off loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, winning 200-plus games, five playoff rounds and the franchise’s first World Series title since 1908.  

“I could have never really dreamed of being where I am right now that quick,” said Bryant, who got drafted with the No. 2 overall pick in 2013 after the Houston Astros took pitcher Mark Appel. “I was kind of in the right place at the right time (and) the people in charge wanted to rebuild and rebuild fast. I was just fortunate enough to be a part of it.

“It’s just a testament to all the people here and the hard work that myself and everybody puts into it. (Everyone) around here just makes it so easy to want to (get better). My motivation is at an all-time high every time I get to step into this clubhouse.”

Bryant stood in the state-of-the-art underground clubhouse before the NL Championship Series rematch against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has a locker next to Anthony Rizzo, the yin to his yang and another slugger the Cubs have under club control through the 2021 season. A montage on the video board during the banner ceremony showed Bryant with a half-smile on his face as he fielded the ball and threw it to Rizzo for the final out last November. 

“This place is unlike any other,” Bryant said. “It’s hard to put into words. But just coming to the field today for our first home game, it kind of felt like a playoff game all over again. Fans are walking through the rain to check out the new plaza out there and just experience it all over again.

“It just seems like there’s more excitement. As a player in this organization, that’s all you can really ask for. When you have sellout crowds and fans that are really passionate, it just makes it so much easier to go out there and play.”

The shelf in Bryant’s locker had his Bryzzo Souvenir Co. nameplate, his own bobblehead and a Kyle Schwarber bobblehead on display. Sports Illustrated magazines – with “How Perfect is Kris Bryant?” on the cover – were stacked in the extra locker. You know a Cubs team with so much social-media savvy will be posting images after Wednesday night’s ring ceremony.

“It depends how shiny it is,” Bryant said, “but I think it’s important to wear it and show it off. It’s been a long time to finally get that and we should all be really proud of it. I’m a big believer in that. You accomplish something like that – show it off.

“We did it. I’m sure right when we get it, all of us will be wearing it all the time. But as time goes on, hopefully we have more on our fingers.”

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