Well, what a bummer. For the second time this season, Kris Bryant is heading to the disabled list with left shoulder inflammation. We thought this move may be coming after Bryant sat out the last two games, and here it is.
The #Cubs today placed 3B Kris Bryant on the 10-day DL (retroactive to July 24) with left shoulder inflammation and recalled INF David Bote from @IowaCubs. pic.twitter.com/adCxHgSjMp
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 26, 2018
The good news, if you can call it that, is that this move is retroactive to July 24th, which means Bryant could theoretically return just after the calendar flips to August, when the Cubs host the Padres at Wrigley Field.
That said, given that his last stint on the DL lasted longer than the minimum, given that this is now the third time he’s been dealing with this issue, and given that it happened because of a swing, I don’t think there’s any specific reason to be optimistic that this will be a very short-term stint. Prepare for the worst, hope for the best and all that.
The other good news – again, such as it is – is that the Cubs’ bench will no longer be artificially short, as David Bote has been called up to replace Bryant. The 25-year-old utility man returns to a spectacular .310/.415/.452 line, albeit in just 53 plate appearances.
Brett Taylor contributed to this post.