You might not otherwise notice a 1-4 night from Kris Bryant and think that it was a seminal moment in his return to pre-2018 glory. But that’s only if you didn’t actually pay attention to the contact he created:
Kris Bryant's batted balls tonight in Seattle:
105.4 mph linneout in 1st
105.0 mph flyout in 3rd
110.6 mph double in 5th
108.3 mph flyout in 9th.KB ties a career-best for 4 batted balls 105+mph, done twice before — both in his NL MVP season in '16. #Cubs pic.twitter.com/QGvS7ogYes
— Daniel Kramer (@DKramer_) May 1, 2019
You can’t control everything as a hitter, but one thing the very best hitters can try to do regularly? Hit the ball very hard. Last night, in his four at bats (he also walked once), Bryant did that better than he has in literal years.
When you combine that with the positive signals we were already seeing an noted before last night’s game? Yeah, I’m feeling good. I guess the leg tightness he was feeling last night was not an issue.
Also, hey, it’s not MVP-caliber, but it’s not terrible: Bryant’s slash line is up to .230/.355/.420, good for a 110 wRC+ (i.e., 10% better than league average).