As hoped, Kris Bryant’s swings at South Bend must’ve gone well enough yesterday, because Kris Bryant is returning to the Cubs lineup tonight, per manager David Ross on 670 The Score just now.
Bryant is going to be accompanied by Steven Souza, Jr., who also played at South Bend yesterday, so get ready for a whole lotta roster upheaval. Jose Martinez, Cameron Maybin, and Josh Osich also officially arrive today (Andrew Chafin is on the IL).
Your question immediately is: does Bryant slot back into the leadoff spot that he left behind (and was theoretically so well-suited for when healthy), or does Ian Happ stay up there because he’s been raking so much? You could argue the Cubs are just as well-served with Happ in the middle of the order, but do you really want to mess with something that’s working?
We’ll find out soon enough. I tend to think we’ll see Happ stay up top, with maybe Bryant batting second, Anthony Rizzo third, Willson Contreras fourth, and Kyle Schwarber fifth, but only if you’re comfortable moving Javy Báez down to sixth, and Jason Heyward down to 7th. Not so sure about coordinating all this now that I start typing it. Lineup due out in an hour or two, so I’m not gonna twist myself in knots.