Chicago Cubs: Three reasons for optimism about this season
Reason 1: Kris Bryant and Yu Darvish are 100 percent (hopefully)
It was a tough year for Cubs fans in 2018 when it came to the team’s injuries. After signing pitcher Yu Darvish to a huge contract before the season, he barely saw the mound as he dealt with elbow and triceps injuries throughout the year.
Darvish pitched only 40 innings in 2018. It was a big disappointment for fans who were expecting the pitcher to make a huge impact on the team. So far this spring, Darvish has remained relatively injury free. However, he’s currently dealing with a blister issue.
Darvish is hopeful about his health heading into this season. The Cubs will badly need him to eat up innings in order to not overwork the bullpen. The lack of starters going deep into games doomed the team’s relief pitchers in 2018.
#Cubs Kris Bryant gives a very positive update on his offseason rehab on his shoulder pic.twitter.com/244IA1koro
— Cubs Talk (@NBCSCubs) January 19, 2019
As for former NL MVP Kris Bryant, he dealt with the first serious injury of his career in 2018 when he had nagging shoulder problems. Bryant is notorious for his work ethic and batting cage routine, but after the season he didn’t swing a baseball bat for two months.
It was a long time to go without swinging for a guy who lives in the batting cage like Bryant. While he didn’t have surgery this offseason as Darvish did, if Bryant is truly healthy it could propel the Cubs to the playoffs.