Giants get in on the deadline fun and nab Cubs star Kris Bryant
At the trade deadline’s final hour, one of its most inactive teams surprised everyone with a seismic move.
The San Francisco Giants traded for the Cubs’ Kris Bryant, long speculated as one of the top names who would get traded this summer. After watching their neighbors in Los Angeles and San Diego make moves of their own, the Giants decided they’d be the one to turn Bryant’s trade rumors into a sure thing.
To get the Cubs’ legend, San Francisco ditched two of their top 30 prospects. The Giants are exchanging outfielder Alexander Canario and right-handed pitcher Caleb Kilian to get Bryant. Neither is considered a Top 100 prospect in the league though, which, considering how special of a talent Bryant is, makes the return feel a little light.
Bryant was a true pillar of the Cubs’ famous rebuild that eventually brought the franchise its first championship in 108 years. Drafted in 2013 and called up in 2015, Bryant helped the Cubs to five playoff berths, more than they’d had in the previous 25 years. His accolades include the 2015 Rookie of the Year and 2016 MVP. Along with Anthony Rizzo and Javier Baez (both of whom were traded to New York teams this week), Bryant was a staple of the Cubs’ infield during his time at Wrigley Field.
In recent years, though, Bryant’s versatility has become the stuff of legend. This year alone, he’s made at least 10 starts at third base, first base and every outfield spot. He is one of seven players since integration to accomplish that feat, and he did so before August. Make no mistake, though. Bryant isn’t just a light-hitting utilityman who fills in around the diamond as needed. He’s got 18 home runs and a .503 slugging percentage this year while drawing a walk on just over 10 percent of his plate appearances. By wRC+, a statistic that measures how good a player’s offensive production is when considering ballpark effects and the value of extra base hits over singles, Bryant has been 32 percentage points better than an average 2021 hitter.
Friday officially marks the end of the best era in modern Cubs history. The man who fielded the ground ball that ended the team’s championship drought is on his way to San Francisco, while the man who caught it is now a Yankee. It’s a stunning strip down for a club that won 95 games as recently as 2018. But in their removal of Bryant, Rizzo, Baez, and relievers Craig Kimbrel, Andrew Chafin and Ryan Tepera, the Cubs are trying to set themselves up for another version of the famed nucleus that brought a World Series parade to Chicago’s north side.
It seems unlikely that either Canario or Killian ascend to a superstardom as high as Bryant, Rizzo or Baez did. It is much more likely that the Cubs’ front office assessed their situation and decided that those trio of players are worth more in prospect gold than they are on the Cubs’ current roster, which all three could have left at the end of the season anyway when they reach unrestricted free agency. It is a stark reminder of how quickly things can change in the business of baseball. One day Cub fans are watching Bryant playfully banter with the broadcasters during the All-Star Game, the next they’re looking for solace in two no-names that haven’t passed Double-A yet.
Canario (MLB.com’s ninth-ranked Giants’ prospect) is re-adjusting to life on the minor league circuit after COVID-19 wiped out its 2020 session. He hit an impressive .301/.365/.539 as a 19-year-old playing Low-A ball in 2019. This year’s been more of an uphill climb, as the Giants moved him up a level and watched his numbers plummet to .235/.325/.433. Canario’s best tool is his power, and he likely projects as a corner outfielder if and when he reaches the majors.
Kilian (30th-ranked Giants’ prospect) is a bit older than the 21-year-old he was traded with. At 24 years old with a 2.43 ERA at Double-A, Kilian is much more MLB-adjacent than Canario. He’s allowed two home runs in his 11 starts this season for the Richmond Flying Squirrels (the first he’s surrendered at any minor-league level) and walked only eight in 63 innings. Without any real skill that jumps off the scouting report, it’s possible that Kilian’s ticket to the big leagues will be through the bullpen.
As strange as it will be to see Bryant in black and orange, his acquisition sets up a tremendous race in the National League West. The Giants are still, somewhat improbably, leading the division. They rest three games ahead of the Dodgers entering play on Friday, 5.5 games clear of the Padres.
All season long people have wondered how the Giants are outplaying their California rivals that have much better rosters on paper. Now, in one fell swoop, they’ve put the league on notice by finally landing a top tier talent of their own.
