March 19--With a 6-foot-5 frame and an ability to hit tape-measure home runs, Kris Bryant easily is one of the most noticeable players in the Chicago Cubs' spring training camp.
But Bryant's presence has taken a back seat to issues regarding why he hasn't already been promoted to the majors and whether he will be on the Cubs' opening-day roster.
In separate interviews Tuesday with Fox Sports and USA Today, agent Scott Boras called out Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts for allegedly not making a full effort to win by not promoting Bryant to the majors last September.
Wednesday morning, Bryant stressed his support for Boras while appreciating the treatment from Ricketts since the Cubs drafted him as the second overall pick in the 2013 draft and gave him a $6.7 million signing bonus.
As for Boras, "Scott works for me," Bryant said. "He does a great job. It's nice to have a bulldog working for you rather than a poodle. He definitely sticks up for his players. He wants the best for me.
"I was aware of (the comments). But the media approached him. He wasn't seeking the media. We spoke. I got the gist of it, but I really try to limit those distractions as much as possible. But we're at a crucial point in spring training, and I'm in a good position so we'll see where it goes.''
Bryant cited examples of the Cubs' hospitality but said teammates and coaches outside the organization have been supportive in his mission to reach the majors.
"First, the ownership has been great to me," Bryant said. "Drafting me second overall, treating me with nothing but first class. I've had a great time. Tom has been great to me. Everyone in the front office has been great to me. I have nothing but good things to say about them.
"But at the same time, I'm hearing from my teammates they want me up and I'm doing well and everyone is telling me I'm progressing well, and it's sending mixed messages to me. But it's definitely refreshing to hear from my teammates that they want me up there and even other coaches that I know personally from around the (Arizona) Fall League and telling me how well I'm doing so. I definitely don't let it get to my head. I really got a job to do on the field, but it's definitely nice to hear that from your teammates and peers around."
Fan anxiety to get Bryant to the majors as soon as possible has escalated because he has hit six home runs and is batting .435 in 23 at-bats despite not having played third base since Thursday because of right shoulder fatigue.
Bryant has committed two errors but said his shoulder feels fine. He will return as a designated hitter Thursday in a B game against the Los Angeles Angels at Sloan Park.
Manager Joe Maddon said he spoke with Bryant on Wednesday to discuss not rushing back from injury and elaborated on Boras' comments.
"Be patient," Maddon said he told Bryant. "He agreed that if this is the middle of June, he'd be playing. If this was push time for the playoffs, he'd be playing. Absolutely. He figured out he'd work out any malady he had.
"But this is not the time. You work through stuff like this. This is the time you get well so that it's not a chronic problem during the course of a season."
Maddon was the least surprised by Boras' comments.
"That's what an agent is supposed to do," said Maddon, whose former agent Tommy Tanzer had a less than pleasant association with Boras. "Fans are supposed to get angry. Agents are suppose to say things like that. Why that would surprise anybody, that would be a surprise to me.
"That is what you're supposed to do. Scorpions bite. That's what they're supposed to do. Whatever your nature is, you do that. So why would it surprise anybody."
A representative for Ricketts said President Theo Epstein is taking the lead in responding to these allegations, but the baseball operations department has remained consistent in their stance on Bryant, 23, who hit .325 with 43 home runs and 110 RBIs at Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa last season.
The Cubs' stance, regardless of pleas by Boras and Cubs fans to bring Bryant to the majors, is that their top prospect didn't play his first full professional season until 2014 -- when he played 138 games (but only 70 at Triple-A) and that he needs to continue to make improvements in the field (and cut down on his 162 strikeouts).
Boras has contended that 16 of the greatest players had fewer at-bats at Triple-A than Bryant (244).
Boras' rants occurred less than two weeks after Tony Clark, executive director for the Major League Baseball Players Association, said that they would be watching Bryant and the way the Cubs handle his service time.
If Bryant isn't promoted to the majors until after April 16, he wouldn't be eligible for free agency until after the 2021 season at the earliest.
But the Cubs have remained consistent in their stance, dating back to comments by general manager Jed Hoyer on March 6.
"Kris is so advanced mentally and so mature that it is easy to forget just how few (plate appearances) he has had in the upper levels of the minor leagues," Hoyer wrote in an email. "As with all of our prospects, he has an individualized player plan that outlines his areas of improvement. Knowing Kris, he will continue to work hard every day to turn his weaknesses into strengths and to learn from the veteran players we have in camp."
Bryant, meanwhile, reflected on the defensive progress he has made since signing with the Cubs.
"I was thinking the past week, When I started at (Class-A) Boise, I was rough," Bryant said. "But over each level, I progressed very well. I think my stats on fielding have gone up. I feel very good out there. I think I've been doing everything they've asked me to, getting better every day."
mgonzales@tribpub.com
