Yes, the Cubs have had a great season. But they also look terrible at times, and I am sick and tired of watching Bryant come up with men on in a close game and either whiff on something low and out of the zone, or hit a weak pop up or grounder to kill a scoring opportunity.

I have no stats to back this up, but I’d guess Bryant’s one of MLB’s leaders in runners stranded, and that he’s one of the better “garbage time” hitters in the game. Far too much, I seem him come through with a big home run, etc., late in a game that’s out of reach but fail to come through in more “clutch” situations when the Cubs need him to come through.

He’s not alone. Rizzo had a crappy day today too, and Russell, who previously seemed to be developing into a guy who was making better contact and coming through in the clutch, seems to have gone completely cold in September. It’s easy for these guys to pile it on against, say, the Reds. But when it’s the Cards? They all look like Little Leaguers.

Anyhow, for all of Bryant’s gaudy numbers he still strikes out way too much, swings at garbage but takes good pitches for called strikes, and strands too many runners when the Cubs need a rally. The picture of a dejected, befuddled looking Bryant at the top of this article says it all.

If I had an MVP vote I would not give it to Bryant. He’s really good against crappy teams, but not when his team actually needs him. It’s this problem, which afflicts plenty of other Cubs too, that will cause them to fail in October and likely drummed out of the NLCS or NLDS yet again.