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Cubs' Kris Bryant Not Interested In Being In The Home Run Derby

By Bruce Levine--

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Cubs and their fan base can exhale now, with the knowledge that slugger Kris Bryant is fine after an outfield collision Monday. After exiting a win over the Reds a day prior with a leg contusion, Bryant was back in the lineup Tuesday, hitting second and playing third base.

The injury was deemed to be minor, but it didn't mean the collision between Bryant and center fielder Albert Almora wasn't scary. After it occurred, both players had on their minds the season-ending knee injury that Cubs left fielder Kyle Schwarber suffered on a similar play when he collided with teammate Dexter Fowler in the first week of the season.

"I first thought as I was on the ground looking at my foot was I had what Kyle had," Bryant said about his near major accident. "It could have been a lot worse. It's a little uncomfortable with a little discomfort. Nothing to keep me from playing."

"I got lucky," he said. "Things could have been a lot worse. Right when I hit the ground, I thought, 'Wow, this is serious.' Any time it's with the knee and it goes a way it's not suppose to go, it's scary. I was sitting on the ground looking at my leg. It looked straight to me. Then I said to myself, 'OK, maybe it's not as bad as I first thought. That was the first thing that crossed my mind, what happened to Kyle.

Bryant's only treatment for his knee soreness was ice Monday night.

"Honestly, if the score was closer, I would have been able to stay in there," Bryant said. "I would have been able to tape it up. It was determined that at that point we were up 8-0, it was safer to come out of the game."

Bryant was playing third base Tuesday because of matchup reasons, manager Joe Maddon said, not because of any fear of putting him back in left field.

Bryant's 24 homers lead the National League and are tied with Orioles slugger Mark Trumbo for the most in baseball, and he's a shoo-in to be named an All-Star in the July 12 contest in San Diego. However, Bryant won't be participating in the Home Run Derby, he confirmed Tuesday.

Bryant participated in the event as a rookie last season, being eliminated in the first round of the competition.

"I don't want to do it," Bryant said. "It is too tiring. I will enjoy watching it if I am there. Last year, it really took me a couple of days to recover from it. Swinging a bat does not look like it is tiring, but when you do it for five straight minutes, trying to hit it as hard as you can, it gets real tiring. Home Run Derbys are fun, but I will have to pass."

Bryant doesn't regret initial Home Run Derby experience, as he loved that his dad, Mike, had the opportunity to pitch to him in it.

"I am just glad I was able to do it last year and give him and me that memory," Bryant said.

Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.

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