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Cubs' Kris Bryant Sets Record With $10.85 Million Payday For 1st-Year Arbitration Player

(670 The Score) Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant has set a record.

Bryant and the Cubs avoided arbitration by settling Friday on a $10.85 million salary for 2018. That figure is the most a first-year arbitration-eligible player has ever received, topping the $10-million mark that Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard set in 2008.

Bryant, 26, hit .295 with 29 homers, 73 RBIs, 111 runs and .946 OPS in 2017. He's a two-time All-Star who won the National League MVP in 2016.

Jed Hoyer: Cubs 'almost definitely' moving into season with this group of position players

The Cubs also avoided arbitration with shortstop Addison Russell, settling at $3.2 million, according to the Sun-Times. Earlier Friday, the Cubs settled with reliever Justin Wilson ($4.25 million), right-hander Kyle Hendricks ($4.125 million) and infielder Tommy La Stella ($950,000).

The Cubs and reliever Justin Grimm didn't reach an agreement yet and are expected to exchange salary figures soon. They can still continue negotiating moving forward. The Cubs have never gone to arbitration with a player in the Theo Epstein-Jed Hoyer era.

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