Imrem: Cubs' Bryant, Rizzo both worthy of MVP

One player as league MVP and a teammate as their club's MVP is not an unusual circumstance.

The Cubs might become the latest example with Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo.

They showed why again Wednesday night.

Both Bryant and Rizzo were valuable in Game 2 of the World Series at Cleveland.

The Indians led the best-of-seven series 1-0. A second consecutive loss would plunge the Cubs into a deep hole.

This wasn't a must-win situation, but it was close.

Bryant did his part as the Cubs' second batter by singling with one out in the first inning. Rizzo followed by doubling him home.

Indians manager Terry Francona said, “I thought in the first inning Rizzo had a real good at-bat.”

Scoring first is so important in postseason baseball, and the Cubs proceeded from there to even the series with a 5-1 victory.

Crowds in Wrigley Field chant “M-V-P! M-V-P! M-V-P!” for “Bryant! Bryant! Bryant!”

And why not?

In his second big-league season, Bryant batted .292 with 39 home runs, 102 runs batted in and a league-leading 121 runs scored.

League MVP numbers, for sure, and Bryant is the favorite to win the award.

Meanwhile, it says here that Anthony Rizzo is the Cubs' most valuable player for what he does on the field and in the clubhouse.

As good as Bryant was this season, a case also could be made for Rizzo as the league MVP, and some voters will make it.

Bryant's advantage seems to be that he played so many different positions on defense this year.

Utility players are supposed to relocate from third base to left field to right field to wherever else Cubs manager Joe Maddon's whims prefer them.

Bryant does so as one of baseball's, excuse the expression, most valuable run producers.

If sampling multiple positions is one of the criteria for “M-V-P! M-V-P! M-V-P!” … well, it's just one more reason Bryant is worthy.

Heck, he'd be worthy of the award if he never left his natural position of third base.

So it's odd to declare that Rizzo is more valuable to the Cubs, but he is.

For one thing, Rizzo's statistics aren't too shabby: .292 batting average (same as Bryant); 32 home runs (7 fewer than Bryant); 109 RBI (7 more than Bryant).

Rizzo is so much more than stats. He's a leader, a spokesman when something needs to be spoken and a heartbeat pumping life into the Cubs when they need a jolt.

If sports had foxholes — thank goodness they don't, even though athletes like to imagine they are in them — teammates would want Rizzo in theirs. That's not to slight Bryant or any other young Cub.

But there's something about Rizzo, a presence that sets him apart as a leader. Bryant and Addison Russell have a certain cool. Javier Baez and Willson Contreras have a certain fire.

Rizzo is a combination of cool and fire, a baseball sophisticate with a welcome edge.

Diverse personalities are just one more characteristic that has the Cubs positioned to be baseball's team of the decade.

Rizzo needs someone like Bryant to pick him up when he slumps. Bryant is a quiet leader who is better off letting Rizzo be vocal when necessary.

They're a nice combination … Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant … take your pick for “M-V-P!”

One for the National League and one for the Cubs seems about right.

mimrem@dailyherald.com