In 2015, I covered the Kris Bryant grievance against the Chicago Cubs and how stupid it was:
Bryant should really petition his union to change that.
But the last time a CBA was negotiated, his union didn't. Whether for good or ill, they signed a CBA that allows teams some flexibility in deciding how the first year towards free agency is reached. If Bryant and Franco and the MLBPA decide they want to contest this, the very first question the MLB or any arbiter should respond with is "what concession will you grant the league"? Will the MLBPA allow the MLB to play the Chicago Cubs (and therefore, Bryant) for 53 consecutive days next season in violation of Section C.12?
The grievance apparently really bothered him: despite winning an historic World Series ring with the team less than a year later, it was apparently still enough of a thorn in his side that he forced the team to trade him away (and get sympathetic media to argue in favour of breaking the rules) last summer.
This year the horrible new CBA that brought in the ridiculous rules that destroyed the game included a provision against sending high achieving rookies to the minors: the infamous "Bryant rule" that I discussed during the original post.
