Turns out both the SF Giants and the Cubs were winners of the Kris Bryant trade

The SF Giants made a major trade in the miracle 2021 season with the Chicago Cubs for third baseman Kris Bryant. Four and a half years later, it is abundantly clear that both the Giants and the Cubs were winners of that trade.

San Francisco recently reunited with Caleb Kilian on a minor league deal. He was one of the prospects the Giants sent to the Cubs in the Bryant trade and now he has returned to the organization that drafted him.

SF Giants are clear winners of the Cubs trade with Kris Bryant

This comes after Alexander Canario, the other prospect the Giants sent to the Cubs in that deal, was DFA'd by Chicago last year. Neither Canario nor Kilian got much of an extended look with the Cubs at the big league level and both have mostly been bouncing around the minor leagues.

The Giants can feel good knowing they did not give up a prospect who went on to be a star and the Cubs can feel good because they offloaded Bryant right before his career took a turn for the worse.

Bryant was solid for the Giants in 2021, slashing .262/.344/.444 with seven home runs and 22 runs batted in while being moved all over the diamond. He also performed well in the NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers and there was some speculation that the Giants would try to re-sign him after he became a free agent but instead the Colorado Rockies signed him to a lucrative seven-year, $182 million deal which has been a complete disaster.

Bryant has been injured every single season and even when he has been able to play he has been a shell of his former self after winning an MVP award with the Cubs earlier in his career. He played in just 11 games with the Cubs last season.

The Cubs probably wish they had gotten a better return for Bryant, but really they have to be thankful they did not keep Bryant and end up giving him that disastrous Rockies deal.

It will be interesting to see if Kilian can make an impact with the Giants this season. He has a career ERA of 9.22 but the Giants have a need in the bullpen so maybe he can finally establish himself in the big leagues.

Four and a half years after that trade deadline blockbuster, it now seems clear that both the Cubs and Giants turned out okay after the Bryant trade.