Once Upon A Dream (Kris Bryant)

68- Most Valuable Player

Kris

Not too long after the parade did we have to pack up and leave for Asia. I did some media things, went on Jimmy Kimmel and the Ellen show. She gave me a nice suit for my wedding and it was actually the best. It was all white with a bunch of cubs logos on it and I honestly couldn't wait to wear it. Maybe not on my wedding day, but some day.

Finally we fly out to Singapore where the first concert of the rest of the Heart Wide Open tour starts. Then for the next three weeks me and my eight month pregnant fiancé are going to new places and spreading the joy of music.

But that doesn't start until tomorrow. As for today, it was the announcement of mvp of the league which I was up for and favored to win. The first goal of any athlete is to win whichever championship you might be chasing. And right behind it is the hope to win most valuable player. For me to even be nominated is something special considering how many guys on the team alone could be up for this thing. Anthony is consistently in top five and guys like Hendricks and Lester have a good chance of winning the Cy Young too. Rarely does the team who wins it all have guys up for awards like this because everyone is successful, but this team is just so good that almost everyone is mvp caliber.

So my parents dug out their passports and joined us here in Singapore to celebrate if I win or just have fun in a new place.

As it comes closer to time of the announcement I get a little more nervous. Either way I would be happy, to even be considered for this is a honor in itself. But it would be cool to win rookie of the year and the World Series AND mvp. Not many people have done that before, and I want to be one of them.

We set up a camera in the hotel room and had a view of the city in the background. This place was very pretty, it had mountains and little rivers and the city was nice too. Everyone has been super cool and on top of Manny following us around we have a translator to help us too. It was like a little posse.

I pull Jayden into my lap as we wait for the announcement. I start to rub her large belly and she rests her head on my shoulder.

"How ya feelin' little mama" I ask sand she starts to laugh.

"Not as nervous as you apparently" she giggles.

"Is it that obvious" I ask.

"When you're nervous you start talking like a middle schooler. And you just said something you usually say but like you want me to play with you in pe" she claims.

"So yeah, it's obvious" I conclude and she smiles down at me. He cups my face and suddenly I was feeling a lot better.

"You're going to win Kris. There's no need to worry" she assures me. If she says it then it has to be true, right?

We get all set up and they start live streaming. I wait as patiently as I can and they camera zooms in on me. Jayden and my parents stand behind the chair I occupied just waiting to hear what they say.

"A year ago he was the unanimous winner for rookie of the year, this year cubs third basemen Kris Bryant was almost unanimous for the national mvp award. He won overwhelmingly with 29 of the first place votes and becoming the fourth player to win mvp the year after being named the top rookie."

I let out a large sigh as they go to start the interview process. My parents celebrate beside me and Jayden leans over and kisses my cheek.

"I told you" she whispers in my ear before returning to my side. I smile as they start to ask me questions about what this meant.

"It's really cool, honestly. I'm not sure what I could say to properly express how honored I feel right now. To be thought of as the best player in the National league, that's huge. For someone like my parents who have watched me for years to see this happen, it's awesome. And for someone like Jayden who came to Chicago the same time I did and for both of us to be able to chase or dreams and find this kind of success, I'm speechless honestly. This means the world to us and I'm honored to accept this award" I explain.

"What do you think made you MVP" they ask.

"Oh I can't answer that" I laugh.

"I can" my dad says and I send him a glare.

"I mean I shouldn't answer that. I think there's about twenty guys in the national league that you can argue deserves this award. I'm not even sure if I am the mvp of my team. I just wanted to be what they needed me to be, whether it's somewhere in the outfield or at the plate. Anything to have the type of success we found. No matter where I am I want to be the best and that kinda carries over into my stats I guess" I shrug.

"Humble as always" they say and I laugh. "So where are you right now? That place looks nice" they say.

"We're all out in Singapore. My fiancé has a concert here tomorrow so we invited my parents out in case I won then we could see a little bit of Asia" I explain.

"That is so awesome. So this whole MVP thing might not even be the coolest moment of your week" they tease.

"Probably not. I always love watching my fiancé perform, especially when we're places outside the United States. Back home I might be popular but no matter where we go she always draws a crowd. A lot of people see in her what I see in her, it's cool knowing culture or language barriers doesn't stop her from doing what she loves" I smile.

"Well it sounds like you're a busy man so we will let you. Congratulations on your success and we wish you and fiancé nothing but the best" they say.

"Thank you" I reply before the line goes dead. I turn to my dad was trying to hold himself together. As soon as that light goes off he starts jumping up and down and yelling. I haven't seen him this excited since we announced Jayden was pregnant.

"Good job sweetie, we're proud of you" my mom says as she kisses my cheek.

"Thanks mom."

"Let's go celebrate" my dad cheers causing me to laugh. I love it when he's like that.

We gather some things and pick Manny up from he hotel room next to us. We all go out to a new restaurant and grab a nice meal. As I look around I realize there was no way I would have won today without these people. They're how I started playing and why I play, I was beyond blessed and I wouldn't wait for the rest of this journey to unfold.