SF Giants’ Kris Bryant gets pregame video tribute, gifts from Cubs upon return to Wrigley Field

CHICAGO — An emotional Kris Bryant wiped away tears during a pregame ceremony at Wrigley Field Friday as the Cubs welcomed the Giants slugger back to Chicago.

Bryant, who spent the first seven years of his career with the Cubs, had a 20 minute Q&A with local reporters in the Giants’ dugout pregame and said that Chicago “will always be home.”

The Cubs played a tribute video for Bryant ahead of Friday’s first pitch that featured many of the top moments from his career in Chicago. Fans gathered at Wrigley Field let out their loudest cheer when the video showed Bryant’s throw to first baseman Anthony Rizzo in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series that clinched the long-awaited title.

“It was kind of hard to play a baseball game after that for sure,” Bryant said. “But I really appreciated it. When I first started my career here, I don’t know if I could have ever dreamed of having that type of reception and the fans welcoming me back like that.”

Cubs executives presented Bryant with a No. 17 from their scoreboard and took photos with Bryant as he held a blue flag with “2016” on it to commemorate the World Series championship.

“He seemed touched by the gesture from the fans,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “I thought the video was phenomenal, very well done. It captured some very important moments in his career.”

The celebration of Bryant’s return continued ahead his at-bat in the first inning as Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks stepped off the mound for 30 seconds so Chicago fans could give the four-time All-Star a standing ovation. Bryant’s at-bat didn’t go as well as he hoped as he struck out with runners on the corners and two outs to end the frame.

Earlier this week, Bryant said his return to Wrigley Field would give him the sense of “closure” he didn’t get when he was traded at the deadline to San Francisco because the Cubs were on the road in Washington, D.C. The Bryant family passed out hundreds of cookies to Wrigley Field employees Friday to thank them for their work during his tenure in Chicago.

“It’s easy to thank your hitting coach or your teammates or the people writing out your checks, but the people behind the scenes here really make this place go,” Bryant said. “They’ve been through a lot here. A lot of them have 20-years plus of working in the stands and gone through a lot of losing seasons and to finally win one and see how happy they were and just how they’ve treated us my whole career here, it was just a little something I could send their way to show how much me and my family appreciate them.”

Bryant was the National League MVP during the 2016 season and set career-highs with 39 home runs and 102 RBIs during the regular season.

The Cubs traded Bryant to San Francisco on July 30 in exchange for prospects Alexander Canario and Caleb Kilian and have watched the slugger make a strong impact with a new organization that’s on the verge of ending a four-year playoff drought.