CHICAGO -- Kris Bryant absorbed the sights and smells and sounds of Wrigley Field on Friday afternoon.
He cherished playing in front of 30,000 charged-up fans, and he appreciated all the family members and friends who turned out for his major-league debut.
Only two things were missing: A hit and a victory.
The prized power prospect of the Chicago Cubs struck out in his first three at-bats against James Shields and then grounded out in a key spot Friday in the Cubs' 5-4 loss to the San Diego Padres.
"Sure, I could have done a little better," Bryant said. "There's two sides to the ball. I felt I did well on defense."
Called up one day after the Cubs ensured he can't be eligible for free agency until 2021, the 23-year-old who dominated in spring training went 0 for 4.
Seeking their first World Series title in 107 years, the Cubs selected Bryant's contract from Class AAA Iowa and inserted him into their starting lineup as the cleanup hitter and third baseman.
"He's a good player," said Shields (2-0), a former All-Star who started the World Series opener last October. "He's going to be just fine."
On the field before the game, Bryant embraced his father, former Boston minor-league outfielder Mike Bryant, and his dad watched from the stands next to his son's agent, Scott Boras.
Kris Bryant said he had only three hours of sleep before Friday's game.
"Time of my life, really," he said. "Can't really put into words how good of a feeling this is to work for this your whole life and finally get that chance."
Friday was Day 13 of the season, which means Bryant could at most accumulate 171 days of major-league service. Because 172 days of service count as a year, he could have been eligible for free agency after the 2020 season had he been on the major-league roster earlier.
"I sure hope I can look back on this and laugh at it 15 years from now," Bryant said. "It's all in the past."
Bryant hit .425 for the Cubs in spring training with 9 home runs and 15 RBI in 40 at-bats. He was batting.321 with 3 home runs and 10 RBI in 28 at-bats with Class AAA Iowa.
"I said my expectations are that you play hard and enjoy yourself," Maddon said.
When Bryant was sent to the minor leagues March 30, players' union head Tony Clark said "this decision and other similar decisions made by clubs will be addressed in litigation, bargaining or both." After Bryant was brought up Friday, Clark said in an email to The Associated Press there was "nothing new to offer at this point."
Chicago third baseman Mike Olt was put on the disabled list Friday with a broken right wrist, a move retroactive to Wednesday. Theo Epstein, the Cubs' president of baseball operations, said Bryant would not have been called up if Olt had been able to play.
Epstein said the Cubs would have preferred Bryant's debut to come on the road.
"We would have done it a little bit later," Epstein said, "but you can't script everything out in baseball."
Bryant, selected by the Cubs with the second overall pick in the 2013 amateur draft, joins a young core that includes Rizzo, Jorge Soler and Starlin Castro.
"I think the journey's just starting," Bryant said. "This isn't where I want to end. I want to win a lot of games and win for the Cubs. I think this is a good starting point."
Chicago also placed reliever Neil Ramirez on the disabled list with right shoulder inflammation, a move retroactive to Thursday, and activated outfielder Chris Denorfia from the disabled list following his recovery from a strained left hamstring.
Sports on 04/18/2015