History is being written in the 2016 MLB World Series. Two teams who haven’t won a World Series in over 150 combined years will face off to take home the title. The starting pitchers have been announced, Corey Kluber gets the ball for the Cleveland Indians and Jon Lester for the Chicago Cubs. One more shocking and exciting announcement that has been talked about for several days is whether Cubs outfielder Kyle Schwarber will make the Cubs roster. It has officially been announced that he will, and he will even be the designated hitter for the Cubs in game one. Here’s a look at the impact of the return of Kyle Schwarber.
The Return of Kyle Schwarber
The Injury
The season was looking extremely bright for the young Chicago Cubs at the beginning of the season. However, they would have to overcome an extreme loss very early in the year, as Kyle Schwarber would suffer a torn ACL and LCL during the third game of the year. Schwarber and fellow outfielder Dexter Fowler collided on a ball headed for the left center gap. The speculation began immediately with people trying to diagnose Schwarber just moments after the incident. Ultimately, the club would confirm the worst.
It was also thought that Schwarber wouldn’t even attempt to return during the 2016 campaign. President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein said, even as late as August, that Schwarber wouldn’t return this year. It seems that the young outfielder had other plans, as he’s made the roster and should DH in game one.
2015 Postseason
Last year the Cubs were defeated by the New York Mets in the NLCS. Kyle Schwarber performed well in the series, and that’s saying a lot as he only went 2-for-14. Both his hits, however, were home runs. He drove in three of the Cubs eight runs scored in the series. Schwarber would hit five total homeruns in the postseason, most of which were key hits.
The World Series
The return of Kyle Schwarber couldn’t come at a better time for the Cubs. They go to Cleveland for the first two games of the series. Due to the AL ballpark the Cubs will need a designated hitter. There is nobody on the roster that fits this role more than Schwarber. Jorge Soler is the right-handed option as a DH but he has only gotten eight at-bats in the postseason and has failed to get a hit.
Schwarber may struggle as he hasn’t seen a Major-League pitch in months. He did get eight plate appearances in Arizona over the weekend. Schwarber went 1-for-6 with two walks. He smacked a double down the right field line. He also crushed a ball into the gap in another at-bat but was robbed by a spectacular play. The return of Kyle Schwarber could be the difference between winning the series and losing it, and it could go either way.
Main Photo
