Looking back, it’s a story that you might not believe were it not for what the guy did in the World Series. Spring Training stories can carry only so much weight.
(Plus, although I’ll never say never when it comes to Kyle Schwarber, it’s pretty hard to imagine him ever doing anything more remarkable than his comeback this past October and November. Actually. Strike that. With this guy, he’ll probably top that somehow in April.)
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Today’s unbelievable Kyle Schwarber story was one of Schwarber’s first.
After being drafted fourth overall by the Cubs in 2014, Schwarber made a quick rise through the minor league ranks, reaching High-A before his partial first year was up. That put him in line to be a non-roster invitee to Spring Training in his first full year in the organization. And what he did in that Spring Training should have clued us in on the fact that the guy had a serious flair for the dramatic.
Schwarber made his big league Spring Training debut on March 5, which happened to be his 22nd birthday. He happened to take his first at bat with the bases loaded.
So, naturally, he cleared them:
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That’s right. Did you forget? Kyle Schwarber made his big league Spring Training debut on his birthday, and hit a grand slam in his first at bat.
Schwarber would go on to begin his season at AA Tennessee before a midseason promotion to AAA Iowa, and then joining the Cubs briefly as a DH in Cleveland (sound familiar? Yes, he did some dramatic things then, too), coming back for the stretch run. Then, he did what he did in the playoffs, breaking the Cubs’ homer record.
How ridiculous, eh? Schwarber just keeps doing these things. And today, with Spring Training games coming at the end of this week, I thought it worth remembering the crazy grand slam that kind of kicked it all off.
What’s next for Schwarber? Robs a home run this weekend while doing a handstand on the outfield wall?
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