Epstein on Schwarber’s Desire to Be in the Best Shape of His Life and Other Bullets

Dec 08, 2017

The Littlest Girl has a doctor’s appointment today – right now, actually – so I’m feverishly typing before the doctor arrives.

I never thought of Kyle Schwarber as an out-of-shape guy, nor did I think of him as a guy regularly doing Iron Man stuff. So when a report came out earlier this offseason that he was “on a mission” to transform his body, my reaction was kinda like, “OK, cool, fine. Being in even better shape is always good, and he did have a year where he was rehabbing, so everything probably got a little outta whack.” I didn’t think that it was a formalized thing, but as Theo Epstein revealed yesterday, it actually is.

“We brought it up with him,” Epstein said yesterday, per the Tribune. “He told us he already had made it a priority. He was going to get in the best shape of his life, and realizes now to be the left fielder he needs to be, and be a hitter he needs to be, is something he wanted to do.” Epstein went on to point out that there are things you cannot control in the game, but your fitness is something you can control, so Schwarber is looking to dominate it. More at the Tribune here.

As we’ve seen in pictures this week, Schwarber is certainly looking fit:

Just a day in the life of Blue, who is a very good dog. pic.twitter.com/abSlTVHbpA

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) December 6, 2017

The @Cubs' Snapchat this morning appears to be an extremely-fit-looking Kyle Schwarber grinding. pic.twitter.com/NjASjTlwkc

— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) December 6, 2017

Over at FanGraphs, Jeff Sullivan polled fans on how they feel about their teams’ front office, and, predictably, the Cubs were right up there, tied or second with the Dodgers. First place? The World Series-winning Astros.

Jon Heyman gets into the many wider ramifications flowing from the Braves’ IFA violations. So many people affected by the misdeeds of the higher ups.

Cubs-related fun!

Remember When Michael Jordan’s Ceremonial First Pitch Flew WAY Over Sammy Sosa’s Head? https://t.co/OMrT7xARhc pic.twitter.com/TE26Up1JHK
— Baseball is Fun (@flippingbats) December 8, 2017

Earlier, if you missed it: so much more on new Cubs right Tyler Chatwood. Also, Giancarlo Stanton hearts the Cubs.

Over at The Ten-Yard Line, Mitch is good in one phase:

Mitch Trubisky Is a Top Five Quarterback on Third Down https://t.co/YFaynpTTwW pic.twitter.com/MobjMm7KH0

— The Ten-Yard Line (@TheTenYardLine) December 8, 2017

The Cubs Shop extended their 25% off sale through today – so check it out and use the code SWING25.

Amazon’s 12 Days of Deals feature today is stuff for travelers and campers and outdoor-likers. That includes a lightning deal on the classic Swiss army knife.

For you commenters, something I’ve been thinking about today with the various reports. Imagine Stanton and Bryce Harper were the same age, and both were free agents today. Who are you wanting to see the Cubs more aggressively pursue?

written by

Brett Taylor

Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

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Epstein on Schwarber’s Desire to Be in the Best Shape of His Life and Other Bullets

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