One thing that most of us have suspected is that the Chicago Cubs’ decision to non-tender Kyle Schwarber was (1) entirely motivated by an extreme need to cut costs after the “biblical losses” of the pandemic year, and (2) something the Cubs would have come to regret in the years that followed.
In his interview with Dave Kaplan and Gordon Wittenmyer on ReKAP, Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer confirmed those two things, discussing the decision more plainly than I’ve heard before:
Jed Hoyer regrets non-tendering Kyle Schwarber & says he should be a Cub.
Via the REKAP Podcast with @thekapman & @GDubMLB.
Watch full interview here: https://t.co/QnLbqmEsZr pic.twitter.com/9aNMh6Sagk— Cubs Zone (@CubsZone) January 16, 2025
So, there it is. The money was the biggest factor – as it clearly was in the Yu Darvish trade that winter, by the way – and non-tendering an almost borderline case (I would call it full on borderline, because it wasn’t) was an easy way to get $10+ million off the books. It stung at the time, it stings to hear today, and I’m at least relieved to know that Hoyer and the Cubs see it the same way, too. Maybe the budget forced their hand, but it was a mistake.
The Cubs long had a belief in Schwarber’s bat, but the biggest steps forward with the Cubs had always been for only partial stretches at a time. That was the only hedge Hoyer left on the table in his comments, and I would note that his subsequent deal with the Nationals was essentially for what his arbitration number was going to be (which is to say, the Cubs weren’t mathematically wrong about his value at the time).
Still, Schwarber – who absolutely would’ve been happy to extend or re-sign with the Cubs thereafter – has gone on to hit .229/.350/.500/131 wRC+ in the four years that followed. That next step was right there, and he took it without the Cubs. They biffed in letting him go. Yes, yes, you’d have to figure out the positional stuff, and understand that he’s truly bat-only, but that’s just such a productive bat. I guarantee the Phillies aren’t upset about having him!
Schwarber, who turns 32 this year, is a free agent after the season. His market will be limited by the lack of a glove, but I’m sure he’ll find plenty of teams interested in bringing him on board and parking him at DH. The circumstances have changed for the Cubs such that it’s pretty hard to see them being the team that does it. About as hard to see, perhaps, as them ditching him for nothing after 2020.