Rumor: Cubs are Non-Tendering Kyle Schwarber
Just confirmed by Jesse Rogers.
The Cubs haven't announced it officially yet, but per a source, Kyle Schwarber has been informed he won't be tendered a contract for 2021. He's a free agent after 6 years with the team. Was set to make in the neighborhood of 8+ mil in arb.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) December 3, 2020
Take this with a grain of salt – like a huge grain of salt – but according to Bob Nightengale, the Chicago Cubs are not offering Albert Almora or Kyle Schwarber a contract for the 2021 season.
The #Cubs are definitely tendering a contract to Kris Bryant, but barring a change of plans, will cut ties with outfielders Kyle Schwarber and Albert Almora, as @MDGonzales predicted.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 2, 2020
I have yet to see anyone else claim this, or report this, so for right now this is a “rumor” from Bob and not yet report of news.
It makes a ton of sense for the Cubs to non-tender Almora, his bat hasn’t really caught up to MLB-level pitching. His glove however has been a much different story. He has routinely been one of the best outfield gloves, mostly due to the great jumps and routes he takes to the ball. But his swing first mentality has allowed pitchers to take advantage of him offensively. This has resulted in him ranking at or near the bottom of the National League offensively for the last three seasons.
Schwarber on the other hand is a bit surprising. You don’t find 30+ home run outfielders for less than the (MLBTR) estimated $9.3 million he would possibly earn in 2021. If you’ve read my blog you would know I don’t put much importance on any individual stat in 2020, and Schwarber hit 38 tanks in 155 games for the 2019 Cubs. But he has had a lot of swing and miss – especially in big moments – which have helped manifest a lot of the Cubs offensive woes over the past three seasons.
Last season was Schwarber’s first season performing below league average (90 wRC+) and (according to Fangraphs) his performance has been worth $12.7m a season. Coincidently, his best season was 2018, where he was a net positive defensive player and recorded a 3.2 fWAR on the season. This is borderline all-star level play, followed up by his 38 hr campaign.
Look, you can make sense of non-tendering him to ensure you’re not on the hook for a $9+ million investment in 2021, but of any player on the roster, he should be the easiest to grab a decently fair return for.
I’ll continue to try and update as the night progresses.
