Schwarber to skip winter ball, continue rehab

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Kyle Schwarber, who made a miraculous recovery from a severe knee injury suffered in the third game of the regular season to play in the World Series, will continue to rehab but not play in winter ball, Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said Monday.

Schwarber tore two ligaments in his left knee in early April, and was able to be the designated hitter for the Cubs in the World Series, going 7-for-17 (.412) with two RBIs against the Indians.

• Hot Stove Tracker

“We felt he proved he could hit Major League pitching,” Hoyer said.

However, whether Schwarber will catch again has yet to be decided.

“That’s the hurdle we haven’t gone over yet,” Hoyer said. “Can he do it? There’s no question he’s going to want to do it and think he can do it. We’ll have to have discussions about how heavy a workload we put on him.”

Last year, Schwarber worked with the catchers and the outfielders in Spring Training, and injured his knee in a freak collision with Dexter Fowler while playing the outfield in April.

“It’s basically like playing two ways in football in a way,” Hoyer said of the drills involved. “We know what his position is going to be. I know he’ll want to catch. He knows he’s coming in as a …

continue reading in source mlb.mlb.com