Cubs promote top picks Bryant, Schwarber
By Bruce Miles
bmiles@dailyherald.com
After missing out on Kris Bryant last year, fans of the Kane County Cougars will get to see Kyle Schwarber this season.
The Cubs announced Tuesday that Schwarber, their first-round draft choice this season out of Indiana University, has been promoted from short-season Class A Boise to the Class A Cougars of the Midwest League.
Early Wednesday, the Cubs confirmed that Bryant, their No. 1 pick from 2013, is being promoted from Class AA Tennessee to Class AAA Iowa.
The 21-year-old Schwarber was 12-for-20 over his first five professional games in Boise and had an hitting line of .600/.625/1.350 for an OPS of 1.975. He hit 4 homers and drove in 10 runs. The Cubs took him with the fourth overall pick in the June amateur draft and signed him last week. Schwarber is a catcher-outfielder who also saw time as DH for Boise.
Last year, the Cubs selected Bryant with their first-round draft pick. He began his pro career in Mesa before moving onto Boise last summer. However, the Cubs decided to have him bypass Kane County for high-Class A Daytona. This year, Bryant is having a monster season at Class AA Tennessee, where he had a line of .355/.458/.702 with 22 homers and 58 RBI.