Down and Out in Triple A

22 Jun, 2017

The Chicago Cubs are sending struggling outfielder Kyle Schwarber to Triple-A Iowa as the team embarks on an 11-game road trip.

Schwarber, 24, is hitting .171 just seven months after helping the Cubs to a World Series victory. Chicago is in second place in the National League Central.

“He took it really well. We’re doing to hopefully reset him,” Cubs manager Joe Maddon said. “Get him back up here with a fresh start. He was very professional about it. Understood it, entirely.”

The Cubs’ upcoming schedule also factored into Schwarber’s assignment. The team faces three left-handed pitchers as well as Washington Nationals ace Stephen Strasburg over the next week.

“At some point it felt like the right thing to do was give him a chance to hit the reset button,” Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer said. “We got to the point mentally we thought he needs a mental break before he could come out of it.”

As part of a series of moves, the Cubs will also put outfielder Jason Heyward on the disabled list with a cut on his hand. They are calling up outfielder Mark Zagunis from Iowa for his first taste of the majors. Pitcher Dylan Floro is also rejoining the team.

Heyward’s stint on the DL is retroactive to June 19.

Heyward suffered the injury in the second inning of Sunday’s game against the Pirates when he attempted to make a sliding catch on the warning track in foul territory.

ESPN

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