(Icon Sportswire / Getty Images)
By Anthony Payero
(WASHINGTON) Former World Series champion and Chicago Cubs outfielder Kyle Schwarber signed a new deal on Saturday with the Washington Nationals, according to multiple sources.
A source told ESPN's Jeff Passan that the one-year deal is worth $10 million. The outfielder entered free agency this offseason after he was non-tendered by the Cubs on Dec. 3, ending his six-year tenure in Chicago.
The 27-year-old outfielder played his last season of arbitration with the Cubs in 2020, but he was released after a poor season. Schwarber hit a measly .188 with 11 home runs over 59 games during the coronavirus-affected season.
Schwarber, whose deal was first announced by The Washington Post, fills a void in the outfield that the Nationals had, and joins National League (NL) batting champion Juan Soto in the lineup as a power hitter.
Without the designated hitter rule returning to the NL in 2021, Schwarber could find himself starting the season in left field, which would move Soto to right field, where he saw some playing time last season.
This is the second attempt made by Washington to improve their team, as Rizzo also made a trade to make first baseman Josh Bell a National, acquiring the former All-Star from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Schwarber batted .230 with 121 home runs in 551 regular-season games with Chicago, but he mostly earned recognition for his performances in the postseason, where he compiled a .981 OPS (on-base plus slugging) in 24 games.
The outfielder hit .412 across five games as the designated hitter in the memorable 2016 World Series, which Chicago won in seven games over the Cleveland Indians. Schwarber missed most of the 2016 regular season — and all of the playoff rounds before the World Series — due to a knee injury.
Former skipper Joe Maddon listed Schwarber as the Cubs' leadoff hitter in 2017, where he only hit .190 with a .312 on-base percentage before a move to the minors. He bounced back in 2018 and 2019, tallying 64 home runs.
Schwarber was chosen fourth overall in the 2014 MLB draft.