Former Middletown High School standout Kyle Schwarber received a standing ovation and hit a home run in his first game at Wrigley Field since leaving the Chicago Cubs for the Washington Nationals this past offseason.
Schwarber, who played his first six Major League Baseball seasons for the Cubs, hit a 407-foot, two-run homer in the fourth inning of the Nats' 7-3 loss to Chicago. It was his sixth home run of the season and first against his former team, which honored him with a pregame tribute and gave him a No. 12 panel from the Wrigley Field scoreboard - delivered by Cubs manager and former Reds catcher David Ross.
Schwarber, 28, agreed to a one-year contract with the Nats in January. He was non-tendered by the Cubs last December, making him a free agent.
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Schwarber is one of 12 MLB players from Greater Cincinnati high schools, the UC Bearcats, Xavier Musketeers or Miami RedHawks.
Schwarber hit .188 with 11 home runs and 24 RBIs with 66 strikeouts in 224 plate appearances in 2020 for the Cubs. He's hitting .226 this season.
He has hit 11 of his 127 career homers at Great American Ball Park - his most at any park other than Wrigley. He has homered 21 times against the Reds - his most against any opponent.
After Schwarber offered Reds relief pitcher Amir Garrett a few choice words as Garrett celebrated a strikeout in Sept. 2019, Garrett said last June that he's not afraid of Schwarber.
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