The only surprise we had in the Cubs’ World Series roster happened Monday, when it was revealed that Kyle Schwarber was on his way to Cleveland, presumably to be the DH in Games 1 and 2.
With the Cubs’ announcement of their 25-man roster to face the Indians Tuesday morning, it’s all official. The rest of the roster is the same as the one that faced the Dodgers in the NLCS, with the exception of Rob Zastryzny, who was removed to make room for Schwarber. Zaz didn’t appear in the NLCS, and his presence on the roster for that series was really only as insurance, to have an extra lefthander for the lefty-heavy Dodgers offense. The Indians are somewhat less lefthanded than the Dodgers, though they do have several switch-hitters (Francisco Lindor, Tyler Naquin and Carlos Santana) in their lineup.
Here are the 25 Cubs who’ll be available for action during the World Series.
Pitchers
Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Jake Arrieta, John Lackey, Aroldis Chapman, Hector Rondon, Pedro Strop, Justin Grimm, Travis Wood, Mike Montgomery, Carl Edwards Jr.
Catchers
David Ross, Miguel Montero, Willson Contreras
Infielders
Anthony Rizzo, Ben Zobrist, Addison Russell, Kris Bryant, Javier Baez
Outfielders
Dexter Fowler, Jason Heyward, Jorge Soler, Albert Almora Jr., Chris Coghlan
Designated hitter
Kyle Schwarber