Cubs promote Kyle Schwarber to majors

The Cubs are promoting prospect Kyle Schwarber up to the major leagues in order to be their designated hitter for the next week, according to a report from Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com. Schwarber, who has been with Double-A Tennessee, will spend six games with the major-league club during interleague play, and then will be promoted to Triple-A Iowa for the first time.

Schwarber, 22, was selected as the fourth overall selection in last year's draft and is the fourth member of his draft class to reach the majors, joining Brandon Finnegan (Royals), Jacob Lindgren (Yankees) and Carlos Rodon (White Sox). He is currently ranked by MLB.com as the Cubs' second-best prospect and was regarded by Baseball America as the organization's fourth-best prospect and the nineteenth-overall prospect in baseball. The three players ranked before him on the team list (Kris Bryant, Addison Russell and Jorge Soler) are already up in the majors, showing how committed the Cubs are to their youth movement.

In 57 games for Tennessee this season, Schwarber hit .318/.439/.578 with thirteen home runs in 57 games. While he is listed as a catcher, many believe that he will be an outfielder in the major leagues due to his average defensive capabilities. He is rated by scouts as one of the best pure hitters in the minor leagues, and will get his first chance to face major-league pitching against the Indians and Twins this week.