Chris Schwab

Christopher David Schwab

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 215 lb.
• High School: Cretin-Derham Hall High School
• Born July 25, 1974 in St. Paul, MN USA

Biographical Information

Outfielder Chris Schwab was the 1st round (18th overall) pick of the Montreal Expos in the 1993 amateur draft. He had been a dominating hitter in high school and was expected to become a power threat in the Major Leagues. However, his career floundered because of low batting averages and enormous strikeout totals, and he never came close to reaching the majors.

In the 1992 World Junior Championship, Schwab hit .385 with 11 RBI in 26 AB for the US, which won Silver. He had a better average and more RBI than fellow outfielder Preston Wilson.

Schwab began his pro career with the GCL Expos in 1993. In 218 AB he hit .220/~.292/.284 with 0 HR and 0 SB. In 1994, Schwab made stops with the GCL Expos, Vermont Expos and Burlington Bees without much success. His overall line for the year was .178/~.263/.261 with 7 HR and 4 SB in 410 AB, while striking out 150 times. Schwab spent 1995 with the Albany Polecats, where the other two starting outfielders were Vladimir Guerrero and Fernando Seguignol. He had 484 AB hitting .227/~.297/.316 with 5 HR, 4 SB and 173 SO which led the South Atlantic League. Back in the Sally in 1996, this time playing 1B for the Delmarva Shorebirds, Schwab started to show the power he had displayed in high school. In 428 AB, he hit .224/~.298/.371 with 30 2B and 9 HR.

Chris Schwab got his first crack at high-A ball to begin the 1997 season, but hit only .188/~.266/.353 with 9 HR in 207 AB for the West Palm Beach Expos. He was demoted back to the SAL halfway through the year for a third season at that level, this time mostly DHing for the Cape Fear Crocs. In 209 AB the twenty two year old hit .268/~.357/.536 with 19 2B and 11 HR. For the year, he had 26 2B and 20 HR in 416 AB. Back in the Florida State League in 1998, this time with the Jupiter Hammerheads, Schwab hit 23 HR, only 3 behind the league leader, but did lead the league with 175 SO. However, his line for Jupiter was .215/~.281/.423. In 4 AB for the AA Harrisburg Senators, he managed 1 BB and 3 K's.

Schwab was traded to the Cleveland Indians organization in 1999, as the Expos gave up on the disappointing former top prospect. The Indians sent them pitcher Mike Hughes, a non-prospect, on June 24 to complete the deal. The twenty-four-year-old Schwab found himself back in the Sally again, this time with the Columbus RedStixx. Playing first and outfield, he hit .288/~.379/.508 with 10 2B amd 9 HR in 177 AB and a career high 13 SB. In 6 AB up at AA, Schwab was 0-6 with 3 SO and 1 BB.

He was out of chances in organized baseball in 2000, and had to split the year between two independent teams, the Sioux Falls Canaries (.245, .442 SLG) and the New Jersey Jackals (.263, .379 SLG) of the Northern League. He was with two more Northern League teams in 2001 - the St. Paul Saints (.231) and Duluth-Superior Dukes (.219) - overall, he hit .226 and slugged .356.