Do you honestly think we don't have enough data to say that Schwarber is - at least - a very good MLB hitter? Thus far, his playoff stats are matched only by Ruth and Gehrig (I realize that will go down but it's still impressive). He already holds the Cubs record for playoff homers. If his stats were extrapolated, he would have hit 37 HRs and 100 RBI as a rookie!

Kyle Schwarber is a damn good hitter and probably a special hitter.

I can't speak to Collins, but if he hits as well as Schwarber, he must be really fuckin good.

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I wouldn't draw any conclusions from 17 at bats in the postseason. If I did I'd be arguing that Mark Lemke was a better hitter than Ted Williams. Schwarber has a .240 major league average in 280 at-bats. I'm not sure what that's a harbinger of.

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Don't take it personally.

He has 51 postseason plate appearances. That's a decent sample size against the best pitchers in baseball.

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It's certainly promising that he's done so well in the highest profile situations, but you do understand that you are suggesting some sort of "clutch" ability, something that seems to be anathema among the community of statistical analysts.

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Don't take it personally.

It isn't quantifiable for the stat geeks but just watching those playoff at bats......those were not cheap, flukey ab's. He worked the count against the best pitchers in the game, got what he wanted and drilled it. I could see the Baez ab's being somewhat flukey with him guessing pitches but not Schwarber. There is some kind of "it" factor with his pitch recognition.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!

I have no problem with the concept of "clutch," but that's not what I'm trying to say...

I'm just saying that in the regular season, he's had very good power numbers with a subpar average (.246). In the playoffs, he's been outstanding all the way around. He is probably really somewhere between those two.

I won't disagree that he hasn't had a large enough sample size to anoint him one of the best in the game... But I think we've had enough to say he's a very good hitter. Even if he never improved his average as a rookie (he likely will), he still would have had 37 homers and 100 RBI. That's pretty good.

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I think he'll be fine. He'll get on base and hit for power. He'll probably be like Nick Swisher. That's a pretty good player.

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Don't take it personally.

I fucking hate your go-to Nick Swisher comparison, and I know exactly why you do it.

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Nick Swisher was a really good player until he was about 32 years old. He kind of dropped off a cliff then. But if Schwarber had Swisher's career until he was 32 and then found four more seasons at that average, that's a very good career, a .365 OBP and about 350 home runs. I couldn't find a young guy who I would expect to do more than that. I wouldn't even bet on Bryce Harper getting 350 homers.

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Don't take it personally.

Swisher doesn't get enough credit, though, because he played during the steroid era, which is why I think you use him as a comparison, you crafty old bastard.

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Like Trevor Bauer, Josh Tomlin, Mike Clevinger, Bryan Shaw and Zach McAllister? 2 of Cleveland's 4 best pitchers were injured, making it so Salazar only pitched 3 total innings and Carrasco didn't pitch at all.

It was Corey Kluber and Andrew Miller. That's it. The rest of Cleveland's pitching staff ranged from OK (Cody Allen is alright) to absolute trash.

I cannot believe you are really asking this.

Schwarber has had success at the Major league level. Don't give me the .240 average comeback either. He had meaningful at bats in the World Series after being out the entire fucking year. Collins was decent in his first year in the minors.

Collins went 1 for 11 in the AFL. Schwarber went 7 for 17 in the World Series.

Collins maybe a great player in the future. But there is a clear answer right now. Schwarbers bat is much better.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Sample size matters until it doesn't and then it never did.

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Don't take it personally.

When Collins has a meaningful at bat get back to me and we can talk. Until then the answer is easy.

.364 avg 5 HRs 10 RBIs .451 OPB .727 SLG 1.178 OPS in 51 post season at bats.

Schwarber sends your weak shit out into the Allegheny River

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

I'm not predicting anything about Collins. It's Cub fans that are using "Hall of Fame", "special", "great", and "David Ortiz" to describe a .242 career hitter.

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Don't take it personally.

Non-sequitur.

The question was whether Schwarber was the better hitter of the two, and there's really no argument to say that he's not at this point in time.

NEXT!

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Come on man, you asked how someone could really know that Schwarbers bat was better than Collins. That is what started this conversation. It had nothing to do with Schwarber being called HOF or special.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

There are numerous guys every year that have the measurables and project to do these great things but you never know until they are put in that position. Schwarber raked in the post season 2 years in a row. Thats it....thats what you hope for. I don't give a rip how his career regular season stats add up....i want to see players that rise to the occasion and have the post season "it" factor.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!