September 27 update: Former Cubs Javier Báez, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and Kyle Schwarber

Time to check in with old friends again.

Javier Báez

It’s been stated by some that Javy feeds off the energy of crowds, and that’s one reason he had a lousy 2020 in empty ballparks. It might be a reason he’s had a rough 2022 — Tigers fans haven’t been at Comerica Park in large numbers this year, for obvious reasons.

That energy could work in more than one way. Báez got mercilessly booed by White Sox fans during the Tigers’ series against the White Sox on the South Side over the weekend.

He went 4-for-15 with a three-run homer, and overall in 10 games against the White Sox in Chicago this year hit .302/.302/.581 (13-for-43) with three doubles and three home runs.

Could be small sample size, sure. Or it could be something.

Javy sure had fun taunting Sox fans after the homer [VIDEO].

Kris Bryant

Last Saturday, Bryant was officially ruled out for the rest of the year:

Bryant played in 42 games this year, the fewest of his MLB career (except for the truncated 2020 season, when he played in 34 of the Cubs’ 60 games). He hit .306/.376/.475 (49-for-160) with five home runs, all of them on the road.

Presuming he’s healthy for the 2023 season, Cubs fans will next see Bryant in two Spring Training games: Sunday, March 3, when the Cubs play the Rockies at Salt River Fields, and Tuesday, March 14, when the teams meet at Sloan Park.

Anthony Rizzo

Since the last update here, Rizzo has hit .241/.333/.517 (7-for-29) with two home runs. His homer last Saturday against the Red Sox was his 32nd, matching his career high set in 2014 and equalled in 2016 and 2017 with the Cubs.

Here’s that 32nd HR, which was the deciding factor in the Yankees’ 7-5 win [VIDEO].

There have been comments made about some of Rizzo’s home runs this year not going out of any park but Yankee Stadium. That one, though:

The Yankees can clinch the AL East title with a win tonight in Toronto. (Of course, they could have done that Monday, but the Blue Jays won in 10 innings.)

Kyle Schwarber

Schwarber is leading the major leagues with 192 strikeouts.

So what? He’s also leading the National League with 42 home runs, two of which he hit Sunday against the Braves. Unfortunately for Kyle, the Phillies lost that game 8-7.

Schwarber is having a weird year. Overall he’s batting .214/.314/.487, a low BA but a decent OBP despite that. His 78 walks rank fourth in the National League. (Comparison point: Ian Happ leads the Cubs in walks with... 54.)

All of this has produced just 1.3 bWAR, because Schwarber has become a liability in the field (-2.0 defensive bWAR).

We’ll get to see him for three games against the Cubs beginning tonight in Wrigley Field. In the three-game series the Cubs swept in Philadelphia in July, Schwarber went 1-for-11 with four strikeouts. The one hit was a home run. In his career against the Cubs, Schwarber is 3-for-24 with eight strikeouts — and all three hits are home runs.

The games are very important for Schwarber and the Phillies as they lead the Brewers by just 1½ games for the final wild card spot.