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Are Cubs Fans Schwarber-reacting to Slugger's World Series Play? You Bet

Kyle Schwarber's improbable comeback is thrilling fans, and they're turning him into a Chicago legend. Find out what they're saying.

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CLEVELAND, OH — After Chicago's disappointing shutout loss in the first game of the World Series, Game 2 was an embarrassment of on-field riches for Cubs fans.

Starter Jake Arrieta no-hit Cleveland for 5 1/3 innings, the deepest a World Series pitcher had taken a no-hit bid in 47 years. Leftfielder Ben Zobrist stayed hot at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a run-scoring triple. And most importantly, Chicago won its first World Series game since Oct. 8, 1945.

But when Cubs fans talk about this game — whether it's later today or decades from now — two syllables will echo like a heavenly choir from most of their lips: Schwar-ber.

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As in Kyle Schwarber, the Cubs slugger who captured the team's postseason home-run record last season in his rookie year but missed almost the entire 2016 season after blowing out his left knee in April.

CUBS 5, INDIANS 1: Check Out the Recap of Game 2 of the 2016 World Series

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The burly Ohio native who underwent major surgery and rehabbed his knee in time to earn a spot on the Cubs' World Series roster as the team's designated hitter.

The Indiana University grad with questionable beard-grooming habits whose improbable comeback legend grows larger each time he steps up to the plate in October.

In Game 2, Schwarber — who only had four at-bats in the regular season and, before the World Series, hadn't faced major-league pitching in six months — went 2-for-4, driving in two runs and giving fans another reason to think this is "the year."

RELATED: Slugger Kyle Schwarber Makes Cubs' World Series Roster

To say Cubs fans are guilty of overreacting Schwarber-reacting to Kyle's October performance is an understatement. The Cubs DH has become so beloved that he can be caught on camera making an ungentlemanly remark while celebrating a run-scoring single, and it barely makes a media ripple. (Editor's note: Don't click the link if you find off-color comments offensive and/or want to keep the Schwarberian myth intact.)

Take a look at a sampling of some of the "enthusiastic" online comments, posts and updates from loyal supporters of the North Siders.

And fans aren't the only ones feeling the Schwarber love. Schwarber-mania swept Chicago, and it's begun to infect the rest of the country.

Of course, there has been some backlash. Especially when it comes to Schwarber's facial hair choices.

The Schwarber Express, though, might be slowing down once the team returns to Chicago. Team doctors have only cleared the slugger to bat, not play in the field. Because pitchers bat in games played at National League parks, Schwarber can't DH at Wrigley Field. Unless the Cubs' medical staff says it's OK for him to field a position, Schwarber could only be used as a pinch hitter in Games 3-5.

In the storybook legend of Kyle Schwarber, that's not a chapter Cubs fans want to read.

Kyle Schwarber (photo by Minda Haas on Flickr | Wikimedia Commons)

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