Kyle Schwarber makes Cubs more potent, helps even series in Game 2

Kyle Schwarber landed in Cleveland on Monday evening. He climbed out of the private plane that carried him from the desert and rode to Progressive Field. After six months without stepping between the lines of a big league game, he expected he might cry, and he wanted to soak in the ballpark before he made his World Series debut.

Schwarber, the 23-year-old hitting prodigy of the Chicago Cubs, did not need to worry. He followed up a tantalizing performance in Game 1 by driving the Cubs’ offense in a 5-1 Game 2 victory over the Cleveland Indians that evened the series on Wednesday. He stroked a pair of RBI singles, providing a reminder for a public that forgot about him, and providing a reason for his teammates to fantasize.

“We won 103 games, and my comeback to all that was, ‘Imagine if we had a full season with Kyle Schwarber,’” veteran catcher David Ross said. “And this was before all this is happening. If we had Kyle Schwarber in left, who knows what would have happened?”

Schwarber may not play the field in this series, but his performance has already helped knot the contest. The Cubs bounced Cleveland starter Trevor Bauer from the mound in the fourth inning, and capitalized on a variety of Indians gaffes. Chicago starter Jake Arrieta did not allow a hit until the sixth inning. He held the Indians to one run in 52/3 innings.

The two teams narrowly escaped an onrushing storm, which could have delayed the completion of the game until Thursday. The series will reconvene at Wrigley Field on Friday, when the most pressing question might be: When will Schwarber bat again?

It felt extraordinary that Schwarber could bat at all. He ripped multiple ligaments in his knee during a gruesome collision in the outfield in April. Only last week was he cleared to play in games. His warmup for the World Series? A pair of outings for the Mesa Solar Storm before dozens of fans in the Arizona Fall League.

His performance causes one to wonder about the necessity of preparation. “He should totally skip spring training next year,” Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant cracked. Ross joked about “The Legend of Kyle Schwarber.” The tale started last October, when he hit five postseason homers. It resumed after a calamity this spring.

On April 7, in a game in Arizona, Schwarber chased a drive into the left-center field gap. He reached up in vain, putting himself in the path of center fielder Dexter Fowler. The left hip of Fowler undercut Schwarber’s knee. He could not rise from the warning track.

A day later, the Cubs declared Schwarber would not play again in 2016. Both his anterior cruciate ligament and his lateral collateral ligament were torn. His ankle was severely sprained. “At first, I didn’t think I was ever going to have a normal knee again,” Schwarber said.

He could not walk for six weeks. Next came the challenge of regaining his range of motion, pondering why his knee refused to bend. After that he graduated to the tedium of strengthening his quadriceps and hamstrings.

A familiar sight greeted the other players when they arrived at Wrigley Field: Schwarber, engulfed in sweat, finishing up his morning workout. He would spend the afternoons studying the opposing pitchers and his evenings hanging on pitches inside the dugout.

“That’s why he’s such a special individual,” Ross said. “Mentally, he’s been competing, in his mind for a long time with us.”

Schwarber visited his doctor every month or so. The answer never changed. He wouldn’t be ready until next spring. Unfazed by the prognosis, he started running, annoyed that his legs still forced him to limp. In time, the limping faded into a more reasonable gait.

“Then, after that,” Schwarber said, “it goes to swinging the stick.”

His swing enticed the Cubs to select him fourth overall in the 2014 draft. His production led to his major league debut a year later. His eye is keen and his power is raw. His only defect is a lack of a position. He caught in college, but is considered unlikely to stick there in the majors. His work in the outfield is inelegant.

In the coming years, the Cubs must sort out Schwarber’s fielding dilemma. But for the World Series, the team benefits by playing four possible games in an American League park. As the Cubs sparred with the Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, Schwarber received news from his doctor. His knee was stronger than expected.

Schwarber called Theo Epstein, Chicago’s president of baseball operations, and asked for an opportunity. The club dispatched him to Arizona. At their complex in Mesa, Schwarber estimated he tracked 1,300 pitches off a machine cranked up to “the nastiest setting” to re-acclimate his eyes to major league pitching.

After his games with Mesa, the Cubs faced a decision. Could they really trust Schwarber on this stage? They spoke with their lineup. Schwarber batted fifth in Game 1 and again in Game 2.

“I know that the easy dialogue is that he has not played in a bit, and why would you do this?” Cubs Manager Joe Maddon said before Game 1. “But we have a lot of faith in him.”

In Game 1, Schwarber banged a double off the wall and took a walk against Indians relief ace Andrew Miller. A day later, he took a rip on a 3-0 fastball from Bauer to drive in a run in the third. In his next at-bat, he attacked a cutter from reliever Bryan Shaw for another run-scoring hit.

The Cubs grinded out the victory to bring the series back to Chicago. Will Schwarber take the field, or will he be relegated to the bench? The next few days will test the organization’s faith in him.

“Hey man, I’m living the dream,” Schwarber said. “We’re playing in the World Series. What else can you ask for? I’m just going to keep riding the wave until it ends.”

andy.mccullough@latimes.com

Twitter: @McCulloughTimes