Schwarber brushes off rumors, happy to stay with Cubs

Kyle Schwarber isn't putting any stock in the rumor mill.

Amid swirling chatter that he's being shopped for bullpen help, the injured Chicago Cubs catcher/outfielder is ignoring the noise around him and staying focused on rehabbing his torn ACL as quickly as possible.

"It's out of your control. Rumors are going to be rumors," Schwarber told reporters Wednesday, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. "Until something actually happens, you can't worry about it."

He really shouldn't worry anyway, since Cubs president Theo Epstein recently put any sort of trade talk involving Schwarber to rest. The 23-year-old had most notably been linked to the New York Yankees in a deal that would send left-hander Andrew Miller to Chicago.

"I'm looking forward to Kyle Schwarber - who got hurt in a Cubs uniform and is working his ass off in a Cubs uniform - coming back and hitting a very big home run in a Cubs uniform sometime very early next season," Epstein said on Saturday.

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Schwarber was thrilled to hear Epstein's words that all but ensured he'll remain a Cub, even if he can't help the cause this season due to the knee injury. Having become a franchise hero during his remarkable rookie season that included a memorable NLDS home run that landed on top of Wrigley Field's new scoreboard, Schwarber sees nothing but Cubbie blue in his future and is glad the club feels the same way.

"It's nice they feel about me like that," Schwarber said. "I love this organization, I love this team, and I want to stay here. Obviously, things are out of my control, but since he did say that I take that to heart. It means a lot."