On the second day of Cubsmas
My true love gave to me
A $2 scorecard
And an Anthony Rizzo retirement for the ages

On the third day of Cubsmas
My true love gave to me
Three Schwarbombs in the first All-Star Game Home Run Swing-Off
A $2 scorecard
And an Anthony Rizzo retirement for the ages

2025 was yet another year of experimentation with the rules of baseball, although it had nothing on earlier changes like the pitch clock, larger bases and rules about how pitchers can check on baserunners. This year saw a change to the Midsummer Classic that resolved ties with a mini home run derby where each team could select three sluggers to take three swings and the most home runs wins.

It was the perfect punctuation mark for a game that is already struggling with ensuring its importance to players and teams. Many competitors are taking advantage of a longer break to heal some of the many bumps and bruises that are standard fare over the course of a long 162-game season. The 2025 game saw stars like José Ramírez, Julio Rodríguez, Zack Wheeler, Garret Crochet, Max Fried and others opt out of the game due to injury or preferring to rest.

All-Star opt-outs happen every year as teams and players would certainly rather have players healthy for the second half rather than playing in an exhibition game, but removing the possibility of extra innings in that exhibition game is a move in the right direction.

Extra innings have spurred other controversies in MLB’s All Star Game, including the move to “this time it counts” after both teams ran out of pitchers in a tie game in 2002. Cubs fans will remember that “this time it counts” cost the Cubs home-field advantage in the 2016 World Series.

Speaking of the 2016 World Series, one of Chicago’s heroes in that Fall Classic for the Ages was the hero of this year’s first Home Run Swing-Off: Kyle Schwarber. Admit it, you want to watch him launch three long balls with three swings again:

In typical Schwarbino fashion, Kyle understood the assignment. The Phillies’ big slugger waited for his pitch and put the inaugural swing off out of reach for the American League’s young Jonathan Aranda. That clutch performance resulted in Schwarber winning the All Star Game MVP award.

One quirk in the video above that certainly impacted who appeared in the swing-off. If you watch closely you’ll see the Tigers’ Tarik Skubal watching the swing-off in street clothes. Many players leave the game early after they’ve appeared, which likely limited both managers’ options for the tiebreaker. That explains why the American League relied on Brent Rooker, Randy Arozarena and Jonathan Aranda for their swing off despite having sluggers Aaron Judge and 2025 Home Run Derby Champion Cal Raleigh on the roster.

The swing-off was fun and highly preferable to convoluted schemes that impact higher stakes elements of the game like home field advantage in the World Series. But at least we Cubs fans can always smile that the Schwarbino was, ultimately, the champion of both.