Ex-Cub, 2016 champ Szczur announces retirement originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
It took six years, but Matt Szczur is going home, and he's taking his bat with him.
Szczur, the ex-Cubs outfielder and 2016 champ who also became known for his artwork capturing key moments from the World Series run, announced his retirement Monday through his new art series.
Szczur, a Cubs fifth-round pick in 2010, played five big-league seasons (2014-18), the first three on the North Side.
Although he was not on the Cubs' playoff rosters in 2016, his bat still played a key role in the team's march to its first championship since 1908.
Anthony Rizzo borrowed Szczur's bat in the 2016 NLCS and broke out of a slump with it, hitting a key home run in the Cubs' Game 4 win over the Dodgers.
The Cubs traded Szczur to the Padres in May 2017. He was with San Diego through 2018, later playing in the Diamondbacks, Phillies and Cardinals farm systems.
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Szczur's announcement reads, in part: "Thank you to the Chicago @Cubs for drafting me, molding me as both a player & person in their organization for so many years, sharing in my MLB debut and giving me the opportunity to play at the big league level and win a World Series. Both the Cubs and the city of Chicago will forever be my home."
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