swartzbaugh attended middletown high school and miami university of ohio. in 1988, he played collegiate summer baseball with the chatham a's of the cape cod baseball league. the , 195 pound right-hander was originally drafted by the cubs in the 9th round (224th overall) of the 1989 draft. he was used both as a starter and reliever in the minors, and saw success in both roles. for example, in 1991 with the winston-salem spirits (now the warthogs), he went 10–4 with a 1.83 era as a starter. as a reliever in 1995 with the iowa cubs, he went 3–0 with a 1.53 era in 30 relief appearances.