Kyle Schwarber smacks his 50th home run of the season in Phillies' 9-3 win over Mets

Scott Lauber, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Sep 9, 2025

Published in Baseball

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PHILADELPHIA — Forget ringing the bell. Kyle Schwarber nearly broke a clock.

It would’ve been fitting. Time tends to stand still whenever Schwarber stands in a batter’s box. So, when the moment arrived Tuesday night, as another missile arced off his bat in the seventh inning, it banged off the pitch clock in left-center field.

Home run — nay, Schwarbomb— No. 50.

In becoming the second player in Phillies history to hit 50 homers in a season, Schwarber put the cherry on top of a 9-3 rout of the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. It didn’t clinch the Phillies’ defense of the National League East title, but well, it pretty much did.

Schwarber turned toward the dugout and gave his standard thumbs-up. He rounded the bases, looking back over his shoulder as he passed by third base coach Dusty Wathan.

And then came the salute — 41,609 paying customers on their feet, chanting “M-V-P! M-V-P!”

Schwarber popped out of the dugout and tipped his helmet.

Move over, Ryan Howard. After going 10 games without a homer, Schwarber hit his 50th in the Phillies’ 145th game. Howard got to No 50 in the 136th game of the 2006 season en route to finishing with 58, a franchise record.

The Phillies (85-60) stretched their lead in the NL East to nine games over the Mets (76-69) — and reduced their magic number to win the division. With a combination of nine wins or Mets losses, the Phillies will retain the title.

They did it with a combination of power and pitching.

First, the pitching. Ranger Suàrez didn’t give up a hit until the fifth inning. He didn’t allow any runs. He struck out a career-high 12 batters, including the dangerous Mets tandem of Juan Soto and Pete Alonso three times apiece.

Suárez didn’t overpower any hitter. He never does, with a fastball that barely cracks 90 mph. But he dazzled them. And as he walked off the mound after fanning Alonso on a dirt-diving slider to end the sixth inning, he tipped his cap to a standing, cheering crowd.

Ordinarily, it would’ve been the biggest ovation of the night.

But after the Phillies took a lead on Nick Castellanos’ two-run double in the first inning and extended it to 4-0 on back-to-back solo homers by Otto Kemp (on his 26th birthday) and Harrison Bader in the fourth, Schwarber took center stage.

Once again.

Twelve nights earlier, Schwarber smashed four homers in a game against the Braves, and it came at the perfect time for the Phillies. They had just gotten swept in three games in New York to slice the division lead to four games.

But before the sky could fall over South Philly, Schwarber peppered it with home runs in the 21st four-homer game in baseball history.

And then … an odd silence.

Schwarber went 5 for 36 with one extra-base hit and no homers over the next 10 games. When he singled in the ninth inning Sunday in Miami, it marked his first RBI since the four-homer game.

In his first at-bat Tuesday night, against Mets lefty Sean Manaea, Schwarber scalded a 115 mph line drive to right field. Caught by Soto.

But in the seventh inning, with the Phillies leading 4-1, Mets reliever Justin Hagenman fell down in the count, 3-1, to Schwarber. He left a cutter over the plate.

And Schwarber didn’t miss.

Of course he didn’t.

It was the latest signature moment in a perfect walk year for Schwarber, the All-Star Game MVP after winning a dramatic swing-off. In addition to being the NL leader in homers and leading the majors in RBIs (123), he’s slugging .562 with a .926 OPS.

Can the Phillies possibly not re-sign him?

“There’s nothing Kyle does that surprises us, no matter how great he is,” owner John Middleton said in July. “You expect that from Kyle. He’s a great person in the dugout. He’s a great person in the clubhouse. We love him. We want to keep him.”

Meanwhile, Schwarber has 17 games to catch Howard.

Swing away.