Kyle Schwarber isn’t just mashing baseballs — he’s making history. The Phillies slugger blasted his 38th home run of the season Sunday night, sealing a 2-0 win over the Tigers on Sunday Night Baseball and cementing his status as one of the most consistent power hitters of this era. With that swing, Schwarber became the first player in MLB history to hit at least 38 home runs in each of his first four seasons with a single team, per OptaStats.
The homer — a 435-foot rocket to straightaway center off Tigers lefty Tyler Holton in the eighth inning — gave the Phillies breathing room and gave Schwarber another slice of history. It also tied him with Shohei Ohtani for the National League lead in home runs and marked his 15th long ball against a left-handed pitcher this year, the most in baseball and matching a personal career high.
Schwarber's home run capped off a night where Philadelphia's pitching dominated. Cristopher Sánchez turned in another brilliant performance, throwing eight shutout innings while allowing just five hits and striking out six. He’s now pitched at least six innings and given up two or fewer runs in 10 of his last 11 starts, continuing to solidify his breakout 2025 campaign.
Kyle Schwarber continues with his crazy campaign for the Phillies in 2025
“It’s so much fun to pitch behind a guy like Schwarber,” Sánchez told reporters postgame. “You know that if you keep it close, he’s going to do something special.”
The Tigers had chances to break through, especially in the seventh inning, when they put runners on second and third with one out. But Phillies third baseman Edmundo Sosa came up clutch, fielding an Andy Ibáñez grounder cleanly and cutting down Jahmai Jones at the plate to preserve the shutout.
From there, manager Rob Thomson handed the ball to newly acquired closer Jhoan Duran, who needed just 11 pitches — and one blistering 102.5 mph fastball — to finish the job. Duran earned his second save with the Phillies and 18th of the season overall.
Max Kepler brought home the Phillies’ first run in the second inning with an RBI groundout. Outside of that and Schwarber’s homer, the bats were quiet on both sides, thanks to sharp outings from both starters. Charlie Morton, recently acquired from the Orioles, went six strong innings for Detroit, allowing just one run and striking out four.
Schwarber, who hit a league-high 46 home runs in 2022 and followed it up with 47 in 2023, now has four consecutive seasons of 38+ homers since joining the Phillies in 2022. In his time with the Cubs, he only hit 38 once — back in 2019.
Now 32, Schwarber is still mashing, still leading the league in RBI (88), and still improving his average, now sitting above .250 — a career-best with Philadelphia. As contract talks loom on the horizon, his continued dominance gives the Phillies plenty to consider. But for now, he’s firmly locked in and helping Philly push for another postseason run.
The win lifted the Phillies back into first place in the NL East, half a game ahead of the Mets, as they prepare for a high-stakes series against the Orioles.
