Phillies' Kyle Schwarber Put Current Crop of Power Hitters Into MLB Record Book

Philadelphia Phillies star slugger Kyle Schwarber hit his 30th home run of the season on Friday.

Even though they lost 4-2 in that contest, it was still a good day on a personal level for Schwarber since he reached that notable mark for the fourth year in a row.

However, that blast was also a historic one in the landscape of Major League Baseball.

According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, there have only been two seasons in MLB history where four players have hit at least 30 home runs by the All-Star break: 1998 and now 2025. 

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The list of four for this year is headlined by Seattle Mariners slugger Cal Raleigh, who has an MLB-leading 38 long balls which is a record for catchers in the first half of the season. New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge was second with 34 and phenom Shohei Ohtani had 31 before Schwarber joined them. 

1998 was led by Mark McGwire, who hit 37 home runs. He finished that year with 70 and an insane slugging percentage over .750 with the St. Louis Cardinals. He was joined by Ken Griffey Jr.'s 35, Sammy Sosa who and 33 and Greg Vaughn who rounded out the group with 30.

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It's fitting that Schwarber was the one who pushed this current era into the history books.

He's been neck-and-neck with Ohtani behind Judge when it comes to the most homers over the past few seasons, so it's only right to see all three of those players being part of this MLB record.

Schwarber was a former first-round pick, fourth overall, back in 2014 by the Chicago Cubs. He made his debut the following season for the Cubs and stayed with them until the end of the 2020 campaign.

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He has been part of Philadelphia's organization since 2022, becoming a vital part of this team.

This season, he is slashing a .254/.385/.560. Those slugging and OPS numbers are second-highest of his career. To go along side his 30 home runs, he has tallied 69 RBI and has been walked 65 times.

Schwarber continues to put up ridiculous numbers in what is now his walk year.

The Phillies are going to have their hands full if they are going to bring him back after the season ends.

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