1 of 5 | Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber hits a solo home run in the first inning of a win over the Atlanta Braves on Thursday in Philadelphia. Photo by Laurence Kesterson/UPI | License Photo
Kyle Schwarber snapped an 0 for 20 skid with a four-homer hailstorm, leading the Philadelphia Phillies to a 19-4 win over the Atlanta Braves in Philadelphia.
Schwarber homered in the first, fourth, fifth and seventh innings of the lopsided victory Thursday at Citizens Bank Park. He went 4 for 6 with four runs scored and a Phillies record nine RBIs.
“There’s 21 people to do it now, and four are Phillies,” Schwarber told reporters. “So that’s pretty cool.”
Schwarber entered the night with six walks, four strikeouts and just one run scored during his 0 for 20 streak, which spanned over his previous six games. The Phillies went 2-4 during that stretch.
The Braves jumped ahead 3-0 in the first inning before Schwarber’s personal slugfest. He came to the plate for the first time as the second batter in the bottom of the opening frame.
Braves starter Cal Quantrill missed the strike zone with his first two offerings to the designated hitter. Schwarber fouled off his third pitch. Quantrill then tossed an 80.5-mph curveball into the middle of the zone.
Schwarber pounced on the pitch like a hungry lion, belting it over the right field wall for a 450-foot blast.
Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto tied the score with a 423-foot, two-run homer two at-bats later. Right fielder Max Kepler hit a 399-foot, two-run shot later in the inning for the Phillies first lead and they never looked back.
Star first baseman Bryce Harper hammered a Quantrill fastball to right center for a 442-foot solo shot to lead off the third. Shortstop Trea Turner added to the lead with an RBI double in the fourth.
Relief pitcher Austin Cox replaced Quantrill for the next exchange, which came against Schwarber. The Phillies star worked a 3-2 count and hit Cox’s seventh offering of the exchange to right field for a 383-foot, two-run homer.
Third baseman Alec Bohm drove in the fifth and sixth Phillies runs of the inning with a two-run double four at-bats later.
Schwarber hit his third homer of the night in the bottom of the fifth. Center fielder Harrison Bader started the half inning with a single. Turner joined him on the bases after another single two at-bats later, triggering Schwarber’s walk to the plate.
Cox worked a 2-2 count before issuing a fastball outside the zone. Schwarber stretched over the plate anyway, connecting with the pitch and sending the ball over the left field fence for a 378-foot, three-run shot.
Veteran first baseman Matt Olson drove in the Braves’ final run with a 378-foot solo homer in the top of the next inning. The Phillies put two more runners on for Schwarber’s next at-bat in the bottom of the seventh. Braves reliever Wander Suero earned a 1-2 lead in the exchange, but Schwarber hit his fourth offering — an 85.5-mph changeup — to right field for a 407-foot, three-run homer.
Shortstop Edmundo Sosa plated the Phillies’ final run with an RBI single in the eighth.
Schwarber, who recorded a fly out in the bottom of the second, suffered the same fate for his final at-bat in the bottom of the eighth, denying himself a chance of becoming the first player in MLB history to homer five times in one game.
Phillies starter Aaron Nola allowed four hits and four runs over six innings to improve to 3-7 this season. Quantrill allowed nine hits and nine runs over 3 1/3 innings to drop to 4-12.
Bader went 4 for 5 with three runs scored for the Phillies. Harper, Turner and left fielder Brandon Marsh recorded two hits apiece in the victory.
Schwarber is now hitting .248 with a National League-high 49 home runs and MLB-best 119 RBIs. Both of those marks are career-highs.
Thursday’s win not only stopped a drought for Schwarber, it also snapped a three-game losing streak for the Phillies (77-57), who remain atop the National League East. The second-place New York Mets (72-62) trail the division leaders by five games.
The Braves (61-73) sit in fourth place, will face the Phillies in the second game of the series at 6:45 p.m. EDT Friday in Philadelphia.
