PHILADELPHIA -- Kyle Schwarber wasted no time making an emphatic statement on Thursday night.
Then, he made another. And another. And ... another.
Schwarber became just the 21st player in Major League history to hit four home runs in a single game when he did so in the Phillies' 19-4 rout over the Braves at Citizens Bank Park. He’s the fourth Phillie to accomplish the feat, joining Mike Schmidt (April 17, 1976), Chuck Klein (July 10, 1936) and Ed Delahanty (July 13, 1896).
The NL MVP candidate started his night with a 450-foot solo blast to the second deck in right field in the opening frame. He added a towering two-run homer down the right-field line in the third, then went the opposite way for a three-run homer in the fifth.
Schwarber then joined the exclusive four-homer club with another three-run shot in the seventh inning off reliever Wander Suero.
“It was pretty cool to go out there and do that,” Schwarber said. “And you get the opportunity for a fifth one …”
That’s perhaps the craziest part.
Schwarber came up in the eighth inning with a chance to become the first player in MLB history to hit five in a single game. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Schwarber was only the fourth player within that four-homer club to get a plate appearance with a chance to hit No. 5, joining Bobby Lowe (1894), Lou Gehrig (1932) and Mike Cameron (2002).
“I shouldn't have even asked the question, but I was in the cage and I was like, 'How many guys have hit five?'” Schwarber said of his mindset heading into that at-bat. “And nobody said anything, so I was like, 'Oh, OK, well that answers the question.'"
The only thing standing in Schwarber’s way? Braves infielder Vidal Bruján, who had taken over pitching duties in the seventh.
"Oh, I thought he was going to do it. I really did,” said manager Rob Thomson. “There was no doubt in my mind."
"I was hoping he'd get it," added Phillies starter Aaron Nola.
"I had an inkling he'd do it," said teammate Bryson Stott.
Perhaps one of the few people in the ballpark who didn’t think Schwarber was about to hit No. 5 was Schwarber himself -- but he had his reason.
“I stink against position players,” Schwarber said.
To that point, Schwarber had never hit a home run in 14 previous plate appearances against position players. Prior to facing Bruján, Schwarber was just 2-for-9 (.222) with a double and an infield single. He’d also hit a sac fly, walked twice and been hit twice.
Just two months ago, Schwarber squared off against another Braves position player in former Phillies outfielder Luke Williams -- and he struck out.
Sure enough, Schwarber flailed at a 57.4 mph pitch right down the middle from Bruján and skied it for an out on the infield fly rule.
“I've got a mental block somewhere in my head that I'm not very good against position players,” Schwarber said.
Still, four homers isn’t a bad consolation prize. Schwarber also set a franchise record with nine RBIs.
“I mean, whether he hits the fifth or not, what an unbelievable night that guy had,” Nola said.
Though Schwarber is only the 21st player to hit four homers in a game, it's now happened an MLB-record three times this season. Eugenio Suárez did it for the D-backs on April 26 (also against the Braves) and Nick Kurtz went deep four times for the A's on July 25.
“I've never seen a four-home run game in person, so that was amazing,” Nola said. “That guy's awesome. I don't know what else to say -- the guy's having a year for the ages.”
Schwarber's historic night also helped him achieve a couple season-long milestones.
His four homers raised his season total to 49, marking a career high -- and moving him into second on the Phillies' all-time list. Only Ryan Howard (58 in 2006) has hit more home runs in a single season for the Phils.
Schwarber’s four-homer night puts him on pace for 59, one more than Howard’s franchise mark.
“If it happens, great. If it doesn't, great,” Schwarber said of the record. “I'm more focused on us as a group and focused on trying to get to where we want to be.”
Thursday was a step in the right direction after the Phillies’ brutal sweep at the hands of the Mets earlier this week. Coupled with the Mets’ loss to the Marlins, Philadelphia’s NL East lead improved to five games.
The postseason push is still at the forefront for everyone in the Phillies' clubhouse.
But for one night, it was all about Schwarber.
“There's 21 people to do it now, and four are Phillies,” Schwarber said. “So that's pretty cool.”