Three swings, three homers: MVP Kyle Schwarber leads NL to All-Star Game win with epic swing-off

ATLANTA — Where were you the night that Kyle Schwarber saved the All-Star Game?

Overly dramatic? Maybe. But consider the situation.

The 95th All-Star Game was tied Tuesday night after nine innings, and for the first time ever, a midsummer classic would be decided by a “swing-off,” a gussied-up name for a home run derby. Three hitters per team; three swings per hitter.

Ready … set … let’s get weird.

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“Interesting,” said Schwarber, the Phillies’ only All-Star participant. “A little nervous.”

He could’ve fooled, well, everyone in Truist Park. Because with homers (Schwarbombs, as they’re known back in Philadelphia) on each swing — first to straightaway center field, then to right-center, and finally to the Chop House in right field while dropping down to one knee — he gave the National League its winning margin in a 4-3 swing-off victory that will go down in the record books as a 7-6 All-Star Game triumph.

And that’s how Schwarber went from a hitless night to All-Star MVP, the first Phillies player to win the award since Johnny Callison in 1964.

“There’s a lot of guys who are way more deserving of this award,” Schwarber said. “Just being able to be here at the All-Star Game, representing the organization and our city and my teammates, it never goes not noted. It’s a great honor. It’s going to be something that you can hold on to forever, but hopefully it’ll be a cool moment there for the Phillies for a little while.”

At least until next year, when MLB will bring its midseason show to Philadelphia for an All-Star Game that commissioner Rob Manfred promised to the late Phillies chairman David Montgomery. It will be a summer spectacle. But can it possibly top this ending?

While you chew on that, know this: The swing-off idea was instituted in 2022 as part of the collective bargaining agreement as a way of settling the All-Star Game without worrying about extra innings.

But because no All-Star Game — heck, no baseball game ever — ended like this, there was a scramble after the ninth inning to review the rules.

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Before the game, both managers — Dave Roberts of the Dodgers for the National League, the Yankees’ Aaron Boone for the American — submitted a list of three hitters who would participate in the tiebreaking derby. With most of the starters out of the game and already on their way home, the responsibility fell to reserves.

Roberts wanted Schwarber because, of course. Not only does the Schwarbino have 30 homers this season and 314 for his career, 11th among active players, but he also is a two-time All-Star Home Run Derby participant.

Schwarber wanted to avoid the homer-hitting contest this year and didn’t compete in Monday night’s Derby. But when Roberts asked whether he’d step in if needed, Schwarber didn’t flinch.

“I said, ‘Absolutely,’” Schwarber said, “not thinking that we were going to end up in a tie when you say yes.”

It seemed even more improbable when the NL took a 6-0 lead in the sixth inning. But the AL chipped away, eventually tying the score in the ninth on a two-out RBI single by the Guardians’ Steven Kwan.

Schwarber had a chance to end it in regulation. He led off the bottom of the ninth against Red Sox closer Aroldis Chapman’s 100 mph sinker and broke his bat on a lineout to third base.

“I’m like, ‘Well, I’ve got to get a new bat now,’” Schwarber said. “Went up, got the new bat, and just waited my turn.”

Schwarber was the NL’s second hitter — and fourth overall — in the swing-off. And he had a secret weapon. He faced Dodgers third base coach Dino Ebel in batting practice with Team USA in the World Baseball Classic in 2023.

“He’s got great BP,” Schwarber said. “Having the familiarity, he asked me right before, he’s like, ‘Where do you want it?’ I’m like, ‘Just middle,’ and he’s like, ‘I got you.’”

The first two homers were crushed. No-doubters. The third? Let Schwarber narrate.

“I didn’t hit it, obviously, my best,” he said. “But I was thinking I got enough of it. And I was just kind of down there, hoping, saying, ‘Go, go, go.’ And it went. And it was awesome.”

After Schwarber gave the NL a one-homer lead, the Rays’ Jonathan Aranda got shut out on his swings, kicking off a celebration in front of the NL dugout. Schwarber, who was joined on the field by his wife, Paige, and their two sons, was presented with the MVP award.

It was a rollicking conclusion to a night filled with poignant moments.

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Former Braves icon Freddie Freeman, now with the Dodgers, got a warm ovation when he was replaced midway through the third inning. The Braves honored Hank Aaron by projecting his 715th homer onto the field in the seventh inning. Hall of Fame manager Joe Torre (who played for and managed the Braves in Atlanta), named to the AL coaching staff, made a pitching change in the eighth.

Then, there was Clayton Kershaw, the Dodgers’ 37-year-old lefty, who was on the NL roster as the designated “legend pick” by Manfred. It was his 11th All-Star appearance, which ranks fourth among pitchers after Warren Spahn (14), Mariano Rivera (13), and Tom Seaver (12).

Kershaw gave a speech to the NL team before the game and was mic’d up for Fox’s broadcast while he pitched in the second inning. He also was lifted by Roberts after retiring both batters he faced.

“I shouldn’t be here anyway, so it’s very possible that this could be my last one,” said Kershaw, who has a 3.38 ERA in 10 starts this season. “It was a very awesome night.”

As Kershaw exited the interview room, Pedro Martínez walked down the hallway. Martínez, who was in his final major-league season with the Phillies in 2009 when they faced Kershaw’s Dodgers in the NL Championship Series, stopped and slapped hands.

“I always tell guys,” Martínez said, “you’re the closest thing to me.”

Those moments are what the All-Star Game is about.

Next year: Philadelphia. And a tough act to follow.

“I know our fan base is going to be rambunctious,” Schwarber said. “I know they love big games. They love high stakes. It’ll be a great time overall.”