Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies is once again proving why he ranks among baseball’s premier power hitters, currently sitting atop the majors with 30 home runs on the season.
At the same time, the Phillies’ designated hitter also leads all of MLB in strikeouts with 122, putting him on a trajectory that could challenge the single-season strikeout record of 223, set by Mark Reynolds back in 2009. Even with that glaring statistical blemish, the three-time All-Star is still positioning himself for a potential top-three finish in National League MVP balloting.
Schwarber continues to strengthen his MVP candidacy, though it probably won’t be enough to win. Despite posting a career-worst 34.0% strikeout rate, he has also upped his line-drive percentage to a personal-best 28.3%, which has helped him maintain a solid .253 batting average. While his impressive season may not result in an MVP trophy, a top-three placement remains a very realistic outcome.
In MLB.com‘s most recent MVP prediction survey, Schwarber landed in third place, trailing Los Angeles Dodgers two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani, who topped the list with 161 total points and 30 first-place votes, and Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, who took second with 85 points and two first-place votes.
Jason Foster of MLB.com offered high praise: “Schwarbs just continues to crush baseballs. He launched his MLB-leading 30th homer on Sunday, while no other big league hitter had more than 25. His .591 slugging percentage is best in the NL, while his .962 OPS ranks second. He had 178 total bases on the season entering Monday, also best in the Senior Circuit. Schwarber finished second in NL MVP voting last season. A similarly strong showing appears to be on tap this season.”
No matter how Schwarber performs from here on out—even if he reaches the 60-homer plateau—it may still fall short against Ohtani, whose contributions on the mound are giving him a clear edge in the MVP race.
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