Kyle Schwarber’s 459-foot missile completes Phillies comeback that made no sense

Nairavoice | Aug 23, 2026 2h ago 301 0 5 min read

3de9193136007aa104eb01df0a3a3ff2 Kyle Schwarber’s 459-foot missile completes Phillies comeback that made no sense

Kyle Schwarber’s 459-foot missile completes Phillies comeback that made no sense originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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The Philadelphia Phillies appeared destined for a quiet, frustrating loss Sunday afternoon. Then their offense produced one of the most ridiculous innings of the MLB season.

Philadelphia entered the bottom of the ninth inning trailing the St. Louis Cardinals 4-0. The Phillies had been shut out for eight innings and were down to their final out before Kyle Schwarber stepped to the plate with the score suddenly tied.

Schwarber did much more than complete the comeback.

The Phillies slugger crushed a two-run home run an estimated 459 feet to dead center field, completing a six-run ninth inning and giving Philadelphia a stunning 6-4 victory at Citizens Bank Park.

The Phillies shared a video of Schwarber’s towering blast, which disappeared over the deepest part of the ballpark and sent the crowd of 42,610 into a frenzy.

Philadelphia completed a three-game sweep of St. Louis, extended its winning streak to nine games and moved within 2.5 games of the Atlanta Braves in the National League East.

Phillies come to life with season down to final out

The Phillies did almost nothing offensively for the first eight innings. St. Louis starter Kyle Leahy held Philadelphia scoreless over four innings before the Cardinals bullpen carried the shutout into the ninth. The Phillies entered their final at-bat with only four hits and had failed to capitalize on their limited scoring opportunities..

WALK-OFF SCHWARBOMB OVER THE BATTER’S EYE!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/O9YgxPWSac
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 23, 2026

Cardinals reliever Riley O’Brien entered with a four-run cushion.

It somehow was not enough.

Bryce Harper opened the inning with a double, his second of the game. O’Brien then recorded two outs, putting the Cardinals one strike-producing play away from escaping Philadelphia with a win.

The Phillies refused to disappear. J.T. Realmuto singled to center, and Justin Crawford walked to load the bases. Edmundo Sosa followed with a three-run double to left field, scoring Harper, Realmuto and Crawford.

A four-run deficit had suddenly become 4-3. Bryan De La Cruz then singled home Sosa, tying the game and bringing Schwarber to the plate as the potential winning run.

Schwarber sends baseball into another neighborhood

There was little mystery about Schwarber’s home run once he made contact. The ball exploded off his bat and traveled directly toward the batter’s eye in center field. St. Louis center fielder Nathan Church took only a few steps before realizing there was no point continuing the pursuit.

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Schwarber had just hit one of the longest and most dramatic home runs of the season. The 459-foot shot was his 39th homer of the year, adding to his major league-leading total. It also gave him 78 RBIs and capped a weekend in which he homered in consecutive games.

Saturday’s homer came during a comfortable 12-3 victory. Sunday’s blast rescued the Phillies from what appeared to be a certain defeat. O’Brien was charged with six runs on five hits and one walk in only two-thirds of an inning. He entered with a 4-0 lead and left without recording the final out.

Philadelphia’s ninth-inning rally also protected starter Cristopher Sánchez from a loss. The left-hander allowed four runs on nine hits across 6 2/3 innings, striking out seven without issuing a walk.

Alex McFarlane worked a perfect top of the ninth and earned the victory.

MORE: Braves reportedly call up nine-year veteran fan favorite who made Atlanta debut in July

Phillies suddenly refuse to lose

The Phillies have won games in just about every possible fashion during their nine-game streak. They beat St. Louis 7-6 in 10 innings Friday after Alec Bohm delivered a walk-off two-run triple. They overwhelmed the Cardinals with 12 runs Saturday. Then they waited until the ninth inning Sunday before scoring six times and completing an improbable sweep.

Philadelphia improved to 73-58 and continued applying pressure to Atlanta in the NL East race. The Phillies still have work to do in the standings, but they are playing their best baseball at exactly the right time. Their lineup can overwhelm opponents early, grind through extra innings or erase a four-run deficit before the other team can record one final out.

Schwarber’s home run was the perfect exclamation point. The Phillies were three outs away from being shut out. Minutes later, one of the most powerful hitters in baseball sent a ball 459 feet and turned a forgettable afternoon into one of Philadelphia’s wildest wins of the season.