Kyle Schwarber delivered a standout performance during the 2025 Major League Baseball season, marking several career milestones while playing for the Philadelphia Phillies. The 32-year-old outfielder participated in all 162 games and hit a personal best of 56 home runs. This achievement placed him alongside Ryan Howard as the only Phillies players to reach at least 50 home runs in a single season.
Schwarber’s overall contributions were reflected in his career-high 4.9 Wins Above Replacement (FanGraphs) and a weighted Runs Created Plus (wRC+) of 152. He also matched his previous best with an on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of .928 and led the National League in home runs.
As he enters free agency following the expiration of his four-year, $79 million contract, Schwarber is considered one of the top available players this offseason and is among the finalists for the National League Most Valuable Player award.
A key aspect of Schwarber’s success was his performance against left-handed pitchers. He hit 23 home runs off lefties, setting a new MLB record for most homers by a left-handed batter against left-handed pitching in a single season. “Those 23 home runs against southpaws were the most in a single season by a left-handed hitter against left-handed pitching in MLB history,” according to team sources. His OPS against left-handers stood at .964, compared to .905 versus right-handers.
Schwarber also improved his ability to make quality contact with the ball. His barrel rate reached a career-best 20.8%, resulting in 85 total barrels—the highest mark of his career and among the top ten since Statcast began tracking this metric in 2015. “Schwarber boasted a career-best 20.8% barrel rate, just the second time he’s exceeded 20% in a season (20.1 percent in 2022).”
His hard-hit rate increased to another personal high at 59.6%, surpassing last year’s figure of 55.5%. Additionally, his average exit velocity climbed above 94 mph for the first time.
When facing fastballs, Schwarber was particularly effective, hitting 35 home runs off that pitch type—third-most among all major league hitters this year.
Another notable trend was Schwarber’s tendency to pull balls hit into the air; he did so at a rate of over 31%, ranking fifth among qualified hitters and accounting for nearly seventy percent of his total home runs.
Finally, Schwarber excelled when pitches were thrown down the middle of the plate, posting a .901 slugging percentage on such offerings—his highest ever and third-best across Major League Baseball this season.
With these achievements, Kyle Schwarber has positioned himself as one of baseball’s most sought-after free agents heading into next year.
