Kyle Schwarber homered to right-center field in the first inning at Fenway Park on May 12, a 386-foot solo shot off Boston's Jovani Morán. Five consecutive games with a home run. The Phillies won 2-1.
With that swing, Schwarber moved to 17 home runs and sole possession of the major league lead. Aaron Judge has 16. Munetaka Murakami has 15. A home run race that had been running between Judge and Murakami now has a third name — and that name is out in front.
The five-game streak ties the Phillies' franchise record, shared by Dick Allen, Mike Schmidt, Bobby Abreu, Chase Utley, and Trea Turner. Schwarber's manager, Don Mattingly, shares the MLB record for consecutive games with a home run at eight, alongside Dale Long in 1956 and Ken Griffey Jr. in 1993. Mattingly did not need to address the coincidence. His presence in the dugout said enough.
Through May 12, Schwarber is slashing .229/.356/.611 with 28 RBI and a .967 OPS. The batting average is low. Everything else is not. He hit a career-high 56 home runs in 2025 and is on pace for 65 this season. The shape of the numbers is lopsided, but the damage is not hiding.
Zack Wheeler started for Philadelphia and threw 7.1 innings, allowing one earned run with four strikeouts to earn the win. Boston's lone run came in the seventh on a Ceddanne Rafaela RBI single. Jhoan Duran closed out the final 1 2/3 innings for his sixth save.
Seventeen home runs. Five straight games. Alone at the top.