Philadelphia Phillies Star Slugger Picked as April All-Star by MLB Insider

The Philadelphia Phillies have one of best designated hitters in the National League.

Apr 30, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Kyle Schwarber (12) reacts after hitting a three RBI home run against the Washington Nationals during the first inning at Citizens Bank Park. | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The Philadelphia Phillies are starting to find their stride. Heading into Friday, the Phillies are in second place in the NL East as they continue to chase the New York Mets.

Philadelphia has had their ups and downs within their lineup, and on the mound. However, there are a few players that have lived up to the hype the Phillies brought into this season.

One of those players is Kyle Schwarber.

Schwarber is in his fourth season with Philadelphia. The left-handed batter has showcased a lot of power in his three full seasons with the team. He has slugged 46, 47 and 38 home runs in the last three years, while driving in 94, 104 and 104 runs.

In those three years, the Indiana University product has made the All-Star game one time. He has also been a Silver Slugger in one of those campaigns.

This year, the veteran designated hitter has slashed .245/.398/.538 with nine home runs, 23 RBI, 24 walks and 21 runs scored in 30 games played. He is on pace for a career-best on-base and slugging percentage.

With this start to the year, Jim Bowden of The Athletic (subscription required) has tabbed Schwarber as the National League All-Star designated hitter for the month of April.

The lefty is in the 97th percentile in bat speed, 95th percentile in hard-hit percentage, 91st percentile in average exit velocity and 80th percentile in barrel percentage. He does a great job not chasing pitches out of the zone, as well.

It is not an accident that he is hitting the ball as well as he is right now. With his ability to swing hard at strikes, take pitches out of the zone and constantly find barrels is a big reason for his success. He is not showing any signs of slowing down, so Schwarber should be able to keep this up all year.

He is not only one of the best hitters at his position, but Schwarber is one of the best hitters in the entire MLB. The advanced stats make that very clear.

When it comes to making the All-Star game in July, Schwarber will need to keep up the good work. Trying to start the Midsummer Classic over Seiya Suzuki, Marcell Ozuna or Shohei Ohtani is going to be extremely difficult.

However, if the former-first round pick can continue the pace he is on, while adding some home runs, he is going to be the starting DH for the National League.