It wasn’t over when Kyle Schwarber hammered the first pitch he saw into the right field bleachers so hard the Diamondbacks outfielders never moved. It just felt that way.
The record will reflect that it took the Phillies two hours and 42 minutes to defeat Arizona 5–3 in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series. But the truth is everyone knew the outcome by the time Schwarber’s missile landed. This was perhaps the least close 5–3 baseball game ever played.
Hitting a home run on the first pitch you see in the #NLCS? Totally Kyle. pic.twitter.com/yGyQFXflcb
— MLB (@MLB) October 17, 2023