It’s never easy to read a person’s emotions in the immediate aftermath of a life-altering moment. Trying to predict what comes next — through the tears, the tremors in their voice — is often a fool’s errand.
Still, it was hard to shake the feeling that Kyle Schwarber understood what it all meant. That somewhere beneath the heartbreak, he knew his time with the Philadelphia Phillies had reached a premature and painful end.
Game 4 of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night was decided in soul-crushing fashion for the Phillies. With two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th inning of a 1-1 tie, Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages connected on a slow roller toward the pitching mound. The ball bounced off the foot of Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering, who hurriedly gathered the carom and rushed a throw home rather than get the sure out at first base.
Even a good throw may not have been in time to beat Hyeseong Kim, but it wouldn’t matter. Kerkering’s errant toss went to the backstop as Kim stepped on the plate, giving Los Angeles a 2-1 win that sent them to the NL Championship Series to face either the Chicago Cubs or the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Phillies, meanwhile, were sent home to ponder what had happened.
Kyle Schwarber Fights Tears as He Reflects on His Time With Philadelphia
And that question could be asked about not just this one night, but the entirety of the past four seasons. Because with that loss came not only the end of the 2025 season for Philadelphia, but potentially the end of an era in Phillies history.
Four seasons led by the veteran, All-Star core of Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Nick Castellanos, Aaron Nola, and Zack Wheeler. Four seasons of high expectations crushed by playoff ousters.
The Phillies have gotten better on paper every year — 87 wins in 2022, 90 in 2023, 95 in 2024, and 96 this season. But in October, it’s been the opposite story. A World Series run in ’22 was followed by an NLCS loss, then back-to-back exits in the Division Series.
So for all the talk about chemistry and having the right mix of guys, the mood inside the visitors’ clubhouse at Dodger Stadium late Thursday night told a different story. The sense was unmistakable — significant changes are coming for the Phillies before 2026.
For Schwarber, that could very well mean he will be wearing a different uniform next spring. Schwarber will become a free agent after the World Series, and even though both sides have stated that they would welcome a reunion, Schwarber sounded like a man coming to grips with the likelihood that he had just played his final game with the team.
“It doesn’t feel good, you know?” Schwarber said, with a quivering chin. “You just make a lot of different relationships in the clubhouse, and you never know how it’s going to work out, right? It’s just, you just make so many personal relationships with guys, and, you know, you spend, heck, how much time with these guys, you know, throughout the course of a year? And they become family.”
Kyle Schwarber Will Undoubtedly Receive Multiple Free Agent Offers
The 32-year-old left-handed slugger will likely have his choice of several destinations to continue his impressive career. Fresh off a season during which he led the National League with 56 home runs and 132 RBIs, Schwarber is certain to get votes for MVP and offers for a staggering amount of money.
The prevailing opinion is that Schwarber’s next contract will be for at least four seasons, and at least $30 million per. There is also a strong sense among many MLB insiders that Schwarber is just too valuable for the Phillies to even consider letting him walk away.
“Forget all of the talk, Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber isn’t going anywhere this winter,” USA Today’s Bob Nightengale recently wrote. “He loves Philadelphia, and more important, the Phillies love him. They simply will not be out-bid by any team, knowing how vital he is to them as not only their greatest power hitter, but their ultimate clubhouse leader.”
But for one night, it certainly felt like Schwarber was saying his good-byes.
“You just never know how it’s going to go, but these guys all know how I feel about them,” he said. “I got a lot of respect for the guys in here, our organization, the coaching staff. Everyone, from top to bottom. This is a premier organization, and a lot of people should feel very lucky that, one, that you’re playing for a team that is trying to win every single year, and you have a fan base that cares, and we have an ownership that cares. You have coaches that care, you have everyone in the room that cares, and there’s no other reason, you know. We’re all about winning, and it’s a great thing. And I think that’s why it hurts just as much as any other year.”
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