DYERSVILLE — Kyle Schwarber set the tone early in Major League Baseball's Field of Dreams matchup between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Minnesota Twins on Aug. 13.
It took just three pitches for the Phillies' designated hitter to find his groove, sending a 95.4 mph fastball from Twins right-handed pitcher Taj Bradley over the right-field fence and into the corn field that Schwarber and his teammates walked through minutes before.
That home run hit gave Schwarber — who finished as the runner-up in this year's Home Run Derby — his 36th home run of the season, a figure that leads MLB, but he wasn't finished.
The 33-year-old hit another homer off Bradley, this time scoring two runs: himself and Brandon Marsh from third base. His second home run gave the Phillies a 4-1 lead in the top of the fourth, and Bryce Harper extended that lead to 5-1 before the end of the inning.
With 37 home runs this season, Schwarber inched closer to a record held by one of baseball's all-time greats. Babe Ruth hit 235 home runs in his first five seasons with the New York Yankees. Schwarber is second behind Ruth in that category, with his count at 224 after the two hit during the Field of Dreams game.
Most home runs in first five seasons with a team
Source: Sarah Langs of MLB
- Babe Ruth, Yankees: 235
- Kyle Schwarber, Phillies: 224
- Mark McGwire, Cardinals: 220
- Ralph Kiner, Pirates: 215
- Alex Rodriguez, Yankees: 208
- David Ortiz, Red Sox: 208
- Albert Pujols, Cardinals: 201
Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at ahertel@dmreg.com or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Kyle Schwarber homers in first two at-bats in Field of Dreams matchup