One of the coolest things about the Statcast era in Major League Baseball is seeing the data from the on-field performances of the best baseball players in the world.
Hitting a baseball, especially one thrown at the high velocities MLB pitchers have these days, remains one of the more mystifying feats for the common fan. But MLB hitters can punish pitchers who make mistakes and absolutely tear the cover off the ball when they barrel one up.
Thanks to Statcast, we can countdown the hardest hits of the Philadelphia Phillies 2023 season and admire the vicious swings and majestic results.
Let's jump in, with a familiar face to lead things off.
No. 5: Kyle Schwarber, 113.9 mph
Our first entry comes from slugger Kyle Schwarber, who unleashed a line-drive Schwarbomb on Aug. 23 against Alex Cobb and the San Francisco Giants.
After retiring the Phillies DH in his first two at-bats, Cobb got ahead of Schwarber 0-2 to lead off the sixth inning but then left a 94.3 mph sinker middle-in, and Schwarber turned on it.
The hardest hit ball of the game, Schwarber's 386-foot home run left the bat at 113.9 mph and a 23-degree launch angle, and left Citizens Bank Park in a hurry.
The solo homer got the Phillies, who were trailing 4-0 at the time, on board. Unfortunately, they still lost the game 8-6 in extra innings.