After whipping his bat through the top of the strike zone, Kyle Schwarber took a step lowered his instrument then flicked the handle of the bat forward. He only looked at the ball's path for a moment before turning to the Phillies dugout.
This was the energizing swing the Phillies needed to break a malaise that had settled over the top of the lineup for the first 21 innings of this National League Division Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers . There was no need for Schwarber to follow the ball the 455 feet it ultimately traveled to the pavilion deep in right field at Dodger Stadium – he knew it was gone off the bat. So, Schwarber used the trot to first to pump up his team.
"I was just more focused on our guys there," Schwarber said after the Phillies' 8-2 Game 3 win on Oct. 8.
Those