Kyle Schwarber, former Middletown HS standout, earns second consecutive All-Star selection

Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins celebrates a win with left fielder Kyle Schwarber (12) against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on July 3.
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins celebrates a win with left fielder Kyle Schwarber (12) against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on July 3.
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Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Kyle Schwarber, a former Middletown High School Middies standout who hit his National League-leading 28th home run of the season on Sunday, was named a Major League Baseball All-Star for the second consecutive season.

Schwarber, an NL reserve, is one of 13 players on MLB rosters from Greater Cincinnati high schools, University of Cincinnati or Xavier University. Former Madeira High School standout Andrew Benintendi of the Kansas City Royals was named a first-time American League All-Star, and former Cincinnati Bearcats standout Ian Happ of the Cubs, a teammate of Schwarber's in Chicago from 2017 to 2020, joins Schwarber among the league's reserves.

Last Sunday, Schwarber did an in-game interview with ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball" during his team's game against the St. Louis Cardinals and joked during the 2nd inning of the broadcast about how he was unable to fulfill his grandmother's wish for him to emulate National Baseball Hall of Famer and former Big Red Machine great Johnny Bench.

Schwarber, a catcher for the Indiana Hoosiers, caught in 21 of his 69 games in his first season for the Chicago Cubs in 2015, but he's played just eight innings at catcher over his seven seasons since. And he has not caught for his past three teams - the Washington Nationals, Boston Red Sox and the Phillies.

"My grandma was a huge Johnny Bench fan (when I was) growing up in Cincinnati. She was a big baseball - just a big baseball rat. And I just remember sitting in the car when I was young, and she said, 'I want you to grow up to be like Johnny Bench.' And that's when I was catching. So look at me now - I'm in left field."

Video from @MLB via Twitter:

Schwarber was a free agent who played the 2021 postseason and part of last season for the Boston Red Sox after a July trade from the Washington Nationals when he agreed in March to a four-year deal with the Phillies worth about $20 million per year. Days later, the Phillies added free agent and former Reds outfielder Nick Castellanos.

In January, Schwarber became the first to have his Middies' baseball jersey - No. 12 - retired, during halftime of a Middletown boys' basketball game that Schwarber attended at Wade E. Miller Arena. In March, Schwarber was among Middletown Athletic Hall of Fame inductees, for his achievements in football and baseball in the Class of 2011.

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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Kyle Schwarber earns second consecutive MLB All-Star selection