Schwarber to lead off NL in All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park

Kyle Schwarber will bat leadoff for the National League in Tuesday’s All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park, a top-of-the-order assignment built around power rather than foot speed. The Phillies designated hitter enters the game leading the majors with 32 home runs, and his placement at the top of Dave Roberts’ lineup puts one of baseball’s biggest sluggers in the first spot of the Midsummer Classic.

Schwarber moved into the starting lineup after Shohei Ohtani withdrew because of left-knee irritation tied to a procedure, and the adjustment turned the National League order into a snapshot of how the modern game is built. Schwarber is 33, with a .254 batting average, a .927 OPS and 59 RBI, numbers that show why a leadoff hitter no longer has to be a pure table-setter. The job is increasingly about creating the most damaging first at-bat possible, and Schwarber’s blend of on-base production and power fits that logic.

The All-Star Game is set for 8:00 p.m. ET on FOX, capping an All-Star Week that runs from Friday, July 10, through Tuesday, July 14. Philadelphia is hosting the event in the semiquincentennial year of American independence, and Major League Baseball noted that the 2026 game follows the 1976 All-Star Game at Veterans Stadium, which was played during the bicentennial. The return of the showcase to the city adds a historical frame to Schwarber’s unusual batting order assignment.

Schwarber is not the only Phillies player in the National League’s starting group. Brandon Marsh was set to bat seventh, and right-hander Cristopher Sánchez was named the National League starting pitcher. Roberts and American League manager John Schneider unveiled the lineups with the Phillies’ home ballpark set as the backdrop, giving Philadelphia a visible role in both the field and the spectacle.

The leadoff spot also extends Schwarber’s place on the All-Star stage. He was named the National League MVP of the 2025 All-Star Game after hitting three home runs in the first-ever swing-off, a performance that turned him into one of the event’s most memorable finishers before he was asked to become its first batter. At Citizens Bank Park, the same power that once decided the game late will now be asked to start it.