Apr 30, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Kyle Schwarber (12) reacts after hitting a three eRBI home run against the Washington Nationals during the first inning at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Kyle Schwarber’s comfort zone is the sport of baseball. Hitting dingers to the second deck, being a leader – all of this comes as naturally as breathing. Or at least it seems to.
Show choir – which Schwarber did in high school – was decidedly the opposite.
“It was the first time I had ever done anything like that, dancing and singing at the same time,” Schwarber recalled in a conversation with On Pattison.
Schwarber was a standout athlete across multiple sports at Middletown High School in Middletown, Ohio. He batted .408 in high school, and he earned Second Team All-Ohio honors as a linebacker his senior year in 2011.
And for three years, he was also a member of the Purple Pizzazz, Middletown High School’s show choir.
Especially in the athletic world, there can be a stigma when it comes to performing on stage; but at Middletown, it wasn’t as taboo as most would assume.
“All the athletes kind of did it. It was funny. A lot of the football players, a lot of the guys did it,” Schwarber said.
“I grew up with the [show choir] teacher's daughter, and all of our friends, we had a big friend group that was all in the same class. We were all friends, so we were like, 'We're definitely going to do it.' And it was interesting, but it was fun.”
There was definitely a learning curve. When asked to pick a Phillies player who can dance, most people would probably not pick Schwarber. However, Schwarber recognizes the benefits of escaping the comfort zone.
“To be honest with you, was it corny, cheesy? Sure. But also, too, I felt like… doing something uncomfortable, and getting comfortable doing it, will bring out something different," Schwarber said.
“I think it does bring out a little bit of coordination and different things like that. You're doing a lot of different things, and you're having to make sure that you're memorizing different things, different moves, and also having to make sure you're singing the right thing. So I felt like it was actually beneficial.”
Even better, some of Schwarber’s skills from his hard work in show choir carried over into the sports he played, especially the improved coordination.
“I think just the coordination aspect of everything, and just making sure that you're really in control of your body and making sure that you're doing what you're supposed to do. I felt like it was beneficial to sport,” Schwarber said.
Schwarber, now 32, is an 11-year MLB veteran long removed from his show choir days, but he still reminisces. In fact, he and his family were recently watching an old show choir video in his backyard when Schwarber realized he “can’t move like that anymore.”
“It’s funny that I could do it back in high school, but now I can’t do it,” Schwarber remarked. “We’re dancing to ‘Man in the Mirror.’ I’m like, ‘How am I doing that stuff?’”
So no jazz hands anymore?
“No, I got jazz hands.”
Thank god.
Despite those days being far behind him, the World Wide Web is forever. When he was a rookie with the Chicago Cubs in 2015, some videos of Schwarber performing with the Purple Pizzazz resurfaced, and the Internet ran with it.
The Cubs also ran with it; in 2016, Schwarber’s teammates recreated one of his Purple Pizzazz performances, complete with matching gray, purple and pink outfits. Instead of reacting with embarrassment, like some ballplayers would do, Schwarber didn’t shy away from it.
“I don't know what's going on,” Schwarber told MLB.com in 2015. “I don't know how that got out. I have to answer some questions about that, I guess. I did it, and I'll wear it. I didn't mind it.”
We can’t all be like @kschwarb12. pic.twitter.com/GQR90v9hyc
Even now on the Phillies, Schwarber has kept music in mind as a way to bring a team together. He orchestrated a karaoke night for the Phillies in July 2022, which some players singled out as the turning point in that magical season. Breaking out of that comfort zone and getting comfortable with being uncomfortable can lead to great things. Nobody knows that better than Schwarber.
With all that in mind, the question of the hour: will Kyle Schwarber be performing the national anthem at Citizens Bank Park anytime soon?
“No," he told On Pattison in a mic-drop moment to end the interview.
