DETROIT — The Phillies were playing that night, so Kevin McGonigle had to get to the ballpark early. Around 10 a.m., when the batting cages would be empty.
He was a senior in high school, and the Phillies hitting coach, Kevin Long, had invited him to take some swings at Citizens Bank Park. Long’s son, Jaron, worked for the agency that represented McGonigle. He asked his father if he would hit with his client, who was a Delco native, a big Phillies fan, and poised to be taken early in the 2023 MLB draft.
“I said, ‘I’d love to. Let me check out what this guy’s got,’” Long said.
Long is used to working with major leaguers. On the Phillies, he oversees the second-oldest group of hitters in baseball. McGonigle was on the cusp of being selected 37th overall by the Tigers, but at the time, he was still a high schooler at Bonner-Prendergast, still a teenager.
The session was a memorable experience for both of them. They spent about half an hour swinging in the cages. And when they were done, McGonigle still had more questions.
“Hey, can you show me Bryce Harper’s routine?” he asked Long. “Can you show me Kyle Schwarber’s routine?”
Long would demonstrate, explaining how and why a certain player would approach a drill. And so the session went on for another half an hour, with McGonigle emulating the major leaguers he’d grown up admiring, in their batting cage.
“I had a feeling he was going to be special,” Long said. “Had a feeling he was going to be in the big leagues. This quick of success probably surprised me a little bit.”
This week, McGonigle will return to the same stadium, this time as a major leaguer himself. The 21-year-old Tigers infielder will make his Citizens Bank Park debut in the All-Star game, just over three years after that session with Long.
The Tigers drafted McGonigle during Competitive Balance Round A, which falls between the first and second rounds. He went 10 picks after the Phillies selected shortstop Aidan Miller 27th overall.
During the 2025 All-Star festivities in Atlanta, McGonigle was one of the top prospects selected to play in the Futures Game. He was playing for Detroit’s double-A affiliate at the time. But after making the Tigers’ opening day lineup in March, the kid from Delco has put together a sparkling rookie season.
“Growing up wanting to go to an All-Star Game in Philadelphia just as a fan, it was always a dream of mine,” McGonigle said. “Just to go experience it and watch the All-Star Game in Philly. But now I get to have a front-row seat and actually play in it, so I haven’t really been able to think of words to describe the way I feel.”
He has a .285/.394/.424 slash line in his first 92 games, and will be an infield reserve on the American League team.
McGonigle will be staying at home with his parents for the festivities. He said about 35 friends and family members will be in attendance at the game. He also had plenty of family in the stands over the weekend at Comerica Park to see him face his hometown team, a trip planned before McGonigle was selected for the game.
None of this has sunk in yet for him.
“I think it’s gonna all hit me either when my name gets called or the national anthem, somewhere in the lines of the All-Star Game,” he said.
His phone started blowing up immediately on Friday after McGonigle took starter Aaron Nola deep in the series opener. In the third inning, he sent a sinker 414 feet into the Phillies’ bullpen in right-center field.
After the game, Nola gave an unprompted shoutout to McGonigle, who grew up a fan of his. He was 10 years old when Nola debuted for the Phillies in 2015.
“Good hitting, right there,” Nola said of McGonigle. “Hit that ball pretty hard, out of one of the deepest parts of the field. So hat off to him on that one.”
McGonigle was excited after seeing the clip.
“He gave me some props on that, which was really nice of him,” McGonigle said. “So hopefully, I can run into him at some point, and just get to know him a little bit and thank him for the good words he said about me.”
McGonigle briefly chatted with Harper on the field in Detroit. The first baseman was one of his favorite Phillies growing up, after Chase Utley. He hopes to get the chance to talk more during the All-Star festivities.
“I was nervous to say something to him, and it was just like a normal conversation, which was awesome,” McGonigle said. “I think that’s the best part about it. All these superstars are just normal guys, and you get to build relationships with them, learn from them, and just get to know them.”
He and Long have kept in touch over text since their hitting session three years ago. They haven’t been able to connect in person in Detroit because Long’s duties usually keep him busy in the batting cages underneath the stadium.
But they have been messaging. McGonigle had a bat sent over to Long at his request. And watching him from the opposite dugout, Long still recognizes the high schooler he swung with back in 2023.
“That’s the same kid,” Long said. “He’s tough. He’s gritty. He puts together these at-bats, it’s like, ‘Wow.’ Takes a really good swing. He’s not trying to baby his swing. He’s letting it kind of eat a little bit, which I like.”
He recalled seeing similarities between a younger McGonigle and former Red Sox infielder Dustin Pedroia, based on his size, demeanor, and his toughness.
What makes him a tough at-bat now for the Phillies to plan for is McGonigle’s discipline at the plate, Long said.
“His swing is a little bit unorthodox, but it’s a tight, compact swing,” Long said. “He controls his barrel very well. Uses the whole field. And his toughness. You can just see it. You can see it as soon as he goes to that at-bat, and overall, what he does at the plate. You sense that he’s not going to get out, or he’s going to make it really tough on the opposing pitcher.”
Long was so impressed by McGonigle back then that he later stopped by one of McGonigle’s games at Bonner in his senior season, to get a look at how he played defense.
He was blown away.
“I’m very proud of him, and I’m glad that we were able to cross paths,” Long said. “Something he’ll remember for a long time, and I’ll never forget it.”
