Scott Kingery excited for return to Philadelphia with Cubs: ‘I feel like I grew up here’

PHILADELPHIA — The last time Scott Kingery stepped foot on the field at Citizens Bank Park before Monday, he wore street clothes and accepted a National League championship ring at a pregame ceremony early in the 2023 season. He played just one game for the Phillies in 2022, and it happened while the club was on the road.

So it’s been a while since the former top prospect has appeared in Philadelphia as an actual big-league player. He last played in a Phillies home game in 2021. Back now as a member of the Chicago Cubs, the 31-year-old Kingery was excited to see some familiar faces and sights.

“I feel like I grew up here,” Kingery said. “So it’s cool to be back and just be in the city.”

A second-round draft pick in 2015, Kingery rose through Philadelphia’s minor-league system and earned a six-year contract extension in 2018 before he had ever played a game in the majors. But Kingery’s tenure with the Phillies did not live up to the hype. He was a versatile defender and had a solid offensive year in 2019, but he hit just .229 in parts of five seasons with the Phillies.

Kingery last had regular playing time during the COVID-shortened 2020 season, then spent the majority of the next four years grinding away at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The Phillies traded Kingery to the Angels ahead of last season, and he appeared in 19 games for Los Angeles.

After signing a minor-league contract with the Cubs this past winter, Kingery won a roster battle in spring training and broke camp with a club for the first time in six years.

“Going into spring training this year, I knew it was a tough task to make the Opening Day roster, because they have a pretty set lineup already,” Kingery said. “It’s fighting for one of those bench spots, and I thought I put myself in a good position. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. But it was exciting to be able to experience Opening Day again after five years of not experiencing it.”

Kingery is a bench infielder for the Cubs and has not yet recorded a plate appearance. However, he entered as a pinch runner on Sunday and scored the game-winning run in a walk-off win for Chicago. It’s unclear if he’ll play in the three-game series against the Phillies that starts Monday night, but it sounds like it would mean a little extra to Kingery if he’s able to get into a game.

“I loved playing for the city,” Kingery said. “It’s a great city. Like I said, I grew up here, so I’m sure it’ll be some emotions. But it’s just cool to be back on the field.”