With multiple reports this week linking Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber to the Red Sox as the 32-year-old enters free agency this offseason, it’s time for a refresher on “Kyle from Waltham.”

We all remember “Kyle from Waltham,” right?

Ahead of Boston’s run to the 2021 ALCS, they acquired outfielder/designated hitter Kyle Schwarber just before the trade deadline, sending the 2016 World Series champion from Washington to the Red Sox after only 72 games in a Nationals uniform.

In his short stint with the Nats, Schwarber hit 25 homers while slugging .570, earning himself National League Player of the Month that June. Playing on a one-year deal, the Indiana University-product was putting himself in a great position to earn real dough that upcoming offseason.

But unfortunately for Washington, Schwarber’s power at the plate was not translating into wins. The Nationals, who ended that season with only 65 wins just two years removed from winning a World Series, had to take advantage of Schwarber’s hot bat and expiring contract at the deadline.

Schwarber’s bat was felt immediately in the lineup for Boston, batting .291 down the stretch with 7 homers, 18 RBI and an on-base percentage of .435 across 168 plate appearances. That helped power Boston to their first playoff appearance since winning the World Series in 2018, where Schwarber memorably hit a grand slam in game three of the ALCS to give Boston a 2-1 series lead over Houston.

They, of course, ended up losing that series in six games. But along the way, Schwarber had endeared himself to the fanbase in a way akin to “The Idiots” back in 2004.

He’s a big guy, and it doesn’t always look pretty. But he gets the job done and looks like he’s having a blast doing it. That type of guy is going to garner love every single time.

One of those fans who fell in love with Schwarber during his time in Boston was Jared Carrabis.

If you follow the Red Sox, you know who Carrabis is. If you don’t, he’s easily the most prominent Red Sox podcast host as the front man for the “Section 10 Podcast.” And in the midst of Schwarber’s run in Boston, he said Schwarber looked like a kid who grew up in Waltham whose dad had Sox season tickets while he was growing up.

Thus, “Kyle from Waltham” was born.

For whatever reason, it was a perfect comp. It’s hard to explain why, but it just was.

Fans of the podcast took the name and ran with it on social media. Carrabis and his cohosts would celebrate Schwarber’s successes at the plate by tweeting “KYLE FROM WALTHAM.” At a certain point, you didn’t even need to be a fan of the podcast or know who Carrabis was, yet you were still probably using the nickname.

Schwarber leaned into the joke, wearing a Waltham Hawks t-shirt to a postgame press conference after a playoff game.

"Waltham, I guess that's where I'm from,” Schwarber said with a laugh back in 2021. “So go Hawks.”

(their high school’s mascot, of course)

The city of Waltham even had some fun with it, making him an honorary citizen and listing him one of their “Notable people” on their Wikipedia page. As a thank you for the support, Schwarber bought pizzas for the local police and fire departments of Waltham.

I am not the first person to say this, and I won’t be the last:

It’s time for Kyle to come home! Let’s put that honorary citizenship to use!

I know it’s ultimately going to be up to the team to pay up for one of baseball’s most prized bats. But outside of the Phillies, none of the other teams linked to Schwarber have close to the type of connection he has with Boston and its fans.

I know money talks, but it’s hard to put a price tag on that type of thing.

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Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.