Harper was ejected from Friday's game against the Cardinals, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
Harper was upset by a called second strike that looked to be high and out of the strike zone. He struck out swinging on the next pitch and after firing his bat and helmet toward the third-base dugout, directed comments in the general vicinity of home plate umpire Alex Tosi that got him tossed. Harper had gone 0-for-2 with a run and an RBI prior to the ejection.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Homers, scores three runs in loss
Rotowire
Harper went 2-for-3 with a home run, two RBI and three runs scored in Game 1 of Monday's doubleheader against Atlanta.
His two-run game-tying blast came with two-outs in the ninth to send the game to extras. Harper entered the opening game of Monday's double-header with a modest four-game hit streak that only slightly masked a 4-for-32 homer-less slump over his past nine games. Harper is now slashing .296/.396/.484 with 16 homers, 60 RBI, 71 runs and nine steals in 405 at-bats over 109 games.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Power surge continues
Rotowire
Harper went 2-for-4 with a walk, a double, a solo homer and an additional run scored in Tuesday's victory over the Angels.
Harper launched another no-doubt home run Tuesday, a solo shot that ricocheted off the second-deck facade to tie the game at 1-1 in the second inning. His hot streak has boosted his season-long home run total to 14 to go along with a .309 batting average, .899 OPS, 53 RBI, 65 runs, and seven steals across 98 games.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Goes deep again
Rotowire
Harper went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Monday's win over the Angels.
The 30-year-old launched a two-run home run off Lucas Giolito in the fourth inning that left the bat at an impressive 111.9 mph and traveled 429 feet to right center. Harper rolled with the punches following his return from Tommy John surgery, hitting just five home runs in his first 77 games. However, the fantasy standout has been delivering the punches lately, belting eight long balls and generating a stellar .375/.465/.819 slash line over his last 20 games.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Cranks game-tying homer
Rotowire
Harper went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer in Wednesday's loss to the Giants.
Harper tied the game 5-5 in the bottom of the ninth inning with a clutch three-run homer off Camilo Doval. Harper's now homered in three straight contests despite being limited to DH duties while recovering from back stiffness. He's gone 12-for-26 (.462) with five long balls in his last seven games, boosting his slash line to .299/.392/.468 with 12 homers, 59 runs scored, 47 RBI and seven steals across 406 plate appearances this season.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Limited to DH with back issue
Rotowire
Harper remains limited to designated hitter duty for the time being due to a nagging back issue, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.
It explains why Harper hasn't been able to play first base since Sunday, as he's still dealing with a bit of back stiffness which first surfaced a couple weeks ago. The Phillies have not ruled out Harper returning to first base Friday following Thursday's off day.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Legs out inside-the-park homer
Rotowire
Harper went 2-for-5 with a home run in Monday's win over San Francisco.
Harper tied the game 1-1 in the first inning with an RBI single before legging out an inside-the-park home run in the fifth. He's now 8-for-19 (.421) with three homers over his last five games. Overall, Harper's slash line is up to .293/.385/.449 with 10 homers, 57 runs scored, 42 RBI and seven steals through 397 plate appearances this season.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Vintage power display
Rotowire
Harper went 3-for-4 with a walk, two solo home runs and a third run scored in Wednesday's 9-4 win over the Blue Jays.
It's the first multi-homer performance of the season for Harper, who took Kevin Gausman deep in the third inning before wrapping up the scoring on the night with a blast to right-center field off Bowden Francis in the ninth. Harper is finding his groove in August, slashing .302/.356/.642 through 14 games with six doubles, four home runs, nine RBI and 10 runs as the Phillies begin their playoff push.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Back in lineup
Rotowire
Harper (back) is starting as the Phillies' designated hitter Saturday against the Twins.
Harper made an early exit Thursday after experiencing back spasms and was forced to sit out Friday's game as well. He'll be back in action Saturday and look to remain hot with a .316/.357/.605 slash line since the start of August.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Not in lineup
Rotowire
Harper (back) isn't in the Phillies' lineup Friday against Minnesota, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.
Harper was removed from Thursday's game against Washington after experiencing back spasms in the fifth inning. The Phillies are unsure what caused Harper's back to start giving him problems, but it's apparently severe enough to cause him to miss a start. Alec Bohm will shift to first base while Harper sits, allowing Edmundo Sosa to fill in at third and bat eighth.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Exits early Thursday
Rotowire
Harper was removed from Thursday's game against the Nationals due to back spasms, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.
Harper was hit in the face by a ball that took a strange bounce off first base in the fourth inning, but his removal in the fifth was seemingly unrelated. The Phillies will take a closer look at Harper and should provide more updates in the near future, but for now he should be considered day-to-day.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: In lineup at DH
Rotowire
Harper is in Monday's lineup at designated hitter as he deals with some general body soreness, but he is expected to play first base Tuesday in Miami, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.
Harper has six games at first base under his belt, all in the last 10 days, but he will DH on Monday for the second day in a row. He is hitting .310 with two home runs and two steals across 23 games in July.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Homers in win
Rotowire
Harper went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Tuesday's 4-3 win over the Orioles.
Harper tied the game 2-2 in the sixth inning with a solo homer off Kyle Gibson, his fifth of the year and just his second since May 26 -- a span of 48 games. Harper would later tally the tying run in the bottom of the ninth after singling and coming around to score on Bryson Stott's double. While he hasn't been hitting for much power, the 30-year-old Harper has been productive at the plate, going 15-for-44 (.341) with a .965 OPS over his last 13 games. Overall, he's slashing .296/.388/.419 with 42 runs scored, 29 RBI and seven steals across 294 plate appearances this season.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Getting first start at first base
Rotowire
Harper is making his first professional start at first base Friday as the Phillies take on the Guardians, Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Harper has been working out at first base for a while now and is finally ready to try his luck at the position in a game setting. If he proves capable of handling first base regularly, it opens up designated hitter for Kyle Schwarber and allows the Phillies to improve their defense in left field.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Remains in DH role
Rotowire
Harper will again serve as the Phillies' designated hitter Tuesday against the Brewers.
Harper's debut at first base has appeared imminent for a couple of weeks now, but the Phillies will hold off on that idea a little while longer. The 30-year-old has slashed .300/.395/.426 with four homers and six steals in 60 games this year, all out of the DH spot.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Ends career-long power drought
Rotowire
Harper went 2-for-3 with two walks, a double, a solo home run, a second run scored and a stolen base in a 9-4 win over the Padres during the second game of Saturday's doubleheader.
The 30-year-old was used only as a pinch hitter in the matinee with lefty Blake Snell on the mound for San Diego, but Harper was back at DH for the nightcap and took Ryan Weathers deep in the fourth inning. The blast snapped a career-worst homer drought for Harper that had lasted 166 plate appearances, and he now has four long balls and six steals in 59 games on the season to go along with his still solid .298/.395/.422 slash line.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Sitting for afternoon game
Rotowire
Harper will be on the bench for the first half of Saturday's doubleheader against the Padres.
Harper could play first base at some point soon, but for now, he won't be playing anywhere, with the Phillies seemingly not wanting to tax his surgically-repaired elbow by asking him to play twice in one day. Kyle Schwarber will move to the designated hitter spot, with Brandon Marsh sliding to left field and Johan Rojas set for his big-league debut in center.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Could play first base this weekend
Rotowire
Harper could play first base as soon as this weekend, Scott Lauber of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Harper is at designated hitter Friday against the Padres, but it sounds like he could be at first base during Saturday's doubleheader or Sunday. It would be the first start he's made at the position as a pro, as the Phillies have opted to ease him back into defensive duties at a less strenuous spot rather than right field following last year's Tommy John surgery. Harper missed the final game before the All-Star break after being hit on his surgically repaired elbow by a pitch, but tests came back clean.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Returns to lineup
Rotowire
Harper (elbow) is starting as Philadelphia's designated hitter Friday against San Diego.
Harper missed the final game before the All-Star break due to right elbow soreness, but he'll return to the Phillies' lineup after an extended rest period. Harper slashed .290/.386/.400 while racking up 23 RBI over 243 plate appearances during the first half of the season.
... See More... See Less
Phillies' Bryce Harper: Could pinch hit Sunday
Rotowire
Harper (elbow), who is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Marlins, could be available to hit off the bench, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.
Harper is sitting out the Phillies' final game before the All-Star break after he was hit on his surgically repaired right elbow during Saturday's loss to Miami, but he's apparently dealing with nothing more than soreness after X-rays returned negative. The Phillies will most likely stay away from Harper if they can help it Sunday, affording him a full five days off to rest before the team opens up its post-break schedule Friday versus the Padres. According to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com, the injury scare hasn't deterred the Phillies from getting Harper some exposure to first base at some point during the second half of the season. He's made all 56 of his starts to date as a designated hitter.
