Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Wednesday that Harper will strictly play first base moving forward, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports.
Harper is almost a full calendar year removed from his November 2022 Tommy John surgery and there has been some thought that he could return to the outfield in 2024, but the 31-year-old slugger apparently took a liking to first base this past season and will now make it his permanent position in Philadelphia. Dombrowski noted that he spoke to Harper at length behind the scenes before making this information public. Dombrowski also said he relayed the news to Rhys Hoskins, who could depart in free agency this winter.
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Phillies' Bryce Harper: On bench for regular-season finale
Rotowire
Harper is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mets.
The veteran slugger didn't start Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader and will sit again Sunday for the final game of the regular season with the Phillies looking toward the playoffs. Harper is likely to close the campaign with a .293/.401/.499 slash line, 21 homers, 11 steals, 72 RBI and 84 runs in 126 games.
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Phillies' Bryce Harper: Not starting Game 2
Rotowire
Harper isn't in the Phillies' lineup for the second game of Saturday's doubleheader with the Mets.
Harper turned in an 0-for-3 performance during Philadelphia's Game 1 loss, and he'll now get a breather for the nightcap. Weston Wilson will pick up a start at first base instead and bat sixth.
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Phillies' Bryce Harper: Tossed from Thursday's game
Rotowire
Harper was ejected from Thursday's game against the Pirates, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Harper appeared to check his swing on a full count in the third inning, but the third base umpire ruled that he went around. He voiced his displeasure with the decision and was ejected from the game as a result. Harper ended his day 0-for-1 with a walk.
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Phillies' Bryce Harper: Three extra-base hits in win
Rotowire
Harper went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a solo home run and a stolen base in Wednesday's 7-6 win over Pittsburgh.
After logging a pair of doubles earlier in the game, Harper provided the eventual winning run with a 427-foot homer off Jose Hernandez in the seventh inning. The 30-year-old Harper has been on fire down the stretch, going 9-for-18 with a pair of homers in his last six games. He's boosted his slash line to .296/.402/.503 with 21 homers, 84 runs scored, 72 RBI and 11 steals across 540 plate appearances this season.
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Phillies' Bryce Harper: Slugs homer No. 20
Rotowire
Harper went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBI in Saturday's 7-5 win over the Mets.
He got the Phillies on the board by leading off the second inning with a solo shot off Jose Quintana. Harper extended his run-scoring streak to seven games in the process, and over his last 13 contests he's slashing .279/.446/.651 with five of his 20 homers on the season along with one steal, 11 RBI and 13 runs.
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Phillies' Bryce Harper: Tossed from Friday's game
Rotowire
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
