It’s scary to think that it was four years ago when the Phillies signed Bryce Harper to a monumental 13-year deal worth $330M. In what felt like a race between Machado and Harper, it felt imperative that the Phillies lock down a generational talent to kickstart a rebuild and end the drought. At the time it had been 11 years since that fabled World Series win and the team had gathered dust ever since, slowly fading back to mediocrity. The acquisition of Bryce Harper was always going to change that, and now, four years later, we can safely say he is already one of the Philadelphia greats.
Bryce Harper becomes immortal
While last night’s defining at-bat will ring through the years for years, Harper’s legacy started on the day he signed with the Phils. His 13-year contract included a no-trade clause at the request of Harper himself and his agent. He was committed to winning, committed to the City, and committed to building a long-term future. He no longer wanted instability. A father in the making, Harper knew this was more than just a chapter of his life, it was going to be his life.
Fast forward a few years and we’ve seen it all. It took a while for Bryce to settle in as he battled building external pressure. He was overrated, many said. The Phils have put themselves into a $330M hole that they couldn’t climb out of for 13 years. But after things settled down for him in 2020 and while his number of home runs dropped, his consistency rose. Fans were still demanding more, but there was a unanimous faith that the best was yet to come, and why wouldn’t there be?
He was a previous winner of the Silver Slugger and led the league in home runs back in 2015. He also won the NL MVP award in that same season. The once-regarded phenom never lost his sparkle. He still flashed in spurts and everybody knew that all it took was one big month for Bryce to get back to his best.
And then came 2021.
The comeback kid
Bryce Harper put together a season like no other. A .309 batting average was backed up with 35 home runs, 151 hits, and 100 runs. His decorated season was enough to win him his second NL MVP award. Bryce was back to his best and the Phillies were one step closer to getting back to where they belong – the playoffs.
The 2022 season started disastrously. The Phillies started 22-29, fired their manager, and Bryce Harper was out for two months with a fractured left thumb.
But when he returned, everything changed.
Rob Thomson arrived on the scene and resuscitated the hopes of a playoff berth and Harper was one of the men giving pumping life back into the veins of the Philadelphia faithful. Home run after home run, clutch play after clutch play, Harper and the Phils caught fire at the right time and despite a brisk cool-off, they crept into the playoffs and the rest was history.
Harper is hitting .419 through 11 postseason games so far, with 11 RBI’s, and has tied the Phillies postseason record for extra base-hits with 11. The most important of all came in the biggest moment of all, and it etched his legend in stone.
The Phillies had a 3-1 series lead over the Padres with a chance to clinch their first World Series berth since 2009. San Diego led 3-2 in the eighth inning, and Bryce Harper stepped up to the plate after J.T Realmuto got himself on base.
Bryce Harper stepped up, worked the count to 2-2 and then pounded a fastball into the stands to give his team a one-run lead going into the ninth. In one swing of a bat, Bryce Harper proved he was worth every single penny, and every single year of that monstrous contract. More than just a Phillie through-and-through, Harper is a great.
Of all the things Harper has accomplished in his career, there’s just one blemish on his resume – a World Series. He punched his ticket to his first-ever World Series appearance last night in the most euphoric way imaginable and in a way that only Bryce Harper could.
The sold-out Citizen’s Bank Park roared him round the bases, cheering home their beloved hero. A star who pledged his future to the team, knowing things might not always be pretty. This is what he was banking on. That he could will this team to a World Series and build his legacy along with that of his new team.
I think he’s more than delivered on his word.
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
