Phillies Lose Two-Time MVP Bryce Harper With Fractured Thumb

The flickering flame of Philadelphia’s playoff hopes may have gone out over the weekend.

That’s because Bryce Harper, a two-time National League Most Valuable Player, suffered a thumb fracture when hit by a pitch from Blake Snell of the San Diego Padres.

If surgery is needed, the high-priced slugger could be lost for the season – along with the team’s title chances.

The Phillies, who have not reached postseason play since 2011, are running third in the National League East, a division dominated this season by the New York Mets. Even a 14-game winning streak by the second-place Atlanta Braves hasn’t been able to decapitate New York.

After Philadelphia’s 4-2 win at San Diego Saturday night, the team had a 38-35 record, nine games behind the Mets and four behind the Braves.

Harper, a 29-year-old left-handed hitter, had already been reduced from regular right-fielder to designated hitter because he suffered a strained flexor tendon in his right elbow while making a throw on April 11. His expected return a month later was delayed at least another month when an MRI revealed a tear in his UCL. Harper also missed time last week with an infected blister on his hand.

“It’s not fair to the fans I’m not out there playing,” Harper told reporters after the game at Petco Park. “It’s not fair to the organization that I’m not out there playing. So I feel bad just for it happening to me. I feel bad for everybody around me. It’s a bummer.”

A 97 mph Snell fastball found Harper’s left thumb in the fourth inning. An inning later, the team learned of the fracture.

In the subdued Philadelphia clubhouse after the game, Harper was philosophical. “I kind of wish it would have hit me in the face,” he said. “I don’t break bones in my face. I can take 98 to the face, but I can’t take 97 to the thumb.”

A Philadelphia hand specialist will determine later this week whether Harper needs surgery. Should an operation be needed, Harper could be down for the year.

But even without surgical repair, the defending MVP will miss an important three-game home series against Atlanta that starts Tuesday. “I mean, it’s devastating, to say the least,” said Nick Castellanos, a defensively-challenged outfielder most likely to replace as Philadelphia’s DH. “He’s having All-Star, MVP-caliber type year. To lose him for any amount of time is too long.”

Harper is in the fourth season of a 13-year, $330 million deal signed just before 2019 spring training. He won his first MVP with Washington in 2015 when he had the best season of his career, leading the National League in home runs, runs scored, on-base percentage, slugging, and OPS (on-base plus slugging).

He led in slugging and OPS again last year, as well as doubles, en route to his second MVP but first with the Phils.

At 6-3 and 210 pounds, the muscular Harper and his left-handed swing are perfectly matched to Citizens Bank Park, a South Philadelphia ballpark commonly called a bandbox by opposing pitchers. Harper hammered 35 homers in 141 games during the 2021 campaign, finishing with a .303 batting average.

Hoping home run power would boost the club back into contention, the Phils signed free-agent sluggers Kyle Schwarber and Castellanos to join Harper and holdover Rhys Hoskins in a potent batting order. Schwarber, like Harper, hits left-handed.

The signings increased the Philadelphia payroll to $233 million, fourth-heaviest in the majors according to Spotrac, but did not address long-standing problems with erratic defensive play and an unreliable bullpen.

After a 22-29 start sparked by poor defensive play, the team axed manager Joe Girardi June 3 and replaced him with bench coach Rob Thomson. That move paid immediate dividends, though Harper will be hard to replace.

“You can never replace a guy like that,” said team president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, who witnessed the Harper injury at Petco Park, “but the Braves won the World Series last year without Ronald Acuña. So you just have to do that. “I’m hopeful he’ll be back at some point. We just need to carry on and do the best job we possibly can. We’ve still got a lot of good hitters in the lineup.”

In addition to replacing Harper, the Phillies have to compete without another reliable player, second baseman Jean Segura. He’s expected to miss most of the next three months after breaking a finger on a bunt attempt.

Harper, like Acuña, Jr. last year, will almost certainly miss the All-Star Game, weakening the National League squad for the July 19 game at Dodger Stadium.