Over last 50 years, Harper’s season one of the best by a Phillies player
The Las Vegas odds board clicked Tuesday, and there it was: With just over a week to go in the regular season, Bryce Harper was less than even money to be the MVP of the National League.
Ultimately, a panel of baseball writers will be responsible for deciding who poses with the plaque. But as for a concrete declaration, the money people have made theirs: Bryce Harper has had one special baseball season.
“Wow,” Joe Girardi said Tuesday, when asked for a one-word description. “Ooooh. I think he’s had a complete season. The average, power, RBIs, walks, on-base, stolen bases, base running, defense.
“It’s been a complete year. He’s done everything that you would ask from a right fielder.”
Entering a game against the Orioles Tuesday, Harper led the majors with a 1.047 OPS, and his 72 extra-base hits topped the National League. His 38 doubles ranked third in the NL, his .311 batting average fourth, his 279 total bases fifth.
Fighting off seven different injuries, once being hit in the face by a pitched ball and lately lacking the protection of Rhys Hoskins, who had a season-ending groin injury, Harper kept a team that had blown 32 saves in contention into its final homestand.
When the Phillies signed Harper to an at-the-time record contract, he was expected to play like the best player in baseball. He may not have had the season enjoyed by Shohei Ohtani or Vlad Guerrero Jr., but no one in the National League has been better.
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So deal made. And deal honored.
For that, it is not premature to wonder: Where will Harper’s season rank in the context of post-Connie-Mack-Stadium Phillies history?
A rough draft:
1. BRAD LIDGE, 2008 » In such races, perfection shall be the No. 1 tiebreaker. The righthanded closer was 41-for-41 in regular-season save opportunities and 4-for-4 in the postseason, including Game 5 of the World Series, when he caught Eric Hinske swinging and collapsed to his knees in delight, igniting a 2.6-million spectator parade.
2. STEVE CARLTON, 1972 » For a team that didn’t have an offense capable of finishing better than 59-97, the lefthander went 27-10 with a 1.97 ERA, striking out 310 in 346.1 innings. At one point, he had a 15-game winning streak, causing Veteran Stadium attendance figures to swell whenever he was the scheduled starter.
3. MIKE SCHMIDT, 1980 » The three-time MVP had plenty of dominating seasons, but none as valuable to the Phils as the year he led the majors with 48 home runs, added a league-high 121 runs, won a Gold Glove and was the World Series MVP.
4. ROY HALLADAY, 2010 » In any book of franchise history, there will be great individual moments. But to win the Cy Young, pitch a perfect game and have a postseason no-hitter in a year when the team reaches the NLCS is number-retirementlevel achievement.
5. BRYCE HARPER, 2021» A kaleidoscope of dazzling statistics has been brightened by relentless desire and the ability to lug a team with suspect pitching and half-adozen minor-league talents to the brink of the playoffs.
6. RYAN HOWARD, 2006 » Though ordinary afield, he led the bigs with 58 home runs and 149 RBIs while batting .313, a statistical barrage for the ages.
7. JIMMY ROLLINS, 2007 » Much like Harper this season, he took it upon himself to propel a team to the playoffs. After declaring the Phillies the team to beat in the NL East, he hit .296 with 20 triples to become the MVP and drive the franchise past Game 162 for the first time since 1993.
8. LENNY DYKSTRA, 1993 » The leadoff hitter for the NL champions defined “valuable” with a .305 average and .402 on-base percentage, good for MVP place money behind Barry Bonds. He would have been the World Series MVP, too, had not Joe Carter walked the whole thing off.
9. JIM THOME, 2003 » No player was more instantly productive and appreciated, first by signing as a free agent to signal a franchise rebirth, then by supplying 47 home runs and 131 RBIs in his first season.
10. COLE HAMELS, 2008 » He had better regular seasons, but winning both the NLCS and World Series MVP awards for a championship team defines the category.
There were other memorable Phillies seasons. Schmidt was at his career and won the MVP in 1981, but the season was punctured by a lengthy strike, diluting the achievement. Chase Utley hit .332 in 2007, mixing in 22 home runs. And no one was any more valuable to a championship cause than Pete Rose in 1980.
Basically, there is no wrong answer until Scott Rolen’s name is invoked.
But Vegas has spoken, and with reason. And Bryce Harper has just uncorked a season worthy of mention in Phillies history.
High in Phillies history, too.