Phillies’ Bryce Harper drops truth bomb about elbow, wrist injuries

The Philadelphia Phillies lost to the Atlanta Braves 7-2 on Friday. However, the biggest news of the day may have been comments from star first baseman Bryce Harper, who has struggled since the All-Star break.

Harper spoke to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com about the lingering elbow and wrist injuries he’s been dealing with all season.

Harper said his wrist has been bothering him since May, but the increased irritation in his elbow is more recent. He doesn’t recall a specific play or moment that aggravated his elbow problem.

“Overall, it’s gotten worse. I’ve worked hard to get there,” Harper said. “I don’t want to make excuses for what I’m doing, you know what I mean? I just have to get through it. Hopefully it gets better, not worse. (My wrist) is finally getting to a point where it feels like it’s turning a corner. My elbow is right there.”

Harper underwent Tommy John surgery on his elbow in 2022, which forced him to move from the outfield to first base. However, he confirmed that the latest issues with his elbow were not related to his previous torn lumbar collateral ligament.

“It’s not the ligament,” Harper said. “It’s in that area. But it’s not the ligament, so that’s a good thing.”

Bryce Harper’s Struggles Since All-Star Break

Heading into the All-Star break, Harper was in his usual element: one of the best hitters in baseball on a top-ranked Phillies team. He was hitting .301 with a .982 OPS and 21 homers and 61 RBIs.

Since the break, however, Harper has been visibly struggling at the plate. With elbow and wrist injuries, Harper is hitting just .243 with a .724 OPS, five home runs and 15 RBIs.

While the Phillies aren’t necessarily in danger of losing the NL East lead right now, still five games ahead of the Braves even after Friday’s loss, Harper’s lack of production at the plate is concerning. After missing a title in two straight seasons, losing to the Houston Astros in the 2022 World Series and losing to the Arizona Diamondbacks in last year’s NLCS, expectations are sky-high for the Phillies to finally get there.

Led by a star-studded rotation featuring Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola and Ranger Suarez and one of the most dangerous lineups in baseball, the Phillies will be one of the toughest teams to beat in October.

The big question going forward: How much can the Phillies really count on a clearly less-than-100% performing Harper?