Phillies Trade Rumors Bring Back Bad Memories for Bryce Harper: 'I Hated It'

Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski stoked some flames among baseball fans last week when he admitted he's not sure whether Bryce Harper will ever become an "elite" player again.

Dombrowski's surprising comments gained steam across the Philadelphia sports world, even with some wondering whether that's an indication the franchise could look to move on from the eight-time All-Star. The Phillies president clarified his initial comments in a recent appearance on Foul Territory.

"First of all, to me, Bryce Harper's one of the best players in the game of baseball," he said Thursday. "They asked me, 'What type of year do you think he had?' And I said, 'He had a very good year, I don't think he had an elite year.' And when I say that, when I think of Bryce Harper, it's a compliment, because the reality is there are eight, 10 players in the game of baseball every year, when they're not in the MVP consideration. ... It's not an elite year for them.

"So the reality is, he's a great player, he's a future Hall of Famer. ... Now I've been reading that, Oh, the Phillies may trade Bryce Harper. That couldn't be farther from the truth. We love him, we think he's a great player, he's a very important part of our team. I've seen him have better years.”

The unsubstantiated rumors have hit Harper's ears, which caught him by surprise and left him downright disappointed.

“I have given my all to Philly from the start,” Harper said via The Athletic's Matt Gelb. “Now there is trade talk? I made every effort to avoid this. It’s all I heard in D.C. [with the Nationals]. I hated it. It makes me feel uncomfortable.”

Gelb reported in The Athletic that Harper was hurt by Dombrowski's initial comments at his end of season press conference. The 14-year veteran slashed .261/.357/.487 with 27 homers and RBIs for the Phillies this season. His .844 OPS was his lowest since 2016 when he was still with the Nationals, while his .261 batting average was the lowest mark since his first season with Philadelphia in '19.

He missed most of June with a wrist injury, making 132 appearances in total on the year, which he mentioned led to the lower numbers compared to his high standard.

“All players get hurt,” Harper said to The Athletic. “I hurt my wrist this year and missed a month. Of course I don’t have full-year numbers. It’s disappointing to hear me being questioned about my contribution to the team. Just really hurt by that notion because I love Philly so much.”

The 33-year-old star has six years left on the massive 13-year, $330 million deal he signed to join the Phillies in '19. There isn't an opt-out clause in his deal, which ties him to the franchise through the '31 season when he'll be 38 years old.

“I wanted these fans to know Philly is my home, so from the start, I made the commitment to stay here for the rest of my career,” he said. “No opt-out, even though I was advised otherwise. I trust [Phillies owner] John [Middleton].”

Harper clearly hopes to remain a Phillie for the foreseeable future. If anything else happens to bring his name into trade rumors, though, he certainly won't be happy.