Bryce Harper notches 1,000th career RBI, scores go-ahead run as Phillies come back to beat Pirates

PHILADELPHIA — Bryce Harper reached over the plate and poked an outside slider off left-hander Andrew Heaney into short left field. A hitter of great power with many show-stopping moments in his career, the two-time National League MVP needed only a 65.7 mph blooper to notch his latest milestone.

Harper drove in Johan Rojas for the 1,000th RBI of his 14 seasons in the big leagues with his well-placed base hit in the bottom of the fifth inning, came around to score the go-ahead run in the seventh, then knocked in an insurance run and scored again in the eighth. His 3-for-4 performance on a special night helped lift the Phillies to an 8-4 win over the Pirates in the opener of a three-games series on Friday at Citizens Bank Park.

“Obviously, you always want more,” Harper said, “and there’s a lot of baseball ahead of me and this team as well. Obviously, having moments like that are really cool on a personal level, and it’s really cool to be part of that company, that history.”

With his run-scoring single in between the shortstop and left fielder, Harper became the 306th player in major-league history to record 1,000 RBIs and the eighth active player to reach that mark. The 32-year-old is now one of 14 players to rack up 1,000 RBIs, 1,000 runs and 1,000 walks prior to turning 33, according to the Phillies. He’s also the 11th hitter to get his 1,000th career RBI while donning a Phillies uniform (but certainly the first Phillie to do so in a blue and gold City Connect uniform).

The announced crowd of 44,039 fans, most of whom stayed at the ballpark through a rather dry rain delay that pushed back first pitch by an hour and 38 minutes, gave Harper a standing ovation for joining the rare club.

“I know you all read the notes,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “And that list that he’s on, there’s some pretty heavy names on there, and it’s quite a group that he’s a part of. It just goes to show you how great of a hitter he’s been.”

As the Phillies (26-18) trailed 3-1 after left-hander Ranger Suárez surrendered a three-run home run to Alexander Canario in the sixth for his only blemish of the game, the Pirates gifted Philadelphia a comeback in the seventh, letting four runs score on only one hit. Harper reached base on a walk when third-base umpire John Libka questionably ruled that the slugger checked his swing on a 3-2 count, prompting Pittsburgh manager Don Kelly to get himself ejected for the second time in seven games since taking over.

“You just never know,” Harper said of the call on his check swing. “Obviously, I’m trying to get there, but it’s such a swinger play that you just don’t know. It went our way.”

Harper later crossed the plate as the Pirates forced in three runs on a walk, a hit-by-pitch and another walk. Alec Bohm hit a sacrifice fly to center field to put the Phillies up 5-3.

The barrage continued in the eighth as Trea Turner hit an RBI triple. Harper followed with another RBI single and scored on a Nick Castellanos groundout. Up five runs, the Phillies went to right-hander Daniel Robert to try to close out the ninth. He walked in a run, which led to lefty José Alvarado entering the game to escape the bases-loaded jam for his seventh save.

With a .799 OPS on the season now, Harper was pleased to pick up a few hits, but he still feels like he’s on his way toward more production. Thomson was encouraged by his at-bats and the fact that he hit some balls sharply. It’s still a work in progress, but there’s nothing wrong with reaching an important landmark along the way.

“Obviously, I’m not where I want to be,” Harper said, “but it’s part of it. I just got to keep grinding.”