Bryce Harper déjà vu ejection doesn’t come back to haunt Phillies
PHILADELPHIA – Bryce Harper, baseball’s active leader in ejections, was at it again.
With Friday’s game tied 3-3 and two runners on in the bottom of the seventh, Harper had a chance to give the Phillies their first lead. He was squeezed on a tough high-and-inside strike-two call. The strike zone all night had been inconsistent.
On a 3-2 pitch, Harper checked his swing on an inside slider. It was close, but he went. Harper took off his shin guard, looked up and realized the inning was over. Third base umpire Vic Carapazza signaled out.
Harper, in a scene that resembled his most famous ejection as a Phillie, walked down the third-base line screaming towards Carapazza. Third base coach Dusty Wathan this time was quicker to intervene.
Harper did not get far down the line before getting tossed by Carapazza.
Did Harper think he went? He didn’t look back at the tape.
“I didn’t see it,” Harper said. “Thought if I didn’t go on the first one, I didn’t go on the second one.”
Thomson came out to chat with the crew chief Carapazza.
“It’s a tough call on check swings, especially with Schwarber and (Harper) because they swing so hard,” Thomson said. “I think it’s difficult to distinguish.”
Things got a little more heated in 2023. Harper was in the lineup a day after the Phillies clinched a postseason berth. His team had little to play for. Harper clearly held his swing, but was called out by the now retired Ángel Hernández. Harper stood face-to-face screaming at Hernández. He tossed his helmet into the stands before leaving the game. He was fined, but a child went home with an unexpected souvenir.
Harper had strong words for Hernández postgame back in 2023. He was going to be “fined for being right, again.”
The tone this time was different.
“I mean, I left the batter’s box, walking towards him,” Harper said. “It’s warranted.”
The stakes were also a little higher on Friday. The Phillies, down 3-0 heading into the bottom of the seventh, staged a comeback against a scuffling Detroit Tigers team that’s now tied for the best record in the American League. If the Phillies had not taken a 5-4 lead in the eighth on a Bryson Stott infield single and Jhoan Duran had not easily locked down the save in his first opportunity, Harper’s spot would have come back up in the bottom of the ninth.
Weston Wilson, the last guy on the bench besides backup catcher Rafael Marchan, entered the game at first base.
“Just can’t get thrown out in that situation,” Harper said.
Harper’s fiery temper is part of his brand. Consistency in baseball is hard to achieve. The best way to cope is to project the same demeanor, whether you’re 0-for-4 or 4-for-4. Not Harper. Only players of his caliber can get away with it.
Sometimes, the outbursts go too far. It’s why Harper has twice as many ejections as Manny Machado, the man who trails him in that category.
Luckily for the Phillies, Harper was not the night’s main character.