Bryce Harper Will Play First Base Tonight For The First Time In His Career

I never understood why Bryce Harper went through a long stretch where fans didn't like him. The "Bryce Harper is overrated brigade" never made any sense to me. For a guy who gets paid as much as he does, I've always appreciated the fact that he will do anything possible to help his team win. Want him to DH? Sure, he'll do it. Want him to play the outfield? Of course. Want him to come back from Tommy John Surgery in record time? He'll do it. And tonight, against the Guardians, he'll venture into uncharted territory, playing first base for the first time in his Major League career.

Not only will this be Harper's first start at first base, it'll also be his first time playing the field this season. He's been forced to exclusively DH since coming back from injury. This move does back sense, though. It's safe to say that Harper, a twelve-year veteran coming off of a major surgery, won't be getting many reps in the outfield soon. It's kind of surprising to me that this wasn't something the Phillies entertained in the past. Philly has a lot of mashers, but they aren't exactly the most athletic team, and considering the devastating, season-ending injury that starting first baseman Rhys Hoskins suffered in Spring Training, I figured the Phillies would've thought about moving one of their big boppers in their lineup to first base a while ago. The Hoskins injury destroyed any potential production the Phillies could've had at first base this year. Their first basemen have put up a collective OPS of .699. It's been their weakest offensive position outside of the shortstop spot. If the movie "Moneyball" taught us anything, playing first base is incredibly hard, but Harper has always been a fantastic athlete. First base is not a position that requires the level of physical exertion that a corner outfield spot does. This is the first time we've seen Harper at first, but it won't be the last.

As incredible of a player as Harper has been since he first got called up by the Nationals, his numbers this year have been un-Harper-like. He's still a well above-average hitter, rocking a .803 OPS, but he hasn't been 100% healthy since his MVP campaign two years ago. As I said earlier, he returned from Tommy John Surgery in record time. His power numbers are substantially down. He's only hit four home runs on the season, and his slugging percentage is currently the lowest of his career. There isn't anything to be super concerned about. His batted ball data is still good. His numbers are customary for a player coming off of injury. I will also go full conspiracy theorist here and claim that Dave Dombrowski has a trick up his sleeve with this move. If Harper proves himself to be a stable first baseman, I see Philly making a huge push for a bat at the deadline. When Dombrowski was the GM for the Tigers in 2013, he traded for Jose Iglesias at the deadline when Jhonny Peralta got popped for PEDs. When Peralta came back, the Tigers moved him to left field. The Phillies are comfortable loading up with as many power bats as possible. It worked for them last October. Time will tell if they can pull off another great run.