Bryce Harper, Right Field, Philadelphia Phillies


Date of Birth: 10/16/1992
Birthplace: Las Vegas, Nevada
College: College of Southern Nevada
Nicknames: Bam-Bam, Mondo

Bryce Harper, right fielder for the Philadelphia Phillies, was the team's number one draft pick in 2010. After being drafted by the Washington Nationals, Harper signed a five-year, $9.9 million contract with them. He played in the Nationals minor league system in 2011.

In 2012, Harper had a very good first year with the Nationals and he won the National League Rookie of the Year award. He batted .270 with 144 hits, 26 doubles, 22 home runs, 59 RBIs, and 18 stolen bases. Last year, he batted .274 with 116 hits, 24 doubles, 20 home runs, and 58 RBIs in 118 games.

Harper was a catcher prior to joining the Nationals, when he moved to left field. In 2013, he played 97 games in left field and he made 150 putouts and 5 errors with a .970 fielding percentage. He finished the 2014 season with 96 hits, 13 home runs, and a .273 batting average in 100 games. In the postseason, he had 5 hits, 1 double, 3 home runs, and a .294 batting average in 17 at-bats in 4 games.

Harper had an outstanding season in 2015, finishing with 172 hits, 38 doubles, 42 home runs, 99 RBIs, and a .330 batting average. He was tied with Nolan Arenado of the Colorado Rockies for the most home runs in the National League. He led the NL in runs scored with 118 and he led all major league baseball players in on-base percentage with .460 and in slugging percentage with .649. On May 6th, he hit three home runs in one game for the first time in his career. In 2015, Harper won his first Silver Slugger award and the National League Hank Aaron award. He was also named the NL MVP.

Harper followed his MVP season with probably his worst offensive season so far. In 2016, he batted just .243 with 123 hits, 24 doubles, 24 home runs, and 86 RBIs in 147 games. He had similar numbers in the postseason, batting .235 with 4 hits in 17 at-bats in 5 games. Defensively, as the Nationals' right fielder in 143 games in the regular season, he had a .992 fielding percentage and he made 256 putouts and 2 errors.

Harper had a comeback season in 2017, batting .319 in 111 games. He had 134 hits, 27 doubles, 29 home runs, 87 RBIs, and 99 strikeouts to 68 walks. Defensively, as the Nationals' right fielder in 110 games, he made 173 putouts and 2 errors. In the postseason, he batted .211 with 4 hits and 3 RBIs in 19 at-bats in 5 games. He hits a two run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning of game two of the NL Division Series to tie the score at 3-3.

Harper finished the 2018 season with 137 hits, 34 doubles, 34 home runs, 100 RBIs, 169 strikeouts to 130 walks, and a .249 batting average in 159 games. Defensively, as a right fielder in 116 games, he made 144 putouts and 1 error and he had a .993 fielding percentage. He also played 63 games in center field.

Harper became a free agent on October 29, 2018. He signed a 13-year, $330 million contract with the Phillies on March 2, 2019. He finished the 2019 season with 149 hits, 36 doubles, 35 home runs, 114 RBIs, 15 stolen bases, 178 strikeouts to 99 walks, and a .260 batting average in 157 games. Defensively, as the Phillies' right fielder in 152 games, he made 284 putouts and 5 errors.

Harper played in 58 games in 2020. He finished the season with 51 hits, 9 doubles, 2 triples, 13 home runs, 8 stolen bases, 33 RBIs, 43 strikeouts to 49 walks, and a .268 batting average. He led all major league players in walks in 2020. Defensively, he played 48 games in right field and 3 games in center field, and he was the Phillies' DH in 10 games.

Harper had an outstanding season in 2021. He won the NL MVP award and his second Silver Slugger award for batting .309 with 151 hits, 42 doubles (NL leader), 35 home runs, 84 RBIs, and 134 strikeouts to 100 walks in 141 games. Defensively, as a right fielder in 139 games, he made 214 putouts and 1 error.

Career batting statistics for Harper through 2021 include:

  • 1,283 games played
  • 1,273 hits
  • 270 doubles
  • 267 home runs
  • 111 stolen bases
  • 752 RBIs
  • 1,189 strikeouts to 833 walks
  • .279 batting average

Career fielding statistics for Harper as a right fielder through 2021 include:

  • 939 games played
  • 1,546 putouts
  • 23 errors
  • .986 fielding percentage

Sources for Information
Wikipedia - Bryce Harper
ESPN - Bryce Harper