If you have been living under a rock over the weekend and have not heard, OF Bryce Harper signed the biggest contract in professional sports priced at $330 million over 13 years. MLB fans have been clamoring all offseason to hear these seven words, “Bryce Harper has FINALLY selected a team.” In the same offseason, baseball has not one, but two $300 million free agents on new ball clubs.
3B Manny Machado signed with the San Diego Padres for $300 million over 10 years and Harper gets 13! years with the Phillies. Both players wanted teams to fork over that type of money and commitment, and the Padres and Phillies stepped up to the plate.
I want to focus on Bryce Harper, how did we even end up here? Is anybody worth $330 million? Well, probably not. However, Harper’s story started long before agreeing to this deal with the Phillies on February 28, 2019. It all started back in high school.
Bryce Harper famously played on the same Little League baseball team with Chicago Cubs All-Star 3B Kris Bryant in the city of Las Vegas. Harper took a much different path when it came to start a professional baseball career.
As stated before, Harper is from the Las Vegas area. His parents knew from the young age of 16 that Bryce was destined for a professional baseball career.
After his sophomore season, he dropped out of high school and secured his GED, so that he could be eligible even sooner for the MLB First-Year Player Draft.
During that sophomore high school season, the rest of the baseball world was introduced to Bryce Harper with this Sports Illustrated cover. S.I. dubbed him baseball’s Chosen One and described him as the most exciting high school prospect since LeBron James. Being named the Chosen One in baseball came with great power and great responsibility (okay Yoda, chill out).
Harper enrolled, just in time for spring semester, at the College of Southern Nevada in the National Junior College Athletic Association. His brother, Bryan, already was on the baseball team there and a starting pitcher. Throughout Bryce’s high school and college career, he was always a catcher (I too played catcher in high school). It honestly did not matter where he played in the field, he was destined to smash baseballs.
In 66 games that season, Bryce was almost unstoppable. He finished with a .443 batting average, hit 31 home runs, with 98 RBIs (runs batted in). Harper was already the apple of the eye in every MLB scout. His conference, the Scenic West Athletic Conference (SWAC), played with wood bats which explains Harper’s easy transition into professional baseball.
Harper helped lead Southern Nevada to the NJCAA World Series. During a World Series game, he struck out on a called third strike during an at bat. Harper did not agree with the call and let the home plate umpire know about it. The umpire did not take too kindly to the criticism and ejected Bryce from the game (I too was ejected from a high school baseball game, in the same fashion, so I know how that feels). That ejection was Harper’s second of the season, and it constituted a two-game suspension.
Southern Nevada lost the game in which Harper was tossed from and lost the next game shortly thereafter. That was Bryce’s last moment in a college uniform, getting ejected.
After having the best season in college baseball in 2010, Harper was awarded the Golden Spikes Award which goes to the nation’s best player and ended up beating out many major league players we see today. The finalists that year were: Ole Miss pitcher Drew Pomeranz (now with the Giants), Miami (FL) catcher Yasmani Grandal (now with Brewers), and Florida Gulf Coast pitcher Chris Sale (now a world champ with the Red Sox).
In 2009, the Washington Nationals selected pitcher Stephen Strasburg out of San Diego State with the first overall pick in the MLB Draft. The next season, Washington found themselves in the same position, atop of the draft and selecting at number one again. Everyone around the league, already knew who they were going to take with that pick.
Then-MLB commissioner Bud Selig stepped up to the podium at the MLB Network Studios and said what we all were thinking, the Washington Nationals have selected OF Bryce Harper with the first pick in the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft. Wait, outfielder?? I thought he was a big-time catcher.
The Nationals decided they wanted to turn Harper into an outfielder to help prolong his career as time as a catcher is very demanding (I should know). The front office realized that the defense would come along but it was his bat that would definitely play in the pros.
Harper’s negotiation was not a quick process by any means. Bryce’s representation, Scott Boras, waited until the very last minute up to the deadline to agree to terms with Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo. He was drafted in June and signed in late August. It took forever for Harper and Boras to get a deal of their liking (hmm sound familiar???). His deal came with a $6.5 million bonus.
Since, he did not sign until August, Bryce spent some time with the club’s fall instructional league and absolutely raked. Fast forward to spring training and Harper did what he did best, hit the baseball. He was then assigned to the club’s Single A, the Hagerstown Suns.
In 72 games with the Suns, Harper posted a .318 BA, 14 HRs, 46 RBIs and a .977 OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging average). Those numbers earned him a much-deserved promotion to Double-A, the Harrisburg Senators. He concluded his first full professional baseball season with the AA club.
The 2012 season came around and Harper started his second year in baseball with the AAA club, the Syracuse Chiefs in the International League. He only played in 21 games and received the news every minor league player wants to hear, you have been promoted to the big club. You know who else only played 21 game? Crash Davis from Bull Durham, well those 21 games were in The Show.
Speaking of Bull Durham, one of my favorite scenes is during the bus ride while talking to wild pitcher Nuke Laloosh, Davis tells the entire team that he played in the majors. Everyone woke up from their naps and were shocked to hear Davis played 21 games in The Show. Before telling the team the perks of being a major league ballplayer, Crash turned to Nuke and tried to explain to him what kind of talent he has.
“You got a gift. When you were a baby, the gods reached down and turned your right arm into a thunderbolt.” Harper was given a gift that powerful, well, his power is being able to hit baseballs a very long way. He was able to hit the “ungodly breaking stuff and those exploding sliders.”
Harper was officially in The Show and in it for good. The Nationals had baseball’s Chosen One in their everyday lineup. He went on to win National League Rookie of the Year with a stat line of a .270 BA, 22 HRs, 59 RBIs, and a .817 OPS. His potential could be the best player in the league, but he how quick before we see that?
The script did not go as planned for Harper because he only played 218 games out of a possible 324 in 2013 and 2014. Injuries derailed those seasons and Harper knew that he was going to come back stronger and my goodness, he was right.
2015 was a magical year for the baseball player who wore #34 because of his favorite player, Mickey Mantle who wore #7. Three plus four equals seven was his rationale. Harper put up MONSTER numbers during that season. He finished with a stat line of .330 BA, 42 HRs, 124 RBIs, and a 1.109 OPS.
Because of his otherworldly numbers, Harper was awarded, unanimously, the 2015 National League Most Valuable Player. Baseball’s Chosen One has had his best season as a young professional and showed the entire game just how great he was.
The 2016 season did not bring the same type of success for Harper but early in the season, teams were very aware of how dangerous the 2015 NL MVP was. In a four-game series versus the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, Cubs manager Joe Maddon decided he was not even going to flirt with the idea of Harper doing damage against his ball club. Harper set a major league record for walks in a series with 13 and tied the MLB record for walks in a game with six.
That did not happen during the rest of the season however as Harper finished with much different numbers than his MVP campaign. He finished with a .243 BA and a .814 OPS. However, he still hit 24 bombs and 86 RBIs. For any player, his MVP numbers are hard to do in one year, much less duplicate them in the next season. 2017 was another injury riddled season for him and Bryce only played in 111 games as the Nationals lost in the NL Division Series against the Chicago Cubs.
During his last game at Nationals Park, Harper finished 0-for-4 but ended the night with two standing ovations from the Nationals crowd. Did he know in that game, that it was his final home game as a Washington National?
Most players look forward to their last year in their contract because it provides them a chance to show the other 29 teams to show you the money in the offseason. Every player reacts differently to a contract year, it can add extra pressure for you and during every press conference you worry about being asked about it.
Another scene in Bull Durham, on the bus Crash is talking to Nuke after a long winning streak and knows that Laloosh will not be on the Bulls for much longer. He teaches him different clichés to use while in an interview. “We have to play them one day at a time. “I am just happy to be here and help the ball club.”
Harper I am sure had to use those type of clichés every day talking about his upcoming free agency. Bryce had a very rough start to the season, but he improved after the All-Star Break. He still finished with okay numbers in a contract year and had a batting average of .248. However, Harper finished with 34 HRs and 100 RBIs even after not having a great batting average.
The Nationals missed the playoffs and the team, as a whole, did not have any postseason success with Harper in their lineup. In his six years with the Nationals, the team was eliminated in the NLDS four times. The closest they came to advance to the Championship Series was in 2012 when the team had a four-run lead in the top of the ninth against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 5.
The Cardinals, who were the defending champs, scored four runs in the ninth inning and went on to win it in the tenth in Washington, D.C to advance.
So, Harper after 2018, was now officially a free agent and was ready to meet with his potential suitors. Everyone around the game was excited to see which team would meet his strong financial demands. Many teams were around early in the Bryce Harper sweepstakes, we heard rumors about the White Sox, Yankees, Dodgers, Cubs, Cardinals, Phillies, and the Nationals.
Four of those teams bowed out early after learning that Harper wanted to beat Yankees OF Giancarlo Stanton’s 13 year, $325 million deal he signed with the Miami Marlins. The Marlins traded Stanton to New York in large part due to that contract (The Marlins had the league's best outfield and traded all of them in the same offseason, that's not the point but I just wanted to remind you that it did, in fact, happen). The Winter Meetings went by and no new information was found out about where Harper was looking to go.
Harper was looking for a $300 million deal because no one as high profile as he had ever entered free agency going into his age-26 season. There were also reports before this free agency period that Harper could command a $400 million, maybe a $500 million deal.
$500 million seems otherworldly absurd but that possibility was floated out there. To say that it was a slow, developing offseason, is a complete understatement. Front offices have grown increasingly weary of giving large, big year commitments to these free agents, or so we thought. Teams are now becoming smarter with their money and the MLB Players Association cried collusion but their concerns should be muted as of right now.
January and a large part of February went by and Bryce Harper was still not with a team. SS Manny Machado signed with a surprise team in the San Diego Padres for $300 million over ten years. When Machado signed, everyone knew there was no way that Harper would sign for less than $300 million.
There were rumblings that the Dodgers were swooping in late and trying to sign Harper with a shorter-term deal but still with lucrative money. Los Angeles offered a 4-year, $145 million deal with $45 million per year, the largest average annual value for any player ever.
News came across Twitter from MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, that Harper agreed to a deal with the Philadelphia Phillies. Finally, what the league was waiting for. So how big is the deal? How many years and what kind of dollars? ESPN’s Jeff Passan tweeted Harper’s contract numbers, 13 years, $330 million. My first response was wow, it felt odd to even see another $300 million man in the major leagues. The deal also includes no opt-outs and a full no trade clause. Also, he got what he wanted, he beat Stanton’s deal by $5 million.
This is how the Phillies official team Twitter account responded to the news breaking.
As my professor Dr. Pederson mentioned, "He (Harper) only got $330 mil because he flips his hair and wears Under Armour." Guess we will never find out if that was true but it is funny nonetheless.
People were also wondering why he did not accept the Dodgers offer, to live in LA, for $45 million a year. Oh, did I mention he would live in Los Angeles?? Also he would be a free agent again at age-30.
His agent Scott Boras won again. He lost, a few weeks ago, when his other prodigy, Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray, decided to go play football rather than honor his $4.6 million signing bonus with the Oakland A’s. Now there are rumors that Murray even may go number one, in the NFL Draft in April.
So, what does this mean for the Phillies? One, they spent their “stupid” money like their owner said he was ready to do. Two, the Phillies now have a superstar in their lineup.
You know who else is glad that Bryce Harper selected a team. Sony's video game MLB The Show 19, who selected, guess who?, yeah, Bryce Harper to be their cover star. The game is set to release on March 29th (this is not a paid ad but go get it, it is great every year, I've owned it every year ever since the franchise started).
The Phillies may have won the MLB offseason. First, they traded for an All-Star shortstop in Jean Segura from the Seattle Mariners. Second, they signed another former All-Star in OF Andrew McCutchen. Thirdly, they traded for one of the best catchers in baseball in J.T. Realmuto, from guess where???, the Miami Marlins. (I’m shocked!)
Look at this projected lineup that Phillies manager Gabe Kapler can submit every day. Slugger Rhys Hoskins moves back to a more comfortable position at first base. Harper can hit in the second spot or in the third. I do like seeing Andrew McCutchen hit leadoff, he can be a great table setter for Harper, Realmuto, and Hoskins.
The main question is will the starting rotation hold up? The team is set at the top of the rotation with Cy Young candidate and former LSU stud Aaron Nola. 2015 Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta will slide right behind him. They could improve the rotation by signing former Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel or could trade for one at the July 31st trade deadline. The Phillies could sign a great closer in Craig Kimbrel to fortify that bullpen. This team can still get better.
Back to the contract, Harper will be making $25 million until he is 39 years old. His contract goes to 2031, that honestly sounds made up and I just realized I will be 34 years old in 2031, wow. Is anybody worth $330 million? Probably not, well maybe Angels CF Mike Trout, but that is worthy of another story. He is a free agent in 2020 and Harper hinted at that during his introductory news conference. Trout is a Philadelphia native.
ESPN's Jeff Passan was the first to tweet out the official salary breakdown of Harper's contract for the full 13 years.
Harper stated that he and his wife wanted a new place to call home. They were looking for a new family and have found one in Philadelphia. How many championships will the Phillies win in 13 years? One? Two? Will they even win any? Nobody knows, but one thing is for sure, Bryce Harper has solidified himself, as the most expensive adopted son in history.
Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies first visit Washington, D.C. against the Nationals on April 2nd. The second series of the season.
Sources:
Baseball Reference
MILB.com
NJCAA.org
MLB.com YouTube Page
ESPN.com
I don't know any Marlins fans, but I would imagine they don't enjoy the buzz of free agency nearly as much as the rest of MLB fans.