Blake Snell ‘Felt Terrible’ About Hitting Bryce Harper With Pitch

The Padres pitcher had no intention of hitting the Phillies star.

Bryce Harper fractured his left thumb late Saturday night when he was hit by a pitch from Padres starter Blake Snell. Harper will be out for extended time, with no timetable set for his return. 

The Padres pitcher said postgame he had no intention of throwing up and in like that.

“I felt terrible hitting him,” Snell said, via the AP’s Richard J. Marcus. “I don’t do that. He knows that. So we’ve talked and handled it. It was never anything. Just emotionally, he plays with a lot of passion and I can understand why he’d be upset. I’m just as upset as he is. I hit him. I don’t hit people. Just hope he recovers quickly and gets back out there and continues to compete.”

While Harper was clearly frustrated by what happened, it wasn’t directed at Snell. In fact, while walking off the field he made sure to let Snell know that.

bryce harper to blake snell: “i know you weren’t trying to do it”

damn this is just brutal. pic.twitter.com/FW0ADItP3C

— m (@matttadelphia) June 26, 2022

“It wasn’t heated at all,” Harper said. “It was just the moment and a crappy situation. I’ve been playing against Blake since we were 10, 11 years old so I know there was no ill-will behind that at all. The inside pitch is part of the game. He is a great player and a great human being as well. I wish him the best and I told him to keep throwing that inside fastball because it sets that slider really good.”

Phillies general manager Dave Dombrowski wouldn’t say how long Harper will be out, as it is too early to tell if he needs surgery. For now, the team will have to survive without him

Harper, who was already dealing with an elbow injury that limited him to just being a designated hitter, said he would have preferred if Snell actually hit him higher too avoid the thumb.

“I kind of wish it hit me in the face,” Harper said. “I don’t break bones in my face. I think I can take 98 (mph) to the face, but not 97 to the thumb. Yeah, I was kind of in protection mode a little bit trying to get my hand up there and not let it hit me again. It’s just a bummer. I am really bummed out.”

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