Philadelphia Phillies Superstar Makes Pitchers Pay More than Most in October
![Oct 9, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (3) hits a double in the sixth inning against the New York Mets in game four of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citi Field. Oct 9, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (3) hits a double in the sixth inning against the New York Mets in game four of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citi Field.](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4122,h_2318,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/inside_the_phillies/01jjsh53qp8jq2gg81r2.jpg)
The Philadelphia Phillies are coming off their third trip to the postseason in as many tries, a feat they have not accomplished since making it into October in five consecutive seasons from 2007 through 2011.
Each trip has been shorter than the last, with the most recent seeing the offense forget how to hit, swinging at more pitches outside of the zone than Javier Baez could ever dream of doing.
While the offense struggled mightily, superstar first baseman Bryce Harper continued the otherworldly efforts that the Phillies have received from the slugger during his tenure with the club.
In fact, among all batters in the history of Major League Baseball with 150 or more plate appearances in the postseason, Harper ranks fourth in wRC+ with a 171 in that metric.
Bryce Harper is among the best of the best when the calendar turns to October 🔔 #Top10RightNow pic.twitter.com/N19iSPrnql
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) January 29, 2025
Only Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and George Brett rank higher than Harper, all three of whom are Hall of Famers, with Carlos Beltran and Giancarlo Stanton rounding out the top six. Beltran missed the Hall of Fame this year by the slimmest of margins, and Stanton is still active in MLB but could be a Hall of Famer if he can reach 500 career home runs.
It is a great group of players to be considered alongside, and a testament to just how good Bryce Harper is at the game of baseball.
For his career, Harper has played in 53 postseason games to this point. He has batted .280/.394/.622 with 17 home runs and 34 RBI across 232 plate appearances.
Throughout his tenure with Philadelphia, Harper has played in 34 postseason games so far. In that time, he has batted .325/.444/.709 with 12 home runs and 24 RBI across 143 plate appearances.
It has been proven time and time again that the "clutch gene" is not real, and that good hitters, hit. Harper falls into the category of a "good hitter," still serving as one of the best in the sport as he approaches his 14th season.
While the superstar's time with the Washington Nationals was great, to this point, his time with the Phillies has been even better in both the regular and the postseason.
The superstar is under contract through 2031, his age-38 campaign, and with his recent position change to first base, he does not seem to be slowing down anytime soon.