Phillies Superstar Could Make Permanent Position Change

The Philadelphia Phillies could see one of their superstars permanently change positions after he transitioned to first base out of necessity. That would impact free agency decisions for the front office this offseason.

One of the biggest things that positively impacted the Philadelphia Phillies this season was when their superstar Bryce Harper made the transition to first base.

After coming back from his offseason elbow surgery, he was limited to only playing in the designated hitter role.

This forced Kyle Schwarber to play primarily in left field which negatively impacted their defense.

The Phillies' usual first baseman, Rhys Hoskins, was out for the season with a torn ACL and left a big void at that position.

Harper went to the front office to say he could try and play first base.

It worked out great for Philadelphia as he made a seamless transition. He finished the year recording three outs above average and gave the team flexibility in the outfield as Schwarber moved back to DH.

If Harper permanently moves to first base, that would give them more options in the outfield moving forward.

"But I don't mind giving them the option, even if he does come back, if Rhys needs a day off, or giving them the option to put me at first base and them knowing, 'Hey, we can put him there at any point, and he'll be fine,'" the superstar said before Game 1 of the NLCS.

This would directly impact the re-signing of Hoskins if he does make the move.

There would no longer be a glaring need at first if Harper was there full time.

Defensive metrics proved that their best defensive lineup was Johan Rojas in center field, Nick Castellanos in right field and Brandon Marsh in left field.

Even when Harper gets cleared to go back into his outfield role, could the front office and coaching staff push him to stay at first base?

It's definitely a possibility.

That would give them more financial freedom to add pitching depth, which is one of the major areas that the front office is looking for during the offseason.