MLB rumors: Bryce Harper dictates Phils plans, Cards cut, Met on block

Bryce Harper’s positional reinvention could change everything for Phillies

Bryce Harper’s return from Tommy John surgery has been nothing short of incredible. After getting surgery in November, Harper made his return in early May, less than half a year after going under the knife. The surgery typically takes about a year to recover from, and sometimes more.

One of the ways Harper has been able to get back in the lineup so early on is by keeping his throwing arm on the shelf, participating just as the designated hitter. When you don’t have to throw from the outfield, it’s a lot easier to get back to the game.

Harper, though, is desperate to get back to the defensive side, but it’s unlikely he’ll be back in the outfield anytime soon. Instead, Harper has been learning the ins and outs of first base, hoping to make a mid-career reinvention to extend his defensive usefulness without having to overstress his arm.

The Phillies have been hinting at the possibility of Harper making a debut at first base for some time and the much-anticipated event, which has been pushed back multiple times, should now be coming this weekend. Those results dictate the needs for Philly at the trade deadline.

As Matt Gelb pointed out for The Athletic, Harper moving to first base would be a tremendous lift of pressure for the Phillies front office (subscription required), making their trade strategy far more clear-cut.

Philadelphia wants to get Kyle Schwarber out of left field and into the designated hitter slot. But when Harper is occupying that role, and for good reason given his UCL issue, it’s darn near impossible to make that move.

If Harper works out as a first baseman, though, Schwarber can move to DH and the front office can pursue left fielders to replace Schwarber.

One option that might be a low-cost grab is Tyler O’Neill from the St. Louis Cardinals. O’Neill has suffered poor injury luck the last few years, but in 2021 proved to be a powerful bat in the lineup while also putting up a run value of 6 per Statcast in left field. He has not recaptured that success on either side of the game since, but much of that is chalked up to injuries. O’Neill returned from an injury on Thursday, so the Phillies will be taking note of not just Harper at first, but also O’Neill’s performance in left over the weekend.