philadelphia phillies supper star bryce harper He said he was “hurt” by Dave Dombrowski’s blunt question about whether the two-time National League MVP could return to elite status after a down year.
The Phillies’ president of baseball operations called Harper “a quality player” in his end-of-season news conference, but noted that he did not have a typical season and questioned whether Harper “becomes elite or he remains good.” The comments led to speculation that the Phillies might be looking to move on from the superstar, who has six years left on his $330 million deal, as well as a no-trade clause.
“I’ve given Philly my all from the beginning,” Harper said. told the athletic On Saturday. “Now there’s trade being discussed? I did everything I could to avoid it. That’s all I heard in D.C. [with the Nationals]I hated it. “It makes me feel uncomfortable.”
The 33-year-old Harper is coming off a season in which his OPS (.844) was his lowest since 2016. los angeles dodgers In the NL Division Series, Harper was only 3 for 15 with no RBI in the four-game loss. He missed a month of the season due to a wrist injury.
“It’s disappointing to hear questions from me about my contributions to the team,” Harper told The Athletic. “I’m really hurt by this perception because I love Philly so much.
“From changing positions to returning early from injury, I show full commitment to my team. And yet trade talks are still ongoing.”
Dombrowski has denied that the Phillies would want to trade Harper and downplayed his comments made earlier this month.
“This couldn’t be further from the truth,” Dombrowski said on “Foul Territory” earlier this week when asked about the Harper trade rumors. “We love him. We think he’s a great player. He’s a very important part of our team. I’ve seen him have better years. I look forward to better years for him.”
