Bryce Harper is ‘frustrated on a bigger level’ by his start, but knows a breakout is coming

Bryce Harper entered the weekend with two extra-base hits in nine games and zero home runs in 11. Clearly, something needed to change.

How about his stance?

Or maybe his bat?

Harper tends to tinker whenever the hits aren’t falling. So, as the Phillies opened a series Friday night, he tested out a new bat and held it upright rather than horizontal along his back shoulder.

By Sunday, his pre-pitch stance was back to normal.

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And Harper’s swing? Still a work in progress.

Harper finally homered in the first inning Sunday, taking a fastball from Diamondbacks lefty Eduardo Rodríguez the opposite way into the left-field seats. He also singled, walked, and scored two runs.

But Harper’s last two at-bats left him unsatisfied. In the ninth inning, he swung at two pitches out of the strike zone before taking a called third strike from Arizona reliever Shelby Miller. He came to the plate as the winning run in the 10th inning against lefty Jalen Beeks and scalded a fastball — 96.9 mph off the bat — to center field, where Alek Thomas hauled it in before reaching the warning track.

“It got in on me a little bit,” Harper said. “Just frustrated I can’t come through right there. Obviously a good moment, good opportunity right there, and just couldn’t get it done.”

Harper has felt that way a lot lately. The homer against Rodriguez was his first since April 18, a span of 62 plate appearances. He’s batting .234 and slugging .422, well below his typical production.

Last month, during a series in Atlanta, Harper told hitting coach Kevin Long that he felt like his swing was about a week away from clicking. On cue, a week later, he went 8-for-25 (.320) with two doubles, three homers, and a 1.229 OPS on a seven-game homestand against the Giants and Marlins.

But rather than continuing his hot streak, Harper slumped. In the 12 games since, he’s 8-for-47 (.170) with two doubles, one homer, and a .568 OPS.

“There’s not a whole lot of slug there right now,” manager Rob Thomson. “But it’s going to be there. He’s really the last guy I worry about. I don’t think he’s that far off.”

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Harper has confidence, too. Although he declined Sunday to make further predictions about an upcoming hot streak, he maintained that it’s coming.

“Obviously I’m not where I want to be,” he said. “I’ve gone through stretches before like this in my career. It’s going to happen. I’ll come back out of it and be totally fine.”

Meantime, there are frustrations.

In his first three at-bats last Tuesday night against the Nationals, the ball came off Harper’s bat at 97.3 mph, 101.7 mph, and 104.6 mph. But they went for a lineout, flyout, and another lineout.

And because Harper is a “perfectionist,” as Thomson often describes him, he takes little satisfaction from a sound plate approach or well-timed swings unless the results are aligned with the process.

“His expectations of himself are higher than anybody else,“ Thomson said. ”And he knows how important he is to the ballclub and to the city and the franchise. So, he wears it. He really does. That’s who he is.

“But I can tell you this, he’s handled it a lot better than he has in the past.”

How so?

“Just staying calm,” Thomson said. “Being a really good teammate.”

» READ MORE: The Bryce Harper conversation: Why he’s open to an outfield return, his love of Pilates, playing past 40, and more

To wit: Early in the season, Harper observed that several players — Alec Bohm and Brandon Marsh, in particular — appeared to be putting undue pressure on themselves and stressed the importance of having fun.

And then there are moments like the fly ball in the 10th inning Sunday.

“I’m frustrated on a bigger level,” Harper said. “Obviously I’ve been through ruts in my career and gone through ups and downs worse than what I’m on right now. But just frustrated for the fans, frustrated for my team. Even that last moment right there against Beeks, just not coming through. Just super frustrated for that.”

In time, maybe the Phillies will settle on a timeshare at second base, in addition to left field and center field. Hey, it worked in 1993, when one of the most popular clubs in franchise history rode three platoons to the pennant.

But, well, that’s not exactly what’s been happening.

The Phillies have faced three left-handed starters in the last 16 games — and only nine overall. They’re also trying to jump-start Bohm at the plate. So, for Edmundo Sosa to get at-bats, it’s almost certainly going to have to be at second on the rare occasion that the Phillies face a lefty.

And that means a spot on the bench for Bryson Stott.

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Don’t confuse it with a platoon, though. Not yet. Stott, a left-handed hitter, is only 1-for-15 with two walks against lefty starters. But he’s 4-for-9 against lefty relievers, so it’s not like he’s a lost cause against lefties.

Stott has also performed well in the leadoff spot against righty starters. He has reached base in the first inning in eight of his 17 games atop the order (six hits, two walks). That’s a .471 on-base percentage.

“You’re doing that, it’s pretty darned good,” Thomson said. “Especially with Trea [Turner] getting .380 behind you, and [Kyle] Schwarber‘s, what, .400 [.397]? Those guys get on base, we’re going to score runs."

Against righties or lefties.

From 2022 to 2024, José Alvarado had a total of five appearances in which he threw 30 or more pitches. He’s had four such outings already this season, including his 30-pitch adventure in the ninth and 10th innings Sunday. ... Don’t look now, but 2020 first-round pick Mick Abel is off to a solid start for triple-A Lehigh Valley. He gave up one run in five innings Sunday and has a 2.75 ERA in seven starts. The 23-year-old righty has also trimmed his walk rate to 10.2% from 15.1% last season. ... Top prospect Andrew Painter is on schedule to make his triple-A debut at Lehigh Valley Thursday night against Worcester.