Inside Bryce Harper’s remarkable return to the Philadelphia Phillies
Midway through spring training, Bryce Harper paused in front of his locker in the Philadelphia Phillies‘ clubhouse in Clearwater, Florida, and discussed his rehabilitation from an elbow reconstruction. Harper nodded his head as a reporter mentioned the haunting tales of players who pushed beyond the recommendation of their doctors and suffered setbacks, lengthening the time for their respective recoveries from Tommy John surgery. Harper had heard some of those stories and recognized the potential pitfalls, and he said he was carefully following the advice of doctors and trainers.
But all the while, Harper had a goal for his return date, as he mentioned to reporters Monday, shortly before he was cleared to return to action by the doctor who performed his surgery, Neal ElAttrache. His hope was that he would be back in the Phillies’ lineup to play against the Los Angeles Dodgers, in L.A., in the first week of May. “I kind of looked at this series in the offseason, to put my head where I needed to be,” Harper said. “Understanding that I need to take it one day at a time, understanding that we can have setbacks even if you feel great. But I wanted … to work toward something.”
Harper’s vision quest will manifest later today, when, remarkably, he is expected back in the Phillies’ lineup just 160 days after his surgery. It’s believed to be the quickest recovery, by far, for a position player after an elbow reconstruction. He’ll initially serve as designated hitter in his first games back in action, but the Phillies are very comfortable with the idea of using him at first base in the weeks ahead.
David Dombrowski, the head of baseball operations for the Phillies, said over the phone Monday afternoon that Harper was “diligent” in following the directions of ElAttrache and the professionals who guided him through his rehabilitation. “He followed their protocol step by step, always made the medical checkups,” Dombrowski said. “He’s been fantastic in that regard.”
According to Jon Roegele’s database of players who’ve gone through Tommy John surgery, the previous quickest position player to return from the operation was former infielder Tony Womack, 182 days after the procedure. Jay Buhner returned after 207 days, and Carl Crawford, at 221 days, was the third quickest.
There’s an inherent temptation for an elite athlete, Crawford said in an interview, to believe that you are the exception to any rehabilitation timeline, and that you can push through faster than anybody else, that you can do more than what the doctors are telling you. That belief in self is part of what separated Crawford, a four-time All-Star outfielder, and what separates Harper, a two-time winner of the MVP Award.
“You just have to be careful, because you want to move it [quickly],” Crawford said. “Especially as a super athlete. But you can’t do that. You have to work with the doctors, doing all the exercises they give you. Whatever program they gave me, I stayed on top of it. I didn’t mess mine up, I didn’t have any setbacks.”
By all accounts, Harper was extremely disciplined through his rehabilitation, and along the way, neither did he. Initially, the expectation was that Harper would be out until sometime in midseason. At the time he had the surgery, some sources indicated that he might be back around the All-Star break; later, that became June. Dombrowski said the Phillies were still working on the timeline when Harper arrived in Florida, deferring to medical advice and guidelines. But shortly after Harper joined the Phillies in Clearwater, it seemed possible he might be back sooner than initially thought. “He was swinging so well, and he was not having any pain,” Dombrowski said. “We didn’t put any expectations on it … but we were optimistic. I can’t say we knew anything.”
Because of Harper’s progress, the Phillies made the decision on the eve of the regular season not to place him on the 60-day injured list, the first tangible sign that the team thought Harper might be back in May rather than June or July. Scott Boras, Harper’s agent, outlined in a text message why he thought Harper rebounded quickly. “Harp has genius healing factors, and his strength and bat speed are always MLB Centurion elite,” Boras wrote. “Skill and power wise, he is just far from normal.”
Harper loves to play, Boras wrote, and “he would crush his toothbrush every morning he couldn’t play. That boy’s desire to play ball is embodied in his player DNA.”
If his return to the lineup had been dependent on Harper returning to the outfield — as it was for Crawford — then Harper’s debut might have come later. During the spring, Harper began taking ground balls at first base, an idea that he first raised with Dombrowski after Rhys Hoskins suffered a season-ending knee injury March 23.
And even before that, the NL’s adoption of the designated hitter — a rule that Harper acknowledged last year he had never really liked — has streamlined the preparation for his return. “The hitting process doesn’t require an overhand motion,” Boras said, “so he was able to swing just months after the process.”
After Harper went through simulated game action as a hitter Sunday in Houston, he deftly fielded grounders hit by infield coach Bobby Dickerson, with Dickerson reminding Harper a couple of times to keep his glove and attack the ball out in front of him. Some of the team staffers believe Harper has the instincts to excel in the infield, because of his history as an amateur catcher and his sense of timing. When Dombrowski asked Dickerson last month whether Harper could play first, Dickerson was quick in his response: Yes, he could. “When?” Dombrowski asked.
“Right now,” Dickerson replied.
Some of the throws Harper will make at first base could be made from angles different from those he has made as an outfielder — like trying to throw over the head of a would-be base-stealer to the second baseman, or charging a bunt and throwing to third. But Harper will not often be involved in plays that would require throwing as hard as he is used to — or as far — because of the nature of the position. Outfielders are sometimes clocked making throws over 90 mph, but so far this year, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, there have been only 10 throws of 80+ mph this season by all first basemen combined.
Rival evaluators note that Harper has a complicated swing, and in his career, he has worked through extended slumps. While the Phillies have transported minor league pitchers to work in simulated games with Harper, and though he has looked comfortable in his swings, it might take him a while to regain his timing. Harper suffered a broken thumb last June when he was hit by a pitch from San Diego Padres lefty Blake Snell, and after he returned Aug. 26, he batted .227 in his last 35 games in the regular season, with a .325 on-base percentage and just three homers.
But in the postseason, Harper regained his swing, blasting six homers in 17 games, including the memorable eighth-inning shot against the Padres that effectively launched the Phillies into the World Series.
Even then, there was concern within the Phillies’ organization that Harper would need elbow surgery and the team would lose him for most of 2023. Instead, after a historic recovery, he’s repaired, rehabbed and already ready to go.
The first 12-team College Football Playoff is down to the final two contenders: Notre Dame and Ohio State.
The seventh-seeded Fighting Irish and eighth-seeded Buckeyes will meet Jan. 20 at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium for the CFP National Championship Presented by AT&T. Whichever team wins will end a championship drought. Notre Dame aims for its first title since 1988. Ohio State’s lull isn’t nearly as long, as the Buckeyes won the first CFP championship a decade ago, but given how consistently elite they are, it seems like a while.
Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman and Ohio State’s Ryan Day are also aiming for their first championships as head coaches, and Freeman’s past will be in the spotlight. Freeman and the Irish lost to the Buckeyes and Day in each of the past two seasons. But after a masterful coaching job this season, Freeman now will face his alma mater — he was an All-Big Ten linebacker for Ohio State under coach Jim Tressel — with everything on the line. Day, meanwhile, can secure the loftiest goal for a team that fell short of earlier ones, but never stopped swinging.
Here’s your first look at the championship matchup and what to expect in the ATL. — Adam Rittenberg
When: Jan. 20 at 7:30 p.m. ET. TV: ESPN
What we learned in the semifinal: Notre Dame’s resilience and situational awareness/execution are undeniably its signature traits and could propel the team to a title. The Irish have overcome injuries all season and did so again against Penn State. They also erased two deficits and continued to hold the edge in the “middle eight” — the final four minutes of the first half and the first four minutes of the second half — while dominating third down on both sides of the ball. Notre Dame can rely on front men such as quarterback Riley Leonard, running back Jeremiyah Love and linebacker Jack Kiser, but also on backup QB Steve Angeli, wide receiver Jaden Greathouse and kicker Mitch Jeter. These Irish fight, and they’re very hard to knock out.
X factor: Greathouse entered Thursday with moderate numbers — 29 receptions, 359 yards, one touchdown — and had only three total catches for 14 yards in the first two CFP games. But he recorded career highs in both receptions (7) and receiving yards (105) and tied the score on a 54-yard touchdown with 4:38 to play. A Notre Dame offense looking for more from its wide receivers, especially downfield, could lean more on Greathouse, who exceeded his receptions total from the previous five games but might be finding his groove at the perfect time. He also came up huge in the clutch, recording all but six of his receiving yards in the second half.
How Notre Dame wins: The Irish won’t have the talent edge in Atlanta, partly because they’ve lost several stars to season-ending injuries, but they have the right traits to hang with any opponent. Notre Dame needs contributions in all three phases and must continue to sprinkle in downfield passes, an element offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock has pushed. And they finally did start seeing results against Penn State. The Irish likely can’t afford to lose the turnover margin, although they can help themselves by replicating their third-down brilliance — 11 of 17 conversions on offense, 3 of 11 conversions allowed on defense — from the Penn State win. — Rittenberg
What we learned in the semifinal: The Buckeyes have a defense with championship mettle, headlined by senior defensive end Jack Sawyer, who delivered one of the biggest defensive plays in Ohio State history. On fourth-and-goal with just over two minutes remaining, Sawyer sacked Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, forcing a fumble that he scooped up and raced 83 yards for a game-clinching touchdown, propelling Ohio State to the national title game. The Buckeyes weren’t perfect in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, and they struggled offensively for much of the night against a talented Texas defense. But Ohio State showed late why its defense is arguably the best in college football, too.
X factor: The play two snaps before the Sawyer scoop-and-score set the table. On second-and-goal from the Ohio State 1-yard line, unheralded senior safety Lathan Ransom dashed past incoming blockers and dropped Texas running back Quintrevion Wisner for a 7-yard loss. After an incomplete pass, the Longhorns were forced into desperation mode on fourth-and-goal down a touchdown with just over two minutes remaining. All-American safety Caleb Downs, who had an interception on Texas’ ensuing drive, rightfully gets all the headlines for the Ohio State secondary. But the Buckeyes have other veteran standouts such as Ransom throughout their defense.
How Ohio State wins: Texas took away Ohio State’s top offensive playmaker, true freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who had only one reception for 3 yards on three targets. As the first two playoff games underscored, the Buckeyes offense is at its best when Smith gets the ball early and often. Notre Dame is sure to emulate the Texas blueprint, positioning the defensive backs to challenge Smith. Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly has to counter with a plan that finds ways to get the ball into Smith’s hands, no matter what the Fighting Irish do. — Jake Trotter
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Doug Greenberg, ESPN
Ohio State opened as a 9.5-point favorite over Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T, per ESPN BET odds.
If that line holds, it would be tied for the second-largest spread in a CFP national championship game and the fourth largest in the CFP/BCS era. Georgia was -13.5 against TCU in the 2022 national championship, while Alabama showed -9.5 against none other than Ohio State to decide the 2020 campaign. Both favorites covered the spread in blowout fashion, combining for a cover margin of 63.
Notre Dame is 12-3 against the spread this season, tied with Arizona State (12-2) and Marshall (12-1) for the most covers in the nation. The Irish are 7-0 ATS against ranked teams and 2-0 ATS as underdogs, with both covers going down as outright victories, including their win over Penn State (-1.5) in the CFP national semifinal.
However, Notre Dame was also on the losing end of the largest outright upset of the college football season when it fell as a 28.5-point favorite to Northern Illinois.
Ohio State is 9-6 against the spread and has been a favorite in every game it has played this season; it has covered the favorite spread in every CFP game thus far, including in its semifinal win against Texas when it covered -6 with overwhelming public support.
The Buckeyes also have been an extremely popular pick in the futures market all season. At BetMGM as of Friday morning, OSU had garnered a leading 28.2% of money and 16.8% of bets to win the national title, checking in as the sportsbook’s greatest liability.
Ohio State opened at +700 to win it all this season and is now -350 with just one game to play.
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