May 23, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (3) reacts after being hit by a pitch in the eighth inning against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images
PITTSBURGH - The black cloud lingering over the heads of the Phillies just won't go away.
On Saturday morning, the Phillies announced that Bryce Harper would be placed on the 10-day I.L. with right wrist inflammation. It is retroactive to Friday, meaning the earliest Harper would be eligible to return to the team would be June 16 in Miami.
Harper showed up at PNC Park Friday feeling worse than he has for awhile. Phillies manager Rob Thomson had said that Harper has been dealing with a right wrist issue for awhile and that he had been grinding through it, but it had reached a point where he needed to come out of the lineup.
With all the scrambling around that was going on in the Phillies clubhouse and with Thomson having a meeting with G.M. Preston Mattingly before the game and the delayed release of the lineup on Friday, it started to become apparent that was going to be more than just having him rest for one day type of thing.
Rob Thomson explains why Bryce Harper isn’t in the lineup tonight.
(Via @AntSanPhilly) pic.twitter.com/s6zz2655NM
Now, it's blown into something bigger and more concerning.
"It's gotten to the point where I can't really function on a baseball field, or hit a ball or anything like that," Harper said before the Phillies played the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday. "So it's a good time for me to take some time and get it right.
"It just wasn't good for me to keep going out there. I didn't want to get three, four, five weeks down the road and it still be there. It was definitely a hard decision for me. Obviously, I've played through pain in my career. Last year - and I did it for most of this year. I just don't want to do it anymore."
How much time he will miss, no one is sure. But, if the Phillies were confident that this would be a short I.L. stint - namely just the 10 days - they would likely say that. The fact that no one has tells you they aren't sure how long it will be. Harper did have an MRI on Friday. He didn't report the results of the MRI, but he was placed on the I.L. after that test occurred.
Harper had his wrist pretty heavily taped up when talking to reporters in the Clubhouse. He did eventually go out to the field during the Phillies batting practice and stood in right centerfield for a bit shagging fly balls. He didn't throw at all though.
Bryce Harper – the newest member of the Phillies' I.L. – was out shagging fly balls in Pittsburgh today🏴☠️ (via @AntSanPhilly) pic.twitter.com/y29s0Iv8td
The concerning thing for the Phillies is this is the same wrist ailment that bothered Harper for much of the 2024 season. He was able to knock it out with a good offseason plan and he said it didn't bother him several months until sometime in April, when it ramped up again.
"I felt it early in the season and I tried to play through it as long as I could," Harper said, saying he felt it on every swing of the bat. "I'm just going to try to get through it the best I can. It's going to take some time, obviously, but hopefully we'll get it done."
In the interim, the Phillies will have to find a way through it without Harper. They selected the contract of Otto Kemp from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to take Harper's spot on the roster. The Phillies had an opening on the 40-man roster to add Kemp after designating Jose Ruiz for assignment last week.
Fans have been clamoring for Kemp to get a shot at the Big League level for awhile because of how he's been tearing it up at Lehigh Valley.
In 57 games with the IronPigs, Kemp, 25, is slashing .317/.417/.602 for and OPS of 1.019. He has 14 homers and 55 RBIs and also has slugged 19 doubles.
As good as Kemp has been offensively, he's been a below average defensive player. He can play the corner infield spots primarily, although he has started 10 games at second base and seven in left field this season so far.
Still, it's unfair to expect an undrafted rookie making his major league debut to make up for the loss of Harper for at least the next nine days.
The Phillies are going to need an uptick in production from players who are already here, and they're going to be thrust into the spotlight even more, especially with a tough stretch of opponents coming up for the Phillies after this weekend in Pittsburgh.
In addition to Kemp, reliever Daniel Robert was also recalled from Lehigh Valley. He will replace Alan Rangel who was optioned back to Triple-A after making a three-inning bulk relief appearance on Friday in what was essentially a bullpen game for the Phillies.
Robert, 30, appeared in two games for the Phillies last month. He totaled just 2/3 of an inning in both games allowing one run on one hit and three walks. He struck out two.
He's been very good with the IronPigs though, having pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings across seven relief appearances allowing just three hits and one walk while striking out nine since being acquired from the Texas Rangers on April 30.
Additionally, the Phillies transferred Zack Wheeler to the Family Medical Emergency list because his time was up on the paternity list. That will buy the Phillies a few more days with an extra bullpen arm. Meanwhile, Aaron Nola still has not thrown because of discomfort in his side. He's going to see the Phillies doctors when the team returns home Monday.
