Bryce Harper among nominees for 2021 Hank Aaron Award

For the third consecutive year, Bryce Harper is the Phillies’ nominee for the Hank Aaron Award.

Named after the late Braves slugger Hank Aaron, the award was established in 1999 “to honor the 25th Anniversary of Aaron breaking Babe Ruth’s all-time home run record.” It’s given to “the best overall offensive performer in each league” as voted on by the fans and a panel of Hall of Famers. Each team nominates one player and a panel of MLB.com writers narrow the field down to seven players from each league.

Chipper Jones, Pedro Martinez and John Smoltz are the new voters among the panel of eight Hall of Famers. The returning voters are Johnny Bench, Craig Biggio, Ken Griffey Jr., Eddie Murray and Robin Yount.

Here are the nominees for each league.

National League

• Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies
• Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
• Nick Castellanos, Cincinnati Reds
• Brandon Crawford, San Francisco Giants
• Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
• Juan Soto, Washington Nationals
• Fernando Tatis Jr., San Diego Padres

American League

• Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
• José Ramírez, Cleveland Indians
• Cedric Mullins, Baltimore Orioles
• Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals
• Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
• Matt Olson, Oakland Athletics
• Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays

Harper is a favorite to take home the award for the second time in his career. He led all of baseball in OPS (1.044), slugging percentage (.615), extra-base hits (78), wOBA (.431) and wRC+ (170).

Ryan Howard (2006) is the only Phillie who has ever won the award. Harper won the Hank Aaron Award in 2015 with the Nationals.

Fans have until Oct. 15 to vote for the winner of the 2021 Hank Aaron Award. 2021 marks the first time the award will be handed out since Aaron’s passing on Jan. 22, 2021.

MORE FROM PHILLIES NATION

1. Phillies Nation Top 20 Prospects: September 2021
2. ‘Every Indication’ Is That Joe Girardi Will Return In 2022
3. Preston Mattingly Is Inheriting A Mess. Can He Turn Around The Farm System Before It’s Too Late?
4. Ryan Howard On Phillies Playoff Drought: ‘It’s Gotta Be A Bad Taste In Your Mouth
5. The Phillies Will Once Again Look Elsewhere For A Closer
6. Mike Schmidt: ‘Bryce Harper Is Today’s Pete Rose With Power
7. 500 Strikeouts Later, Héctor Neris Remains An Integral Part Of Phillies Bullpen
8. ‘I’m A Little Different Than Most’: Meet The Phillies’ Eccentric New Pitching Prospect
9. September Is Far From Aaron Nola’s Biggest Issue
10. Phillies 2021 Walk-Up Songs