Categories: News

Trea Turner on Bryce Harper: ‘Feels like he’s the best player in the world’

Bryce Harper has crushed the Dodgers in this series. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Icon Sportswire)

Bryce Harper is on an incredible hot streak. In his last nine games, the reigning National League MVP is slashing .500/.537/1.111 with five home runs, 12 RBIs and a six-game hitting streak.

And he’s doing it all with a small tear in his right UCL. He won’t be in the lineup for Sunday’s series finale against Los Angeles as he is scheduled to receive a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection in his right elbow. He could miss Tuesday’s game against the San Diego Padres in Philadelphia as well, according to Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

It’s hard to say what’s more incredible: the fact that Harper is still producing at an elite level despite the injury or that he has six nine-game stretches in his career that are more or equally impressive than the one that he’s currently on right now.

“I’m very happy he won’t be in there tomorrow,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said about Harper after Saturday’s game.

Harper’s former Nationals teammate Trea Turner was also in awe of how dominant the Phillies slugger was against the Dodgers pitching staff, who came into this series with the lowest ERA in the majors by a considerably wide margin.

“Feels like he’s the best player in the world,” Turner told The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya.

“I watched him for years over there (in Washington). But since he’s been over in Philly the last few years, you feel like he has a bad year and then you look up at his numbers, and he’s got a .900 OPS and he’s hitting really well. And then years where he’s playing really well and he wins the MVP. It’s kind of crazy. The numbers he can put up offensively are really special. He’s one of a kind. That’s why he won the MVP last year and that’s why he’s doing what he’s doing now.”

Is Harper the best baseball player in the world? Probably not. That honor belongs to either Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani or Juan Soto, whichever you prefer. However, there is plenty of evidence that suggests Harper is one of the best of his generation and is on a Hall of Fame track.

If health is on his side, 2022 could turn out to be another monstrous year at the plate for the 29-year-old. His .994 OPS on this season is second to only Manny Machado in the NL. Harper also leads all of baseball in extra-base hits with 24.

When he’s hot, it does feel like he’s one of the best in the world.

Unfortunately for the Phillies, they will have to go without his bat for at least the next two games. On the flip side, the likes of Jean Segura, Rhys Hoskins and a few other Phillies regulars are in the middle of their own respective hot streaks. It will be interesting to see how the lineup operates without “the best in the world.”