Phillies news and rumors 6/30: Amid home run drought, Bryce Harper won’t start for NL in All-Star Game
Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson, along with his entire coaching staff, will be managing and coaching the National League All-Star team on July 11 in Seattle. However, Thomson’s starting lineup for the upcoming Midsummer Classic will not include any of his own players.
Entering the second phase of fan voting, which concluded yesterday, Bryce Harper was the only Phillies player on the ballot to potentially start the All-Star game. The two-time NL MVP was up against J.D. Martinez of the Los Angeles Dodgers to be the NL’s starting designated hitter, but lost the vote in a close race in which he received 47 percent of the votes.
Martinez was hitting .257/.302/.571 with 19 doubles and 18 home runs before yesterday. His home run total this season is already more than last year’s total of 16 and is tied for seventh in the NL with Atlanta’s Ozzie Albies and Dodgers teammate Max Muncy.
Harper, on the other hand, has not had as much success at the plate when it comes to the power department. He has just three home runs this season and hasn’t hit one since May 25.
Going into last night’s win against the Chicago Cubs, Harper’s 27 games without a home run was the longest such stretch of his career. In that stretch, he hit .228/.344/.267 in 122 plate appearances with four doubles and 11 RBIs. Harper’s 1-for-4 performance with an RBI single last night extended his home-run-less streak to 28 games.
Not only has Harper not hit a homer in more than a month, he hasn’t hit a double in more than two weeks, either. His last two-base hit came on June 12 in Arizona against the Diamondbacks.
Altogether, Harper is hitting .278/.380/.383 so far this season.
Even though Philadelphia’s most talented hitter hasn’t been performing like himself lately, they haven’t had much trouble winning games. Since May 26 — the day after Harper’s last home run — the reigning NL champs are 20-10. In June, they’re 18-7.
Despite Harper not starting, he could still represent the Phillies in Seattle. If not, there are a few other players, such as Nick Castellanos and Craig Kimbrel, who have been discussed as potential All-Stars this season.
Full rosters for the 2023 All-Star game are set to be announced this Sunday on ESPN at 5:30 p.m. ET.
Must-watch (or read) Phillies content
- The Phillies will play their 81st game of the season tonight and The Athletic’s Matt Gelb outlined what has and hasn’t been working for the club so far this season.
- Also over at The Athletic, Eno Sarris’ monthly “Caught Looking” column included a section about Bryson Stott’s approach at the plate.
- Yesterday on Phillies Nation, we took a look at Rob Thomson’s platoon approach and discussed some possibilities for upgrading the club’s bench.
- Dave Dombrowski recently commented on Bryce Harper and how soon we could see him playing first base in actual games.
- J.T. Realmuto made one heck of a play in the ninth inning last night:
Former Phillies Nation
- Jean Segura broke up Brayan Bello’s no-hitter in the eighth inning at Fenway Park yesterday:
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