Bryce Harper to play for Team USA in WBC

Bryce Harper is the latest Phillie to confirm his participation in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. The Las Vegas native will join teammate J.T. Realmuto on the Team USA squad.

The tournament, which is scheduled to be held for the first time since 2017 next March, will be played in Taichung, Tokyo, Phoenix and Miami from March 8-21. The first round of games for the Americans will be played at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. Subsequent rounds on the Team USA side of the bracket will take place at loanDepot Park in Miami, Florida.

Harper, along with Nick Castellanos, played for USA Baseball’s 18-and-under team. He did not play for Team USA in the 2013 or 2017 World Baseball Classic.

It’s far from a guarantee that Harper will be able to participate in the event. If he has to undergo surgery on his right elbow after this season, Tommy John or not, it’s tough to envision Harper being healthy enough to play in the tournament. The Phillies are scaling back on his throwing program. He’s currently rehabbing a broken left thumb suffered on June 25 and is optimistic he will eventually return to the Phillies lineup this season.

Harper has been an outspoken advocate for growing the game through international play in recent years, so it’s no surprise that Harper has interest in playing in the World Baseball Classic. He told Barstool Sports in 2020 that MLB players should play in the Olympics.

“You want to grow the game? You want to really take it to different countries and different places? You put baseball back into the Olympics but let the big-league players play,” Harper said.

Along with Realmuto, Los Angeles’ Mike Trout, St. Louis’ Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado and Boston’s Trevor Story have already committed to playing for Team USA in the WBC.

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