Bryce Harper’s stellar comeback doesn’t surprise Phillies but leaves opponents in awe: ‘It’s unbelievable’

LOS ANGELES — As if there was any doubt, 178 days after his last time main tournament game and 160 days since Tommy John surgery, Bryce Harper made the first violent on-field strike he watched of the 2023 season on Tuesday night.

It doesn’t matter when he fouls the word slurve Julio Uriaswho predicted the first turn from Phillies slugger who took him deep last year. It doesn’t matter whether Harper beats his opponent in his first match or whether he fails in his four disc appearances.

The important thing, which defied the odds and all logic, was that he was there.

On Monday afternoon at Dodger Stadium, the two-time MVP who underwent elbow reconstruction on November 23 was performing first-base groundings and batting practice. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts playfully yelled at the Phillies slugger, begging him to sit out a few more days. Harper is not required.

One night later, just five months after undergoing a procedure that sidelined pitchers for more than a year, Superman helped bring the Phillies to the World Series with a tattered UCL that debuted in 2023.

Harper said: “We healed where I needed to be. “And we’re going to play the game smart, play the right way… understanding that I help my team when I’m on the field, not when I’m off the field.”

On the road to recovery, Harper worked closely with Phillies head athletic coach Paul Buchheit while testing himself mentally and physically. He understood how his body worked after the surgery. There are days when he moves forward; others he regulates back. During the experience, Harper wanted to make a date to return.

The Phillies set the original goal of an All-Star vacation – a goal that both Harper and Philadelphia staff knows he will beat. Expecting mid-July should allow plenty of time in the event of a setback. Do not have one.

Harper says: “My body has been very good to me in the process. “I’ve been working really hard in every way – in the weight room, on a diet, anything I can come up with to help my body recover faster or faster, or whatever I need to do. , I did.”

When the Phillies decided not to move Harper to the 60-day injured list at the end of March, it became clear that he was going to pass that initial timeline – significantly. A month ago, Harper began batting practice at Yankee Stadium in the second series of the year for the Phillies.

A return in early May makes sense for Harper for several reasons. There’s a month to go until the season, and it will allow him to visit Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Harper’s surgery, in Los Angeles. Deleting Harper was just a formality at the time the Phillies arrived on the West Coast.

Harper said: “Right now, I feel really good and I want to stay there. “I want to always feel comfortable, understand my body, what it feels like and just start there.”

On Tuesday, Harper returned to third place in the order. There have been rust incidents, although even Harper’s best performance may not have done much to prevent the Dodgers’ from winning the game 13-1. The Phillies only mustered two hits as a team, quelling the excitement over Harper’s return.

However, the stupidity didn’t stop anyone from marveling at Harper’s one-of-a-kind determination.

“There are only a few people on the planet in different sports who can get through this at a pace like this,” says Roberts. “It’s unbelievable, but not surprising to the players.”

A few weeks ago, Phillies manager Rob Thomson saw Harper’s batting pace and timing and knew then that he could return in early May. It was an amazing feat — for everyone but Harper and those who knew him best.

“In 2016 he was injured after a bad play, and we think he will be out this year,” Trea TurnerHarper’s current teammates with the Phillies and former teammates with citizen, remember. “He missed, like, three days or something.”

While Harper’s early return came as no surprise to Thomson or his Phillies teammates, his unbelievably quick recovery has stunned those who have gone through the same process.

Ken Rosenthal on Bryce Harper returning to Phillies lineup

When Dodgers reliever Caleb Ferguson, who had two Tommy John surgeries, tore his UCL for the first time in high school, he recalls that his doctor gave him permission to keep hitting. Like Harper, Ferguson used a brace to prevent his arm from moving beyond a certain distance when he swung the racquet. However, every extension is painful.

Meanwhile, Harper played most of last season with UCL torn in his right elbow, making a permanent transition to the designated assassin role this past April 17. He’s still 47% better than the league average in an All-Star season.

“It’s crazy, man,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson always heard that the longest part of Tommy John’s recovery was the six months it took for the ligaments to heal. Harper’s return earlier surprised him.

“It was unbelievable,” Ferguson continued. “I mean, good for him. It’s good for baseball.”

Harper plans to continue using the double he did last year, when he crushed 18 home players in 99 regular games of the season before delivering the biggest hit of his career. with a header taking the lead in the eighth inning of the Decisive Match of the National Championship. 5.

His experience playing in last year’s UCL tear has helped him mentally during his recovery this year.

Harper said: “I know what it was like last year to get over the pain. “I knew it was going to be a little bit different because I had surgery, so I really couldn’t sit there and say, ‘Oh, it’s going to be like that.’ But it definitely gives me a sense of how I’m going to feel playing.”

Notably, Harper did not need to go to rehab. He caught some live bats and started practicing gliding exercises in mid-April in Cincinnati. Recently, he received clearance on the first slides.

Harper said: “I’ve been healed the way I need to be, up until this point, but there’s always that risk. “Whenever you go through a major surgery, something can happen – I get a tag or slip into a pocket or whatever. But I got the word out. [Monday] that it won’t matter – from now on, today, or [in] two months, we’re in the same position that we would be.”

The watchful eye of the Phillies coaching staff has led Thomson to believe that both Harper’s burning desire to return as well as his violent spin will put the superstar at greater risk of injury.

Although the star midfielder made grounding moves from the start to try to speed his return to the pitch, there was still some time before he could play defensively. For now, the Phillies manager is delighted to add Harper to the squad once again.

“Once he gets hot, we’re going to be a few,” Thomson said.

Rowan Kavner including the Dodgers and NL West for FOX Sports. Previously he was the editor of digital and print publications of the Dodgers. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.

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