Could the Philadelphia Phillies have an even bigger target in mind? And could that pursuit give the New York Yankees a second chance?
The last time Bryce Harper was in the market for a new team, a lot of people around MLB believed it was inevitable that he would join the Yankees. It was late 2018, and after seven seasons with the Washington Nationals, Harper was a free agent for the first time.
A Las Vegas native, Harper grew up as a fan of the Yankees, a team that has always been a fan of high-priced ball players. It made too much sense for him not to be wearing black pinstripes for the next decade-plus.
However, in a rare fit of budgetary restraint, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman chose that offseason to be frugal, reportedly never even making a call to Harper or his representatives. Cashman chose to bypass the chance to add a future Hall of Famer, who instead signed a 13-year, $330 million contract to wear the red pinstripes of the Phillies, and most Yankees fans have never forgotten.
Yankees Could Benefit From Perfect Storm of Factors Spurring Trade of Bryce Harper
But the stars may be aligning in 2025. The rumblings have started to grow that, after seven seasons with the Phillies, Harper may be looking for a new home.
Yankees fans have been dreaming for this second chance.
“He’s every Yankee fan’s high school crush,” said Ryan Garcia of the Fireside Yankees podcast. “He’s the girl that got away.”
Such a move would have been unthinkable not too long ago. Harper has been a leading piece in the core of players – along with Trea Turner, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, Aaron Nola, and Zack Wheeler – that carried the Phillies for the last several seasons.
Unfortunately, that core has not reached the ultimate goal of a World Series title, and with Schwarber and Realmuto hitting free agency, significant changes in the roster seem inevitable. Adding extra spice to the situation, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, at his end-of-season press conference, took what some saw as a backhanded swipe at Harper, seemingly suggesting that Harper may no longer be an “elite” player.
“He’s still a quality player,” Dombrowski said. “He’s still an All-Star-caliber player. He didn’t have an elite season like he has had in the past. And I guess we only find out if he becomes elite or he continues to be good.”
Dombrowski would offer some context to his comments during a Thursday appearance on Foul Territory, framing it as a compliment to “one of the best players in the game of baseball” to suggest that anything less than MVP-level excellence is considered a down season. Dombrowski also took the opportunity to address the rumors that Harper and the Phillies may be heading for a split.
“This thing’s got a life of its own,” Dombrowski said. “Now I’ve been reading that, ‘Oh, the Phillies may trade Bryce Harper.’ That couldn’t be further from the truth. We love him. We think he’s a great player. He’s a very important part of our team. I’ve seen him have better years. I look for him to have better years.”
Honestly, what else was Dombrowski going to say? The likelihood is that Harper will still be in Philadelphia when the 2026 season begins, and it would behoove Dombrowski and the Phillies for Harper to get back to his elite ways.
Phillies Could Use Bryce Harper’s Salary in Effort to Sign Kyle Tucker
But it really isn’t that hard to imagine a scenario where Dombrowski pulls the trigger on a trade involving the superstar. There is an audible scream from the Phillies fan base begging the team not to just keep rolling back with the same group and expect better results, and Fireside Yankees co-host Kris Drew suggested that Dombrowski could use Harper’s salary on a big free agent target.
“I know the Phillies are going to make a run, or going to at least show a lot of interest in Kyle Tucker, from kind of what I’ve been told,” Drew said. “Is this going to be a case where, ‘Okay, if we trade for Bryce Harper and take a good amount of that money, is it going to open up the door for them to spend more on the guy who we really wanted, the actual prize?’”
Harper, who turned 33 on Oct. 16, has turned himself into a very good defensive player at first base, recently being named a Gold Glove finalist for the second consecutive season. However, he posted his lowest batting average (.261) since 2019, and worst slugging percentage (.487) since 2016.
Despite that, New York Post MLB reporter Jon Heyman said on the “Pinstripe Post” podcast that Harper is “angry” about his contract, which pays him $27.5 million for each of the next three seasons, then $23.5 million for the final three. Sherman suggested that Dombrowski’s original comments were meant as a challenge to Harper.
“I continue to wonder if the meaning is the player is unhappy with his contract and this was a kind of side glance back at, ‘I can take some shots here, too,’” said Sherman.
The situation has Sherman acknowledging that a trade of Harper is not quite so far-fetched.
“Would I be 100 percent shocked if Bryce Harper got traded this offseason? No,” he said.
Garcia does not expect Harper to be moved, but he couldn’t hide his excitement over the idea of Harper with the Yankees.
“I’d cut out my liver, my kidney for Bryce Harper to be here because I love Bryce Harper,” he said.
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