The Philadelphia Phillies are currently preparing for spring training as they gear up for the upcoming 2026 MLB season. The Phillies are looking to bounce back after losing to the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in crushing fashion in last year's NLDS.
After last season, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski made some comments that raised eyebrows, publicly wondering if star Bryce Harper was still an elite player.
Now, Harper himself is reacting to the perceived diss.
“I don't get motivated by that kind of stuff, for me it was kind of wild the whole situation of that happening,” Harper said, per the Associated Press, via ESPN. “I think the big thing for me was when we first met with this organization it was, ‘Hey we're always going to keep things in-house and we expect you to do the same thing,' so when that didn't happen it kind of took me for a run a little bit, so I don't know. It's part of it, I guess. It was kind of a wild situation.”
Back in October, Dombrowski drew heavy criticism for his public critique of Harper following the 2025 playoffs flameout.
“Can he rise to the next level again? I don't really know that answer,” he said. “…Again, it wasn't a bad year. But when I think of Bryce Harper, you think elite, you think of one of the top-10 players in baseball, and I don't think it fit into that category.”
In a vacuum, Dombrowski wasn't wrong, as Harper didn't play up to his future Hall of Fame standards last year.
However, the problem was not so much what he said but rather that he said it, and how he said it, and Harper clearly didn't appreciate it too much.
The Phillies' season is slated to get underway in late March.
