Bryce Harper got off to a late start this season, taking the field for the first time on May 2nd after undergoing Tommy John surgery over the offseason. However, even that month-long delay doesn't explain the fairly pedestrian numbers that Harper has put up this season. Along the way, he has endured a lengthy home run drought, which the star outfielder finally managed to snap on Saturday afternoon in the Phillies second win of their doubleheader against the San Diego Padres.
Prior to hitting just his fourth home run of the season, Harper had gone 38 games and 166 plate appearances without hitting a bomb. That's pretty rare for a guy who has already hit 289 home runs in his career, and doesn't even turn 31 until October. Everyone was wondering when Harper would finally break his drought, but it doesn't sound like something that the Phillies slugger was overly concerned about.
“Everyone keeps talking about it, but it is what it is. For me personally, keep hitting the baseball. Keep hitting it hard. I don't go out there to hit homers. I don't really try to hit homers. If you try to hit homers, it's just not good. Put a really good swing on the ball tonight, and it was able to get out of there. Keep swinging and keep doing my thing.” – Bryce Harper, ESPN
While fans obviously pay attention to strange stats like this, players don't focus on whether or not they are hitting a certain amount of home runs every single day of the season. However, given Harper's track record of success, it's fair to wonder whether or not this is what he needs in order to heat up for Philly.
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