The New Mr. October
October 11th, 2023… The day Bryce Harper showed the world why you don’t poke the bear. After the disappointing Game 2 loss in Atlanta, Orlando Arcia, the Atlanta Braves shortstop was heard multiple times in the locker room celebrating with his team and remarking multiple times “Attaboy Harper”, while laughing with teammates. Unfortunately for Arcia, this news left the sanctum of the Atlanta Braves locker room and made its waves into the Philadelphia Media. Philadelphia Twitter and Facebook pages were flooded with anger and motivation from Arcia’s comments. But this is Bryce Harper we are talking about here. The 330 million Dollar man doesn’t need extra motivation. This guy has been a phenom since he was 13 years old, and last night was no different. Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos were seen pregame walking into the Phillies dugout wearing University of Colorado gear, a simple gesture that may have gone over some heads. The significance? Deion Sander’s prepped his team to shock the world this year, starting the season upsetting TCU, the defending runner-up in the NCAAF Playoffs last year. Deion’s Mantra? Keeping receipts from his opponents and enemies to show his team that it is them against the world…. Sounds just like Philadelphia, doesn’t it?
The game started out different than most in Philadelphia would’ve liked. Bryce Elder, the rookie pitcher and first year All-Star, went toe-to-toe with Aaron Nola, striking out 4 of the first 6 Phillies to step to the plate. With downward movement on his pitches, Elder looked like he may be in for a big day, especially after Atlanta struck first, with Ozzie Albies scoring Ronald Acuna with a double. The Phillies returned to the dugout in the bottom of the third and were immediately energized after a moonshot homerun by Nick Castellanos. This was just the beginning. Bryce Harper stepped to the plate in the bottom of the third and did what any pissed off power hitter would do. He cracked the ball 408 feet into the 2nd deck to give the Phillies a 4-1 lead. While rounding 2nd base, Bryce stared down Arcia, letting him know what he thought of those comments. The Phillies continued to rally, with Realmuto hitting a 2-run double, stretching the lead to 6-1. Everything was quiet in the 4th inning, and Nola stayed strong in the 5th, leading to Bryce Harper’s next at bat in the bottom of the inning. This time facing Brad Hand, the former Phillies pitcher. Bryce took this pitch to dead center, went a whipping 414 feet for his 2nd home run of the day, stretching the Phillies lead to 7-1, and paving the way for a 10-2 victory. He made sure to stare down Arcia this time as well. The Phillies tied an MLB record and set a Phillies franchise record with 6 home runs in the game. Also, Bryce now holds the record for most home runs in NLDS history.
https://x.com/MLB/status/1712231439280836662?s=20
When Bryce Harper became a Philadelphia Phillie in 2019, Phillies fans hoped and prayed he may be the answer to getting us back to the postseason, something we had not done since the Rollins/Utley/Howard trio came to an end. Bryce has done nothing but show he is worth every single dollar of his 330 Million dollar contract. He won an MVP. He led the Phillies to the World Series in 2022, having one of the strongest playoffs runs in MLB history. And this year is no different. “Bryce Harper is 30 years old. He has now spent half his life squarely in the limelight. He is a beloved teammate, a tremendous leader, an elite player and as clutch as anyone in the game. He is not just everything he was supposed to be. He is more” wrote MLB Insider Jeff Passan, after Harper’s big series against the Marlins in the NL Wildcard round.
When the Phillies clubhouse got word of what Arcia said, they immediately told Bryce the news. “They just kind of told me,” Harper said after the Phillies’ emphatic 10-2 win in Game 3. “They looked at me and they were like, ‘What are you going to do?'” “I don’t know if he was planning on it or not,” Brandon Marsh said of the stare down, “but that’s the best way of taking care of business.” Bryce continues to build out his future Cooperstown resume, with stats that are mind-blowing to say the least. In the last two postseasons as a member of the Phillies, Bryce is hitting .350 with 9 homers, 7 doubles and 18 RBIs in 22 games. Even better, the Phillies have been matched up against the Braves, their division rival the last two years… Harper has made his impression felt. In 30 total games against Atlanta, Bryce is hitting .316 with 12 homers, 20 extra base hits, and 26 RBIs. “You put him in the spotlight and he’s going to shine,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said, as his team clings on to life entering a win or go home game 4 in Philadelphia. When asked by John Clarke at NBC Sports Philadelphia what did he think of Arcia’s comments, Nick Castellanos replied “We know what he said. But we gotta win tomorrow.”
The Phillies are turning to Ranger Suarez to close out the series at home. Rangers last 6 times facing the braves:
3⅔ IP, 0 R
6 IP, 1 R
3⅓ IP, 1 R
6 IP, 0 R
6 IP, 1 R
5 IP, 0 ER
Phillies…. IT’S TIME. Lets close out tonight and get ready for the Diamondbacks.
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