Last year, Bryce Harper had a pretty hectic season. Suffering a small tear in his elbow ligaments at the start of the 2022 season changed the shape of his season, as he was forced to limit himself to a designated hitting role.
He also missed weeks after being hit in the thumb by a fastball, which didn’t help either.
However, despite injury adversity, Harper had a strong batting season. Even as a designated hitter, he dragged his club to the World Series, and after the season underwent Tommy John surgery. It was anticipated that he would be out until the All-Star Game break.
However, his healing process is moving at lightning speed, so he could come back much faster. In fact, it’s far from impossible to see him back in action… in two weeks.
Remember that currently, Harper is ready to start hitting again. That said, the fact that he can’t slide yet (it might damage his elbow) means that he can’t come back yet, but it only seems like a matter of time.
If he returns within two weeks, Harper’s absence will only last 163 days, or just over five months. I know we’re talking about a hitter here and he’s not going to start playing in the outfield again in the short term (he should be back at first base), but it’s still completely surreal.
In fact, it would be quite a record. Tony Womack returned to the game 184 days after his Tommy John surgery in 2004, and obviously Harper won’t need that long.
He is truly a force of nature.
It’s also important to remember that the Phillies’ plan is for the club’s star not to go through the minor leagues before returning to play. We’ll bring him right back into the action.
Anyway, we’ll see if Harper will be able to get back into the game that quickly, but clearly, he’s recovering at a crazy speed right now. And that’s good, because baseball does better when its stars like Harper are healthy and on the field.
