Daily News | Even owner John Middleton wondered if the Phillies could overcome Bryce Harper’s broken thumb
SAN DIEGO — The morning after Bryce Harper took a 97 mph fastball off the left thumb and the’ season flashed before everyone’s eyes, the fan with the largest investment in the team spoke by phone with the reigning National League MVP.
Middleton, who watched the game from home after hosting a dinner party, never said it aloud, certainly not to Harper, but the thought did cross his mind. Maybe this wasn’t going to be the Phillies’ year. Again. But before the Phillies meet an equally upstart Padres club that has felt a similarly special vibe after knocking off the 101-win New York Mets and 111-win Los Angeles Dodgers, it was impossible not to think back to the fourth inning on June 25 when the sky over Petco Park nearly fell on them.Harper knew it was serious immediately after getting drilled by Padres lefty Blake Snell.
Harper missed two months and took more time to regain his timing. He batted .227 with three homers and a .676 OPS over the final 35 games. But he has come alive in the playoffs. In six games, he’s 10-for-23 with three homers and a 1.437 OPS. “Look, when you’re signing somebody for $330 million, a decade plus, it’s honestly as much about character as it is about ability,” Middleton said. “You have the ability or you’re not even talking to him. Then the question is, OK, what happens to the competitive athlete when you hand him a guaranteed 330 million bucks? You needed to kind of get to the bottom of really who the person is. Because at the end of the day, it’s the ambition that determines how hard they work at their job.
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