Bryce Harper nearing return, says wrist injury won’t require surgery

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PHILADELPHIA — More than three hours before an anticipated weekend series against the New York Mets began, Bryce Harper carried a bat and a glove to the Philadelphia Phillies’ dugout. He stepped on the field to play catch with Howie Kendrick, a Phillies’ front-office advisor. He fielded groundballs at first base. He sprinted in the outfield.

And, finally, he carried his bat to the underground cage. He took 20 swings from a tee — the closest he’s come to an actual swing in 15 days.

“It felt better than I thought it would,” Harper said. “So I’m happy about that.”

Harper’s recovery from inflammation in his right wrist has always been vague. The Phillies have not established any timetable for Harper’s return. They have not detailed his treatment for an injury that bothered him late last season. Harper was not with the team earlier this week during a four-game trip to Miami; the team said he’d travel but changed course because officials said Harper could do more work at Citizens Bank Park.

He is nearing a return — the biggest test will be how his wrist feels with increased swinging. Harper, who answered questions Friday for the first time in two weeks, clarified this: The pain in his wrist is not due to a structural issue. He’s met with various doctors who have assured him he would not need surgery — now or in the offseason — to fix it.

While that is reassuring to Harper, the injury’s recurrence remains a mystery.

“We haven’t really got too many answers about it,” Harper said.

Harper is all but certain to play through some continued pain this season; the goal is to make it tolerable. Harper said the best treatment has been rest. He’s now comfortable with beginning more activities on the field.

The swings from the tee were an indication of Harper’s progress.

“Very good,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “I mean, we wouldn’t do the tee today if there was any significant pain, for sure.”

But there is no timetable. Harper will repeat his pregame plan Saturday, then Thomson said the Phillies will assess things. Harper will not play in any minor-league games.

With a few days of good swings, he’d be ready to return to the Phillies sometime next week.

It seems.

Whenever he returns, Harper will evaluate his routine to manage the wrist pain. He hopes to avoid another situation like last season; it bothered him most in August 2024.

“I understand what I can tolerate and what I can’t,” Harper said. “I’ve played through pain in my career; I think everybody has at some point.”

He just doesn’t know how he’ll have to adjust things once he returns.

“That’s a great question,” Harper said. “But, like, it’s a question that I can’t really answer right now. Because I don’t know. I’m not happy that it came back. Right? I was pain-free for probably four and a half months, and then it came back just randomly. So that’s always tough. But those are things that we’re going to have to answer once I get going again. How many swings I’m going to take. How many times I’m going to throw a ball. It’s tough not to take those swings or do any of those things. But we’re just going to try to figure that out once we get there.”

(Photo: Nick Cammett / Getty Images)

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