Bryce Harper is not using Dave Dombrowski's assessment of his play last season as motivation for 2026, but the Phillies first baseman still thinks it's "wild" that the team president went public last October with claims that the two-time MVP was not "elite" last season.
"I don't get motivated by that kind of stuff. For me, it was kind of wild the whole situation of that happening," Harper told reporters at Phillies training camp in Clearwater. "I think the big thing for me was when we first met with this organization it was, 'Hey, we're always going to keep things in-house, and we expect you to do the same thing,' so when that didn't happen, it kind of took me for a run a little bit, so I don't know. It's part of it, I guess. It was kind of a wild situation."
Bryce Harper of the Philadelphia Phillies fist-bumps teammates Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026. AP
Harper, who has six seasons remaining on a 13-year contract worth $330 million, posted an .844 OPS — his lowest since 2016 — with 27 home runs and 75 RBIs in 580 plate appearances last season.
Shortly after the eight-time All-Star also went 3-for-15 with zero RBIs in a four-game elimination by the Dodgers in the NL Division Series, Dombrowski described Harper's 2025 performance as substandard.
"Can he rise to the next level again? I don't really know that answer," Dombrowski said. "He's the one that will dictate that more than anything else. I don't think he's content with the year that he had.
"Again, it wasn't a bad year. But when I think of Bryce Harper, you think elite, you think of one of the top 10 players in baseball, and I don't think it fit into that category."
Harper, who missed about a month last season with a wrist injury, acknowledged Sunday that he "obviously didn't have the year … or postseason that I wanted."
Philadelphia Phillies President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski before the game against the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
"My numbers weren't where they needed to be," he added. "I know that, and I don't need to be motivated to be great in my career or anything else. So that's just not a motivating factor for me. For Dave to come out and say those things, it's kind of wild to me still."
The 33-year-old Harper has a .280 career batting average with 363 homers and a .905 OPS over 14 seasons in MLB, seven with the Nationals and the last seven with the Phillies.
