CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The Phillies did what they had to do. In the end, it’s just that simple. Remember this day, Phillies fans. Your team is stepping up big time to sign a generational talent, Bryce Harper. Welcome to a new era of Phillies baseball, one that has the potential to be spectacularly fun with a packed ballpark and a winning team and one of baseball’s best and most interesting players in the heart of the lineup and the center of everything else.
You are about to have a really fun summer, Philadelphia. In an offseason when baseball teams were largely driven by data and logic, the Phillies acted with their hearts. Their boasts about spending “stupid money” may have left them no choice, but that’s beside the point.
On Opening Day, the Phillies will be good enough to win a World Series, and that's all that matters. Had they not signed Harper, no one would have remembered that they’d already had a very productive offseason. They’d pretty much promised to make history. That they may have done.
Does this 13-year, $330 million contract make sense? Of course not. But this isn’t the day to dig deep into that question. This is a day for parades and fireworks. Never mind that Harper will be 39 years old at the end of this mammoth thing, the largest ever in North American sports history.
On the other hand, 2031 -- the final season -- does not matter. Neither does '29 or pretty much any other season. This contract is about '19, about changing the narrative and the expectations and all of that. If Harper helps deliver a string of postseason appearances and a World Series or two, the Phillies will have gotten what they hoped for after six straight losing seasons.
At some point down the road, they’ll regret this contract. At least that’s the history of these things. On the other hand, if Citizens Bank Park has a magical vibe back by then and if October baseball is the new normal, no one should ever regret the years or dollars.
Know this: Harper must do his part. He must understand that he is now the new face of the Phillies and that he’s following in the footsteps of Steve Carlton and Dick Allen, Pete Rose and Mike Schmidt, Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard. Not many franchises ooze the history and -- this is important -- the expectations of Philadelphia.
Harper must understand that the spotlight is on him in a way it was never on him in Washington, where the city was still thankful to have Major League baseball back and where booing was not in the DNA.
That’s not Philadelphia. Harper will be seen as a hired bat for a couple of years. He’s the guy Phillies fans are accustomed to booing, and habits are tough things to break. All the things about his game that didn’t seem to matter much in Washington -- chasing pitches, never seeming committed to being a great defensive player -- those could make life difficult in Philadelphia.
All that said, only a fool would make any kind of judgment about a gifted 26-year-old who is insanely driven to be great. He’s nowhere close to writing the story of his career and can be whatever he chooses to be. How many players can we say that of?
Roberto Clemente in right field? That’s doable. Remember those Mike Trout vs. Bryce Harper comparisons? Those can be a thing again now that Harper never again has to worry about free agency or choosing a new team or auditioning for 29 others.
Now, he can focus on the lone thing he has already been committed to, which is being the best baseball player who ever walked the earth. Yes, he can still be that. His subpar seasons are better than most other players can even dream of.
Harper is also such a magnetic personality that he will bring fans to the ballpark who might not have come otherwise. He understands that he’s in the entertainment business, and that’s something every player could learn from.
That he's now thrown into the middle of a fascinating race in the National League East, that he's going to be a regular back at Nationals Park, that he’s, well, Bryce Harper, makes this a day that will be debated, discussed and dissected for years to come. Way down the road and up around the bend, there could be some regret. Until then, let's party like it's 2019.