SEATTLE -- The last time Bryce Harper went an entire game without reaching base was all the way back in the days when he was still playing first base.
A month that started with Harper moving back to the outfield for the first time since 2021 has turned into one of the best of his entire career. That continued on Wednesday when Harper collected a pair of hits, including a first-inning homer, in the Phillies' 6-0 win over the Mariners at T-Mobile Park.
The home run was the 390th of Harper's big league career. One inning later, Kyle Schwarber hit his MLB-leading 40th home run of the season -- and the 380th of his career.
That was more than enough for Jesús Luzardo, who continued his remarkable run by allowing only one hit over seven scoreless innings while striking out nine -- reaching the 200-K mark in the process. Luzardo improved to 8-1 with a 1.90 ERA over his past 14 starts, dating to June 10.
As for Harper, his two-hit day extended his on-base streak to a career-best 29 straight games. The last time he didn't reach base safely was July 25 -- more than a week before he moved to the outfield.
Overall, Harper has a .509 on-base percentage for the month of August, which would match the best month of his career (April 2017). He's been on base so much that his OBP actually went down by reaching only twice in four plate appearances Wednesday.
“Yeah, I feel good,” Harper said. “ … I don't really have a reason. I don't really have a motive or anything else, so I don't really have an answer for you guys. I don't have an answer for [hitting coach] Kevin Long either. I’m just trying to go out there and play good baseball.”
The last Phillies player to have a .500 on-base percentage for an entire month was Jayson Werth in August 2007.
“He's been having a heck of a month,” Schwarber said. “Just overall, it feels like it’s quality after quality after quality after quality at-bats. That’s what you want.”
Along with his five homers this month, the real driving factor behind Harper's ridiculous on-base percentage is his increased walk rate. His 28 walks in August are his most in any month since Sept. 2018, when he walked 34 times during his days with the Nationals.
"He's impressive," interim manager Don Mattingly said. "I don't know how much you guys appreciate what he really does and how long he's been doing it, but it's impressive."
Perhaps even more impressive is the fact this scorching stretch has come amid his transition back to the outfield. While that continues to be a work-in-progress, Harper has already made considerable strides.
The latest example came on Wednesday, when he made a leaping catch just shy of the wall to take a hit away from Julio Rodríguez. That came after a diving catch on Tuesday and a sliding catch in foul territory last Saturday at Citizens Bank Park.
"We've seen a couple plays even in this series where the jumps are good into that gap," Mattingly said. "We've seen him go the other way toward the line. ... The slide the other day in Philly. He looks comfortable out there. He's had enough reps over time that he's got all the plays."
Most notably, though? Harper is also playing right field almost every day.
Remember, it was revealed earlier this month that Harper had been dealing with some knee soreness even before moving back to the outfield. That came to light when he served as the DH twice in a three-game span from Aug. 8-10.
Harper, however, has started in right field for 13 of the 14 games since. But the Phillies will continue to look to get him an inning wherever they can, just as they did on Wednesday when they replaced Harper with Derek Hill for the final inning of a blowout.
"We still watch him physically, in general, because he's nicked up," said Mattingly, who acknowledged Harper is still dealing with the knee issue. "Any kind of tendinitis-type scenario, you're going to end up -- some days you feel good, but every once in a while you take a misstep and you feel a little swelling and soreness.
"It's always come back to ground zero for us on a daily basis. If it doesn't, that's when we try to DH him or get him off his feet for a day."
Harper, of course, has been on his feet -- and the basepaths -- more than ever this month.
“Hopefully, I can kind of keep that going and feeling good out there each day,” Harper said. “Body feels good, legs feel good.”