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MLB Makes Bryce Harper Announcement After Injury Update

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jake Elman | Last updated Jun 17, 2025 8:49 AM ET

As it stands, Philadelphia Phillies fans likely won't have to worry about first baseman Bryce Harper suffering an injury setback in the All-Star Game.

Harper, a two-time NL MVP, just keeps getting bad news. First, the Phillies reversed their decision to have Harper travel with them to Miami; instead, the eight-time All-Star remained in Philadelphia while recovering from a right wrist problem.

If that wasn't enough, Major League Baseball announced on Monday that Harper ranks fourth among NL first basemen in All-Star voting. Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Freddie Freeman had 1,136,389 votes as of Monday afternoon, by far the most among NL first basemen.

Harper had 276,647 votes, narrowly trailing Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Bush's 286,931 votes. New York Mets star Pete Alonso (895,900) has a considerable lead over both players.

That's not to say Harper necessarily deserves an All-Star nod. Harper hit the IL batting .258 with nine home runs, 34 RBI, and a .814 OPS over 253 at-bats. He's posted 1.5 bWAR for the second-place Phillies, who trail the Mets by two games in the NL East.

It's nonetheless surprising that Haper doesn't have more votes, though, especially given his name and reputation. He's certainly more recognizable than Busch, a third-year first baseman hitting .265 with 11 home runs, 39 RBI, and a .861 OPS for the NL Central-leading Cubs.

No Phillies player ranked higher than third at their position. However, each team must have one representative, and ace Zack Wheeler (7-2, 2.76 ERA) appears on track to earn his third All-Star selection.

Wheeler is already worth 3.0 bWAR, and he's recorded a brilliant 110-19 K-BB ratio in 88 innings.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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