Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper’s resume is quite impressive.
An eight-time MLB All-Star, a two-time NL MVP, an NLCS MVP, a four-time Silver Slugger, an All-MLB first-teamer, the 2012 NL Rookie of the Year, and a two-time Hank Aaron Award winner, Harper has seemingly accomplished it all, minus a World Series title.
And while winning a world championship is at the top of his to-do list, there’s also one other thing Harper wants to accomplish in his career before it’s over: play in the Olympics.
Following Team USA’s dominating 15-5 win over Brazil on Friday in the World Baseball Classic — a game in which he went 1-for-5 with an RBI — Harper was asked about playing in the Olympics, which will be held in Los Angeles in 2028, compared to the World Baseball Classic, to which Harper replied by pleading with MLB while taking a veiled shot at the WBC.
“I’ve been playing for L.A. 2028 for a long time,” Harper said after the game. “I think my whole career I’ve been trying to get something started or something coming up. Obviously, the WBC’s been great, but it’s not the Olympics, right? That’s no disrespect to the WBC or anything, but everybody knows that when the Olympics are on, everybody’s watching. It doesn’t matter what sport it is — it could be the most random sport and it’s got all the fans watching it.
“So, I’m hoping L.A. 2028 happens, I’m hoping the next CBA something can happen where teams and players can come to an agreement on taking that two-week break, especially it being in our home country. It’d be great for baseball. You talk about growing the game? Being able to grow it at the highest level would help out tremendously.”
This isn’t the first time Harper has petitioned for MLB to allow its players to compete in the Olympics, or the first time he’s thrown some shade at the WBC, which was formed back in 2005 as an international best-on-best tournament to supplement the lack of Olympic baseball competition.
Back in 2023, Harper stated with baseball and softball returning as Olympic sports in 2028 that he hoped the MLB owners could reach an agreement to allow major leaguers to play (Olympic rosters have been comprised of minor league players since 2000).
“I’m going to be old at that point, so I don’t know if they’re going to want me on the team, but it’s always a dream,” Harper said, via ESPN. “… I would love to put ‘USA’ on my chest and represent it at the highest level. I know the WBC, and everyone loves that and it’s great for the game, but it’s not the Olympics.”
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