Bryce Harper’s Agent Sends Phillies New Contract Ask With Elite Status In Doubt

April 7, 2026 · Yahoo Sports

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - MARCH 31: Bryce Harper #3 of the Philadelphia Phillies looks on during a game against the Washington Nationals at Citizens Bank Park on March 31, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)

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The Philadelphia Phillies have won two of their first three series as the team looks to answer lingering questions about its ability to go further into the playoffs with largely the same core of star players.

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Though the team shuffled outfielders, revamped the bullpen and promoted a pair of top prospects, it will once again be counting on veterans like Kyle Schwarber, JT Realmuto, Trea Turner and Aaron Nola to perform at star levels. And the Phillies' franchise slugger Bryce Harper is facing perhaps the most pressure to demonstrate that he’s still in his prime.

Philadelphia Phillies’ Bryce Harper Slumping At The Plate After Dave Dombrowski Call Out

After a relatively poor season at the plate last year, Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski openly questioned whether or not Harper could return to his “elite” status during an end-of-season press conference.

“He didn’t have an elite season like he's had in the past,” Dombrowski said, per ESPN News Services. “I guess we only find out if he becomes elite or he continues to be good."

And with that challenge hovering over him, Harper has responded with some early season struggles.

He slashed just .139/.205/.333 with five hits and seven strikeouts in his first 36 at-bats. And even though the season is still early, fans would have hoped to see a better version of the team’s highest-paid player.

Philadelphia Phillies Hold ‘Discussions’ About Bryce Harper Contract Extension

Harper is in the eighth season of a 13-year, $330 million contract with the team that is set to take through his age-38 season in 2031. And as his elite status is openly questioned by the team’s highest-ranking executive, his agent, Scott Boras, is asking the Phillies for an extension beyond that.

“In my discussions with (Phillies owner) John (Middleton) and Dave (Dombrowski), they’re fully aware that Bryce has a legacy that he wants to fulfill in Philadelphia beyond the current contract,” Boras told The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber. “And we’ve already had discussions about that as we go forward.”

Though the team might not be in a rush to extend Harper beyond his ongoing deal, it is something the player has lobbied for directly in the past. However, it would surely help his case if he can produce some better results at the plate as the season goes on.

Boras added that he is optimistic that Dombrowski’s doubt about Harper’s “elite” status will be resolved this year.

“ I don’t think there’s any question in his mind (that) he’s in the best shape of his life,” Boras said of Harper, per Lauber. “He is a true two-way player at his position, one of the best players in the league, and he has all that skill, and there’s nothing that I can see — and we have so many metrics to look to — there’s nothing that I could see that in any way suggests that he’s not anything but ready for another premium season from what we expect from Bryce Harper.”

This article was originally published on Forbes.com

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