Philadelphia Phillies Superstar Still Content With Moving to the Outfield if Needed

The Philadelphia Phillies have had a somewhat quiet offseason, mostly looking to make moves that increase the floor of the team rather than the ceiling. With additions like Jesús Luzardo, Max Kepler, and Jordan Romano, they have done well to improve on positions of need, and now they look ahead to the 2025 season where they have an opportunity to make a postseason run once again.

The intriguing thing about this offseason for the Phillies has been their connections to some of the top free agents who they ultimately did not get, namely Pete Alonso. With their interest in Alonso being substantial for a time, their current first baseman Bryce Harper made it clear that he would be willing to move to the outfield if it meant the team could add more talent.

This sentiment died down a bit as Alonso went back to the New York Mets and Philadelphia stuck with their infield group as-is. However, he recently discussed it once again, and doubled down on the option, with MLB.com writer Todd Zolecki transcribing the following quote from Harper:

“That’s the thing, I don’t want to sit here and say they can never come to me. They’ve told me multiple times: ‘You’re our first baseman.’ They’ve told you guys multiple times. But if they were to come up to me and tell me, ‘Hey, we're going to get this guy at the Deadline,’ or, ‘The best thing for us is for you to move out there for a half-year or year,’ I would do it. Obviously, I love playing first base. It’s been great. I think I have the trust in my teammates to play there, too. But obviously, if there's a guy in the market that they want to go get at the deadline and I'm the easiest one to move back, I’m in. The main goal is to win the World Series.”

This makes for an intriguing topic, as there is the potential for the Phillies to get involved in the sweepstakes for Vladimir Guerrero Jr., especially if they are unable to retain slugger Kyle Schwarber, as they would need a new power threat offensively. If they were to land the offensive juggernaut, that would obviously warrant Harper moving back to the outfield for the sake of the team.

In addition, it would be intriguing to see if Philadelphia would be willing to add a first baseman at the trade deadline to improve the overall roster if they are performing below or above expectations and move Harper's position then.

Ultimately it is interesting that he is still willing to make that move if needed, and a positive sign that he just wants to do whatever it takes to win at this point

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