Former All-Star Talks Philadelphia Phillies Superstar's Hall of Fame Chances

A former MLB All-Star talks about a Philadelphia Phillies superstar's path to Cooperstown.

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Philadelphia Phillies' superstar Bryce Harper was one of the most highly touted prospects in baseball history.

The Washington Nationals selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 MLB draft. A Hall of Fame career was the expectation before he even stepped foot on a Major League field.

Ken Griffey Jr., Peyton Manning and LeBron James are some of the only athletes that could relate to the pressure Harper has been under his entire professional career. Heading towards his 14th Big League season, he has met those lofty expectations.

He made his Big League debut in 2012 at just 19 years old. He became the youngest position player in history to be an MLB All-Star that summer. He later won the National League Rookie of the Year. He's a two-time MVP, winning one with the Nationals and the other with the Phillies. He has 336 career home runs, yet he won't turn 33 years old until October.

Former three-time All-Star Sean Casey thinks Harper would be a Hall of Famer if his career ended today.

Harper is well on pace to reach 500 career home runs, which would make him a virtual lock for Cooperstown. His career 51.1 bWAR is already higher than a number of hitters in the Hall of Fame. He has more than enough time to approach 80.0 bWAR, which would put him towards the upper echelon of baseball's greats.

Casey played 12 years in the Majors, finishing with a .302 career average. On his Mayor's Office podcast he called Harper one of his favorite players while gushing about how Harper's father, Ron, taught his son the game.

Casey said that Harper impressed him during his early years with his respect and knowledge for the history of baseball. Casey also compared Harper's hard nosed, maximum effort style to Pete Rose. Those are all things Casey attributed to Harper's upbringing.

Casey called Harper's current contract "The best bargain in baseball." Back in 2019, Philadelphia signed Harper to a 13-year deal worth $330 million, the biggest deal in the history of the sport. Times have changed over the last half decade, as the New York Mets just signed Juan Soto to a 15-year deal for $765 million.

The one thing missing on Harper's resume is a World Series ring. His contract with the Phillies runs through the 2031 season, at nearly half the annual cost of what it would take to get a similar player. He still has plenty of time to check that World Series ring box on his Hall of Fame resume.