Bryce Harper has encountered a unique problem in his first season with the Philadelphia Phillies: he’s not hitting fastballs.
Harper struck out three times on fastballs in Sunday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers. That means 39 of his league-leading 73 strikeouts have come from whiffing on fastballs, a big factor in his .227 average on the season.
Fastballs are normally the easier pitch to deal with as opposed to offspeed pitches for established MLB hitters, and Harper didn’t hide the fact that he has to improve against them.
“Yeah, all-around it’s not good right now,” Harper said, via Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia. “I’ve got to get better. I’ve got to be better. Turn the page from today and take the day off tomorrow and turn in to St. Louis.”
Harper has hit some mightily impressive home runs for the Phillies this season, but his overall numbers simply are not what they expected of him. It’s a bit surprising that it’s at least somewhat down to trouble with the fastball, but that’s where he’s at right now.
