Bryce Harper left Tuesday’s game against the Atlanta Braves after getting hit by a pitch on the elbow, but the Philadelphia Phillies did not seek their pound of flesh from the Braves in retaliation.
Former Phillies GM and current postgame analyst Ruben Amaro Jr. argued Tuesday that the Phillies should throw at an Atlanta hitter in retaliation for Harper getting hit, even though there was no belief that Braves pitcher Spencer Strider was intentionally throwing at Harper. Amaro said sometimes “retaliation is the right thing to do,” even if there was no intent.
Phillies Postgame Live: Ruben Amaro Jr. thinks that the Phillies will retaliate after Spencer Strider hit Bryce Harper tonight.
— Phillies Tailgate (@PhilsTailgate) May 28, 2025
(video: @NBCSPhilly) pic.twitter.com/6xjdTQYUE9
No Braves were hit Tuesday, and that continued in the first game of Thursday’s doubleheader at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Before the doubleheader, Phillies manager Rob Thomson made it clear that retaliation was not coming.
“It’s not on purpose. Simple as that,” Thomson told reporters. “If I think somebody’s throwing at one of our hitters, I don’t know what I’d do, but if it’s a pitch that gets away from a pitcher, which I believe it was and think that everybody in the clubhouse thinks it was, that’s baseball. It happens.”
Rob Thomson says there was no retaliation for Harper getting hit by Strider’s pitch because he believes it was not intentional@SportsRadioWIP pic.twitter.com/ZTj6qVbZW6
— Devan Kaney (@Devan_Kaney) May 29, 2025
The Phillies could get in trouble with MLB if they are deemed to intentionally throw at an Atlanta hitter, so Thomson is never going to admit to anything even if a Braves player is targeted. However, there does not appear to be any real hunger in the Phillies clubhouse to get even with the Braves over a pitch that they think was unintentional, even if there is no love lost between the two teams.
Harper has not played since getting hit on the elbow, but the injury does not sound serious. The Phillies have won the first two games of the series even without him in the lineup.
