Bryce Harper is about to hit the accelerator on his return to the Phillies’ lineup.
Harper had three pins removed from his broken left thumb Monday, 33 days after they were initially inserted. His doctors consider the fracture to be healed, and Harper will ramp up his physical activities before beginning a hitting progression.
Last week, Harper declined again to provide a timeline for his return out of concern for overpromising and underdelivering. But with the removal of the pins, he cleared a major hurdle.
”With how I feel after I get the pins out, we’ll go as quickly as possible and try to get back within reason,” Harper said. “I don’t want to give anybody false hope or anything like that. When I get back, I’ll be back and ready to go.”
Brown promoted to Reading
It’s moving day for several Phillies minor leaguers, including breakout pitching prospect Ben Brown.
Brown, a 22-year-old right-hander, has been promoted to double-A Reading after putting up big strikeout numbers for high-A Jersey Shore. He fanned 105 of 297 batters (35.4%) and walked only 23 (7.7%) while posting a 3.08 ERA in 73 innings.
Amid the backdrop of Tuesday’s 6 p.m. trade deadline, Brown’s call-up may seem curiously timed. But the Phillies moved up several other players after Sunday’s games, including right-hander Rodolfo Sanchez and outfielder Marcus Lee Sang to Jersey Shore and outfielder Carlos De La Cruz to Reading.
The Phillies have signaled that top pitching prospects Andrew Painter, Mick Abel, and Griff McGarry are off limits in trade talks. Brown, who has rocketed up Baseball America’s rankings to the No. 7 spot in the Phillies’ farm system, figures to draw interest, too, among teams that like his 6-foot-6 frame and power slider.
