Bryce Harper homers, leaves game early in Phillies’ rout of Cardinals

Genesis Cabrera had thrown the 36th pitch of his major-league career on Wednesday night when he pointed to the sky at Citizens Bank Park, appearing to alert the Cardinals outfielders that they had a routine play coming their way.

But Cabrera, who the Phillies chased early in an 11-4 victory, was about to receive a major-league education. That routine play left Bryce Harper’s bat at 102.9 mph. And it would not land in an outfielder’s glove. It instead rocketed into Section 147 for Harper’s 10th homer of the season.

Harper’s scorching, two-run homer was the first of four the Phillies hit on Wednesday night. He went 3 for 4, had his second-straight multi-hit game and drove in four runs before leaving the game as a precaution after fouling a pitch off his right foot with the Phillies ahead by 10 runs and halfway through a blowout win.

Before leaving the game, Harper seemed to provide another indication that he is heating up. He caught up with Cabrera’s 97 mph fastball and sent it the other way to left field for a first-inning single. He homered in the third and recorded his 200th career double in the fourth. In his last seven games, Harper is 10-for-28 with five extra-base hits. After a slow stretch, Harper seems to be coming on.

“I had a conversation with [hitting coach] John Mallee during the game,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “And I said ‘If there’s one thing that you’re seeing with Bryce right now that’s really standing out, what is it?’ And he said ‘It’s the lowest effort level that we’ve seen from him all year.' It’s something they’ve been working on together pretty diligently and it’s really paying dividends for Bryce right now.”

Having a low-effort level at the plate allows Harper to have a clear mind when he’s batting. Harper is simply staying relaxed and loose at the plate and trying to not think too much. It seems to be working. Two of his three hits came on the first pitch. He his effort-level might be low, but his aggressiveness is still present.

“I don’t want to get too much into it because I don’t want to think about it, to tell you the truth,” Harper said. “I’m just trying to relax up there and hit pitches that are in the zone and not swing at balls as best as possible. But I don’t even want to think about it.”

The Phillies thumped their way to another series win and they will try Thursday afternoon for their second-sweep in 10 days. They have won or split nine of their last 10 series. The Phillies are 11 games above .500, have a 3½-game lead in the division, and own the National League’s second-best record. No matter what happens Thursday afternoon, the Phillies will leave in the evening for California with momentum as they open a challenging series at Dodger Stadium.

“I don’t think we ever pay attention to where we are or what our record is,” said Andrew McCutchen, who scored four times. “We just try to show up and win. That’s what it’s all about. I didn’t know what the record was, honestly. The goal is showing up and winning the ball game. Everything else will take care of itself.”

Harper’s third-inning blast was followed two innings later by homers from McCutchen, Maikel Franco, and Scott Kingery. Franco and Kingery went back-to-back, each homering off the first pitch they saw from Cardinals starter-turned-reliever Michael Wacha. Kingery went 2 for 4 and the Phillies will continue to play him heavily in centerfield in order to keep him in the lineup, especially if Franco produces at third base.

The lineup provided plenty of offense for Aaron Nola, who allowed just one run in seven innings. He struck out eight and walked three as he shutdown the Cardinals for the second-time this month. Nola, just like Harper, is providing signs that he is pulling himself away from early-season struggles. Nola is now 6-0 and has allowed one run or less in five of his seven starts.

“Just getting out there more and more,” Nola said of how he seems to be getting better with each start. “I’ve been working hard through it all and not hanging my head through any of it. It was a tough first month but you can’t really look back on it. You have to look at the negatives and try to learn from it.”

Harper, an inning after his homer, came to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs. He jumped on Wacha’s first pitch and grounded it into center field for what the pitcher likely expected to be a two-run single. But this pitcher would have been wrong, too.

Harper’s proved that his low-effort level is strictly limited to when he’s in the batter’s box. He sprinted from home plate, charged around first base, ditched his helmet, and slid head first into second base to barely beat the throw from center field. He hustled his way to second base.

Harper returned to his feet with his uniform soiled and waved to the dugout. Harper had his third hit of the night. His slow start seemed another night further away and his effort-level was just where it needed to be.

“That type of effort-level is uncommon in a superstar of Bryce’s caliber,” Kapler said. “It’s not often that you see that combination of talent, grit, determination, and all-out 100-percent hustle.”