Bryce Harper and the Phillies are being meticulous in his rehab from Tommy John surgery and the two-time MVP continues to check items off the list.
Harper has progressed to high velocity in the batting cages and has hit off the breaking ball machine. On Tuesday, he took ground balls at first base and practiced modified sliding.
Sliding is what's holding back his return. Phillies manager Rob Thomson said Tuesday that Harper would be ready to hit in a game today, but again emphasized the risks associated with sliding. One false move could result in his ulnar collateral ligament rupturing again.
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"Once he gets on base, then we can put a brace on him," Thomson said. "But if he hits a double, we can't hand a brace off to him as he's rounding first base. That's really where it gets dangerous."
Why not just tell Harper not to slide, one might ask, but it's hard to rid such an instinctive player and aggressive baserunner of his muscle memory.
The Phillies still are not putting a firm timetable on Harper's return but more should be known after his next follow-up appointment in the coming weeks in Los Angeles, where his surgery was performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache.
"Once they clear him to do full-out sliding, once we get that, then we'd reevaluate," Thomson said.
MLB
The Phillies did not place Harper on the 60-day injured list out of spring training to leave open the possibility that he could return prior to Memorial Day. It doesn't mean it will happen, but early-to-mid-June seems more likely as of this moment than the initial conservative timetable of the All-Star break.
When Harper returns, it will likely be as the Phillies' designated hitter. In their first 11 games, they've used Kyle Schwarber as the DH seven times, Castellanos three times and Alec Bohm once.