The Philadelphia Phillies didn’t win the World Series in 2025. The team has had high expectations since reaching the World Series in 2022 but has failed to return.
The organization has been committed to bringing a championship back to the City of Brotherly Love, thanks in large part to having an owner determined to win. The core group hasn’t gotten the job done, and 2025 may have been the final chance, with several key players set to hit free agency and others in trade rumors.
The Phillies will continue to field a competitive team as long as Bryce Harper is under contract, but his better days may be behind him.
Did Dave Dombrowski question Bryce Harper’s elite status?
Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski didn’t shy away from sharing his thoughts about the face of the franchise during his end-of-season press conference on Thursday, according to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki.
“He’s still a quality player,” Dombrowski said about Harper’s down year, per Zolecki. “He’s still an All-Star-caliber player. He didn’t have an elite season like he has had in the past. And I guess we only find out if he becomes elite or he continues to be good.”
After hitting .294 across the previous four seasons, in which he was selected to two All-Star Games and named the 2021 NL MVP, Harper had a .261 batting average in 2025, his lowest since the 2019 season. The Phillies’ first baseman finished this season with 27 home runs, 75 RBIs and an .844 OPS.
The playoffs weren’t much better for Harper, who hit .200 with just one extra-base hit and no RBIs in the NLDS loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. It was uncharacteristic after he had hit .325 across the previous three playoffs, which included being named the 2022 NLCS MVP.
“Can he rise to the next level again?” Dombrowski asked, per Zolecki, questioning Harper’s elite status. “I don’t really know that answer. He’s the one that will dictate that more than anything else.”
Harper has been in the spotlight since he was a teenager, before being drafted by the Washington Nationals first overall in the 2010 MLB Draft. He’s a two-time MVP, eight-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger and was the 2012 NL Rookie of the Year.
Despite being a generational talent and future Hall of Famer, Dombrowski is skeptical about Harper’s future as one of the top players in baseball. Harper is under contract through 2031 and turned 33 years old on Thursday, making Dombrowski’s remarks about his star player that much more questionable.
Harper didn’t quite have the season the baseball world is accustomed to seeing from him, but there aren’t any reasons to believe that he can’t bounce back. Hopefully, Dombrowski’s comments light a fire under Harper and don’t create any unnecessary drama moving forward.
