Why didn’t the Phillies retaliate against the Braves on Tuesday night after Bryce Harper got drilled by Spencer Strider badly enough to exit the game?
“Because it’s not on purpose,” Phils manager Rob Thomson said Thursday to a gathering of reporters in the dugout before a doubleheader against Atlanta. “Simple as that.”
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
Period. End of statement.
Harper, who isn’t in the lineup for Game 1 of the twin bill, took a 95 mile-per-hour fastball off his surgically repaired right elbow in the first inning of the opening game and left for X-rays that came back negative. He was replaced by Edmundo Sosa.
Ranger Suárez spun a gem as the Phillies exacted revenge by winning, 2-0, but Thomson expressed concern about his two-time MVP’s overall health despite the good news from the X-ray.
Phillies fans had showered Strider with boos as Harper got down to one knee and held his right elbow while being surrounded by team trainers.
After the game, Strider told reporters in the visitors locker room that he didn’t intend to hit the two-time MVP, wasn’t a “total sociopath,” and said he felt empathy for Harper, who he called one of the best players of the century.
Wednesday's game was rained out, which gave the town and media plenty of time to discuss Strider's beaning of Harper and whether or not the Phils should settle the score. The Phillies and Braves are longtime NL East rivals who have faced each other in the postseason twice in the past three years in the National League Division Series, with the Phillies winning both series, 3-1.
A reporter mentioned to Thomson that the incident was a major topic of discussion among the fan base and asked why the Phillies didn't retaliate that night.
After saying that hitting Harper wasn't intentional, Thomson paused and added: "If I think somebody is throwing at one of our hitters – you know, I don’t know what I would do – but if it’s a pitch that gets away from a pitcher, which I believe it was and I think that everybody in that clubhouse thinks it was, that’s baseball. It happens.”
After Thursday’s doubleheader, the Phillies and Braves don't play again until June 27-29 in Atlanta.
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