One of the most sought after free agents of all-time hit the open market this past winter as Bryce Harper wound up signing a 13-year, $330 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies.
The contract is a record for a free agent in all of North American professional sports and it includes a full no-trade clause and no opt-outs. Before signing with the Phillies, Harper and the Los Angeles Dodgers reportedly had mutual interest.
Ultimately, the Dodgers were only willing to give Harper a short-term deal, so the two sides were not able to come to an agreement. Now the Dodgers face Harper and the Phillies for the first time this season in the opener of a three-game series at Dodger Stadium.
Harper has already had his ups and downs in his short time with the Phillies, hitting .252/.370/.490 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI in his first 56 games. He comes in swinging the bat well of late, however, slashing .406/.429/.688 with 10 RBI in his last eight games.
Tasked with slowing him down for the Dodgers is Kenta Maeda. He enters with a 6-2 record to go along with a 3.67 ERA, 4.08 FIP and 1.17 WHIP in his first 10 starts this season. Maeda has faced the Phillies six times in his career, going 3-1 with a 4.55 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with 33 strikeouts and seven walks in 29.2 innings.
He is opposed by Jake Arrieta, who is 5-4 with a 3.60 ERA, 4.38 FIP, 1.30 WHIP, 59 strikeouts and 26 walks in 70 innings over 11 starts this season.
Arrieta has had some success against the Dodgers in his career dating back to his time with the Chicago Cubs. He is 3-3 with a 3.07 ERA and 1.05 WHIP in seven career starts against them. He famously threw a no-hitter at Dodger Stadium during his Cy Young season in 2015.
This Dodgers team is a lot different than that year’s though as they currently rank first in the National League in runs scored (.308), batting average (.264), on-base plus slugging percentage (.816) and walks (236).
A lot of that has to do with the production of NL MVP favorite Cody Bellinger, who made the move to right field this season after the team traded Yasiel Puig and didn’t sign Harper. Bellinger comes in leading the league in almost every offensive category, hitting .377/.464/.754 with 20 home runs and 52 RBI in 55 games.
Justin Turner is out of the lineup for a second consecutive game because of hamstring tightness. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts deemed the issue “benign” on Thursday, adding Turner was available to pinch-hit and likely to start against the Phillies.
Roberts is celebrating his birthday Friday but isn’t with the team, as he’s attending his son’s graduation. Bob Geren will manage the Dodgers, with Chris Gimenez serving as bench coach.
Meanwhile, the weekend series will see Boo’s Philly Cheesesteaks and Hoagies set up
Dodgers lineup:
LF: Joc Pederson
3B: Max Muncy
SS: Corey Seager
RF: Cody Bellinger
1B: Matt Beaty
CF: Alex Verdugo
2B: Kiké Hernandez
C: Will Smith
P: Kenta Maeda
Phillies lineup:
CF: Andrew McCutchen
SS: Jean Segura
RF: Bryce Harper
1B: Rhys Hoskins
C: J.T. Realmuto
2B: Cesar Hernandez
3B: Scott Kingery
LF: Nick Williams
P: Jake Arrieta
