Phillies’ $330 million franchise star predicted to eclipse Mike Trout

The Philadelphia Phillies have had some all-time great players, from Mike Schmidt to Chase Utley.

And they have yet another generational star leading the franchise today.

After signing Bryce Harper to a 13-year, $330 million mega deal in 2019, the team has won a pair of National League Championships with the slugger slashing .286/.392/.534 and earning two All-Star nods, two Silver Slugger Awards and an MVP Award in the five-plus seasons since.

Naturally, that kind of success has analysts debating how Harper will ultimately rank among his peers. And, according to Zach Rymer of Bleacher Report, his career will ultimately persist better than that of the most talented player of his generation, Mike Trout.

“I think it’s fair to say (Mookie) Betts and Harper will have more memorable careers than Trout,” Rymer wrote.

When strictly evaluating wins above replacement (WAR), an advanced statistic designed to account for all of the facets of baseball, Trout leads all active positional players at a 86.2 mark. Betts is next in line at a 70.1 WAR and Harper holds the tenth spot at 50.7. But Rymer argued that Trout would surely trade his individual success for some of the playoff wins enjoyed by Harper and Betts, particularly as both players are poised for additional postseason runs this season and into the future.

“I would nonetheless venture a guess that Trout would gladly trade some of his WAR for some of the postseason success Betts and Harper have had,” Rymer added. “And whereas they’re not done in that department, does anyone have the Angels getting Trout to October any time soon?”

Since entering Major League Baseball in 2011, Trout has made the playoffs just once, which culminated in a first-round loss. He has won three MVP Awards, nine Silver Slugger Awards and 11 trips to the All-Star Game in his career, but fans might overlook that success as injuries and losing records have kept him from realizing success on the biggest stages.

It’s hard to say how fans might look back on this generation of baseball talent. But Harper has a chance to strengthen his case as its greatest with another deep playoff run this season.

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