It's bold prediction time right before Opening Day on Thursday. It's that time of year when all the talk of the offseason can finally come to rest as the regular season commences. A lot happened over the offseason when it came to the Philadelphia Phillies, and much of the drama and chatter surrounded their first baseman, Bryce Harper. To his standards, Harper had a down year in 2025, and the media questioned his future all winter as a result. My bold prediction for 2026 is that Harper will bounce back and turn in a top-five MVP performance.
Harper is a two-time MVP, eight-time All-Star, and four-time Silver Slugger. He has the accolades in his trophy case that show how great of a player he's been in his illustrious 14-year career. What Harper is now facing entering his age-33 season is something he's unfamiliar with: having to prove that he can still be elite.
He proved his ability after his electric two-run homer for Team USA in the WBC final, but has to show it all season long. He still has the skill to get it done, and his approach to 2026 shows he's willing to do what it takes to remain one of the best players in the league.
Phillies' Bryce Harper can quiet the noise once and for all by dedicating himself to new approach
Harper finished with 27 home runs, 75 RBI, and an .844 OPS in 132 games in 2025. Any club would take that kind of production in their lineup, but Harper's status holds him to a different standard, one that he even expects from himself. Something he's honed in on is making an active focus on walking more (subscription required), per Matt Gelb of The Athletic.
The significance of his approach to walking more will be his increasing selectiveness at the plate. In 2025, per FanGraphs, Harper only walked 70 times while also chasing a career-high 35.4 percent of pitches outside the strike zone. His increased aggressiveness also showed in his 53.9 percent on first-pitch swings. Harper has only walked 100 or more times four times in his career, but won the MVP two of the years he did. That could spell a top-five finish for him in 2026 if he puts it all together.
Walking more isn't the end-all be-all for Harper to turn in another MVP season, but it could catapult his OPS number back around the elite 1.000 level once again. The top hitters in MLB have carried a similar number, and to get there, he'll need to showcase a combination of walking more and being more selective at the plate, exactly what Harper is locked in on doing in 2026.