Phillies insider claims "no Phillie greater than Bryce Harper" in his lifetime, placing blame on team for World Series shortfalls over the 2x NL MVP

Not many No. 1 overall MLB Draft picks meet expectations, but Bryce Harper is not among them as he seems to have exceeded expectations.

After the Washington Nationals drafted him in 2010, he debuted as a 19-year-old, winning two NL MVP awards and one NLCS MVP title since then. However, the individual accolades have not translated to ultimate glory.

Nevertheless, despite not having a World Series ring, a Philadelphia Phillies insider sees Harper as the best baseballer he has ever seen.

On Thursday's episode of the "Locked on Phillies" podcast, insider Connor Thomas gave Harper the greatest compliment a Phillie could get. [20:50]

"Bryce Harper, to me, is the greatest Philadelphia Phillie that I've ever seen. Now, remember, I was born in 1994, so anyone before that you can have Mike Schmidt, you can have all those guys back in the day. If you want to say they're better, you could make the argument. I didn't watch them play in real time," Thomas said.

"For me, in my lifetime, there's been no Phillie greater than Bryce Harper, and it's amazing that he's continuing to produce the way that he is," Thomas added.

Harper was a baseball prodigy, even garnering similarities with NBA superstar LeBron James. Unfortunately, Harper hasn't been able to translate individual accomplishments into World Series rings.

LeBron James has four NBA titles, in addition to being named the NBA MVP four times. However, Thomas did not care about it as he blamed the Phillies. [27:42]

"He has already given this city more than you could have ever imagined from him when you signed him to that monster deal. And you want a ring, right? That's something that's fair to expect from a team of this caliber. But in baseball, you can't put it on an individual; you can't put it on just Bryce Harper. It's on the team," said Thomas.

Phillies insider raves about Bryce Harper's iconic 'Bedlam at the Bank' homer

Freddie Freeman hit a walk-off grand slam in Game 1 of the Dodgers vs. Yankees World Series. It will likely be the greatest hit of Freeman's career when all is said and done.

According to Thomas, the greatest hit of Harper's career was the iconic homer in the NLCS Game 5 against the San Diego Padres, sending Philadelphia into the 2022 World Series. [23:42]

"Bryce Harper just spit on the nastiest changeup and then took a ball deep the opposite way that put the Philadelphia Phillies into the World Series. It was flat-out amazing. It's one of the greatest moments in Philadelphia sports that I've ever seen," Thomas said.

"It is the biggest home run I've seen in Philadelphia Phillies history. It was just absolute pure Bryce Harper - a great at-bat, ready for the moment, the bright lights don’t faze him. He comes through more often than not," Thomas added.

Harper indeed has the opportunity to create bigger moments than "Bedlam at the Bank." The Phillies were one of the favorites to win the World Series in 2024, but they lost in the NLDS to the New York Mets.

With renewed focus in 2025, the Phillies and Harper have the means to taste ultimate glory in MLB.