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During the offseason ahead of the 2019 MLB season, plenty of teams were after free agent slugger Bryce Harper. He was the biggest draw in the class, but the Philadelphia Phillies would end up signing him.
The two sides agreed a 13-year, $330 million contract. It was the largest MLB contract in history until Mike Trout signed his 12-year, $430 million extension with the Los Angeles Angels the following day.
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When comparing the two slugger's contracts, Trout's AAV of $36 million is much higher than Harper's $25.38 million. However, Harper told Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal that it;s the farthest thing on his mind.
"I want to win, I want to be a part of the city for a long period of time, and I'm able to make the money that I am and be able to be successful and happy with what I've done," said Harper.
Harper's main objective with the contract he signed was to stay in one place and try and be successful. He wasn't focused on obtaining the most money he could through free agency.
"I'm excited for Trout. I texted him and told him that, 'Hey man, I'm so excited for you and Jess. I'm happy for you, you deserve it.' There's no other player in the league that is more deserving than Mike Trout" said Harper.
The city of Philadelphia quickly embraced Bryce Harper
The city of Philadelphia takes great pride in its professional sports teams. They are one of the most dedicated and loudest fanbases in the United States, and that didn't escape Bryce Harper and his decision.
After learning that Harper signed with the Phillies, the fanbase went out and snatched up nearly every jersey they could find being sold. They broke the record for any professional jersey sold in 24 hours on Fanatics.
Not just jersey sales were going through the roof. The fanbase was also buying tickets at large, buying 200,000 more tickets than were previously sold at the same point the year prior.
Since signing his deal with Philadelphia, he has taken them to the postseason three times over the last three seasons. A World Series ring remains nearly the only thing Harper has left to achieve across his baseball career. Hopefully, he can soon put that on the mantle with the rest of his MLB achievements.
