Bryce Harper signed a 13-year, $330 million contract with the Phillies back in 2019 for the opportunity at a moment that came to fruition on Sunday. When he got his chance, he did not waste it.
Harper blasted a two-strike, two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning in Sunday’s Game 5 to give the Phillies a 4–3 lead that eventually held up, sending Philadelphia to the World Series for the first time since 2009.
David Robertson and Ranger Suárez combined for three outs in the top of the ninth, capping the wild comeback.
Harper’s homer was the sixth time in MLB history that a player hit a go-ahead, two-out home run in the eighth inning or later to clinch a series, per MLB.com’s Sarah Langs. It was Harper’s fifth home run of this postseason—tied for the fourth-most in franchise history in a single postseason—and his 11th extra-base hit, which is a franchise record.
The Phillies took a 2–0 lead in the third inning on a two-run homer by Rhys Hoskins. Juan Soto cut the deficit in half with a solo shot in the fourth. San Diego took the lead in the top of the seventh on an RBI double by Josh Bell to tie it, with the go-ahead run scoring on a wild pitch by Seranthony Domínguez.
That set up Harper’s heroics, though San Diego had two runners reach base in the top of the ninth on back-to-back walks by Robertson. Suarez came in and got two outs on two pitches to clinch the pennant for Philadelphia.
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