Bryce Harper injury status: Phillies star dealing with tight hamstring; 'Never felt anything like this before'

Bryce Harper injury status: Phillies star dealing with tight hamstring; 'Never felt anything like this before'

The Philadelphia Phillies saw two of their top contributors suffer injuries during the final innings of Thursday's 7-4 loss against the Miami Marlins (box score) First baseman Bryce Harper, only hours removed from being named an All-Star starter, had his hamstring lock up on him as he ran to first base on the game-ending play; designated hitter Kyle Schwarber, meanwhile, felt groin soreness while making a throw during a rare appearance in the outfield. Both are expected to undergo imaging on Friday before a determination can be made on their short-term statuses.

"If I had something to go back on, I would let you know," Harper, who claimed he had never experienced a soft-tissue injury before, told the Associated Press. "But I've never felt anything like this before."

Harper, 31, will enter the weekend having hit .303/.399/.582 (175 OPS+) with 20 home runs, 58 runs batted in, and four stolen bases (on seven attempts) over his first 76 games. His contributions have been worth an estimated 3.7 Wins Above Replacement, per Baseball Reference's calculations. It's too early to know the exactness or the extent of Harper's injury, but Baseball Prospectus' recovery database indicates that strained hamstrings -- if that is what he suffered --  require four weeks on average to heal.  Should that come to pass, Harper would miss the All-Star Game, slated for July 16.

Schwarber, for his part, told the Associated Press: "Personally, I don't think it'll be super bad at all. But we'll see what happens."

Schwarber, also 31, had hit .250/.373/.447 (132 OPS+) and 17 home runs, 49 runs batted in, and four stolen bases. His contributions have been worth an estimated 1.7 Wins Above Replacement. As with Harper, it's too early to know precisely what Schwarber is dealing with. Groin strains do tend to require several weeks of healing as well. However, there have been instances where a player suffered from groin tightness without it, resulting in a prolonged absence.

The Phillies, 53-28 on the season, will continue their weekend series against the Marlins on Friday. Philadelphia is already without catcher J.T. Realmuto and pitchers Taijuan Walker and Spencer Turnbull.