One of the biggest disappointments for the Philadelphia Phillies so far has been the performance of Alec Bohm. The 28-year-old has stumbled out of the gate in the opening weeks of the 2025 season, hitting .162/.174/.191 with no homers, four RBI and a minus-1.1 in wins above replacement (WAR). Although he has hits in three of his past four games and drove in his first run since April 5, Bohm isn’t out of the woods yet as the Phillies look to compete for a National League East division title.
Bryce Harper is one of Bohm’s teammates that knows there is plenty of time left to turn it around. The Phillies veteran has taken it upon himself to offer some words of encouragement for the young hitter and dropped his wisdom after Tuesday’s 6-4 win over the San Francisco Giants.
Bryce Harper Wants Alec Bohm to ‘Enjoy The Game’ Again
Harper had a simple message for Bohm after he went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a stolen base against the Giants. Although he’s been immune to early-season slumps as a career .285 hitter in April, Harper advised Bohm to make the game fun again to help him break out of his struggles.
Bryce Harper on Alec Bohm
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrCBS) April 16, 2025
“I just want him to enjoy the game.” #Phillies
Bohm is coming off the best season of his career as he made his first All-Star team. The third overall pick in the 2018 draft hit .280/.332/.448 with 15 homers, 97 RBI and five stolen bases in 143 games at the plate and also improved defensively to post a career-high 3.0 WAR. But the success led to offseason uncertainty as Bohm’s name circulated in trade rumors. The Phillies couldn’t find a trade partner and ultimately agreed to a one-year, $7.7 million contract to avoid arbitration but the talks appear to have a residual effect as Bohm struggled to begin the year.
With Bohm’s teammate Brandon Marsh also enduring an early-season slump, Harper extended another message to both players, noting how fortunate they are to play at this level.
“I just want them to enjoy the game,” Harper said. “Life can be a lot harder, life can be a lot tougher, we get to play this beautiful game every day. I was standing in the on-deck circle in the third inning thinking about it – it’s a great game we get to play. Obviously, you’re going to go through ups and downs in life and in the season and it’s a hard thing to do. But at the end of the day, we’re all healthy, we’re all strong. Just go out there and enjoy it because it’ll go quick and you’ll start thinking to yourself why did I take it so serious? And it’s gone now.”
Bryce Harper postgame pic.twitter.com/HkB8wSdycs
— John Foley (@2008Philz) April 16, 2025
While Bohm has fallen into a slump, there are signs that he’s using Harper’s advice to break out of it. Bohm drove in the go-ahead run late in Tuesday’s win over the Giants and showed optimism during a postgame interview with NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Tom McCarthy and Ruben Amaro Jr.
“It was big. Everybody knows obviously that I haven’t quite been up to par lately. But the only important at bat is the next one,” Bohm said. “[The mindset] hard to have and I definitely don’t have it as much as I should. It’s tough out there. This game will beat you up and beat you down. You’ve just got to stay strong. Eventually things will turn.”
“It was big. Everybody knows obviously I haven’t quite been up to par lately. But the only important at bat is the next one.”
— John Clark (@JClarkNBCS) April 16, 2025
-Alec Bohm on his big two out RBI hit tonight to give the Phillies the lead. Alec says he needs to keep that mindset of the next at bat.
“It’s hard to… pic.twitter.com/SBzTWH8t4J
If Bohm can find his All-Star form, the Phillies will be a better team and Harper’s words could be a turning point as Philadelphia looks to hit its stride in the final weeks of April.