{{short description|American baseball player (born 1989)}} {{about|the Washington Nationals pitcher|the former Major League Baseball catcher|Brian Harper}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2016}} {{Infobox baseball biography |name = Bryan Harper |image = |caption = |width = |team = |number = |position = Pitcher |birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1989|12|29}} |birth_place = Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. |bats = Left |throws = Left |debutleague = |debutdate = |debutyear = |debutteam = |statyear = |statleague = |stat1label = |stat1value = |stat2label = |stat2value = |stat3label = |stat3value = |awards = |teams = }}
'''Bryan James Harper''' (born December 29, 1989) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Harper spent eight seasons in the Washington Nationals organization. He is the older brother of Bryce Harper.
==Early life== Growing up in Las Vegas, Nevada, Harper played many sports, including basketball and football as well as baseball. His brother Bryce said that the reason he bats left-handed is because he always wanted to be like his older brother, who throws left-handed. The younger Harper said he tried throwing left-handed when he was young, but, being naturally right-handed, was terrible at it, so he settled for hitting from the left side instead.<ref name="csn">{{Cite news |last=Hughes |first=Chase |date=June 7, 2016 |title=BRYCE AND BRYAN HARPER: BROTHERS, BEST FRIENDS AND BASEBALL |url=http://www.csnmidatlantic.com/washington-nationals/bryce-and-bryan-harper-brothers-best-friends-and-baseball |access-date=November 7, 2016 |agency=CSN Mid-Atlantic}}</ref>
==Baseball career==
===High school and college=== Harper attended Las Vegas High School. He was drafted in the 2008 Major League Baseball draft in the 31st round by the Washington Nationals, but he chose not to sign.<ref name="voices">{{Cite news |last=Kilgore |first=Adam |date=June 7, 2010 |title=Could the Nationals draft two Harpers? |url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/nationalsjournal/2010/06/could_the_nationals_draft_two.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130226151805/http://voices.washingtonpost.com/nationalsjournal/2010/06/could_the_nationals_draft_two.html |archive-date=February 26, 2013 |access-date=December 11, 2016 |work=The Washington Post}}</ref>
After graduating from high school, Harper briefly relocated out-of-state to pitch for the Cal State Northridge Matadors before transferring back to Las Vegas to attend the College of Southern Nevada. The Harper brothers were teammates on the Las Vegas High baseball team as well as at Southern Nevada, a junior college that Bryce attended early so that he could sign with a major league team as quickly as possible.<ref name="vice">{{Cite news |last=Pielluci |first=Mike |date=July 12, 2016 |title=MAN AMONGST BOYS: THE ORAL HISTORY OF BRYCE HARPER'S RECORD-SETTING JUNIOR COLLEGE SEASON |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/man-amongst-boys-the-oral-history-of-bryce-harpers-record-setting-junior-college-season/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170616040003/https://sports.vice.com/en_us/article/man-amongst-boys-the-oral-history-of-bryce-harpers-record-setting-junior-college-season |archive-date=June 16, 2017 |access-date=December 11, 2016 |work=Vice Sports}}</ref><ref name="syracuse">{{Cite news |last=Kramer |first=Lindsay |date=September 3, 2015 |title=Bryce Harper's big brother playing career catch-up on Syracuse Chiefs |url=http://www.syracuse.com/chiefs/index.ssf/2015/09/bryces_bro_patiently_making_a_name_for_himself.html |access-date=December 11, 2016 |agency=Syracuse.com}}</ref> At the time, Bryce was a catcher, so the Harper brothers would often form the Coyotes' battery.<ref name="reviewjournal">{{Cite news |date=June 1, 2010 |title=Harper battery, bats power CSN |url=http://www.reviewjournal.com/sports/harper-battery-bats-power-csn |access-date=December 11, 2016 |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal}}</ref> Coyotes baseball manager Tim Chambers later praised Harper's work ethic and professionalism in spite of being overshadowed by his younger brother.<ref name="pennlive">{{Cite news |last=Kasinitz |first=Aaron |date=July 1, 2015 |title=Bryan Harper, Bryce's brother, comes into his own as Harrisburg Senators reliever |url=http://www.pennlive.com/senators/index.ssf/2015/07/bryan_harper_bryces_brother_co.html |access-date=December 11, 2016 |work=PennLive.com}}</ref> Harper acknowledged in a 2015 interview that he has "never been the uber-prospect like my brother has", but he said he focused on his pitching and was consistently able to get batters out.<ref name="syracuse" />
Harper pitched in the 2010 JUCO World Series, with Bryce as his catcher,<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 25, 2010 |title=10 Talented Teams Ready for NJCAA DI JUCO World Series |url=http://www.njcaa.org/sports/bsb/2009-10/releases/2010-05-25_11743.html |access-date=December 11, 2016 |agency=National Junior College Athletic Association}}</ref> earning the win in an 18-1 blowout of Faulkner State Community College in the second round of the tournament.<ref name="reviewjournal" /> After Bryce was ejected and suspended later in the tournament, Harper got to pitch in an elimination game versus Iowa Western Community College. While the Coyotes led into the ninth inning, the team's closer gave up a walk-off home run, ending their playoff run.<ref name="vice" />
The brothers spent just one year together at Southern Nevada before Bryce was drafted in the 2010 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft.<ref name="csn" /> Although Chambers hoped the elder Harper would be picked up by the Nationals in a later round of the draft, believing he could help his younger brother make the transition to professional baseball,<ref name="voices" /> the Chicago Cubs selected him in the 27th round.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brewer |first=Ray |date=June 8, 2010 |title=Several Las Vegans selected on second day of MLB Draft |url=http://lasvegassun.com/news/2010/jun/08/donn-roach-headed-angels/ |access-date=December 11, 2016 |work=Las Vegas Sun}}</ref>
While Bryce, having been taken by the Nationals with the first overall draft pick, chose to sign and become a member of the Nationals organization, Harper declined to sign with the Cubs. He instead transferred to the University of South Carolina, where he pitched in relief for the Gamecocks. He won the 2011 College World Series with South Carolina.<ref name="ready">{{Cite news |last=Wagner |first=James |date=August 17, 2012 |title=Bryce Harper's brother strives to make his own name in pro baseball |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/nationals/bryce-harpers-brother-strives-to-make-his-own-name-in-pro-baseball/2012/08/17/d3995eae-e0a8-11e1-a19c-fcfa365396c8_story.html |access-date=December 11, 2016}}</ref> During that 2011 season, he recorded a 5.40 ERA over 18 1/3 innings. He later admitted he "didn't pitch the best" as a Gamecock, but he said the additional year of college helped with his maturity.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Sadlock |first=Joshua |date=August 8, 2015 |title=Bryan Harper making a name for himself at Double-A |url=http://www.baseballessential.com/news/2015/08/08/bryan-harper-making-double-a/ |access-date=December 11, 2016 |agency=Baseball Essential}}</ref>
===Washington Nationals=== The Nationals again drafted Harper, in the 30th round of the 2011 MLB draft.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Miller |first=Steven |date=June 7, 2011 |title=All in the family: Nats draft Harper's brother |url=http://m.mlb.com/news/article/20166606/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150908083221/http://m.mlb.com/news/article/20166606 |archive-date=September 8, 2015 |access-date=December 7, 2016 |agency=MLB.com}}</ref> Feeling he was ready at that point to play professionally, he signed, joining his brother in the Nationals organization.<ref name="ready" />
While Bryce, who converted from catching to playing in the outfield, shot through the Nationals organization and made his major league debut in April 2012,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-04-29 |title=Nationals' Harper makes big league debut |url=https://www.si.com/mlb/2012/04/29/harper-nationalsdebut |access-date=2025-04-08 |website=SI |language=en-US |agency=Associated Press}}</ref> Harper's progression through the minors was slower. He spent the 2012 season with the Low-A Auburn Doubledays and the 2013 season with the Single-A Hagerstown Suns, working exclusively out of the bullpen. Starting in the 2014 season, he began to advance into the high minor leagues, ending the year with the Double-A Harrisburg Senators and appearing briefly in the 2015 season with the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs, the top level of the minors. After spending the first two months of the 2016 season back in Double-A and recording a 1.50 ERA over 24 innings pitched, including 16 out of 20 scoreless appearances, Harper was promoted again to Triple-A in June.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Collier |first=Jamal |date=June 6, 2016 |title=Nats promote Bryce's older brother Bryan to Triple-A |url=https://www.mlb.com/news/bryce-harper-s-brother-bryan-harper-promoted-c182455740 |access-date=December 7, 2016 |agency=MLB.com}}</ref><ref name="lingebach">{{Cite news |last=Lingebach |first=Chris |date=June 16, 2016 |title=To be clear, Bryan Harper earned his Triple-A promotion |url=http://washington.cbslocal.com/2016/06/16/to-be-clear-bryan-harper-earned-his-triple-a-promotion/ |access-date=December 7, 2016 |agency=CBS DC}}</ref>
After pitching to a 2.95 ERA over {{fraction|21|1|3}} innings with the Chiefs in 2016, Harper was shut down in August with a forearm strain. He was ruled out for the season, ending any chance of being called up to the Nationals that year.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kuttler |first=Hillel |date=September 8, 2016 |title=After Years in Minors, Bryce's Brother Bryan Harper Still Waiting for MLB Shot |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2655718-after-years-in-minors-bryces-brother-bryan-harper-still-waiting-for-mlb-shot |access-date=December 7, 2016 |agency=Bleacher Report}}</ref> In November, he underwent Tommy John surgery, which likely ruled him out for the 2017 season, as well. Due to his injury, the Nationals did not add him to their 40-man roster after the 2016 season, as had been previously expected.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Castillo |first=Jorge |date=November 18, 2016 |title=Nats minor-league pitcher Bryan Harper undergoes Tommy John surgery |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/nationals-journal/wp/2016/11/18/nats-minor-league-pitcher-bryan-harper-undergoes-tommy-john-surgery/ |access-date=December 7, 2016 |work=The Crozet Gazzet}}</ref>
Harper re-signed with the Nationals after the 2017 season and was invited to major league spring training in 2018 for the first time, vying for a spot in the Washington bullpen.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Janes |first=Chelsea |date=January 23, 2018 |title=Bryce Harper's brother Bryan invited to Nationals' major league spring training |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/nationals-journal/wp/2018/01/23/bryce-harpers-brother-bryan-invited-to-nationals-major-league-spring-training/ |access-date=March 4, 2018 |work=The Washington Post}}</ref>
Harper spent the 2018 regular season with Harrisburg, making 44 relief appearances and compiling a 3.69 ERA with 38 strikeouts and 4 saves across {{fraction|46|1|3}} innings pitched. He elected free agency following the season on November 2, 2018.<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 6, 2018 |title=Minor League Free Agents 2018 |url=https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/minor-league-free-agents-2018/ |access-date=May 23, 2024 |website=Baseball America}}</ref>
===Lancaster Barnstormers=== On March 22, 2019, Harper signed with the Lancaster Barnstormers of the independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.<ref>{{Cite web |date=March 22, 2019 |title=Bryce Harper's Big Brother to Pitch in Lancaster |url=http://www.lancasterbarnstormers.com/bryce-harpers-big-brother-to-pitch-in-lancaster/ |access-date=March 22, 2019 |website=Lancaster Barnstormers}}</ref> He made 37 appearances for the Barnstormers, posting an 0-5 record and 5.17 ERA with 32 strikeouts across {{fraction|31|1|3}} innings pitched. Harper became a free agent following the season.
==Pitching style== At 6-foot-5, Harper is two inches taller than his younger brother Bryce. Unlike Bryce, he throws left-handed.<ref name="csn" /> While his fastball velocity sat in the mid-80s when he was pitching for South Carolina in 2011,<ref name="ready" /> he was throwing in the low 90s with the Syracuse Chiefs in 2016 prior to undergoing Tommy John surgery. His pitching arsenal included a fastball, curveball, slider, and changeup.<ref name="lingebach" />
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
==External links== {{baseballstats|mlb=543280|espn=35795|br=|fangraphs=sa549768|brm=harper001bry|retro=}} *{{twitter|BryanHarper45}}
{{2011 South Carolina Gamecocks baseball}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harper, Bryan}} Category:1989 births Category:Living people Category:Baseball players from Las Vegas Category:Baseball pitchers Category:Cal State Northridge Matadors baseball players Category:Southern Nevada Coyotes baseball players Category:South Carolina Gamecocks baseball players Category:Gulf Coast Nationals players Category:Auburn Doubledays players Category:Hagerstown Suns players Category:Potomac Nationals players Category:Harrisburg Senators players Category:Syracuse Chiefs players Category:Lancaster Barnstormers players