He went 0 for 3 with an intentional walk and failed to deliver a big hit – but no worries, the Phillies picked up the scoring slack. Harper’s presence in the lineup helped blow the game open when the Braves walked the lefty slugger to load the bases. Rhys Hoskins, once the franchise player, followed with a grand slam off reliever Luke Jackson that blew open the game.
Harper bowed to the fans when he took his spot in right field in the opening inning and chucked a ball into the third deck for a souvenir.The other NL MVP pickup this off-season for the Phillies delivered instantly: Andrew McCutchen, who signed a US$50-million, three-year deal, led off the game with a homer to left off Braves starter Julio Teheran .
Maikel Franco hit a three-run homer to left in the sixth inning for a 6-1 lead in a fun day in Philly against the defending NL East champions. Aaron Nola was uncharacteristically wild, walking five in six innings; one more than any start in 2018 when he was third in Cy Young Award voting. Harper grounded out, then struck out his next two times up against Teheran. The Phillies had nine All-Stars, two MVPs, one Cy Young Award winner and one Rookie of the Year award winner on the roster. The average age of the 25-man roster is 28.5.