Bryce Harper silences Nats fans with Cooper DeJean Celly after Opening Day nuke

I still remember where I was when the news that absolutely broke the internet and brought me back to feeling excited about the Philadelphia Phillies. That of course, was when Bryce Harper decided to sign with the Phils in free agency, leaving the Washington Nationals.

Somehow it’s been seven years since the Lebron James of Major League Baseball arrived in Philly. Obviously when a player of that caliber leaves any franchise, the fanbase will hold it against them and boo every opportunity they get.

Much like every other ballpark around the league, Opening Day was no different for Bryce Harper every time he stepped up to the plate yesterday in D.C..

Revenge was Served on a Silver Platter

Harper stepped into the batters box and the very small Opening Day crowd showered him with boos. Bryce Harper unleashed a game-tying solo home run that finally ignited the Phillies offense. It was a tone-setter for the remaining 161 games of the 2025 season and Harper himself reminded reporters after the game that he is still completely unphased by opposing fanbases chirping and booing him.

Bryce Harper booed in D.C., responds with a signature nuke to tie the game in the seventh

Did he care? Of course not. In fact, he did what he always does. He made them regret it. Not only that, but the pandering king himself Mr. Harper hit the Cooper DeJean celebration following his solo shot home run to tie the game.

Bryce Harper hits Cooper DeJean celly

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This isn’t new, either. Harp crushed a homer in his first trip back to D.C. in 2019 after getting booed. He’s done it in Cincinnati. In Colorado. In San Francisco. Hell, go back to 2016 and Braves fans got the treatment too.

Bryce Harper is unphased by Nationals fans booing him >>

One part from yesterday went somewhat unnoticed. After the home run, Harper hit the Nationals crowd with the Cooper DeJean Celly on the way back to the dugout.

Cooper DeJean takes down Derrick Henry 💪

📺: #PHIvsBAL on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/Lwq9S0PfZo

— NFL (@NFL) December 2, 2024

WATCH: Cooper DeJean flips the script, bullies Derrick Henry in Eagles 24-19 victory over the Baltimore Ravens

Everyone Forgot How Good the Phillies Were Last Year

Listen, I am well aware that recency bias has plagued the Philadelphia Phillies fanbase.

It’s wild how quickly people forget what the Phillies did last season. A couple of bad breaks, a brutal postseason collapse, and suddenly everyone’s acting like they’re just the third wheel in a Braves-Mets race. Let’s be clear: the Phillies won 95 games and the NL East in 2024. That’s not ancient history. That’s last season.

Yes, the ending was a nightmare. They got bounced in the NLDS by the Mets—a team that had no business winning that series—but let’s not let one October choke job erase five months of top-tier baseball.

Look a little deeper and you’ll see the Phillies were a wagon through the first half of 2024. They were top-5 in runs scored and top-5 in team ERA at the break. The wheels didn’t fall off—they got yanked off one at a time by injuries and an endless rotation of nobodies in the No. 5 spot.

Remember when they were throwing out the likes of Tyler Phillips, Koby Allard, Michael Mercado, and other waiver wire wonders every fifth day? Yeah. That’s where half the losses came from in the second half.

And still—they won 95 games.

Harper and the Phillies will be back at it on Saturday in D.C. More boo’s will be coming and probably another moment that Nationals fans will pretend they didn’t see.

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