Bizarre behavior: Some Phillies fans and WIP hosts attempt to ruin Bryce Harper’s triple for the cycle last night vs the Mets

Bryce Harper did something on Saturday night at Citizens Bank Park that he had never done in 15 years of professional baseball by hitting for the cycle against the New York Mets in five innings during a 15-3 demolition that had the ballpark rocking from the first pitch to the last.

A solo homer in the first, a double and a single during an eight-run third, and a two-run triple into the gap in left-center in the fifth that completed one of the most historic individual performances in the history of Citizens Bank Park.

His helmet flew off between first and second, he slid into third with both fists in the air, and the entire stadium erupted because every person in attendance knew exactly what they had just witnessed.

It was the second-fastest cycle in MLB history behind only Mike Lansing who did it in four innings back in 2000. It was the 11th cycle in Phillies franchise history. It happened on the same night that Schwarber hit three home runs including two in the same inning to the same section of the upper deck.

The Phillies became only the second team in MLB history alongside the 1932 Yankees to have a player hit for the cycle and a teammate hit three homers in the same game. Saturday night was one of the greatest offensive performances in franchise history and the people who were actually in the building celebrated it the way it deserved to be celebrated.

Somehow, because this city can never just enjoy a moment without someone trying to ruin it, the discourse on Sunday morning shifted from celebrating Harper’s historic night to debating whether the triple was actually a triple.

The biggest clown of them all Spike Eskin had this to say about Bryce Harper:

😂 "I don't care if what I did and continue to do is stupid on the base paths. I'm going to keep doing it. And if I wasn't this way, I wouldn't have gotten that triple for the cycle that was actually a double." https://t.co/uCW5xZydbP
— Spike Eskin (@SpikeEskin) June 21, 2026

The Bryce Harper Triple Deniers Need to Find a New Hobby Immediately

Harper hit a fastball into the gap in left-center field. His helmet flew off between first and second. He covered the distance from the batter’s box to third base in 11.8 seconds. The ball didn’t bounce off the wall the way the outfielder was expecting, which allowed Harper to break for third and slide in safely as the cutoff throw went to the plate instead of to third base.

The official scorer, whose entire job is to make exactly this kind of determination, ruled it a triple. MLB celebrated it as a triple. FOX Sports celebrated it as a triple. The entire baseball world celebrated it as a triple. Every real Phillies fan in attendance celebrated it as a triple.

But a handful of miserable dorks on the internet and local radio decided that they knew better than the official scorer and spent Sunday morning arguing that it should have been ruled a double with an error, which would have meant Harper didn’t actually complete the cycle.

These are the same people who think they’re smarter than the game itself and they are absolutely not. The official scorer watched the play in real time, evaluated whether the outfielder made an error or whether the ball took a bad bounce that allowed the extra base, and determined that the play was a triple.

The game recognizes it as a triple. The record books reflect it as a triple. Bryce Harper hit for the cycle and no amount of postgame discourse from people who probably weren’t even at the game is going to change that.

Shocker: Spike Eskin Is the Biggest Clown of Them All

The biggest offender in the “let’s ruin a historic moment” campaign was Spike Eskin, who had this to say about Bryce Harper’s cycle: “I don’t care if what I did and continue to do is stupid on the base paths. I’m going to keep doing it. And if I wasn’t this way, I wouldn’t have gotten that triple for the cycle that was actually a double.”

I honestly don’t even know if Spike Eskin has ever been to a Phillies game. That quote is pure word vomit from a pencil neck who saw an opportunity to generate engagement by being contrarian about one of the most exciting moments of the Phillies’ season and took it because being negative about Philadelphia sports is the only thing that keeps the lights on at that radio station.

Harper completed the fastest cycle by a Phillie in franchise history and this man’s contribution to the conversation was to diminish it by calling the triple a double from behind a microphone that nobody asked him to speak into.

Bryce Harper 5 Inning Cycle:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Liberty Line (@libertylinephl)

This is what so many people in this city’s media do and it’s exhausting. They take the best moments in Philadelphia sports and try to poke holes in them because being miserable and contrarian is their entire brand. They are never happy, never satisfied, never willing to just let a good thing be a good thing without finding some angle to complain about it.

Harper hit for the cycle in five innings at Citizens Bank Park on a Saturday night in June against a division rival and the first instinct from certain corners of this city’s media landscape was to argue that the triple wasn’t really a triple. These are people you would never want to have a beer with, let alone be forced to watch a Philadelphia sports game next to because they would find a way to complain about the temperature of the beer and the angle of the television before the first pitch was even thrown.

WIP Continues to Be the Worst

This is exactly why I can’t stand 94.1 WIP and the culture of negativity that station has cultivated in this city for decades. The hosts on that station have built careers on being contrarian about Philadelphia sports to the point where they can’t even let a historic night at the ballpark pass without trying to tear it down.

Harper hits for the cycle in five innings and instead of celebrating one of the greatest individual performances in franchise history, the discourse turns into a debate about whether the triple should have been scored differently.

It reminds me of the golf community that tries to gatekeep the sport from new players by nitpicking everything about how people play and dress and conduct themselves on the course.

You people suck. You add nothing to the conversation except negativity and you make being a Philadelphia sports fan worse for everyone who has to listen to your takes.

WIP sucks, the hosts who spend every Monday morning finding reasons to be miserable about the Eagles suck, and anyone who watched Bryce Harper slide into third base with both fists in the air after completing the cycle and thought “actually, that was a double” needs to seriously reevaluate what they’re doing with their time on this planet.

Bryce Harper is THE Greatest Showman

Grab your Phillies merch here >>

Saturday night was about for the Phillies fans who actually watched, whether in attendance like our guy Drew Smith or for me at home. This isn’t for scorekeeping debates or hot takes from radio hosts who get paid to be miserable. Miss me with the discourse about whether the outfielder should have played the ball differently.

It was about watching the franchise player do something historic on a night where his teammate hit three home runs to the same section of the upper deck, the Phillies scored 15 runs, and Citizens Bank Park felt like the best place on earth to be a baseball fan.

Moments like Saturday night are why we love the World’s Greatest Showman and why this team, despite all its flaws and all the frustration of a season where the offense has underperformed and the rotation behind the top three has been a mess, is still capable of producing nights that remind you why you fell in love with baseball in the first place.

The official scorer ruled it a triple because it was a triple. Harper hit for the cycle because he hit for the cycle. The record books say so and no amount of contrarian radio commentary is going to change that. Enjoy the moment, stop trying to ruin it for everyone else, and let Bryce Harper have his night.

WATCH: Bryce Harper makes history with a 5-inning cycle in a 15-3 demolition of the New York Mets >>

As I rock my Showman t-shirt this morning on Father’s Day getting ready to take pops to the par 3 course, I’ll say what I said on Twitter last night. These people think they’re smarter than the game and they are not.

Happy Father’s Day, Philly. Harper hit for the cycle. Schwarber hit three homers. The Phillies won 15-3. It was perfect.