Phillies’ Bryce Harper asks his children to help design custom bat for Players’ Weekend
Harper let his kids loose with markers to draw on a blank bat: “They don’t really get too entertained with the game right now, but they were excited to see that I was using it.”
Bryce Harper commissioned a very special designer for the bats he’s using this weekend: his kids.
As MLB relaxes its restrictions on bat paint finishes for Players’ Weekend, players across the league are using works of art at the plate. Several Phillies have taken the opportunity to showcase their custom bats in the series against the Washington Nationals.
Bryson Stott has bats painted to resemble a No. 2 pencil and a lightsaber. Brandon Marsh got one featuring a caricature of himself. Alec Bohm had one covered in giraffe print. And Johan Rojas went with a lion.
But Harper’s new bats are two-of-a-kind. He asked for a blank bat and set Krew, who turns 5 on Monday, and Brooklyn, 3, loose on it with markers. (Nearly 4-month old Kamryn is a bit too young to participate.)
“They just kind of put all the stuff that they wanted, and my wife did the same,” Harper said. “I thought it would be a pretty cool idea. They mean a lot to me, so being able to have my kids do this for me would be a good one to keep.”
They also colored on a second bat, which the manufacturing company Victus had designed to look like a yellow crayon with “DAD’S BAT” printed on it. Krew added his own touch with his blue handprint on the barrel and his initial on the knob. He also added some words of encouragement, writing “GO DAD” at the top.
“They were excited,” Harper said. “They don’t really get too entertained with the game right now, but they were excited to see that I was using it.”
Harper used a decorated bat before in 2018, while he was with the Nationals. Through his foundation, Harper’s Heroes, he hosted children who had cancer at the ballpark and had them draw and write on a bat.
Players’ Weekend returned from a four-year hiatus this season and is intended to give major leaguers a chance to express themselves and their personal style. Over the three days, players also will be wearing special hats with cartoon numbers on the side.
Harper didn’t have time to add a lacquer over top of his new masterpieces, and he’s hoping he doesn’t get jammed at the plate to break his kids’ artwork.
“I’ll keep it, for sure,” he said. “It’ll be definitely a really cool piece in the weight room or something like that, to be able to put up on the wall and stuff. Something they all remember forever.”