JuicyTalk
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper told MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to “get the f*ck out” of the team’s clubhouse last week during a meeting meant to address the league potentially implementing a salary cap, according to sources that spoke to ESPN today.
The altercation took place during one of the Commissioner’s planned meetings with all 30 MLB teams. Though Manfred never used the term “salary cap,” the conversation regarding the league’s economics provoked Bryce Harper.
Sources who attended the meeting told ESPN that Harper, who remained silent for most of the session, said that the players “are not scared to lose 162 games,” meaning MLB players would be willing to stage a strike like they did from April of 1994 to April of 1995. Harper then stood nose-to-nose with Manfred before telling him, “If you want to speak about that, you can get the f*ck out of our clubhouse.” Manfred replied he was “not going to get the f*ck out of here,” explaining that it is important to talk about the economic health of the league.
Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos was able to defuse the situation by saying, “I have more questions,” which broke up the confrontation. The meeting continued, eventually ending with Bryce Harper and Manfred shaking hands. However, Harper refused to accept any of the commissioner’s phone calls the following day.
“It was pretty intense, definitely passionate,” Castellanos said. “Both of ’em. The commissioner giving it back to Bryce, and Bryce giving it back to the commissioner. That’s Harp. He’s been doing this since he was 15 years old. It’s just another day. I wasn’t surprised.”
Both Harper and a spokesperson for Rob Manfred declined to comment when reached out to by ESPN.
“Rob seems to be in a pretty desperate place on how important it is to get this salary cap because he’s floating the word ‘lockout’ two years in advance of our collective bargaining agreement [expiration],” Castellanos said. “That’s nothing to throw around. That’s the same thing as me saying in a marriage, ‘I think divorce is a possibility. It’s probably going to happen.’ You don’t just say those things.”
Major League Baseball needs to negotiate a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the players for the 2026 season. The current CBA is set to expire at midnight on December 2nd, 2026.
“It’s not like somebody is teaching us about this conglomerate of Major League Baseball that we, the players, make up, make possible,” Castellanos continued. “There’s no players, there’s no Major League Baseball. I don’t believe Rob Manfred is evil. I don’t believe the owners are evil. I don’t believe any of that. Nobody wants a work stoppage in baseball. Not the players, not the league.”
