Bryce Harper is going to the Home Run Derby. That much has been clear for a while. The question was who would throw to him. And after a late-night phone call, he found his guy.
Harper reached out to Dino Ebel, the Dodgers’ third base coach, and asked if he’d be the one feeding him pitches for the derby. Ebel said yes. The news came from David Vassegh of Dodger Talk, who posted on X that Harper contacted Ebel on Monday night. Since no Dodgers players are in the derby this year, Ebel was free to accept.
Phillies fans might remember Ebel from last year’s All-Star Game. There was a swing-off situation, and Kyle Schwarber stepped in and absolutely mashed. The guy throwing to him? Dino Ebel. So Harper saw that up close. He watched what Ebel could do. Now he wants the same service.
Here’s the funny part. Schwarber already announced he’s in the derby this year. So you’ve got two Phillies teammates in the same competition, and one of them is using the same pitcher who helped the other one look like a superhero last summer. That’s going to be a weird dynamic in the batting cage. Friendly competition, sure. But still weird.
Harper won the Home Run Derby in 2018 at Nationals Park, his home ballpark at the time. He’s trying to do it again this year at Globe Life Field in Arlington. It’s not going to be easy. The field includes Willson Contreras, Jordan Walker, Junior Caminero, Jac Caglianone and Ben Rice. That’s a mix of established names and young guys who can absolutely swing it.
Harper has been through this before. He knows the format. He knows the pressure. The biggest variable is whether he and Ebel lock in the same rhythm during the three minutes of chaos. If they do, he’s as dangerous as anyone in the field. If they don’t, it could be a quick night.
Either way, the imagery of a Dodgers coach feeding pitches to a Phillies star while the other Phillies star watches from the dugout is exactly the kind of All-Star Weekend weirdness that makes it fun.
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