Bryce Harper is stepping up his campaign to allow MLB players to take part when baseball returns to the Olympics in 2028.
The Philadelphia Phillies first baseman said he has had discussions with MLB about allowing players to take part in the future games. Harper thinks it should be a “priority” for the league, even if it means pausing the season for nearly a month.
“There’s nothing more worldwide than the Olympics,” Harper said, via Bob Nightengale of USA Today. “I watch the most random sports in the Olympics because it’s the Olympics, and that’s really cool. I love hockey. It’s one of my favorite sports to watch. To see (the NHL) take that three-week break and let those guys go play, that’s another big goal that we should have as Major League Baseball.
“I’ve talked to numerous people with MLB about it. I would love to be a part of that. We have the (World Baseball Classic), but it’s not the same. It’s not. The Olympics is something that you dream about playing in.”
Harper has been very open about his desire to take part in Olympic baseball. The league has yet to come to any sort of decision on how it will handle that, since the games would take part during the season. It has time to make a decision, but it is clear which way Harper will be pushing it.