ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith Calls for Bryce Harper Suspension
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Andrew Wright is a Newsweek contributor based in Lancaster, South Carolina. His focus is MLB content. Andrew has been with Newsweek since April 1st and previously worked at Yardbarker, SEC Unfiltered and more. He is a graduate of Charleston Southern University.
You can get in touch with Andrew by emailing a.wright@newsweek.com or dew4417@icloud.com
Andrew Wright
Contributing Sports Writer
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Philadelphia Phillies superstar first baseman Bryce Harper was the talk of the baseball world on Monday.
His reported confrontation with MLB commissioner Rob Manfred felt like a scene straight out of a movie and garnered quite the buzz around social media.
While some thought Harper was right to stand up to Manfred, not all media members saw it that way.
The very well-known Stephen A. Smith chimed in on the situation during Wednesday’s edition of “First Take” and he called for quite the punishment.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 21: American TV personality Stephen A. Smith throws a ceremonial first pitch before the first inning of the game between the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays… NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 21: American TV personality Stephen A. Smith throws a ceremonial first pitch before the first inning of the game between the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium on September 21, 2023 in the Bronx borough of New York City.
Sarah Stier/Getty Images
“I love Bryce Harper, I really, really do,” Smith said, as seen in a video posted to X by Awful Announcing. “That was out of line. You have no business doing something like that and to be quite honest, that warrants a suspension. I’m not gonna lie to you, you can’t confront the commissioner like that and talk to him like that.”
“That warrants a suspension. I’m not gonna lie to you, you can’t confront the commissioner like that and talk to him like that.” – Stephen A. Smith on Bryce Harper yelling at Rob Manfred pic.twitter.com/bNex5wzAJr
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 30, 2025
It is not that hard to see where Smith is coming from. For him, it would be the same situation as telling one of his bosses to get out of his studio and not expecting any repercussions from it.
While Manfred isn’t Harper’s boss per se, he is still an authority figure of Major League Baseball.
Smith believes that no player should have the authority to speak to a commissioner like that, as he’s done way too much for the players.
“We all gotta remember there’s so much more that goes in the world of business, negotiations and things of that nature,” Smith said in the clip. “To have an authoritative figure be talked to like that and disrespected like that is unacceptable.”
It is unclear if MLB is going to punish Harper in any capacity and we will have to further await to see if that will or will not happen.
More MLB: Former Cy Young Winner Suddenly Available at MLB Trade Deadline: Report
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