Bryce Harper to receive extra time ahead of first at-bat in Phillies home debut

It’s been 183 days since Bryce Harper last played a game at Citizens Bank Park.

A lot has changed since then.

There are now bigger bases. Defensive shifts are banned. There is a pitch clock. But MLB will make an exception to that last rule for Harper, at least on Friday night.

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When he takes his first at-bat in South Philadelphia, he will be given extra time for an ovation. He will not be charged with an automatic strike. Phillies general manager Sam Fuld told him to savor the moment.

“Sam Fuld told me you better enjoy it, because it’ll be the only time in the next 10 years they’ll give you time,” Harper said.

“I’m excited. I’m pumped. Just being able to come back and play in front of our fans, it’s going to be a lot of fun.”

With two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning on Wednesday at Dodger Stadium, Austin Barnes sharply hit a ground ball directly to Edmundo Sosa. Sosa missed it, and the ball went into the outfield for a go-ahead RBI single. Sosa was in disbelief. It was a play he’d made with ease before.

It was ruled a hit, and José Alvarado, who was pitching, was charged with two runs. He approached Sosa after the inning in the dugout.

“We’re a team,” Alvarado said. “We’re a team, and my message to him was, ‘Lift your head up. We’re human beings. We make mistakes. It’s a difficult game. We don’t want to, but we’re going to fail sometimes. Focus on the next series. We’re human beings. We’re not perfect.’”

He spent the rest of the evening trying to cheer his teammate up. It went a long way for Sosa, who admitted he was sad about letting his team down.

“At the end of the day, I’m still learning,” Sosa said. “For him to be supportive about it is so important to me. It helps me put things in perceptive. He’s a good teammate. I felt bad about it. But he told me everyone makes mistakes. I learned from it. Keep moving forward every day.”

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Jeff Hoffman arrived in Philadelphia on Friday afternoon, after the Phillies selected his contract. He was familiar with his surroundings. It was only two weeks ago that Hoffman was summoned from triple-A Lehigh Valley to pitch to Harper as part of a makeshift spring training at Citizens Bank Park.

Hoffman, a 30-year-old right-handed reliever, approached it as an opportunity.

“I really felt like I needed to take advantage of it because I wasn’t in camp with the team,” Hoffman said. “It was nice to be able to come up and be in front of the staff.

“I just felt like I could show what I’m about, and what I can bring to the table. Luckily, it went well. It was a good first impression, and obviously those are important.”

Manager Rob Thomson conceded that part of the reason they brought Hoffman in to face Harper was so they could get eyes on him. They were impressed. Hoffman — who has struggled with command in his career — threw strikes. He had a good slider. He showed some power, touching 97-98 mph.

After he faced Harper, Harper approached Hoffman.

“He said everything looked great,” Hoffman said. “Obviously, he was trying to get as much out of it as he could as well. But we were both in agreement that hopefully I was up here soon and helping the team win.”

Hoffman exercised the opt-out clause in his minor league contract with the Phillies on Monday. They selected his contract on Thursday, and optioned reliever Yunior Marte to make room for Hoffman on the 26-man roster. Thomson said the Phillies see Hoffman as someone who could be used in a multi-inning role.

The Phillies, who have an off-day on Monday, will line up Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler to face the Blue Jays on Tuesday and Wednesday. Matt Strahm will be moved back to the bullpen. Strahm will be available out of the bullpen Saturday or Sunday. … Ranger Suárez (left elbow strain) will throw four innings and 65 pitches for triple-A Lehigh Valley on Sunday. If he comes out of that healthy, he will rejoin the team in Colorado for their upcoming series against the Rockies. … Nick Nelson (left hamstring strain) will throw five innings and 80 pitches for double-A reading on Friday. … Andrew Bellatti (right triceps tendinitis) will begin a rehab assignment on Friday night with single-A Clearwater.