The ball left on a fly to right-center field and kept going. Harper's 16th home run of the year was the first plate appearance of the night, and it was the first leg of something nobody in the building could have known was coming.
He doubled in his next trip — a line drive to right fielder Eric Wagaman. Then he singled, a ground ball to the same Wagaman. Three at-bats, three hits, three different kinds. The Phillies were on their way to a 15-3 win over the Mets, and the interesting part of Harper's line was already taking shape.
A cycle is a single, a double, a triple and a home run in one game. It can finish quietly — a single through the right side, the last piece falling into place. Harper's went the other way. He had the home run first. He had the double. He had the single. What he did not have, standing in the box for his fourth plate appearance, was the hardest one to get.
Harper hit a sharp line drive to center fielder Carson Benge. Trea Turner scored. Kyle Schwarber scored. Harper pulled into third with the second cycle of 2026 — four hits, three for extra bases, 10 total bases, three runs driven in. The rarest hit arrived last, and it arrived with two men on.
He came up one more time and grounded out, pitcher Tobias Myers to first baseman Mark Vientos. The cycle was already complete. The groundout is on the card too.
