PHILADELPHIA — Bryce Harper is off to his worst start to a season since his first year with the Phillies in 2019.

Through 41 games in 2019, Harper batted .219 with seven home runs and 25 RBIs. Then GM Matt Klentak answered questions about the new Phillies superstar’s high strikeout rate. Things turned out OK. Harper, after his OPS dropped to under .800 on May 26, went on to post a .277/.382/.546 slash line for the remainder of the year.

The numbers look even worse this year. He has seven home runs and a .232 batting average, but just a .771 OPS. He is pressing at the plate. Just like he did in September 2023 when the struggles got to him, Harper cut his hair. He wasn’t around Monday night to comment, but the last time he drastically changed his look, Harper preferred the reporters present to connect the dots instead of ask questions.

“He’s frustrated,” Rob Thomson said. “He expects himself to produce and right now, it’s off and on. The balance is a little bit off right now and they’re pitching him tough.”

There is a belief things will turn. Just ask Kyle Schwarber, who is drowning in success.

The Phillies designated hitter is batting .268 with a league-best 14 home runs and a .985 OPS. Schwarber seldom likes talking about the accumulation of great results. He is more focused on process, and doing everything right before the ball leaves the bat.

“I think the biggest thing is the cage,” Schwarber said. “That’s where all of the work is done.”

But hitters are judged by results and for a superstar like Harper, the accumulation of failure can take its toll.

Schwarber knows what it feels like.

“Especially him, when he steps up to the plate, everyone is always expecting something to happen, right? And you’re expecting a great result to happen,” Schwarber said. “I think that. The dugout thinks that. It gets frustrating. The game is frustrating.”

But as Schwarber alludes to, a great stretch can radically change the outlook on Harper’s season.

“There could be a week span, it could be tomorrow where everyone forgets about it,” Schwarber said. “I think that’s the best thing about this game because everyone can have a short memory. I think the biggest thing is that he keeps putting in the work.

“If he keeps going out to the plate, there’s always going to be a chance. That’s the biggest thing. There’s always a chance when he keeps walking up to the plate. Everyone in the room has faith in him. It’s not like we’re thinking anything different. I think that every time he walks to the plate, there’s going to be a really good result that’s going to happen.”

Schwarber’s on-base streak, which is at a career high 47 games, will eventually end. Harper’s struggles will too. Schwarber and Harper are the two biggest stars in the lineup for the Phillies, so their individual numbers will never not be part of the story.

In the five years since his debut year with the Phillies, Harper has finished the year with an OPS+ of 145, meaning he has been 45% better than league average. There’s a more painful conversation to be had in the future when Harper’s decline from superstardom begins, but it’s not going to happen in his age 32 season.