From there came a slog completely familiar in baseball, which has countless more Bryan Harpers than Bryces. The kick-to-the-midsection came late in the 2016 season, when Harper had earned his way to Class AAA Syracuse by using a fastball that sits at 89-90 mph, mixed with a changeup and his wipeout slider to dominate left-handed hitters. That's when he heard those words both commonplace and devastating in the baseball lexicon: Tommy John surgery. Last summer, the road back left him, on July 13, on the mound at Class AA Harrisburg facing the Hartford Yard Goats. His mechanics were a mess. He had no idea where the ball might go.