CLEARWATER, Fla. — Bryce Harper was the Phillies’ first choice, but it was clear at his introductory press conference on Saturday that they weren’t his. Not because he initially mis-buttoned his brand-new, red-pinstriped jersey, before grinning and trying again. Not because he struggled to remember the Philadelphia traditions he’d been taught to reference. (“I want to be on Broad Street, in a frickin’ boat, or whatever it is,” he said, to laughter.) Not even because he let a “We want to bring a title back to D.C.” slip near the end.
At times he seemed well practiced.