CLEARWATER, Fla. _ Bryce Harper wants to recruit Mike Trout to play for the Phillies.
The Los Angeles Angels want Harper to mind his own business.
In a mid-game interview Tuesday with 94.1 WIP, the Phillies' flagship radio station, Harper said he intends to "call Mike Trout in 2020 to have him come to Philly." Trout, a South Jersey native and an Eagles season-ticket holder, is eligible for free agency after the 2020 season.
But while those comments left Phillies fans buzzing, they also might have violated Major League Baseball's tampering policy. In a statement released Wednesday morning, MLB acknowledged that it has been in contact with both the Phillies and Angels and is looking into the matter.
There is precedent for such complaints. In July 2016, the Toronto Blue Jays objected to David Ortiz's publicly lobbying the Boston Red Sox to sign slugger Edwin Encarnacion as a free agent in the offseason. Last year, the Baltimore Orioles complained about New York Yankees star Aaron Judge telling Manny Machado, "You'd look pretty good in pinstripes."
In both cases, MLB issued cease-and-desist warning letters to the offending players. The league also could choose to fine a player.
According to MLB Rule 2(k): "There shall be no negotiations or dealings respecting employment, either present or prospective, between players, coaches or club representatives unless they have written permission to do so."
Harper has verged on tampering before. In 2012, he tweeted a sales pitch to Giancarlo Stanton about teaming up with him in Washington.
"You can always play for the Nats!" Harper wrote. "We will take you anytime! Get some red, white and blue in your life!"
Stanton's humorous response: "Dang bro, if only my last name backwards wasn't NotNats!"
Harper alluded to Trout last Saturday in his introductory news conference with the Phillies. Asked whether the $25.4 million average annual value of his record-setting 13-year, $330 million will give the Phillies flexibility to sign future players, Harper said, "I know there's another guy in about two years who comes off the books. We'll see what happens with him."
Harper doubled down in the WIP interview by telling show hosts Jon Marks and Ike Reese, "If you don't think I'm not going to call Mike Trout in 2020 to have him come to Philly, you're crazy."
