Bryce Harper took some small, but important steps toward returning to the Phillies lineup on Friday and each one went well. For the first time since the injury, Harper played catch, fielded some groundballs, took some “dry” swings, and hit off of a tee and reported that he felt good while doing all of those things.

After going through the paces, Harper told Matt Gelb of The Athletic that, “it felt better than I thought that it would, so I’m happy with that.”

Since being put on the IL on June 7 with right wrist inflammation, Harper has been getting treatment for the wrist and was told to completely wrest the injury. Friday’s activities were limited with Harper taking just 20 swings and doing the other work for a limited time, but it was a big step. Harper will not need surgery on the injured wrist, but may have to play through some pain, possibly for as long as the rest of the season. The Phillies first baseman played through the pain of the same injury last season and said that it took nearly two months after the season ended to be pain free. The pain reoccurred this season and he played through it for as long as he could before needing to be placed on the IL.

There is no exact timetable for Harper’s return from the IL, but as soon as he is ready to play, the Phillies will activate him rather than send him on a rehab assignment. The Phillies will see how Harper feels Saturday and if he feels up to it, he will go through the same routine again. He hopes to be able to start ramping up his activity as soon as next week and will rejoin the lineup when he feels he can go at full power.

Fortunately, Otto Kemp, who replaced Harper on the roster has played well. Initially, Kemp played third base with Alec Bohm playing at first. Kemp has not played much first base in the minors, but after working with him, it was decided that he was ready to handle the position defensively. In 12 games, Kemp has driven in five runs and has slashed .256/.319/.302 with the Phillies in his first trip to the majors.