In recent seasons, whenever Philadelphia Phillies star Bryce Harper reached second base against the Washington Nationals — and then the Los Angeles Dodgers — he made a midgame recruiting pitch to an old friend. Harper knew Trea Turner was still a couple of years from free agency, but as long as his former teammate was within earshot, he wanted to plant a seed.

"For the last three years, he kept telling me, 'We're going to get you over here, we're going to get you over here,'" Turner told ESPN in March. "It started as a joke, then as it got closer and [the Phillies] were in win-now mode, everything lined up. He was a big factor, for sure."

Harper remembers the chatter on the basepaths. "Every time I'd see him at shortstop, I'd mess with him: 'You'd look great in a Phillies uniform,'" the two-time National League MVP said.

Whether or not those whisperings were the difference-maker — Harper said he left Turner alone once his free agency actually started — the strategy paid off. Turner signed an 11-year, $300 million contract with the Phillies in December, reuniting with Harper. The two have yet to take the field together; Harper is still working his way back from offseason Tommy John surgery. But as Harper zooms through his recovery, it could happen sooner than later.

When he does, he'll join a lineup that despite a slow start leads the majors in hits; Turner's 29, good for second-best on the squad, show how quickly he has settled in in Philadelphia..

"It's definitely a lot better having him on this side than what I used to deal with," Phillies catcher J.T Realmuto said. "He was never one of those players you ever looked forward to facing. He's so dynamic and can impact the game in so many ways. He creates havoc and plays with power."