Bryce Harper hasn't yet played a game for the Philadelphia Phillies after signing a 13-year contract worth $330 million -- he'll do that Thursday afternoon against the Atlanta Braves (stream via fuboTV) -- but he's already a hit at the team store.
According to a league-issued press release, Harper's No. 3 is the sport's most popular jersey -- so popular that it set records for most units sold within the first 24 and 48 hours of joining a new team regardless of the sport, per Fanatics' data. Harper has, at least so far, dethroned New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, the leading seller in each of the past two seasons.
Here's more, per the release:
Rounding out the top five on the list, released jointly today by Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association, is reigning American League MVP and World Series Champion Mookie Betts (#3), seven-time All-Star Mike Trout (#4) and nine-time All-Star catcher Yadier Molina (#5).
One unsurprising note: 16 of the top 20 are younger than 30 years old. It makes sense: people are less likely to already own a younger players' jersey. Besides, the league's top performers tend to be on the younger side. Here's the rest of the top-20:
1. Bryce Harper, Philadelphia Phillies
2. Aaron Judge, New York Yankees
3. Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox
4. Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels
5. Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals
6. Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
7. Javier Báez, Chicago Cubs
8. Christian Yelich, Milwaukee Brewers
9. Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs
10. Ronald Acuña Jr., Atlanta Braves
11. Paul Goldschmidt, St. Louis Cardinals
12. Manny Machado, San Diego Padres
13. Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle Mariners
14. Cody Bellinger, Los Angeles Dodgers
15. Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs
16. Jose Altuve, Houston Astros
17. Alex Bregman, Houston Astros
18. Andrew Benintendi, Boston Red Sox
19. Giancarlo Stanton, New York Yankees
20. Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
Harper is the first Phillies player to lead the list. Fellow recent free-agent signee, Manny Machado, checked in at No. 12, becoming the first San Diego Padre to ever make the cut. Visit CBS Sports Shop for a look at this seasons MLB jerseys.
