Harper Becomes 6th Player with 40-Homer Season Before Turning 23

Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper hit his 40th home run of the season in the seventh inning of Wednesday's 12-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies, becoming just the sixth player in MLB history to reach 40 homers in a season before his 23rd birthday, per Elias Sports Bureau (h/t ESPN Stats & Info).

Harper joins Mel Ott (1929), Joe DiMaggio (1937), Eddie Mathews (1953 and 1954), Johnny Bench (1970) and Juan Gonzalez (1992), making him the first player in 23 years (and second in 45 years) to accomplish the feat.

With the exception of Gonzalez, who put up his gaudy numbers during the steroid era, each of the aforementioned players is enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Harper obviously has a long ways to go before earning such consideration, but he's already made a mark on the franchise record books this season, with his 40 homers representing the third-best single-season total in Nationals/Expos history.

Even with his team increasingly looking like a long shot to make the playoffs, Harper remains the leading candidate for National League MVP honors, with his league-leading 40 home runs backed by a .338 batting average, .467 on-base percentage, .670 slugging percentage and 92 RBI.

Per FanGraphs' measurement of the statistic, Harper easily leads the National League with 9.2 wins above replacement (WAR), ahead of Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto (7.2 WAR) and Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (6.4).