Bryce Harper\'s 13-year contract hints that the Phillies are preparing for a long-rumored rule change to come to the National League

Bryce Harper has agreed to a record 13-year, $330 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, ending the outfielder's protracted free agency.

The deal breaks Manny Machado's recent record-setting contract for free agents (10 years, $300 million) and Giancarlo Stanton's record for all players (13 years, $325 million).

With the contract's average annual value of $25.4 million, the deal is seen as a relative bargain compared to other superstars in Major League Baseball.

However, the 13-year length has led to a lot of criticism, especially considering there is no opt-out for Harper and there is a full no-trade clause. In other words, unlike Stanton, both sides are seemingly digging in and expecting to still be together through the 2031 season.

Yes, 2031!

The criticism might be warranted considering Harper is already a sub-par defensive outfielder and he will be tied to a team with no designated hitter until he is 39 years old.

Unless, of course, one of those assumptions changes.

The New York Mets recently traded for 36-year-old Robinson Cano even though they will owe him $100 million over the next five seasons.

According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Mets made the deal with the expectation that the DH will be added to the NL in the near future. Sherman speculates that the Phillies made the same consideration with Harper.

"Also worth noting that Mets took on Cano because they believe a DH is coming to the NL at some point soon," Sherman wrote. "I am sure this is in the calculus for the #Phillies giving 13 yrs to Harper."

The universal DH was proposed by the players' union recently as part of their negotiations with MLB over pace-of-play rules. The proposal would have added the DH to the NL this season.

The changes were never agreed to, but presumably, the change would be made by 2022, at the latest, the first season after the current collective bargaining agreement expires. The DH - and the 15 additional high-paying roster spots that would come with it - would be an enticing carrot for MLB to dangle in exchange for the pace-of-play changes the league desires.

In the meantime, Phillies fans have to enjoy the present and hope they never have to see 39-year-old Bryce Harper play in the outfield.