Bryce Harper and his wife Kayla announced the birth of their son on Monday afternoon.

"Krew Aron Harper," they posted on their Instagram accounts. Krew was born on Thursday, and he weighed 7 pounds, 9 ounces, and was 19 inches long. Krew is the couple's first child.

¡°Everybody¡¯s healthy, so that¡¯s the biggest thing,¡± Harper said. ¡°But yeah, it¡¯s pretty cool to say I¡¯m a dad now. It all went by super quick, but I¡¯m really happy that she¡¯s healthy [and] the baby¡¯s healthy. That¡¯s all that matters.¡±

Harper had been on the team's paternity list since Friday, but he was reinstated for Monday's 6-5 walk-off win over the Pirates in 11 innings at Citizens Bank Park. He went 1-for-5 in his first game as a father, though the one hit was a solo homer in the eighth inning that triggered a three-run rally to put the Phillies ahead, 5-4, before the Bucs came back to tie it in the ninth.

"It was great," Harper said. "Any time you can pull a win out like that, it¡¯s always fun. As a team, I thought we battled all game."

Harper also acknowledged his teammates' support for his recently expanded family.

¡°Everybody just said, ¡®Congratulations,¡¯¡± Harper said. ¡°It¡¯s pretty cool to be able to have a team that texts me the day of [the birth] and things like that. Texting them pictures and the name and weight and all that kind of stuff -- just having them reach out to me and my wife, to be a part of an organization like that, it¡¯s pretty awesome.¡±

Harper is batting .253 with 28 home runs, 93 RBIs and an .872 OPS this season, hitting .284 with 10 homers, 21 RBIs and an 1.131 OPS in his last 18 games.

The Phillies dropped two of three against the Marlins in Harper¡¯s absence this weekend, but they moved back to within one game of the Cubs for the second National League Wild Card spot with Monday¡¯s win. .

¡°Being gone for three days, you miss the fellas, miss being out on the field,¡± Harper said. ¡°I¡¯m excited to be back tonight.¡±

As for what the future may hold for his newborn, Harper laughed when asked if Krew had the potential to be a future ¡°five-tool player.¡±

¡°I hope he has a hockey stick in his hand. That¡¯d be nice,¡± Harper joked. ¡°Just being able to [watch him] grow up and see what he does. Those moments go through your head when you¡¯re holding him a little bit -- baseball, anything -- but I just want him to be happy and healthy.¡±