Bryce Harper
I remember sitting at the OddsShark office two decades ago now discussing the chance of Harper signing baseball’s first $500-million deal. At the time, it made sense, but the timing isn’t right. Big spenders like the Red Sox and Yankees don’t need him, while the Chicago Cubs, the team many have him linked to, have a payroll that is bloated by the dreadful contracts handed out to Yu Darvish and Jason Heyward.
I believe that is a two-team race between the Phillies and the Nationals. Philadelphia has made no bones about the fact that it is prepared to go all-in on a big-time bat. The Phils are in a position to contend in a wide-open branch and the addition of Harper (or Manny Machado) would give them the big boost on offense that they desperately require.
In terms of the Nats, this is truly a franchise-altering choice. They can easily jump right back into contention with a couple tweaks, but losing Harper from the core of their order would be a major blow — both to their own offensive production and ticket sales. Harper is one of just a handful of players in the sport who qualify as”must-see-TV” for casual fans along with the amount of butts he puts into seats and jerseys he sells will probably be equally as important as what he does on the field. The Nationals understand this and by a company standpoint, bringing him back makes all the sense in the world.
Another interesting wrinkle is Scott Boras,” Harper’s agent, who has a great relationship with the Nationals as a few of his clients are on the roster. Ultimately, I believe he signals with whoever provides him the most cash, and it is around the Nationals should they would like to be that team.
Loading ...