Phillies free agency rumors: Bryce Harper ready to leave Washington?
By John Town
From every indication, it appears Bryce Harper is ready to leave Washington D.C. and perhaps even wind up with the Phillies.
Phillies fans have been looking forward to this upcoming offseason for years. With the team now out of playoff contention and borderline unwatchable, the offseason is now what we are looking forward to. It appears Bryce Harper’s mind is also on the offseason.
After seven seasons in Washington, Harper is about hit free agency for the first time in his career. It is rare that a player with his combination of youth (turns 26 on Oct. 16) and talent (six All-Star appearances, 2012 Rookie of the Year, and 2015 NL MVP) reaches free agency. Teams and fans alike are frothing at the mouth to pry him away from the Nationals.
Prior to Wednesday’s game against the Marlins, Washington’s last home game of the year, Harper made it clear it could be his last game playing for the Nationals at home: [quote via Eddie Matz of ESPN]
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"“It’s definitely crazy walking in today and knowing this could be my last game at Nats Park in my white jersey,” Harper said prior to the game. “It’s definitely something that you’re not sure how you’re going to react, and not sure what it’s going to be like, if that’s after the game, or even before. I knew I wanted to get here and put the uni on right away and just cherish that moment, if it’s going to be the last time or not.”"
To everyone else but Nationals fans, this is music to their ears. Harper took that a step further Thursday, seemingly saying his goodbyes to Washington and their fans:
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More often than not, we see this kind of social media posts when a player is traded, released, or about to retire. Seeing Harper put it up before the season even ends says a lot about his plans for the offseason.
Philadelphia is one of several teams expected to heavily pursue Harper. They have plenty of money, and they will need definitely need it. Harper and Manny Machado are both expected to command record-breaking deals from whichever team they sign with. However, they are the type of player worth spending all that money on.
Harper had a rough start to the season but has turned things around in the second half. In 156 games this year, he has 34 home runs, 100 runs batted in, .886 OPS, 131 OPS+, and 3.3 Fangraphs wins above replacement. When a down season for a player equals these kinds of numbers, you know they are truly special.
Next. Takeaways from Phillies 2018 season changing. dark
If you are riding the Harper to Philly train, seeing him say his farewells to Washington should be quite exciting.