3 teams that should still be kicking themselves for not signing Bryce Harper
These three teams have had to watch Bryce Harper will his team deep into the postseason for two straight years now. That's an appropriate punishment for making such an ill-advised path in free agency.
By Josh Wilson
Bryce Harper sent two home runs way out of Citizens Bank Park in Game 3 of the divisional series, a massive response to his Game 2 base running blunder that led to an exciting, game-ending double play to win it for the Braves.
Guess what? You'll take a base-running problem in the divisional series 10 times out of 10 if the alternative is watching the action from the couch. Some MLB teams that could have had the star player find themselves in that exact couch-locked position.
Harper's Game 2 mistake is easily explainable. Philly was down and he got aggressive on the base paths to try to capture a moment of opportunity, assuming that Michael Harris II wouldn't make a hard catch and throw to tag him up at first base. It was a fine gamble when you look at the context of the situation.
He made up for it in Game 3 with his home runs that gave the Phillies a meaningful lead early in the game and the emotional momentum in the series.
Washington Nationals should have secured their star
The Washington Nationals have proven an ability to identify and develop young talent, only to lose their grip on it when player have the chance to go elsewhere. To credit the Nationals, they did win the World Series in 2019, so clearly they know plenty about building a winner, even if there have been disappointments along the way.
One of those disappointments has to be Harper, who the Nationals lost to free agency when he decided to sign with the Phillies. Worst of all is that it sounds as though Harper was entirely willing to return to D.C.
Harper said that he was hurt by the offer the Nationals gave him. In some ways, that's even worse than simply being straight up with the player and telling them it's just not a fit. Especially since Harper's agent, Scott Boras, represents some of MLB's biggest clients, was it worth leaving a bad taste?
Now, Harper is tearing it up just 140 miles away. It was the wrong move to not be aggressive in re-signing Harper in retrospect. Insult to injury makes it a worse predicament.