Bryce Harper Worth $400 Million? Only a Clown Would Say "Yes."
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Plenty of things to talk about for baseball despite it being the off-season, especially with a possible lockout looming this time next week (God I hope not, though I hear the chances of it are fairly small AND if there was, it wouldn't last too long). But one thing that has come up over and over and I guess we will have to hear about it for the next 2-3 off-seasons will be the value of Bryce Harper and his impending free agent contract. And how it will be in the range of $400 million.
Are you kidding me? Seriously?
I get the kid is 23 years old and will be 26 when his time for free agency comes up. And, no, I doubt he will sign any extension with Washington before that happens. And I also get he is a talented player. But as I said before in my post over the summer of his legend being larger than his actual play, he has warranted nothing to show he is the next great baseball hero. Would I give him $400 million? No. Would I give him $300 million at this point? No.
I know Harper defenders like Brian Kenny (who would probably defend Bryce if he killed a man) would scream "look at his numbers!" and how he is going to materialize into a major stud when that free agency period hits for him, but right now what has exactly Harper done?
Outside of 2015, not a whole lot. So why do I think he isn't worth it?
The series that changed Harper's season was when the Cubs walked him almost on every at-bat Harper had.
1. OVERALL NUMBERS: Bryce Harper's numbers are very good since being in the Majors. But are they great? No. And last season teams gave him the Barry Bonds treatment and sent him to first base numerous times. Unlike Bonds, however, where he was more than willing to stroll to first base, Harper was frustrated by it over and over. His numbers dropped badly after that Chicago series in May when the Cubs walked him religiously. Is it a maturity thing? Perhaps. But the numbers, while very good, do not resemble the numbers to that of Alex Rodriguez when he got his mega-contract 16 years ago with Texas. But currently the guy is a career .279 hitter with an .882 OPS in his first five seasons and averages around 30 HR and 82 RBI. To compare with ARod, ARod hit .315 with a .956 OPS, as well as hitting 37 HR and driving in 115 over a 5 year span (on average). I don't want to discuss the steroid bit either because it really doesn't have a leg in this argument.
OR
The comparison for Harper needs to be less of Trout but more of Manny Machado.
If you want to compare it to the guy many consider the actual best overall player in baseball in Mike Trout (.310 BA, .975 OPS, 33 HR and 96 RBI), Harper doesn't come close. So if Harper gets/deserves $400 million, then Trout should be about a half-billion when he signs a new contract. Harper's numbers are more comparable to Baltimore's Manny Machado. Nobody screams about Machado deserving of $400 million (though he will have a nice payday himself).
Harper and Matt Williams had a rocky relationship at best.
2. Harper's issues with managers. The issues he had with Matt Williams is well documented, but also it never seemed like Harper and Davey Johnson were in agreement with a lot of things he did. Players take note and there has been a divide among players in the past between star players and managers. While it was subdued thanks to the Nationals bringing in Dusty Baker, who has experience dealing with super ego players such as Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa, the past shows that his previous managers have been an issue for Harper if he doesn't get his way. And you can somewhat attribute Washington's 2nd half collapse in 2015 to the fact there was tension with Williams and Harper. And contrary to what some of these sabermetric, new-school people think, I do believe there is a chemistry factor that cannot be overlooked at all.
Nationals celebrate, but Harper would rather yell at an umpire.
3. Harper for Himself? Don't know the guy personally so this is more assumption, but reading articles about the guy is that he doesn't necessarily constitute as a great team player and pretty much a jerk on and off the field. Does that make him a self-centered player? Perhaps. We saw how talented ARod was as a player, but he was very self-absorbed most of his career until the post-suspension time where he seemed to reflect on the stuff he did. Before that, many believed ARod and his numbers would constitute 3 or 4 world championships in either Texas or New York in his career. Instead, only one and had a knack of choking in big games. So far, Harper hasn't been great in the sense of October baseball either (another reason why he doesn't deserve $400 million). But it could cause tension in a team's locker room.
Harper has been known to get in nearly every umpire's face after a questionable strike.
4. Harper is Still Very Immature-and People Still Feed Him Bull: I pointed this out in my post in July about Bryce being immature. Yes, the guy is 23 so I don't expect him to carry himself say a Derek Jeter, Victor Martinez, or a Dustin Pedroia. But every time it is a questionable pitch, Harper barks. Everytime he thinks somebody slighted him, Harper barks. I think for even Harper, taking a walk bothers him as he considers it an insult and does that "let's set the bat down right at the plate and go slowly to first" to irritate the pitcher. But when we hear the baseball writers and other media talk about him, you'd think whatever he does, he can do no wrong and that they are in full 100% agreement of what Harper does. To quote Donald Trump, Harper could walk in the middle of a major street, "shoot somebody, and nothing would happen." And I think that is Harper's #1 problem of all else. People around him and in the media tend to kiss his butt and it gives him more reason to act like whatever he wants to act. If this changes, he might end up improving everything else of his game.
I do think Harper LOVES to play the game. It does show when he is playing and having a good time. However, there are too many issues right now that would prevent me from pretty much selling an entire city to get the guy. And there is still plenty of time for him to "grow up." However, things need to change for Harper if he wants to be considered baseball's first 400 million dollar man.
-Fan in the Obstructed Seat
