Bryce’s focus on Nats, not free agency
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Bryce Harper was surprised Giancarlo Stanton wound up with the Yankees. Where Harper winds up after 2018 is anybody’s guess because the Gifted One is not addressing his free-agent future.
“I will not be discussing anything relat ive to 2019 at al l ,’ ’ Harper said Monday at Nationals camp in hi s a nnual St a t e of Bryce address.
“If you g uys have any questions about 2019 or anything after 2018, call [agent] Scott [Boras] and he can answer for you guys. I’m not going to answer any questions,” Harper said. “If you guys do ask anything about that, I’ll be walking right out the door.’’
Harper then made a walking away sign with his hand. Harper, a five-time All-Star, could be walking away from the Nats soon enough.
The Golden Free Agent may be going to the Yankees, even with Stanton aboard, the Dodgers, Cubs or maybe the cash-rich Phillies, or he could play local hero and stay with the Nationals — but he is not discussing it.
“Super driven, super excited to start this year,’’ he said, now that he is over the knee problem that plagued him last season. “I was very shocked that [the Marlins] were going to let go of [Christian] Yelich, [Marcell] Ozuna and Stanton because they were one of the best outfields in the game, very shocked about that,’’ Harper said. “You can’t say enough about what Stanton did last year, what Ozuna did last year and what Yelich has done the last couple of years. I thought they were a team that just had to add a couple more pitchers and they would have been pretty damn good.’’
Harper, though, is more concerned with the Nationals, saying he is over losing Game 5 of the NLDS to t he Cubs.
“Whe n I wa l k out of the clubhouse, any game I play, I walk out, season is over, that game is over. They beat us and that’s it,’’ he said.
Harper — who hit 29 homers and drove in 87 with a 1.008 OPS in 111 games last season — said he is thrilled Kevin Long, the new hitting coach, jumped from the Mets.
“I got a call from [GM Mike] Rizzo earlier in the offseason and we talked about Davey [Martinez] and the staff and who I wanted and things like that,’’ Harper said. “Was really excited to put Kevin Long’s name out there. When [Rizzo] talked about that I was like, ‘ Wow, that’s a great asset for us.’ I didn’t think his name would come up at all as a hitting coach because he was with the Mets.’’
Here is Harper’s view of Mickey Callaway’s team.
“The Mets are always tough, they got one of the best staffs in all of baseball, [Noah] Syndergaard, [Jacob] deGrom, [Matt] Harvey of course. I mean against me, [Steven] Matz, a tough lefty and [Zack] Wheeler, whoever their fifth starter is. They’re really good, they got a good bullpen. One of my favorite players in the game, [Michael] Conforto, that guy rakes from the left side of the plate, he’s super tough on us. That’s always a tough team to play against, that staff is really good.’’
Said Rizzo of Harper: “I’m proud to have drafted, developed and have him on our club and look forward to many, many more years with him.’’
The Nats are NL East favorites again despite their pitiful playoff past.
“We’re expected to possibly win a pennant and we’re expected to possibly win a World Series,’’ Harper said of perhaps his last Nats chance. “We have to win the East first, the Mets are tough. I just want to stay healthy. If I can stay healthy I can be one of the best players in the game.’’
Then break the free-agent bank. He is still just 25 and already has 150 home runs.
Talking in general about the freeagent process, Harper said, “If I’m an organization or a team I want the best players on the team, my fans deserve that, the players deserve that. There’s Jake Arrieta out there right now, I’d put him on my team any day of the week. He’s one of the best pitchers in the game. I’m not sure what people are thinking. If you are trying to lose ballgames to get the No. 1 pick, I’ll take a freakin’ Jayson Werth over a firstround pick any day of the week.’’
Sounds like the first pick of the 2010 draft can’t wait to hit free agency.