If Washington DC’s mayor is any indicator, Bryce Harper should expect a traitor’s welcome at Nationals Park on Tuesday night.
The slugger will make his early-season return after leaving the Nationals for the NL East-rival Phillies and a 13-year, $330 million contract this offseason. Mayor Muriel Bowser posted a photo on Twitter comparing Harper to Revolutionary War-era traitor Benedict Arnold. Bowser deleted the tweet a few minutes later, but not before it was grabbed by her followers.
This picture WAS on Mayor Bowser's Twitter page less than 30 minutes ago, but not anymore…
Tomorrow is going to be nuts. #OnePursuit#HarperReturns @ABC7Sports pic.twitter.com/rO5sEO1D9l
— Chip Brierre (@Chip_Brierre) April 1, 2019
“I’m not sure what to expect,” Harper, 26, told the Washington Post of the reaction he’ll get from fans.
In the same story, he confirmed he received a 10-year, $300 million offer from the Nationals toward the end of last season that included $100 million in deferred money. He thought at that moment negotiations were just getting started, and he’d be able to re-sign with the only club he’d known.
He met with Nationals ownership around Christmas.
“I walked away from that meeting like, ‘I want to go back, so let’s get the friggin’ deal done,’” Harper said. “I told Scott [Boras]: ‘If we can get the thing done with them, like, now, let’s go. Because I want to get it done, be back in D.C., and be done with it.’ ”
Instead, talks froze and Harper ended up in Philadelphia and an opening weekend to the season that included two home runs, three wins over the Braves and a fan base embracing its new star. Harper may not be so lucky as he heads down I-95, though he did reflect warmly on his time in Washington in an Instagram post Tuesday.
“The city of DC was home,” Harper wrote in part of the lengthy post. “Filomena’s, The Silver Diner, The Italian store, and countless other places helped make it feel like home. You, Nationals fans, made me one of your own for the entire time I was a part of the Nationals organization. I’m so blessed to have been able to play for a fan base that cared so much about our team each and every night. You will always hold a special place in my heart no matter what. I look forward to continuing Harpers Heroes with LLS in the DMV as well as making sure the legacy fields bearing my name are the best youth fields in town!
“When I run on the field tonight I am sure to hear some boos, but I will always remember the cheers and the screams that are still with me right now, as I start my new chapter. So for that, DC, THANK YOU.”
