Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper admittedly "trolled" the media in June when he Instagrammed a picture of himself and Cubs star Kris Bryant and added the hashtag "Back2BackOneDay."
The hashtag was a reference to a rumor from Hall of Fame baseball writer Peter Gammons that Harper preferred to sign with the Cubs when he becomes a free agent after 2018.
"I do that to the media because they stir it more than I do," Harper told the Washington Post. "That's why I do the things I do at times, because it's funny to me. It's like, 'All right, people want to talk about this and talk about that. Why not just throw this out there and make them think about it?' "
Harper and the Nationals are in Chicago this weekend, which led Bryant to joke: "Maybe we'll do another one."
Bryant, a friend from Las Vegas, said he had no idea when the picture of the two and their significant others was taken that Harper was planning to troll the media.
"He was stirring the pot," Bryant said. "He's just totally having fun because I think a lot of people were talking about that. He's funny, man. He knows how to get people talking about stuff, and I love that about him."
Harper never has denied he would prefer to go to the Cubs. Does Bryant think there's any truth to it?
"I haven't heard anything, honestly," he said. "I don't think he's even thinking about that either. He still has another year. Maybe next year at this time would be a good time to ask him and the picture would be clearer."
Anthony Rizzo believes Harper might want to come to the Cubs, assuming they paid him what he's worth, which could be more than $250 million.
"I don't blame him," he said. "Who wouldn't want to play in Chicago in the summertime?"
Rizzo, who was talking with Harper at first base during Friday's game, said he wouldn't recruit him, as Stephen Curry and Draymond Green reportedly recruited Kevin Durant to the NBA's Warriors.
"There really is not recruiting so much in baseball," Rizzo said. "It's just setting the market for the next player. I can't see guys, especially guys of his caliber, taking too big of a discount. (Durant) got a lot of money, and it's hard to (compare) because the (NBA) shoe deals are more than the contracts. It's crazy how marketable the NBA players are.
"I'm sure it's going to be fun for everyone to talk about it."
It already is.
