Bryce Harper is back in D.C. tonight as his Philadelphia Phillies are visiting the Washington Nationals. In the top of the first inning, Harper strode to the plate to face former teammate Max Scherzer in front of his old fans. They were not happy to see him.
Watch:
Those are some seriously loud boos for the former Nationals superstar.
He also struck out in his first at-bat, after which Nats fans went nuts:
Harper left the Nats this winter, signing a then-record 13-year, $330 million deal with the division rival Phillies.
Harper was the No. 1 pick in the 2010 MLB Draft and signed a $9.9 million deal with the Nationals after playing a year at the College of Southern Nevada. He spent the next eight years with the organization, making his debut in April of 2012.
Harper went on to be named National League Rookie of the Year in 2012, was a six-time All-Star and won the NL MVP in 2015. He clearly did great work while he was a member of the organization. That said, we all knew there would be hard feelings when the 26-year-old returned to town.
Last season Harper reportedly turned down a 10-year, $300 million contract from the Nationals and opted to hit free agency instead. At that point it was clear the relationship was over and hadn’t ended well.
