Should we trade Harper?

[Ray D]

With one year left on his contract there's no way the Nats would get anywhere near full value for him..

How do you define "full value"?   Harper's value to the Nationals is one year of Harper.  That's how I define full value.  That's what we would get for him, full value.

It doesn't matter, this is a fantasy discussion, there is no way we're trading him.

[SkinsNatFan21RIP]

He's not going to be traded nor is he going to leave.  His value to the Lerners is much more then just what he does on the field. They will pay him.

[Lshav22]

I don't think there is anyway he gets traded, but I would think Chance Adams, Justus Sheffield, Jordan Montgomery and Dellin Betances with the Yankees would be names that made sense (if they saw value in bringing him in one year before they could negotiate with him). One year of Harp would not bring all of those guys, but that would match up with our organizational need.

Still, I think he's playing out the contract.

[HattoriHanzo]

He's not going to be traded nor is he going to leave.  His value to the Lerners is much more then just what he does on the field. They will pay him.

What if the Dodgers want Harper to play LF for them and can easily win a bidding war for him? The Lerners could easily lose the bidding war for him. If they seriously want to keep him, then they should make a fantastic offer to him this off-season and hope he takes it.

[Ray D]

The Lerners could easily lose the bidding war for him.

They would not lose a bidding was if they are serious about bidding.  (That said, I hope they don't engage in a bidding was, let him go.)

[SkinsNatFan21RIP]

What if the Dodgers want Harper to play LF for them and can easily win a bidding war for him? The Lerners could easily lose the bidding war for him. If they seriously want to keep him, then they should make a fantastic offer to him this off-season and hope he takes it.

They wouldn't lose a bidding war.

[Slateman]

The Lerners will most definitely lose a bidding war. They already have. Remember Heyward? Someone will offer just as much money.

[PowerBoater69]

Should we trade Harper? 100% yes, before he walks. The difference between his 2018 salary and free agent value for a one year contract is at least $20 million, plus he'd sell tons of jerseys and season ticket plans. Teams will give up good value in return. I'd look for a major league ready top catching prospect to learn under Wieters next year, along with one or two other guys.

[Dave301]

It seems unconventional for a contending team to trade their star player just because he has one year left on his contract. Can anyone provide examples of teams doing this in the past?

[Slateman]

It seems unconventional for a contending team to trade their star player just because he has one year left on his contract. Can anyone provide examples of teams doing this in the past?

Red Sox trades Nomar in 2004

[SkinsNatFan21RIP]

The Lerners will most definitely lose a bidding war. They already have. Remember Heyward? Someone will offer just as much money.

How is that even remotely the same thing as a bidding war with a homegrown player?

[LoveAngelos]

We need to keep Harper so he can get us into the playoffs and so he can then disappear again like most of the team

[Slateman]

How is that even remotely the same thing as a bidding war with a homegrown player?

Homegrown? Nothing about Harper is homegrown. He was the number 1 overall pick. He is a prodigy.

Teams like the Dodgers, Cubs, and Yankees won't lose a bidding war and they don't have to defer money. On top of that, they have cultures and histories of winning.

[Ray D]

Homegrown? Nothing about Harper is homegrown.

When you draft a guy, and he plays his first six years for you, you can't get more homegrown than that,

[SkinsNatFan21RIP]

Homegrown? Nothing about Harper is homegrown. He was the number 1 overall pick. He is a prodigy.

Teams like the Dodgers, Cubs, and Yankees won't lose a bidding war and they don't have to defer money. On top of that, they have cultures and histories of winning.

Except for the fact he was drafted by this organization as a teenager and has been here his entire six year career? That's pretty much what homegrown means.

[HalfSmokes]

Except for the fact he was drafted by this organization as a teenager and has been here his entire six year career? That's pretty much what homegrown means.

homegrown is a guy who learns the game and develops in your farm system. Nothing this team has done has improved or altered what every scout thought harper would turn into before he was drafted

[CoryTheFormerExposFan]

Where is all this certainty that Harper signs elsewhere coming from?  A few things:

1. Everybody assumed another Boras client, Strasburg, would walk.  He signed an extension.  I can see Harper signing a similar extension but with an opt-out so that he can still hit the market again if he wants. 

2. Rizzo is now in the last year of his deal.  If he's not extended this offseason, then he's going for broker to win the World Series in 2018.  Any trade of Harper is going to net long-term assets but not immediately make us better.

[HalfSmokes]

2. Rizzo is now in the last year of his deal.  If he's not extended this offseason, then he's going for broker to win the World Series in 2018.  Any trade of Harper is going to net long-term assets but not immediately make us better.

I think Rizzo is either extended or gone before the offseason get too far under way. Too much of a gm’s job is balancing present vs future to have a lame duck with no incentives to care about the future in place

[Slateman]

homegrown is a guy who learns the game and develops in your farm system. Nothing this team has done has improved or altered what every scout thought harper would turn into before he was drafted

This.

Jordan Zimmermann was home grown. Ian Desmond was home grown. Michael Taylor is home grown.

[SkinsNatFan21RIP]

homegrown is a guy who learns the game and develops in your farm system. Nothing this team has done has improved or altered what every scout thought harper would turn into before he was drafted

Harper was still drafted by the Nats, went into their system no matter how short that time period was and was developed by the Nationals organization.  How the homegrown label doesn't apply in this situation is beyond me?  It's like fans have separate rules for Harper because they've convinced themselves he's leaving.

[HalfSmokes]

Harper was still drafted by the Nats, went into their system no matter how short that time period was and was developed by the Nationals organization.  How the homegrown label doesn't apply in this situation is beyond me?  It's like fans have separate rules for Harper because they've convinced themselves he's leaving.

not just Harper, Zimmerman and Strasburg both also basically skipped the farm. It's like people want to read the grown out of home grown and insist that the nats somehow developed players who raced through their system 

[bluestreak]

Everyone I’ve ever seen refers to a player who was drafted and brought up through the farm system as homegrown. The Giants consider Buster Posey homegrown. The same with the Twins and Joe Mauer. I’m not sure why Harper wouldn’t, unless it’s fans trying to emotionally protect themselves because they think he’s leaving.

[Slateman]

not just Harper, Zimmerman and Strasburg both also basically skipped the farm. It's like people want to read the grown out of home grown and insist that the nats somehow developed players who raced through their system 

Moreover, want to believe that they developed players that were  consensus, once in a generation number 1 talents. At least the 2005 draft had a lot of talent and the decision to take Zimmerman at number 4 wasn't obvious.

[Slateman]

Everyone I’ve ever seen refers to a player who was drafted and brought up through the farm system as homegrown. The Giants consider Buster Posey homegrown. The same with the Twins and Joe Mauer. I’m not sure why Harper wouldn’t, unless it’s fans trying to emotionally protect themselves because they think he’s leaving.

Because Harper was an obvious number 1 pick. There was no scouting needed. No real deliberation. There was no way in hell he wasn't going number 1

[bluestreak]

Because Harper was an obvious number 1 pick. There was no scouting needed. No real deliberation. There was no way in hell he wasn't going number 1

What about Mauer? He was the same. And spent minimal time in the minors. No one in the Twins organization is calling him anything but homegrown.