The Bryce Harper Watch

[Sharp]

AFL so far: .353, 1HR, 4RBIs in 3 games.

Yeah, he wasn't ready.

Pitchers have still barely seen him, and he hasn't walked at all (and his at-bats have included some pretty bad swings at balls way out of the strike zone).  I love what we've seen of him but it's important not to delude ourselves into thinking he's going to be ready within a year, especially when you consider that the AFL is not much of a pitcher's league this year--every game seems to involve absurdly high run totals on both sides.

As far as character goes?  I'm sure all the pitchers are really eager to get him out, but he didn't seem to be acting up to me during his batting practice or after his strikeouts... he didn't even pose after the HR.  They might be a little jealous of all the extra attention I guess, but frankly very few prospects in the AFL are cut from the "worked really hard to get to this level and may get a cup of coffee in the majors" cloth; they're all top prospects, they're all supremely confident, and they're all expecting to do well every time they step to the plate.  I would think Harper would be pretty much at home in that crowd.

[Obed_Marsh]

I am not going to let you bait me into making an argument the kid is a bad guy.

You are selectively reading the information if you think it is clear cut on his makeup.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/15/AR2010051503114.html

[Sharp]

Look, I personally think Bryce Harper is probably kind of a douchebag teenager with an attitude problem and an insufferable superiority complex.  I just doubt that kind of attitude is terribly out of place in the AFL.

[Potomac Cannons]

Pitchers have still barely seen him, and he hasn't walked at all (and his at-bats have included some pretty bad swings at balls way out of the strike zone).  I love what we've seen of him but it's important not to delude ourselves into thinking he's going to be ready within a year, especially when you consider that the AFL is not much of a pitcher's league this year--every game seems to involve absurdly high run totals on both sides.

Not sure about the pitcher's league thing.  They have pretty serious inning limits in the AFL so the good and the bad are likely getting similar IP.  The Nats alone have Peacock, Carr and Kimball pitching well.

[Sharp]

Not sure about the pitcher's league thing.  They have pretty serious inning limits in the AFL so the good and the bad are likely getting similar IP.  The Nats alone have Peacock, Carr and Kimball pitching well.

If hitters are seeing a lot of bad pitchers, then it's almost by definition not a pitchers' league, is it?  For all we know, Bryce Harper's strikeouts all came against the "good" pitchers and his line drives and home runs all came against the "bad" ones, but the ultimate effect is that a ton of runs score and players' offensive abilities are exaggerated.  This isn't just me mindfacting either, I don't remember where I read it but according to at least one article the AFL is almost always a hitters' league, players like Strasburg aside.

[UMDNats]

I disagree with anything Steve Phillips says on principle alone.

This.

[Obed_Marsh]

This.

Sheesh. He wrote a decent article about the kind of pressure Harper is under and you guys are breaking down the door to burn the straw-man. It is not like I generally endorsed the guy or something.

[Potomac Cannons]

I am not going to let you bait me into making an argument the kid is a bad guy.

Your selectively reading the information if you think it is clear cut on his makeup.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/15/AR2010051503114.html

First two paragraphs of that article are ridiculous.  Harper has a pre AB routine that is excessive.  So do a ton of guys.  No one gets a FB in the ear for that.  Some scout, who doesn't have the balls to attach his name to the comment, doesn't like him.  BFD.

That article is pretty damn positive about him.  Some team gets pissed because he takes their crap and hits a HR over the lights?  The ump tosses him for bowing to the other team after he throws behind a guy on a single?  Why didn't the ump toss the guys on the bench who were cussing him out?  A couple of unnamed scouts talk crap about him.  Everyone else says it's bullcrap.  I'll side with everyone else until there's actual evidence, or people who put their name with it and have the proven track record to back it up, to the contrary.

[The Chief]

Sheesh. He wrote a decent article about the kind of pressure Harper is under and you guys are breaking down the door to burn the straw-man. It is not like I generally endorsed the guy or something.

Relax, we aren't all humorless.

[Obed_Marsh]

Fine. Steve Phillips is the anti-christ and Bryce Harper is a consummate sportsman and ballplayer.  

[NatsDad14]

Sheesh. He wrote a decent article about the kind of pressure Harper is under and you guys are breaking down the door to burn the straw-man. It is not like I generally endorsed the guy or something.

Don't forget his dumb Oswalt-Strasburg comments.

[Potomac Cannons]

If hitters are seeing a lot of bad pitchers, then it's almost by definition not a pitchers' league, is it?  For all we know, Bryce Harper's strikeouts all came against the "good" pitchers and his line drives and home runs all came against the "bad" ones, but the ultimate effect is that a ton of runs score and players' offensive abilities are exaggerated.  This isn't just me mindfacting either, I don't remember where I read it but according to at least one article the AFL is almost always a hitters' league, players like Strasburg aside.

27 pitchers who qualify for the ratings with a WHIP 1.30 or under and 10 under 1.00.  It's not so much a bad pitcher's league as a league that essentially forces all pitchers to get pretty equal IP regardless of performance.  You'll see some inflated offensive numbers there but guys still get AB against good pitching prospects.

[JMUalumni]

If hitters are seeing a lot of bad pitchers, then it's almost by definition not a pitchers' league, is it?  For all we know, Bryce Harper's strikeouts all came against the "good" pitchers and his line drives and home runs all came against the "bad" ones, but the ultimate effect is that a ton of runs score and players' offensive abilities are exaggerated.  This isn't just me mindfacting either, I don't remember where I read it but according to at least one article the AFL is almost always a hitters' league, players like Strasburg aside.

The AFL is definitely a hitter's league.  The average batting line is much higher for the AFL than it is for any of the advanced milb leagues.

[Potomac Cannons]

Look, I personally think Bryce Harper is probably kind of a douchebag teenager with an attitude problem and an insufferable superiority complex.  I just doubt that kind of attitude is terribly out of place in the AFL.

Would not be surprised about that at all.  I do like that when he slammed his helmet down in the dugout after flying out that his dad was right there to tear into him about acting that way.

[HalfSmokes]

Would not be surprised about that at all.  I do like that when he slammed his helmet down in the dugout after flying out that his dad was right there to tear into him about acting that way.

I wonder how long that lasts? He's the one with the money and the contract

I wonder if you took any star high school athlete, put them on the cover of SI, had them drop out, go to JC and then get drafted first over all with a huge signing bonus, if they wouldn't have an attitude problem?

[Potomac Cannons]

I wonder how long that lasts? He's the one with the money and the contract

I wonder if you took any star high school athlete, put them on the cover of SI, had them drop out, go to JC and then get drafted first over all with a huge signing bonus, if they wouldn't have an attitude problem?

Having coached HS sports for years I can say that most of them are like that without the extra stuff attached.  Hell, when I was offered a lacrosse scholarship by G'Town I was like that.  I had teammates not even getting D-3 looks that were like that.  It's part of the atmosphere that has developed around sports in general.

[houston-nat]

Hell, I met a varsity baseball player at my alma mater (which has a very highly esteemed baseball program) who could throw a 94 mile per hour fastball. But he was shut down for the year with some kind of throwing arm injury after posting a grand total 2010 line of:
2.2 IP, 18 batters faced, 3 doubles allowed, 1 home run allowed, 2 walks, 4 singles allowed
9 ER / 30.38 ERA / 4 relief appearances
What makes him relevant to this thread is that he decided to enter the 2010 draft, as a 3rd year player, after posting those numbers. He told this to me: "Yeah, I'm goin' in the draft." He didn't. Yeah. These guys are cocky.

[Potomac Cannons]

My nephew is playing JUCO ball in MD this year.  He's a 6'4" LHP with a solid slider and change who hits 89-92.  As a HS junior he tore his left knee up playing FB and missed the baseball season.  He came back as a senior and had a good year despite a slow start.  He opted not to go the draft route despite Blue Jays and O's scouts working him out and telling him they would take him if he would sign with them.  He would not have been a top 10 round pick with the knee questions.  He's the #1 SP for his JUCO.  He went JUCO because his math skills aren't 4yr quality.  He is really good but chose to work on things before getting paid for it.

I'd say he's the exception.

[cmdterps44]

Bryce drilled that ball. The sounds is awesome.

[Skinz72]

I think in '08 Bill Rhinehart either came in 1st or 2nd in RBI's for the AFL that year - and look at him now!!! (insert sarcasm).  It is definately a hitters league and does not dicate success in the MLB for anyone.  But you can't discount BH's seemingly unexpected numbers because he is so young, and has never faced pitching of this caliber.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

I don't know if this is a big deal or not, but. Did anybody notice after Harper hit the HR, he got back to the dugout and none of his teammates where at the top of the stairs to give him a five or shake his hand? I just hope the stories aren't true about him rubbing people the wrong way.

Dagerrrrr - sorry, that is the silent treatment after his first HR.  You don't sit that still if it is not the silent treatment.  Rather than being a sign of resentment, I'd venture that it is more of a sign of his popularity. 

Obed - sorry on this one, but I have not seen any recent posts indicating he is thought to be a jerk or has a bad attitude.  What you are saying is directly contradicted by Kilgore and Kerr.  The articles you sight are, for the most part, anonymous things written before he signed.  I did a few google searches with his name and "arizona" in it, with a date restriction of the past month, and could come up with nothing other than a few sour posts by commenters on WaPo blogs (not reporters).  The onus is on you to find something current.

[UMDNats]

Sheesh. He wrote a decent article about the kind of pressure Harper is under and you guys are breaking down the door to burn the straw-man. It is not like I generally endorsed the guy or something.

/facepalm

[JCA-CrystalCity]

Something more current than June:
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/nationalsjournal/2010/10/bryce_harpers_first_day_in_ari.html

On Harper's last swing, he drilled a long drive to left-center. Caleb Joseph, an Orioles catching prospect also on the taxi squad, played announcer while standing behind the batting cage. "Back, back, back, back" -- and the, as the ball landed in the bullpen -- "it's over!"

During batting practice, Harper hit four home runs in 20 or so swings, a strong first impression. Harper stands apart from his teammates, talented as they are. He is, at 18 years and 2 days, the youngest player on the team by nearly two years. He signed for a record signing bonus as the first pick in the draft. He's the only one here who has appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated. The list goes on.

But you wouldn't notice by watching Harper interact with his new teammates. He lingered with the Nationals contingent out in the field as batting practice began. Behind the cage, he chatted comfortably with Marc Krauss, a Diamondbacks outfield prospect, while he took warm-up swings.

[Obed_Marsh]

I wish I would have ignored Cannon's trolling.

Frankly at this point I don't give a damn. Believe whatever you want or do your own damn research on Harper's college year. I never said a word about the AFL.

[Lintyfresh85]

I think in '08 Bill Rhinehart either came in 1st or 2nd in RBI's for the AFL that year - and look at him now!!! (insert sarcasm).  It is definately a hitters league and does not dicate success in the MLB for anyone.  But you can't discount BH's seemingly unexpected numbers because he is so young, and has never faced pitching of this caliber.

I do believe something like 53% of all AFL'ers make it to the bigs at least once in their career.

That's what their twitter account boasted, at least.