WASHINGTON, DC – April 02: Bryce Harper #3 of the Philadelphia Phillies speaks during a press conference before the game between the Washington Nationals and the Philadelphia Phillies at Nationals Park on April 2, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
Nationals fans booed Bryce Harper with great enthusiasm in his first game vs. his former team.
Bryce Harper is back in D.C. as a member of the Phillies and his former fans let him have it.
A chorus of boos rained down from everywhere in the stadium at the former Nationals MVP who took the Phillies offer, which was a much better offer than the Nationals presented him. Clearly, Nationals fans are miffed at Harper for not being loyal to the city where he worked for a few years and not their cheap ownership.
Harper was booed when his name was announced in the starting lineup, the boos started up again when he stepped in the on-deck circle for his first at bat and grew even louder when he stepped in to face Max Scherzer.
Scherzer quickly got ahead of Harper with two strikes and later got him to strike out swinging, which drew a loud cheer from the home faithful.
Immediately after Harper went down swinging, the Nationals Twitter account shared a particularly sassy and in no way petty or insecure tweet at all. Ariana Grande would be proud of this.
The fans who were booing Harper are totally within their rights to voice such displeasure, but it also makes zero sense whatsoever. The same people booing Harper would totally turn down $330 million to take a far less offer that included deferred money to stay at their jobs, I’m sure.
If there’s one thing fans can agree to bicker about, it’s about loyalty and money.
Fans hate athletes who don’t play for one team their whole life and they’re snakes and traitors when they have the audacity to take a better job and opportunity elsewhere.
So don’t feel bad for Harper who heard some boo birds in his former home park, he’s got $330 million reasons to smile.