Is Bryce Harper really worth the grief and money?

[CMIZ5290]

His stats are really not consistant with the contract he received IMO...Plus the negatives he brings to the table with teammates....

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

13 years. I just can't get over that.

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[Lorewalker]

Being discussed here
http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=266355

[CMIZ5290]

Originally Posted by vintagebaseballcardguy

13 years. I just can't get over that.

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And.....Is he really that good?

[CMIZ5290]

Thanks Chase, let's change it up....The Atlanta Braves made the playoffs last year with a very young lineup....They acquired Josh Donaldson in the off season, thoughts??? Are they the team to beat in the NL East?

And how good is Ronald Acuna Jr?

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Gobucsmagic74

And how good is Ronald Acuna Jr?

Better than Ronald Acuna Sr. anyhow.

[CMIZ5290]

Originally Posted by Gobucsmagic74

And how good is Ronald Acuna Jr?

Pretty damn good....He has a legitimate shot at stardom......He reminds me of a young Andruw Jones.....

[mantlefan]

Originally Posted by CMIZ5290

Thanks Chase, let's change it up....The Atlanta Braves made the playoffs last year with a very young lineup....They acquired Josh Donaldson in the off season, thoughts??? Are they the team to beat in the NL East?

The Braves lack the starting pitching to be considered the team to beat in the NL East. That division is wide open with the Nats, Mets and Phils all improving their rosters over the post season. The top 3 Cy Young finishers (deGrom, Scherzer and Nola) all pitch in the East. Throw in Steven Strasburg, Patrick Corbin, Noah Syndergaard, Jake Arrieta et al and this will be one tough division.

[Peter_Spaeth]

When the heck is someone going to sign Dallas Keuchel? Granted he had a mediocre year, but you are still talking about a guy only 30 with a Cy Young on his resume.

[MichelaiTorres83]

Originally Posted by mantlefan

The Braves lack the starting pitching to be considered the team to beat in the NL East. That division is wide open with the Nats, Mets and Phils all improving their rosters over the post season. The top 3 Cy Young finishers (deGrom, Scherzer and Nola) all pitch in the East. Throw in Steven Strasburg, Patrick Corbin, Noah Syndergaard, Jake Arrieta et al and this will be one tough division.

I am a met fan but to be honest why even debate the nl east. The division winner is rarely much better than a 500 ball club. The braves are the only team that has what it takes to build a dynasty. Anyone traded to the mets will start to suck the moment they get on the field. If they have a shot at the wild card they are almost guarenteed to come up 1 game short due to a loss to the phillies who never have a shot in hell of winning.

The nats either blow everyone out of the water or its the same win place show it has always been, braves, mets followed by the only macot who is actually a horse, the phillies.

[Jim65]

Originally Posted by vintagebaseballcardguy

13 years. I just can't get over that.

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Harper wanted the biggest contract (Giancarlo was $325M) Philly wasn't going to pay him $33M a year for 10 years, so I guess the they stretched it out longer to make it work. I'm surprised there was no opt out.

[clydepepper]

Originally Posted by CMIZ5290

His stats are really not consistant with the contract he received IMO...Plus the negatives he brings to the table with teammates....

I don't know, but he's definitely not WWII or older

[the 'stache]

Just as interesting to me is that Harper's actively campaigning for Mike Trout to come to Philly...a guy who's not eligible for free agency until before the 2021 season.

The League Commish's eyes raised, I'm sure. That's borderline tampering, isn't it?

[the 'stache]

And, I understand what Philly is doing. It seems every other year is a great one for Harper, though his 2017 season was limited by an injury that kept him to 111 games.

Still, think of floor and ceiling. Yeah, he's been a bit of a prick ("that's a clown story, brah". I hear that kind of a thing come out of his mouth, and I want to punch him). But he's only 26, and should be maturing more. Hopefully, for his sake. Philly fans won't put up with crap. Anyway, realistically, his floor? Near .400 OBP or higher. .500 SLG or higher. 30 + home runs a year for the next decade, assuming health.

Ceiling? Oh, my. He might never have another 2015 year, but is it unreasonable for us to think he could hit .290-.310, hit 40 + home runs, walk 125 times, drive in 100 + every year for the next five years, with somewhat similar production in his early 30s?

I say no. And the Phillies are smart to gamble that he's going to hit closer to his ceiling than his floor. Even without that monster season, he's a 143 OPS + player the last two years. That power is going to play in Philly, and if he comes anywhere near his power potential, he could hit 50 out of the park. He's got that potential upside. The ball just flies off his bat.

It will be interesting to see just how good he is. God help the rest of baseball if he and Trout are ever 3-4 in the heart of that lineup. /shudder.