In the 2010 MLB draft, the Washington Nationals made Bryce Harper the No. 1 overall selection. Over the next seven years in D.C., he captured both the Rookie of the Year award and the National League MVP title.
When Harper departed in 2019, it was via a 13-year, $330 million free-agent deal with the Philadelphia Phillies. That same season, the Nationals went on to win the World Series, so at least in the immediate aftermath, his exit didn’t appear to set the franchise back.
Still, that hasn’t stopped a certain subset of Nationals fans from holding onto some lingering resentment toward Harper for moving on. During Thursday’s contest, a cluster of shirtless D.C. supporters made their feelings known with a chant aimed at him one that featured explicit language.
Harper caught wind of the heckling, and after he launched a two-run homer to left field in the ninth inning to put Philadelphia ahead, he responded with a gesture. Not the middle finger, though instead, he flashed his ring finger.
“Ring finger, though. Just make sure that’s out there,” Harper said following the Phillies’ 10–5 victory. “But, obviously, everybody heard it. We heard it the other night. I mean, they were doing the same thing to Trea (Turner). Which is crazy, because they should probably know their history a little bit with him winning a World Series here.
“It’s weird coming from a fanbase, obviously, that I sweated for, for seven years, but there’s a lot of people around here that enjoy me. So it’s all part of it. It’s all fun.”
Harper added, “Everywhere I go, I get booed. I love it. It’s all part of it. It’s weird coming from a fan base that I sweated for for seven years. But there’s a lot of people around here that enjoy me. … There’s a lot of people in that organization I respect and a lot of workers around the park I respect.”
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