As soon as the ball hissed off his bat, Bryce Harper tore down the first base line on a mission. The ball bounced off the scoreboard in right field and Harper flew around the bases. He turned his head back for a quick peek at the right fielder chasing after the ball, but he never broke stride. By the time he slid headfirst into third base Friday night in the Washington Nationals’ rain-delayed 11-1 win over the San Diego Padres, his helmet was already off.
Harper beat the throw to third base but his left wrist bore the brunt of the slide into the bag. He popped up one leg and slapped his hands together in celebration. Then, he reached for his wrist. Standing at the bag after calling time, he grabbed his wrist again. In the midst of a career night, Harper left after the following inning, replaced in left field by Nate McLouth for an unannounced reason.
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Harper’s breakout night -- a career-high four RBI capped by his thrilling bases-clearing triple – propelled the Nationals to victory a day after a head-scratching offensive futility in a loss. But his exit and facial expression after the slide cast a cloud over the game and over the seven spectacular innings from Stephen Strasburg, who struck out 11. The night after stranding 18 baserunners, the Nationals went 7 for 17 with runners in scoring position. They produced a season-high 17 hits and torched the Padres’ strong pitching, led by Anthony Rendon’s career-high four hits.
Nearly four weeks into the season, the Nationals have sustained their fair share of injuries. A prized offseason acquisition (starter Doug Fister), the starting third baseman (Ryan Zimmerman) and starting catcher (Wilson Ramos) are at various stages of recovery from injuries on the disabled list. An injury to Harper -- an important piece to their lineup who showed signs of snapping out of a mini funk recently – would add more insult to injury.
The Nationals, who typically don’t make in-game injury announcements, did not provide a reason for Harper’s exit Friday. Instead, fans were left to wonder what happened to the team’s cherished outfielder an inning after he grabbed his wrist.
For much of the first month of the season, Harper has toggled between productive and slumping hitter. He began the season in a small funk, emerged from it with a relaxed approach at the plate and then fell into another small funk. It coincided with his benching last week by Manager Matt Williams for not running out a ground ball. Harper’s play this past week – such as a two-strike bunt attempt with no outs and a runner on base, and a half-jog, half-run down the first base line –raised some questions.
But on Thursday, Harper smacked two hits. A day later, he broke out. He entered the game with five RBI in his previous 21 games. By the third inning, he set a career-high mark. The Nationals took a 2-0 lead in the first inning thanks to an opposite field RBI double by Ian Desmond and an RBI single by Harper. Six batters into his start, Padres left-hander Robbie Erlin fielded a mound visit from a coach.
The Nationals made Erlin even more miserable in the third inning, a four-run frame capped by Harper’s hit. Rendon singled, Adam LaRoche drew his 15th walk of the season and Desmond singled to load the bases. With one out and facing a full count against Erlin, Harper crushed a fastball to right field and took off.
Right fielder Chris Denorfia scooped up the ball after it hit the scoreboard and died in the dirt. Harper raced around the bases. He dived headfirst into third base, his left wrist hitting the bag.
Standing next to third base coach Bobby Henley, Harper grimaced and took off his batting glove. He stayed in the game and completed the inning. He took his position in left field the following inning but McLouth replaced him in the top of the fifth inning.
Without Harper the Nationals added four more runs. Jose Lobaton continued his surge with three hits. LaRoche, the team’s most consistent hitter this season, added an RBI double and scored two runs. Slumping of late, Desmond drove in two runs. But even one run would have been enough for Strasburg.
Even though he faced a feeble Padres lineup, Strasburg made them look silly at times. He struck out the side in the second inning, featuring a wicked change-up and a curveball that broke as if it was sucked into a vacuum cleaner. His command was sharp and he kept his offspeed pitches low in the strike zone.
After six innings, Strasburg’s pitch count sat at 101. The bullpen carried a heavy load in Thursday’s 12-inning loss and Strasburg provided relief a day later. He emerged from the dugout for the seventh inning and returned to it after firing only eight pitches in his final frame. The Nationals needed a strong starting performance and Strasburg delivered. He allowed seven hits and walked two. With his 11 strikeouts, he became the major league leader in strikeouts at 53.
Two young and important pieces of the Nationals’ roster guided them to a victory on Friday. But as they walked off the field following the game, they awaited to news on the severity of an apparent injury to one of them.