After crushing three home runs in yesterday’s 7-5 win over the Marlins, National’s slugger Bryce Harper boldly declared Washington as the team to beat. (Scott Allen, Washington Post).
“We’re such a great team,” Harper said of the 14-15 Nationals, who have won seven of their last nine since a six-game losing streak. “We’re the team to beat. Everybody knows that. We’re going to get hot. Everybody knows that too.”
Before the game, Jayson Werth also made similar comments.
“We know who we are,” Werth said. “We know our identity. We are the team to beat in the National League. Everybody knows it. We know it. It’s just how it is. It doesn’t change anything.”
Thoughts:
The Nationals remain a formidable opponent even though they have stumbled out of the gate.
Their rotation is outstanding, and they are blessed with a blossoming young star in Harper.
This season looks like the year Harper will finally live up to his lofty expectations. Despite being on the radar for awhile now, It’s easy to forget that he is only 22 years old.
With yesterday’s outstanding performance, he became the youngest player since 1970 to hit three home runs in a game. He now has eight homers on the season along with 20 RBI and an OBP over .400.
This is shaping up to be an exciting rivalry as the Mets are off to a surprisingly hot start. It’s going to be fun watching these two teams battle it out for the division crown for the rest of the season.
