Harping on Harper

Bryce Harper is 18-years old, has a $9.9 million contract with the Washington Nationals and is on the fast track to being the next star in Major League Baseball. However, with all the success comes the fact that Harper is under a microscope from the media and everything he does, positive or negative, will be on camera for everyone to see.

Monday night was no exception, as Harper took a few seconds leaving the batters box after a home run, and then blew a kiss to pitcher Zachary Neal on his way home. The home run came after Harper was hit by a pitch on Sunday that forced him to leave the game and then he was brushed back by a pitch in his first at-bat on Monday.

While Harper has not made any comments to the media since the incident, there was no shortage of opinion nationwide this morning.

Jim Bowden, a former GM of the Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals, posted on his ESPN blog that he believed Harper should be fined privately and spoken to by the Nationals farm director as to the organization's expectations of him. However, Bowden also stated that Harper is a special person and he doesn't see immaturity as a potential issue in the future.

This is where Bowden and I disagree. There are many people who, in my opinion, look too much into what a player says publicly and downplays how the player represents himself on the field. This is not the first time Harper has had issues with showing up an opponent, as he was ejected from a game while with the College of Southern Nevada for taunting.

There is a fine line between being a fierce competitor and acting immaturely. Harper crossed that line on Monday.

I can understand the frustration of believing he is a target of opposing pitchers. Harper is going to find that he is a target throughout his entire career. That's the price to pay of being the number one overall pick and being thought of as the best pure power hitter to ever play the game.

Harper needs to come to the realization that reacting to it will only make it worst. Not only will instances of immaturity stay in the minds of his opponents, they will also stay in the minds of the thousands of fans that he will encounter during road games. Anybody who has sat near the bleachers of a baseball game knows just how brutal some of those fans can be. How will Harper handle the verbal abuse in those situations if he can't handle a brush back pitch?

Putting up great statistical numbers will never be an issue for Harper. With a .342 batting average this season, along with 14 home runs and 42 RBIs, he has shown that the jump to playing under the bright lights of the big leagues is only a matter of when, and not if. However, does he ever mature enough to last in the big leagues is still a question in my mind.

I believed leaving high school to hurry the process to the big leagues was a mistake at the time. Harper now has to grow up as a multi-millionaire, while holding the key to the Washington Nationals future. Can he handle it? I have my doubts.

Photo Courtesy of CSN Washington