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It would have been nice if the Nats could have done a deal, but it's not worth gutting the team to overpay one guy, even Bryce Harper. He's one of the most feared power hitters in the game, but he's inconsistent. Teams chronically pitch around him; he led the majors in walks last year, many of them intentional. Even when teams pitch to him, he gets a steady diet of junk. He gets frustrated, starts swinging on bad pitches, and presto, he's off on another 0-20 streak and a month long slump.

Harper has been brilliant mainly when the Nats have managed to stay healthy -- which has been their chronic problem -- and he's been sandwiched in a murderers' row lineup that puts a lot of guys on base. Two years ago, before the injury blitz took them down, the Nats had five guys batting 300. Put Harper in the middle of that lineup, with guys on base and a 300 hitter right behind, and teams can't pitch around him. He's terrific in that situation. Otherwise, he get ordinary fast. Last year, with four starters out for most of the first half (five if you count Howie Kendrick), Harper couldn't carry the team. Fan frustration was starting to grow. I suspect that's part of the reason he left.

How long the romance will last in Philly remains to be seen. I don't know how you can sustain a competitive team when you are overpaying one guy by that amount.