Nats Enquirer

Bryce Harper Swinging The Biggest Bat On Earth?

 

(Bryce Harper took batting practice in Vegas with a 36 inch, 47 ounce bat?Screengrab via YouTube.)

Another Winter day, another offseason batting practice session by Bryce Harper at Bat-R-Up Batting Cages in Las Vegas. The latest video clip (from Tuesday) shows Bryce Harper swinging the biggest bat on earth -- or so the title of the YouTube clip by user VegasScout says. The bat looks huge -- according to the handle, 36 inches, 47 ounces (keep in mind that according to baseball lore, Babe Ruth once used a 52 ounce bat). Harper's bat also has Luke 1:37 inscribed on the barrel. That is: "For with God nothing shall be impossible."

Sounds like the Nationals will try to keep Bryce Harper under wraps this spring just like Strasburg before him; so he'll just have to let his big bat do the talking. Enjoy:

Meanwhile...

Justin Maxwell traded to the Yankees for RHP Adam Olbrychowski.

Nationals sign reliever Cla (not a typo) Meredith, Alex Cora, to minors deals. Shairon Martis is not gone yet: outrighted to Syracuse.

The best Nationals blog out there (Nationals Baseball, written by a guy named Harper, no less) tallies up the Peter Angelos vs. Ted Lerner scorecard.

Befriend the Nationals Enquirer on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter.

The Night Matt LeCroy Made Frank Robinson Cry

 

Even Frank Robinson would agree that NatsTown is a better place with Matt LeCroy in it

And when MASNSports.com's Byron Kerr posted highlights from Sunday night's P-Nats Hot Stove Banquet, naturally some of the best quotes were from freshly-minted P-Nats manager (and former Nats' catcher) Matt LeCroy. 

LeCroy's got some history in NatsTown; even spent the last couple of years managing Hagerstown. And during his address to banquet attendees, he referenced one of the strangest moments in the brief history of the Washington Nationals: The Night Matt LeCroy Made Frank Robinson Cry:

LeCroy also made reference to an incident Nationals' fans will remember in 2006, his only season with the Washington Nationals. In a game against the Houston Astros, he was pulled by manager Frank Robinson in the middle of an inning after he had committed two throwing errors and allowed seven stolen bases in seven innings.

"I made a lot of things famous in the game. I made a manager cry - Frank Robinson. I made a banana and mayonnaise sandwich famous as a pregame meal," LeCroy said.
(via Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com, 1/31/2011)

Don't know about banana and mayonnaise sandwiches (sounds gross), but who can forget that strange night game? Video of the aftermath above. And here's an excerpt from the Associated Press account of the events of May 25, 2006:

Potomac Nationals already planning promotions for Bryce Harper?

(Bryce Harper to meet Uncle Slam in 2011? Uncle Slam Photo by maskirovka77, on Flickr)

[See also: Bryce Harper swinging the biggest bat on earth?]

Last February, the Potomac Nationals got a little bit ahead of themselves by marketing Stephen Strasburg before the start of the 2010 season, in hopes of cashing in on the hype surrounding the phenom. We all know how that turned out: Strasburg never made it to Woodbridge (although stay tuned: he could potentially make a few rehab starts there this summer). Now, according to a story by Robert Daski on InsideNOVA.com, the P-Nats are at it again, and already have their promotions ready to go in the event that Bryce Harper arrives in Woodbridge this summer:

Potomac general manger Josh Olerud said promotions are lined up to mark Harper’s arrival should he be sent to Potomac.

Olerud said between five or 10 phone calls and 15 or 20 emails have come in from fans inquiring about Harper playing for Potomac.

Team officials also might set up an autograph session between Harper and the fans at a location outside Pfitzner Stadium.

“We want to give our fans a chance to see him and not make his day-to-day work anything out of the ordinary,” Olerud said. “He’ll be signing autographs and people are going to want to take pictures with him. But we want to make sure it’s in a manner he’s comfortable with, that he’s not signing autographs from nine o’clock at night until one in the morning."
(via InsideNOVA.com, 2/1/2011)

 

Would they have Harper sign autographs until one in the morning if there weren't child labor laws? Anyway, good for the P-Nats for planning ahead.

All signs still point to Harper starting in Hagerstown, although Nationals director of Player development Doug Harris says things could still change:

“He’ll likely start in [Low-A] Hagerstown. Nothing is in stone at this point. That’s a likely starting point.”
(Doug Harris, via InsideNova.com, 2/1/2011)

 

And here's Nationals Assistant GM Bryan Minniti on the possibility of Harper appearing in Potomac during the P-Nats Hot Stove banquet Sunday night in Springfield VA: