And so, after hitting an absolute bomb off Julio Teheran (and slow-trotting around the bases just like Justin Upton the night before), Bryce Harper got drilled in the knee by Teheran in his next at-bat. Harper shouted and pointed. Benches and bullpens cleared. Players milled about. No big deal, right?
"I was just trying to get in there (inside). I didn’t want to make a mistake like I did with the homer and that’s how I hit him." (Julio Teheran, via AJC.com, 8/7/2013)
"Something he’s got to do. It’s part of the game and it’s something I guess he’s got to do." Surprised? ..."Uh, I hit that ball pretty far off him, so no, not really." (Bryce Harper, via Nationals Journal, 8/7/2013)
Of course, the Braves and Nationals Twitter handlers also got in on the action, too:
@Braves Which part, giving up the home run, or drilling the 20-year-old on the first pitch his next time up?
— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) August 7, 2013
Only thing that matters, really, is that the Braves won, Nats lost, and the NL East is a lost cause.
Uh, hey Harper... Scoreboard little b#tch!
Posted by: Mark Lemke's Uncle | August 07, 2013 at 09:16 AM
Harper if you'd like to know how to act when hit by a pitch then check out Freddie Freeman's actions right before you got hit. The Nats seem to have forgotten that they plunked Freddie first.
Plus, hitting a batter on purpose in a one run game might be something a team does when behind by 14 games... but it's not something that the Braves did. That was an accident, it happens to Tehran often and he's never meant to do it.
If you are hit, then walk to the base and make them pay for it. It's what Freeman did and it was the difference in the game.
Posted by: Prado's Poodle | August 07, 2013 at 09:24 AM