It was inevitable that I would write about Bryce Harper at somepoint, and today is the day. Harper, if he follows projections, should be a star in the majors. He's only 18 and should be a senior in high school, but he left high school after his sophmore year and got his GED. In his one season at the College of Southern Nevada (juco), he hit 31 home runs and had 98 RBI in 66 games. He had a .443 batting average, a .526 on-base percentage, and a .987 slugging percentage. He was drafted number one overall in this year's MLB draft and signed a 5 year deal worth $9.9 million with the Nationals.
Harper recently finished his season in the Arizona Fall League, where many of baseball's top prospects play every fall. In his first taste of professional baseball (as the second youngest player ever to participate in the AFL) he hit .343 with 1 homer, 3 doubles, and 2 triples in only 35 at-bats. He was only allowed to play in two games a week, but he did a lot of damage in such a small amount of time. With an on-base percentage over .400 and a slugging percentage of .629 against competition that good, Harper showed why he is so highly touted. Scouts believe that if he keeps playing like this, he could end next season as high as Double A. He would only be 19. Are you kidding me? Here is a link to his first pro homer in the AFL. It's a bomb and the right fielder doesn't even move. Can't wait to see Harper in the bigs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuyABkm7yTw
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