Bryce Harper Enrolls In Junior College

Good news for Washington fans.

You get maybe the best college pitching prospect ever in 2009 in Strasburg, and then you get arguably the best high school position prospect ever in 2010 in Harper.

Lets hope they don't get hot any time soon.

I seem to recall Keith Law saying that there is no consensus number one pick in 2010... There is now.

I understand this kid is very good for his age, but I think he's setting himself up to fail by trying to rush his career. Baseball is a game that takes time to master. If he's as good as advertised he'll have plenty of time to make a name for himself. There's no need to rush.

Updated - 11:54am C.T. - Gerald Perry Fired - Von Joshua Promoted to Cubs Hitting Coach

Washington will not be able to take this kid next year.

The Nationals are a samll market team, and get much less revenue than most other teams due to attendance, or lack there of.

With the impending contract extension due to star 3B Ryan Zimmerman, and the soon to be record contract for a draft pick, the Nationals will have very little to work with, especially when trying to sign someone like a Bryce Harper.

Judging by his recent attitude about going pro, as well as his parents, I can't see him signing with anyone but Scott Boras and demanding a Strasburg type deal.

If the Nationals sign Strasburg, which they're expected to do, Bryce Harper will likely not be selected first overall.

Why doesn't he just move to a Latin American country so he would be a free agent and get to choose where he plays and still rake in the big money. Would that be allowed if he took up residence there so he could be signed as a 16 year old? Someone please comment if this is possible.

darin617 - To do that, he'd have to renounce his American citizenship and wait a year.

Washington D.C is a small market?

Washington already extended Zimmerman. And the owners actually have ALOT of money.

He's absolutely rushing himself along, thanks to all the dollar signs from his recent press coverage.

Its one thing to stand out among 16 year olds, but will he look the same among JuCo players? Or minor leaguers?

He'll go number one overall, unless signability becomes a major problem. But will he be able to catch up to A-ball players - who, unlike his high scholl and Juco competition, are all professionals - and if not, how will it affect him?

I look at these "can't miss" guys, which Harper clearly thinks he is, considering he feels he is headed to Cooperstown, and they all make me wonder who will be the next Danny Goodwin. Anyone remember him? Only player ever selected overall #1 twice, and he went on to have an extremely subpar 7 year career, never as a full time starter and compiling a .670 OPS.

This kid's putting all his eggs in one basket. If it doesn't work out, he'll end up like that Harrington selling tires at Walmart. There's no way I would let my child do any of this. Baseball isn't everything and it doesn't last forever. I just hope he realizes that before it's too late.

Posted something similar on his other thread:

1. He isn't playing against any decent competition in HS. His team is beating opponents 31-1. Is he going to get better by playing against inferior talent. He needs to be challenged and HS isn't the place where that challenge is going to take place.

2. He has a 3.5GPA and is going to COLLEGE at 16. If baseball doesn't pan out then he isn't relegated to a life at Wal-Mart. The kid has a good head on his shoulders and will be just fine.

3. He is missing out on his childhood in the exact same way as every serious tennis, swimmer or gymnast does. It is such a double standard for American baseball players.

4. He is a special talent. For all those parents saying baseball isn't everything and that they wouldn't let their kids do this - obviously you aren't raising once in a generation talent. While baseball isn't everything one pro contract him will net him all the money he will ever need for the rest of his life. He's one year away from not having to worry about money ever again.

"It's one thing to think you are witnessing history, its completly different to think so before either player plays a single professional inning, or even (in the case of Harper) gets a driver's license."

notin- I understand your contention but it's not with me. I don't think either of them is a definite player, that would be silly. I simply mean that it's possible, and when I get old I might be in a position to say to my grandkids "I remember talking about Harper when he was just 16 years old."

I lost a whole lot of respect for this kid. I almost hope he becomes the biggest baseball bust in the history of the game, because he clearly doesn't understand how important it is to get an education. Let's see where being the most hyped up player in HS baseball history gets Mr. GED if/when his baseball career fails.

bjsguess:

1. He isn't playing against any decent competition in HS. His team is beating opponents 31-1. Is he going to get better by playing against inferior talent. He needs to be challenged and HS isn't the place where that challenge is going to take place.

That's why he can join club teams and traveling tournament clubs. He is 16 years old, he hasn't completed his high school career, and just because he is annihilating inferior talent he thinks he's too good for high school. You're buying into it yourself.

2. He has a 3.5GPA and is going to COLLEGE at 16. If baseball doesn't pan out then he isn't relegated to a life at Wal-Mart. The kid has a good head on his shoulders and will be just fine.

A 3.50 GPA is average at best. While you're bragging about his GPA, do you know what kind of classes he is taking? Anyone can get a 3.50 GPA while taking dink-around classes. Show me the rigor of his courses, I'd bet you if he was pushing himself in the classroom as much as on the baseball field his academics would be talked about as much as his ballgame. "He's 16 and going to COLLEGE..." He's 16, dropping out of high school, getting his GED, going to a relatively unknown JUNIOR college, and already thinks that his baseball career is set in stone. You think his head is on straight? Pass me some of whatever you're smoking, dude.

3. He is missing out on his childhood in the exact same way as every serious tennis, swimmer or gymnast does. It is such a double standard for American baseball players.

Where's the double standard? Nobody denies the fact that swimmers and gymnasts miss out on their childhood. You know who else missed out on a childhood? Former Raiders QB Todd Marinovich. He was supposed to be the best QB in NFL history. Once he got away from home, he became addicted to cocaine and became the biggest bust in professional sports history. Who is to say Harper won't act like a child when he gets out on his own?

4. He is a special talent. For all those parents saying baseball isn't everything and that they wouldn't let their kids do this - obviously you aren't raising once in a generation talent. While baseball isn't everything one pro contract him will net him all the money he will ever need for the rest of his life. He's one year away from not having to worry about money ever again.

You know who else was a special talent? David Clyde, Brien Taylor, Mark Prior, etc, etc. Earth to you: baseball ISN'T everything. Had Harper stayed in school and went through a 4-year university and not a joke of a junior college, he could net a great paying job and earn more money in his life then he will from one pro contract. You think this kid is a sure thing. Keep in mind he's 16. Are you a parent? You remind me of one of those loser parents who is a washed up former high school jock who pushes their kids as hard as they can through sports because they think that they'll go pro just like you thought you were going to, and it becomes a self-perpetuating family curse of idiocy and arrogance. Stop talking on this subject, you fail.

redsox2007: If you'd rather see the Sox throw next season than do the best they can, your fanhood deserves to be revoked.

LOLsburry can you just shut the hell up, you can't recognize when someone is joking, and you seem to think the contract that he gets next year won't be enough to live with. are you stupid? do you have any idea what you're talking about? he's allowed to go back to school if baseball doesn't work out, by the way. if you'd gone to school yourself, you would have noticed that adults also go to universities nowadays...moron.

And LOLsburry changes his name to goSawx. No wonder he's such an idiot.

LOLsburry/goSawk is a moron. such a hater.