The Nationals were playing the Braves on Tuesday, which meant Fox Sports South announcers Chip Caray and Joe Simpson were looking for new reasons to criticize Bryce Harper. Wouldn’t you know, they found one in the fifth inning of the Nationals’ 6-1 win…after Harper hustled into second base with a leadoff double.“His legs look just fine there,” said analyst Joe Simpson, who was setting up a lengthy critique of Harper’s behavior after his previous at-bat, a fly out to left field in the third inning. 
“He hit it deep to left, Kelly Johnson caught it,” Simpson said. “It wasn’t near the line, it wasn’t a foul ball, and he didn’t even run. He didn’t even get out of the dirt circle. And if you want to know why people boo him when he goes to other cities, that’s because he only plays hard when he wants to play hard, he only runs when he has a chance, like he did a minute ago, to stretch a single into a double. So, any excuses people make for him about, ‘Oh, he has a bad hamstring’ or ‘Oh, he has a bad knee,’ I didn’t see any signs of it when he went first to second on the double. And man, when he dogs it like that and doesn’t run out fly balls, that’s a horrible example. … That’s just brutal. I don’t know how he gets away with it.”[Umpire ejects Braves fan for heckling Bryce Harper]“Joe DiMaggio, in the old days, was asked why he played so hard on every single play,” Caray said. “Not to sound old-fashioned, but maybe it is a bygone era in professional sports, not just baseball, but in all of them. Joe DiMaggio’s response was, ‘Because there might be somebody in the stands who has never seen me play before, and I want them to know that that’s how I play the game.’ Bryce Harper’s too talented to do what he did in the third inning on a consistent basis.”Simpson wasn’t done.[Bryce Harper fails to respect the ‘A’]“Look, I’m not saying he needed to sprint to first on a fly ball, but he needed to run,” he said. “What if Kelly drops it? What if he lost it somehow? It happens more and more and more with this guy, the more we see him. He’s one of the acclaimed players in the game. He’s one of the figureheads for Major League Baseball in terms of one of its best players, and for a guy not to play hard at all times, ought to be a bit embarrassing for him and his organization.”Update: As some have pointed out, Nationals radio announcers Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler acknowledged that Harper didn’t run out the fly ball when it happened. “It’s not good that he didn’t run,” Slowes said. “If for some reason Johnson drops the ball…” “If it’s a matter of not feeling good, then he should probably come out of the game,” Jageler said. “If it’s a matter of frustration, you’ve gotta shake it off and run to first.”I don’t think Harper needs to be defended here, but there were runners on first and second base. If Johnson dropped the ball, Harper could’ve dropped the bat and jogged (or sprinted) to first safely.Harper, who gave Nats fans a mild heart attack after he suffered a left hamstring strain less than two weeks ago, can’t win. If he hustles all the time, he’s reckless. If he hustles most of the time, he’s an embarrassment to his sport and his team. I’m sure Mike Rizzo was ashamed to show up to work today.Caray and Simpson returned to Harper’s hustling habits after he singled in the ninth inning.“The criticism I’ve levied at Harper tonight for not running is not the first time I’ve done that,” Simpson said. “But the sad part is he’s such a great talent, you just hate to see him do things that way, go about his business that way, because he’s so good. It brings him down several notches.”“Look, we’re not trying to pick on Bryce Harper,” Caray said. “I know you’re not. I know you appreciate how talented he is, you’ve said as much. But for a game that’s trying to teach young kids how to play the game the right way, and for a guy that’s probably idolized by a lot of kids who watch this game, I hope Bryce Harper follows the Joe DiMaggio philosophy that I mentioned in earlier comments. Play hard, all the time, the rest will take care of itself.”ESPN’s John Kruk commented on Harper’s failure to run out his flyball on “Baseball Tonight.” (In fairness to Harper, the main thing he learned in Little League was how to circle the bases after a home run.)
“He hit it deep to left, Kelly Johnson caught it,” Simpson said. “It wasn’t near the line, it wasn’t a foul ball, and he didn’t even run. He didn’t even get out of the dirt circle. And if you want to know why people boo him when he goes to other cities, that’s because he only plays hard when he wants to play hard, he only runs when he has a chance, like he did a minute ago, to stretch a single into a double. So, any excuses people make for him about, ‘Oh, he has a bad hamstring’ or ‘Oh, he has a bad knee,’ I didn’t see any signs of it when he went first to second on the double. And man, when he dogs it like that and doesn’t run out fly balls, that’s a horrible example. … That’s just brutal. I don’t know how he gets away with it.”[Umpire ejects Braves fan for heckling Bryce Harper]“Joe DiMaggio, in the old days, was asked why he played so hard on every single play,” Caray said. “Not to sound old-fashioned, but maybe it is a bygone era in professional sports, not just baseball, but in all of them. Joe DiMaggio’s response was, ‘Because there might be somebody in the stands who has never seen me play before, and I want them to know that that’s how I play the game.’ Bryce Harper’s too talented to do what he did in the third inning on a consistent basis.”Simpson wasn’t done.[Bryce Harper fails to respect the ‘A’]“Look, I’m not saying he needed to sprint to first on a fly ball, but he needed to run,” he said. “What if Kelly drops it? What if he lost it somehow? It happens more and more and more with this guy, the more we see him. He’s one of the acclaimed players in the game. He’s one of the figureheads for Major League Baseball in terms of one of its best players, and for a guy not to play hard at all times, ought to be a bit embarrassing for him and his organization.”Update: As some have pointed out, Nationals radio announcers Charlie Slowes and Dave Jageler acknowledged that Harper didn’t run out the fly ball when it happened. “It’s not good that he didn’t run,” Slowes said. “If for some reason Johnson drops the ball…” “If it’s a matter of not feeling good, then he should probably come out of the game,” Jageler said. “If it’s a matter of frustration, you’ve gotta shake it off and run to first.”I don’t think Harper needs to be defended here, but there were runners on first and second base. If Johnson dropped the ball, Harper could’ve dropped the bat and jogged (or sprinted) to first safely.Harper, who gave Nats fans a mild heart attack after he suffered a left hamstring strain less than two weeks ago, can’t win. If he hustles all the time, he’s reckless. If he hustles most of the time, he’s an embarrassment to his sport and his team. I’m sure Mike Rizzo was ashamed to show up to work today.Caray and Simpson returned to Harper’s hustling habits after he singled in the ninth inning.“The criticism I’ve levied at Harper tonight for not running is not the first time I’ve done that,” Simpson said. “But the sad part is he’s such a great talent, you just hate to see him do things that way, go about his business that way, because he’s so good. It brings him down several notches.”“Look, we’re not trying to pick on Bryce Harper,” Caray said. “I know you’re not. I know you appreciate how talented he is, you’ve said as much. But for a game that’s trying to teach young kids how to play the game the right way, and for a guy that’s probably idolized by a lot of kids who watch this game, I hope Bryce Harper follows the Joe DiMaggio philosophy that I mentioned in earlier comments. Play hard, all the time, the rest will take care of itself.”ESPN’s John Kruk commented on Harper’s failure to run out his flyball on “Baseball Tonight.” (In fairness to Harper, the main thing he learned in Little League was how to circle the bases after a home run.)
John Kruk on Bryce Harper's lack of hustle on a fly out against the Braves. pic.twitter.com/tZZaUJnvPU
— Baseball Tonight (@BBTN) July 1, 2015
Man, I hope he sprints through the ‘A’ tonight.Scott Allen/Washington Post
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