Bryce Harper left in the ninth inning of Saturday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers after getting hit in the knee by a 95 mph fastball from reliever Michael Blazek. Harper was slow to get up, was helped off the field by trainer Lee Kuntz and struggled making it down the stairs and into the clubhouse. Harper was 3-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk before exiting.
Manager Matt Williams said that removing Harper was precautionary, and that he hoped his starting right fielder would be good to go on Sunday, but the 22-year-old slugger sounded more unsure of the injury, saying he would sit out if he needed to.
Harper has started all but one of the Nationals’ 62 games this season, and leads the league in walks (51), OPS (1.190) and slugging percentage (.721) while also ranking second in home runs (22).
While it appears Harper will only miss a game or two at most, he would join a long list of Nationals stars that have missed significant time due to injury (Stephen Strasburg, Ryan Zimmerman, Jayson Werth, Denard Span and Anthony Rendon to name a few) if he were to be put on the disabled list.