There have been rumors about Bryce Harper joining the Chicago Cubs after he becomes a free agent. Now, his wife along with Kris Bryant’s are joining in on the fun.
Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper is set to become a free agent after next season. Earlier this year, baseball reporter Peter Gammons claimed that Harper would like to play for the Chicago Cubs.
Dayn Perry of CBS Sports dove deep into the rumor and how possible it could be for the Cubs. Perry says a partnership between the Cubs and Harper makes sense and that the Cubs should go after him. However, he also notes that the Cubs will just be one of a mix of teams that will pull out all the stops to sign the generational talent.
The biggest support for the rumor is the fact that Harper and Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant are very close friends and they both grew up in the Las Vegas area together. Their wives also happen to be great friends and are acting as though they also want their guys to play together.
KB's & Harper's wives keeping Cubs fans' dreams alive... pic.twitter.com/kgnln0lhi5
— Caitlin Swieca (@CaitlinSwieca) August 5, 2017
There was also an Instagram post by Harper earlier in the season that sported the hashtag “#Back2BackOneDay”. And what a fearsome duo that would be. The Cubs’ lineup would have Anthony Rizzo, Bryant and Harper all in the middle of the order.
That’s a total of three MVP candidate superstars along with the complementary pieces of Jason Heyward, Addison Russell, Javier Baez and Willson Contreras, among others. Having three of the best hitters in baseball would be great for the Cubs, but the question is can they afford to sign Harper? He is likely to break the record for highest salary in baseball and there will surely be a bidding war for him. Signing him, as Perry noted, could also cripple the Cubs in the future.
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Now, the question is how real are these posts and what are their intentions? Are they actually hinting at a Harper-Bryant duo in Chicago, or are the players and their wives just having a bit of fun with Gammons’ rumor? It could be both. We often see players “teaming up” to play with one another in the NBA but it has yet to become a phenomenon in MLB. Maybe we are witnessing that now.