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He's known for his bat, but Ryan Zimmerman has been stellar |
WASHINGTON--Brandon Harper was about to enroll in classes at Metro State University in Denver. He even had his classes all picked out.
He had given professional baseball nine years of his life, and in January, he was planning to resume his management degree and give the sport up for good.
That was before the Nationals called in December, offering the 30-year-old catcher a minor league deal.
One more chance, he thought.
"The last couple years I really thought I was going to be done and I told myself at the beginning of this year if I didn't make it to the big leagues then I was done," said Harper, who was a fourth-round pick of the Marlins in 1997.
"It was tough for me to shut it down the last couple years because in the back of my mind I really knew I could play here and that's what kept me going and it finally paid off."
Harper earned his shot in the big leagues in August after spending four months with Triple-A New Orleans, and a solid month in the big leagues may have earned him much more.
Harper is hitting .345 with two homers and five RBIs in 12 games, and he is expected to get a shot next spring to be the Nationals' backup catcher. Manager Frank Robinson said he could be the answer to a season-long issue.
"It's almost too good to be true because he's kind of fallen into our laps a little bit by accident this year," Robinson said. "It's a pleasant situation with him and we're just in a kind of a wait-and-see type thing. Going into the winter it won't be at least a panic to find a backup guy because you feel like he's capable of doing the job."
Before Harper arrived in Washington, Washington used Matt LeCroy, Robert Fick and Wiki Gonzalez as backups to Brian Schneider.
"He's done a solid job calling the games, shown he's got a good arm," general manager Jim Bowden said. "He's hitting over .300. He's done a very good job. He's been studying and working. He has impressed us."
The Nationals signed four catchers to minor league deals this winter and Harper was the only one without major league experience. He was a third-round pick of the Florida Marlins in 1997 out of Dallas Baptist University, but a combination of injuries and bad luck kept him from reaching the majors.
He played last season with Triple-A Toledo (Detroit Tigers) and entered this year with a .244 career minor league batting average in 610 games. He broke his finger three games into New Orleans' season, but recovered to hit .292 in New Orleans before he was called up.
"I feel good that I showed them I could compete but there is nothing set," Harper said. "I'll come to spring training if I come back [with Washington], and prove myself all over again."
But he won't be going back to school. At least not in the near future.
"I will at some point," Harper said. "Hopefully I stay here for another eight years or so."
Award chaseThe competition for the National League rookie of the year is as stiff as it's ever been, but Bowden is lobbying hard for third baseman Ryan Zimmerman to win that prize--and an even bigger award.
Bowden pitched Zimmerman, who has 14 errors and ranks third in the NL among third baseman with a .964 fielding percentage, for the league's Gold Glove Award yesterday.
"What Ryan Zimmerman does defensively doesn't get mentioned," he said.
There are at least three solid candidates for the NL's top rookie honor, so winning just that might be tough. Florida's Dan Uggla is among the favorites with a .290 batting average, 26 homers and 89 RBIs, and his teammate, right-hander Josh Johnson, has 12 wins and a 3.10 ERA for the Marlins.
Milwaukee's Prince Fielder (26 homers, 76 RBIs), Florida's Hanley Ramirez (.286, 111 runs, 49 stolen bases), Florida's Anibal Sanchez (no-hitter, 2.90 ERA) and the Giants' Matt Cain (13 wins, 3.99 ERA) are also making a case for the award.
Zimmerman leads all rookies with 99 RBIs, 42 doubles and 58 walks. He entered yesterday's game hitting .281 and added his 19th homer in the first inning, but Bowden said his defense should set him apart for that award.
No pep talkTalk show host guru Phil McGraw--known to his many fans as Dr. Phil--threw out the first pitch yesterday, but he didn't dispense any of his self-help knowledge to the woeful Nationals.
"It's too late," Robinson said. "Where was he when we needed him?"
To reach TODD JACOBSON:
Email: tjacobson@freelancestar.com
