The year is 2019, the Washington Nationals have made it to the World Series and they’ve done it without former face of the franchise: Bryce Harper. If you were to tell National fans five months ago they would be playing in the world series I’m not certain they would believe it. The nationals have had one of the most historic seasons for their franchise in recent memory, starting off very slow and only reaching .500 for their record 82 games into the season. After breaking .500 the ‘Nats never looked back. They went on to finish the season 93-69 taking second in their division to the Atlanta Braves who lost in the NLDS to the st. Louis Cardinals whom the Nationals beat to advance to the World series.

The most peculiar aspect of the Nationals success isn’t who lead their team this year, but rather who didn’t. This past offseason superstar phenom Bryce Harper left the organization for a whopping 13 year $330 million dollar contact with division rivals the Philadelphia Phillies. After spending his first seven years with the Nationals and being the face of their franchise there is nobody more annoyed on the planet with his formed teams success than Bryce himself. I took it upon myself to ask Tahoma High School varsity baseball players on their thoughts about the situation and their answers didn’t vary. Senior captain Connor Dodge believes Bryce is upset but, “isn’t losing sleep over it, bro he just made $330 million dollars.” Senior Albert Jennings had similar words to say, stating Bryce probably felt like, “a huge idiot.”

Although Bryce may be having second thoughts about leaving D.C. the Nationals certainly do not. With their new young superstar Juan Soto taking the limelight from harper as well as perennial all-star Anthony Rendon taking another huge step towards stardom, the Nations felt alright with their decision to let Harper walk. With Harper asking for more than the ‘Nats could possibly offer, the alleviation of his contract along with several key pickups in players such as Matt Adams as well as Howie Kendrick to bolster the squad and provide veteran leadership in the clubhouse.

If the Nationals are trying to win their first world series title, they have to seize this opportunity; their window is closing. Having one of the top five oldest teams in the league, some of their key components to their success won’t be around for much longer.