On the Phillies off-day on Monday, the good news just kept coming: Bryce Harper and his wife, Kayla, announced on social media that they are expecting their first child. Anyone who has been through that process knows the secrecy and delicacy with which that news is typically handled, and to trumpet it now, in the wake of the Phillies’ thunderous opening sweep of the Braves, added to the joy flowing through the city.
But tonight, it’s back to work in Washington, where the narrative takes a bitter turn. Harper will—as you must know unless you’ve only recently arrived on this planet and immediately begun reading baseball web sites (welcome; the Phillies are good and always have been)—face his former team, the Nationals, for the first time since signing a 13-year, $330 million deal with the Phillies late in the off-season.