The easy way out for Bryce Harper would have been to work out something with the Nationals and return to Washington, where he was most comfortable. He could insist on staying closer to his Las Vegas home and sign a deal for fewer years with the Giants or some other club.
But it appears that Harper will land with the Phillies, after Philadelphia owner John Middleton -- who understands how invested his fan base is in the pursuit of the slugger -- got personal in the negotiations, getting on a plane to meet with agent Scott Boras and Harper. There is confidence within the Phillies' organization that it will land Harper. And it seems possible that Harper will wind up with the most lucrative contract in baseball history.
Along with the most money ever will come the most pressure ever, of course, and more scrutiny than any player has faced. To Phillies fans, Harper will be viewed as the guy who needs to be the difference-maker, and although he would be just one player among many the team acquired this winter -- following Andrew McCutchen, David Robertson, J.T. Realmuto and others -- Harper is destined to get the most credit, or the most blame.
If Harper signs with the Phillies, he will be under the most pressure of anybody in MLB in 2019. Here are nine others:
2. Tony Clark, union chief.
He just got a three-year extension from the players, ground from which he can work moving ahead -- and the players' association has a lot to do to improve the financial landscape for the players, to work through the forthcoming changes to on-field rules, and to prepare and educate the union brethren for what's to come. Among some players and agents, there has been unhappiness with the union leadership, and Clark will operate in 2019 under a form of double-secret probation.
3. Kris Bryant, Cubs
It's easy to forget that the Cubs won 95 games last year, and in an injury-shortened season, Bryant had a more than respectable .834 OPS. But Bryant was the 2016 NL MVP, he is on the Cubs, and he is a centerpiece of an organization aiming for another championship. Bryant says of the criticism: Bring it.
4. Joe Maddon, Cubs
He's entering the last year of his contract, and his chances for an extension would seem to ride directly on how the team fares. To put it another way: If Maddon wants to continue managing and the Cubs win the World Series, it's hard to imagine them tossing him overboard.
5. The Yankees
In 2017, their fan base was elated by the progress of young players like Aaron Judge -- and even after the Yankees fell short of reaching the World Series by one game, there was excitement, fueled by the acquisition of Giancarlo Stanton. But the Red Sox knocked them out in the ALDS in 2018, and now Aaron Boone, Stanton, Judge and the whole group will be expected by fans to take a step forward.
6. Brodie Van Wagenen
The Mets' new general manager was aggressive in the offseason, adding the likes of Robinson Cano, Edwin Diaz and Jed Lowrie, and he added to the anticipation by talking up his team, which is part of one of baseball's toughest divisions. If it works out and the Mets play well into October, Van Wagenen would rightly be under consideration for executive of the year; if it doesn't work out, the weight of the New York tabloids and the Mets' cynical fan base will fall on his shoulders.
He is famously intense in competition and in his preparation, and if Arenado and the Rockies do not work out a long-term deal, Arenado will play the 2019 season amid great expectations -- as an audition for the offseason, when he would be the highest-profile free agent. It's the kind of stress that can affect a player, particularly someone who tends to self-cannibalize (to invent a word) if he doesn't play to his own standards.
If he pitches better this year and demonstrates that the decline in his fastball performance was just an anomaly, he stands to make big, big dollars, either in the form of an extension that ensures he'll finish his career with the Giants, or as a free agent.
If opponents continue to do damage against his fastball, however, this will embed concerns about how long he'll continue to be an upper-echelon pitcher.
So yes, there will be a lot of pressure on Bumgarner regardless of how San Francisco fares this season, and as we've seen in the past, Bumgarner tends to thrive under those conditions.
9. Dick Williams, Reds president of baseball operations
After years of rebuilding, it's a big year for Cincinnati, which stepped up with moves aimed to launch the team into relevance -- for Sonny Gray, Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp, etc. Reds owner Bob Castellini is hypercompetitive and will expect to see progress, but the reality is that the Reds inhabit baseball's deepest division. Castellini will decide what constitutes progress, and the buck stops with Williams.
10. Rob Manfred, MLB commissioner.
He's in good standing with his bosses, the owners, who have enjoyed great profits. But baseball seems to be at a critical juncture in its history in mustering appeal to the youngest generation of fans, and Manfred is the guy at the wheel of enormous change -- while he tries to navigate through an increasingly turbulent relationship with the union.
* The Red Sox need a couple of relievers to step up and establish themselves in the big leagues this year, and on Saturday, Travis Lakins -- one of the candidates -- threw a couple of innings in Boston's game against the Yankees. ... Phillies right-hander Nick Pivetta had a better year in 2018 than his overall numbers (4.77 ERA) would indicate, because on his bad days, he tended to generate really crooked numbers. In six of his 33 outings, he allowed six or more runs, and not surprisingly, one of his goals this year is to limit damage. ... Stephen Strasburg spent the winter in the Washington, D.C., area, rather than returning to San Diego, his hometown. The feeling in some corners of the Nationals' organization is that Strasburg may represent the difference between good and great for Washington in the upcoming season, because if he, Max Scherzer and Patrick Corbin all throw well, the team will likely have the best rotation in the NL East.
* Marwin Gonzalez's two-year, $21 million deal with the Twins greatly surprised a lot of evaluators, who thought that the extremely versatile former Astro would get at least a three-year contract. Gonzalez turns 30 next month, and over the past two seasons he played seven positions suitably, thriving as A.J. Hinch's safety net when nagging injuries popped up. He generated 5.6 fWAR in 2017-18, with 101 extra-base hits (including 39 homers), serving in an extremely important role for a team that won the 2017 World Series and reached the ALCS in 2018. His game-tying ninth-inning home run off Kenley Jansen in Game 2 of the '17 World Series was a pivotal crossroad over those seven games.
At the beginning of the offseason, his agent, Scott Boras, told teams that Gonzalez's asking price was a little over what Ben Zobrist got from the Cubs -- $56 million over four years. Some clubs moved on and pursued other solutions, cutting into Gonzalez's options and leverage, and in the end, Gonzalez got about a third of the dollars that Boras had initially suggested. And the Twins got an excellent player as a team-friendly rate, for less than what the Yankees paid DJ LeMahieu ($24 million over two years), and incredibly, about the same as what the Mets paid the 35-year-old Jed Lowrie (two years, $20 million).
A utility player like Gonzalez probably will find his best deals early in the offseason, before teams fill holes on their rosters and settle in for the holiday malaise. The Astros, for example, have decided to fill Gonzalez's role with Aledmys Diaz, who is cheaper but not nearly as experienced or accomplished. You wonder if Houston would've handled Gonzalez's situation differently if the Astros realized that in the end, he'd wind up with a two-year deal.
On the podcast:
* On Friday, Garth Brooks discussed his time in the Pirates' camp working out with the team and his foundation work; Boog Sciambi picks over/under win totals for the Padres, Dodgers, Brewers, Cubs, etc.; Coley Harvey on the work of Troy Tulowitzki and Miguel Andujar in Yankees' camp.
* Thursday: Karl Ravech on the bidding for Manny Machado and Harper; Sarah Langs and the Numbers Game; Jessica Mendoza on Van Wagenen and the Mets.
* Wednesday: Scott Miller of Bleacher Report on the Padres' signing of Manny Machado; Laura Armstrong of the Toronto Star discusses Vlad Jr. and Marcus Stroman; Paul Hembekides on Harper, Machado and the remarkable career and life of Don Newcombe.
* Tuesday: Dave Schoenfield discusses Mike Trout's future, and Bruce Bochy's jump shot (and Hall of Fame chances); conversations with Alex Cora and Mookie Betts; and Sarah Langs with some numbers.
* Monday: Tim Kurkjian discusses the forthcoming rule changes; Mark Teixeira on the labor situation.