The Washington Nationals' biggest star is apparently going to try his hand at free agency.
After meeting with Bryce Harper and his agent Scott Boras in November, the Nationals are realistic and firmly believe the 25-year-old will test the free-agent waters at the end of the 2018 season, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports.
The team still hopes to re-sign him, but only after he explores the open market, Nightengale adds.
On Wednesday, Boras confirmed he met with the Nationals' ownership to have preliminary discussions about a contract extension for his client. It appears those conversations weren't enough to keep Harper from reaching out to other teams next offseason.
The Nationals and general manager Mike Rizzo appeared confident they could work out an extension just two weeks ago.
"I think we have as good a chance to sign him long-term as anybody in baseball," Rizzo told MLB Network, according to MLB.com's Jamal Collier. "He's the type of iconic, historic type of player that would love to be with the same organization throughout his whole career, such as (Derek) Jeter and that group of guys. I think he wants to be here. We want him here. I think there's an opportunity for him to make history here."
Perhaps the temptation of securing a $500-million contract - which one rival GM believed was possible for Harper - was too much for the 2015 National League MVP winner.
Harper is expected to be the most sought-after free agent in an impressive 2019 class which also includes Manny Machado, Josh Donaldson, Adam Jones, Charlie Blackmon, and Dallas Keuchel.
Over the course of his six-year career, Harper owns a .285/.386/.515 slash line with 150 home runs and 421 RBIs.