Report: Padres to meet with Harper in Las Vegas
Free agent Bryce Harper and the San Diego Padres will meet on Thursday, sources told Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.
The meeting is reportedly expected to include ownership representatives.
Harper's camp also met with a number of other clubs in recent days, including second and third meetings in some cases, Rosenthal notes. There's no indication a deal is close.
San Diego recently appeared to be a long shot in the Harper sweepstakes. However, the team is reportedly willing to jump on the opportunity to get a deal done at the right price.
The Padres are apparently looking to make a splash this winter, and landing a franchise player like Harper would certainly accomplish that goal. The team is also reportedly in contention for free-agent All-Star Manny Machado and is exploring a potential trade for catcher J.T. Realmuto.
According to Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune, the team's greatest need is at third base, so the Padres' reported pursuit of Harper may not be as earnest as the efforts to get Machado.
Right field - the position Harper plays - is already the deepest area of the club, Acee adds.
In addition to the Padres, the Washington Nationals, Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox, and one other team on the periphery are chasing Harper, a source confirmed to Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
Morosi reports there's an "overwhelming likelihood" that the 2015 NL MVP signs with one of those clubs.
The 26-year-old could be looking for a new contract that exceeds the reported $300 million the Nationals offered him at the end of December.
Harper recorded 34 homers, 100 RBIs, and an .889 OPS in 159 games with Washington in 2018.