UPDATE: Nationals manager Matt Williams said after tonight’s game that Harper was diagnosed with a mild left hamstring strain. He’s scheduled to be re-evaluated tomorrow, so we should have more clarity on the situation soon. It looked like a potentially-serious knee injury at first, so this is really good news under the circumstances.
9:26 p.m. ET: Troubling news here for the Nationals, as outfielder Bryce Harper was forced to exit tonight’s game in the top of the sixth inning with an apparent injury to his left knee.
Harper appeared to slip when he was making a throw from right field and his knee buckled in the process. It’s worth noting that there was a brief rain delay during tonight’s game, so the teams were playing on wet grass. You can watch the play here.
Harper was down on the ground for a couple of minutes before walking off the field under his own power. We’ll pass along an update when it’s made available, but hopefully it’s nothing serious. Harper previously had surgery in October of 2013 to repair the bursa sac in his left knee.
Harper has put up MVP-type numbers this season at the age of 22, batting .344/.476/.720 with 22 home runs and 53 RBI.