Jonathan Papelbon and Bryce Harper scuffle in Washington dugout
If there were any doubts about the chemistry problems in the Washington Nationals’ clubhouse before Sunday, those issues were on display for the world to see when reliever Jonathan Papelbon went after Bryce Harper in the dugout after the two exchanged words.
Papelbon began barking at Harper after he popped out, apparently because Harper didn’t hustle to first base on a routine fly ball. When Harper made it back to the dugout, the two yelled at each other and Papelbon shoved Harper. They had to be separated by teammates.
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Papelbon later went into the game against his former Philadelphia teammates and produced one of the worst appearances in his career, giving up five runs to the Phillies in the top of the ninth in what was a 4-2 Washington lead. When he was taken out of the game, Washington fans booed him all the way to the dugout and then some.
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We shouod point out that aside from a couple of light pats on the back, there didn’t seem to be many teammates supporting Papelbon in what had to be an embarrassing and difficult afternoon. This should only add to the calls for manager Matt Williams to be fired since many believe he lost his team weeks ago. The season can’t end soon enough for this team.
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Kyle Ringo is a contributing writer to Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo
