Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Bryce Harper brawls with Hunter Strickland.
Mike Morse retired from Major League Baseball after the 2017 season. Concussions played a role in that decision.
The infielder suffered a blow to the head in his final professional game while intervening in a fight between the Nationals and Giants. Bryce Harper does not take responsibility despite his role in the brawl.
He opened up on the fight while speaking with Mookie Betts. Blame rests on San Francisco, he says.
Bryce Harper ignited a brawl in 2017.
The Nats and Giants met in the ’17 campaign, pitting two familiar faces against one another. San Francisco pitcher Hunter Strickland watched Harper take him yard twice in the playoffs a few years earlier.
Strickland took issue with Harper’s reaction in the box. The slugger waited a moment to admire both shots, though neither would be viewed as particularly disrespectful.
Either way, there was animosity. Tensions were high when they met in San Francisco. Harper believed Strickland was going to throw at him in the eighth inning of action. The pitcher confirmed those suspicions.
Stickland plunked Harper, who immediately charged the mound to throw his helmet in the pitcher’s direction. Chaos ensued.
Both benches cleared. Mike Morse, who was playing first base, entered to break up the melee. He wound up on the wrong end of a Jeff Samardzija haymaker.
Morse was diagnosed with a concussion thereafter. He left the game and missed the remainder of the season. He would not see another pitch in his pro career.
Bryce Harper does not take responsibility.
“How do you feel about that?” Betts asked, gauging if there was any remorse on Harper’s end. “That’s not my fault,” he replied. “Samardzija came for blood like he was back at Notre Dame.”
Samardzija was a two-sport athlete for the Irish in college. He had an opportunity to play pro baseball and football. The 6-4, 220-pound pitcher was an imposing presence. He put all his might into this particular punch.
Unfortunately, it connected with the wrong target. Mike Morse never played again.
Some might think that Harper owes Morse a paycheck or two. He views it differently, and maybe rightfully so. While Harper played a role in the brawl, he did not throw the pitch to spark the melee. He also has no control over Samardzija’s actions.
In the end, it was an unfortunate outcome. Morse called it a career after 13 seasons. He was a career .274 hitter totaling 105 home runs with six teams.