Harper left on deck in Nats' rain-shortened, home finale win

He was up at 5 a.m., dealing with movers set to transport his stuff from his Arlington apartment to his offseason home in Las Vegas. He was at Nationals Park several hours later, already in full uniform at 1 p.m. for a 4:05 p.m. game, prompting wisecracks from teammates.

And once he took the field for the Nats' 2018 home finale, every move Bryce Harper made was greeted with an ovation, usually a sustained one.

They cheered Harper when he received his Nationals Player of the Year Award. They cheered him when he jogged out to right field for the top of the first. They cheered him when he stepped up to bat in the bottom of the first. And the second. And the fourth. And the fifth.

And they were all set to cheer again if Harper came up to bat in the bottom of the seventh. Alas, with the game's center of attention standing in the on-deck circle, teammate Trea Turner grounded out to short to end that inning, at which point the heavens opened up and doused everyone and everything in sight.

And because the Nationals led 9-3 in what was already an official game that had no bearing on anyone's postseason chances, it was called off after a wait of nearly an hour.

"I definitely don't like the rain right now," said Harper, who just endured through the wettest Washington summer in a half-century. "But that's how it goes."

Yes, the home finale - perhaps Harper's D.C. finale - was rained out. If that wasn't a fitting conclusion to a most disappointing (and most waterlogged) 2018 baseball season in the nation's capital, nothing else could possibly top it.

"After the year we had here with the weather," manager Davey Martinez said, "it wasn't weird at all."

It goes down as a win for the Nationals, their 81st of the year. They need to take just one of their final three games this weekend in Colorado to clinch a seventh consecutive winning season.

The stars today, though, were not Harper nor Anthony Rendon nor Ryan Zimmerman (who departed after two innings after his back tightened up). They were Adrian Sanchez and Spencer Kieboom and Kyle McGowin and Victor Robles. Especially Robles.

Robles, the 21-year-old prospect who got off to a slow start upon his promotion from Triple-A Syracuse at the beginning of the month, enjoyed the best day of his young career, going 4-for-5 with a double, a homer and five RBIs.

"I'm very pleased and happy," Robles said, through interpreter Octavio Martinez. "It's an important game because it's the last game of the season. It's not a game that's going to take us into the playoffs, unfortunately, but nonetheless very important the fact that we finish here strong at home, and I was able to do well."

It was impossible, of course, to ignore the obvious symbolism of the afternoon on display for all to see. As Harper struggled to reach base in what could have been his final home game on South Capitol Street, the dynamic, younger outfielder who may take his spot next season and beyond dazzled with an all-around display that had to have fans and club executives drooling with anticipation.

Which isn't to say this definitely was Harper's swan song in D.C. He spent the week praising the city and the organization in several interviews, including a pregame group session today. And he made it clear he would like to re-sign with the franchise that drafted him eight years ago when his hair was styled in a mohawk and his eye black stretched all the way down to his jawline.

"This is my home. This is my city," Harper said. "Being able to come here - of course I root for the Golden Knights, and I root for Duke and I root for the Cowboys and things like that - but I'm a Washington National. At the end of the day, I love this city. I enjoy coming here. I enjoy playing here. And that's what it's all about."

Harper tried to give the crowd of 28,680 reason to cheer him for something other than the mere announcement of his name, but he could not reach base in any of his four plate appearances, twice flying out to left and twice striking out.

"I think no spot was too big, or anything like that," he said. "I just tried to go up there, listen to my walk-up (song) and lock it in as best I could."

Martinez's grand plan when the day began was to pull Harper from his position in right field, probably in the top of the ninth, and allow him to soak in one final ovation as he trotted back to the dugout.

Alas, Mother Nature - as she has proven all summer long - does not understand sentimentality. She remains undefeated, and so what should have been a final tribute to Harper instead ended as one final long night of rain on South Capitol Street at the end of one long season of rain on South Capitol Street.

"That was his deal," the manager said of his star player's wishes for today's game. "The way he wanted to handle it was very professional. And you heard what he said: He wants to be back here. I know that. We've got three games left. He's going to wear a Nationals uniform for three more games, and hopefully for many, many years after that."

About that possibility. Harper, like everyone else in the park, couldn't help but notice the big sign that was unfurled today on the apartment building behind the center field wall. It read: "8 MORE YEARS FOR 34".

So, Bryce, would that be enough to keep you in Washington long-term?

"I don't know," he said with one of his trademark smirks. "I mean, eight years sounds kind of short."