Harper to L.A. just makes too much sense for both sides

If you think the Dodgers aren't interested in Bryce Harper ... well, you haven't been paying close enough attention.

Long before they pulled off Friday's blockbuster trade that sent Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp and Alex Wood to the Reds to create a sudden opening in their outfield, the Dodgers have loomed as a prime potential destination for Harper.

Remember, this is the franchise that actually claimed Harper off waivers - per multiple reports back in late August - only to watch as the Nationals pulled him back and kept him for the remainder of the season.

The Dodgers have always looked like a perfect fit for Harper. More than the Yankees. More than the Cubs. More than the Phillies.

Here's one of baseball's iconic franchises, one with history, a fan base and financial means to rival any other in the sport, yet one that has now gone 30 years since winning its last title. Two straight World Series appearances have only whetted everyone in L.A.'s appetite to make a bold move that might finally get this team over the hump.

Here's another pertinent topic to consider: Who's the greatest position player in L.A. Dodgers history?

The answer doesn't immediately come to mind, does it? That's because all the great Dodgers of the last half-century were pitchers. Sandy Koufax. Don Drysdale. Fernando Valenzuela. Orel Hershiser. Clayton Kershaw.

The most iconic position players since the franchise moved from Brooklyn? Steve Garvey? Kirk Gibson? Mike Piazza? Know who L.A.'s all-time home run leader is? It's Eric Karros, with 270. (Duke Snider holds the franchise record with 389, but 316 of those came before the move west in 1958.)

Point is, for all the rich history and tradition at Chavez Ravine, Harper would actually have an opportunity to ascend to the top of the heap if he spends the next decade there and helps lead the club to a long-awaited championship or two.

The same doesn't really hold true in the Bronx. Harper could win three MVPs and three World Series, and he'd still be no better than the sixth greatest Yankee of all time. Nobody's leapfrogging Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle or Jeter.

It would be a bit easier to get onto Mount Rushmore in Chicago, which despite a high-priced and crowded outfield already in place is pretty desperate for some offensive firepower after a quick postseason exit in October. And yet Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo have already established themselves as the heroes who brought the Cubs their first championship in 108 years. Harper would merely be the outsider who came to town and tried to lead them to another title.

Philly, despite its run of success from 2007-11, doesn't have the longstanding history and fan base to be considered an iconic franchise like the aforementioned trio. San Francisco does, and it would be an awfully appealing place for Harper to call home, but the Giants aren't positioned to win again for several more years, and that's a significant detriment to their chances.

What about Washington, you ask? Obviously, the door remains open should Harper and the Nationals want to revisit things, and the sense continues to be that they haven't spoken for the last time yet. The Nats have come a long way since Harper was drafted, but they're not an iconic major league franchise, not yet. Yes, Harper appreciates how rare it is for a player to spend his entire career with one club, and he knows how the few who do are elevated into another stratosphere among the game's greatest. But does the potential for future success in D.C. beat out the established success already in place in L.A. or Chicago? That's ultimately the question he must answer.

Los Angeles just makes so much sense. The West Coast vibe that would seem to mesh better with the Vegas native than blue-collar Chicago or big-city New York. The Hollywood crowd at games. Magic Johnson sitting in the owner's box seats.

The skeptics will point out the Dodgers' avoidance of nine-figure contracts to free agents under president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and suggest that's not about to change. Maybe it won't.

But if ever there was a moment for Friedman and Co. to break with tradition and try something different, this would be the time and this would be the player.

The Dodgers are one of baseball's crown jewels. But they haven't produced any new rings in three decades. They've come as close as you can get each of the last two years. The pressure's on to finally get it done.

Harper may ultimately sign somewhere else. But given the way they've always felt about him, and certainly given the way they've now positioned themselves in the last 24 hours, it's hard to believe they aren't about to do everything they can to lure a 26-year-old slugger who would have a golden opportunity to etch himself into Dodger lore as one of the most iconic players this iconic franchise has ever employed.