Two and a half weeks ago the Nationals placed Bryce Harper on the 10-day disabled list with a “significant bone bruise” in his left knee after he slipped on first base and hyperextended his left knee. At the time Nationals’ general manager Mike Rizzo told reporters that he didn’t believe the injury to be season-ending, though he didn’t have a clear timetable in mind for Harper’s recovery.
Today Dusty Baker gave an update. It’s not specific one way or the other, but it’s not terribly promising either: Baker said Harper is “a long way from running.”
Jayson Werth is back and is playing right field with Howie Kendrick covering left. The Nationals will be fine for the regular season without Harper -- they have a 14-game lead in the NL East -- but not having him in the playoffs would be a big, big problem.
