Bryce Harper vs Mike Trout

[Tigersrawsome]

I think harper is better. People say harper is a punk but I think he is just the new generation of players. I think that because look at most kids no a days, most are punks. It's just gonna get worse in the future. I think Harper is better than trput though. What do u think and why?

[teddy406]

This year Harp was better in almost every batting area: Runs scored, walks, home runs, rbis, batting average, on base pct, slugging, OBS, total bases, etc. You have to remember too, that Trout had Pujols batting behind him all year, so he was usually pitched too. Harper had nobody that anybody was afraid of batting behind him all season: Zimm, Robinson, Werth, Desmond, etc. If he did, his numbers would have been even better. He walked A LOT. I hope the Nat's pick up a legit clean up hitter to help with that next year. Trout was awesome again, but Harp was better. In fact, better than anyone, not just Trouty.

[teddy406]

I think this article sums up the best players in the AL and NL-batters and pitchers. Just came out:
http://baseballot.blogspot.com/2015/10/the-best-era-doesnt-mean-youre-best.html

[cjclong]

I wish there were two awards: MVP and Outstanding Player. Although it has happened its hard to give the MVP to a player on a team that finishes low in the standings. The idea is, if they had a poor season with you they could have had a poor season without you. On the other hand there are obviously some teams that would not have finished first without a particular player. The outstanding player award would allow voters to reward a player who had a great season for a poor team.
To the subject of this post. Harper was only 22 this year. That is about the same age as players who are being considered for rookie of the year this year and he is being considered for MVP. Baring injury will he continue to improve as so many players do between 23 and 30? Trout is a sensational fielder, or at least appears to be from high light films, but Harper may have a bigger upside as a hitter.

[slab0meat]

I think harper is better. People say harper is a punk but I think he is just the new generation of players. I think that because look at most kids no a days, most are punks. It's just gonna get worse in the future. I think Harper is better than trput though. What do u think and why?

You didn't even answer your own "why" yet. Being considered a punk, right or wrong, has nothing to do with being the better player, just being the better person.

On that same side note, the new generation of players... just a few off the top of my head.. Abreu, Trout, Bryant, Stanton, Altuve.... Are any of them even remotely considered a punk like Harper?


This year, Harper was better. Overall, I'm with Trout, at least for now. Harper has had one very good year, much more average before this year, along with injuries bugging him. Trout is ahead in almost every major category (including too many strikeouts) and an outstanding fielder, which includes many less errors and the usual (for Trout, anyway) highlight reel catches.

[teddy406]

Harper better arm than Trout. I don't think Harper is a punk at all. I just think everything he does has been under a microscope since age 16. Players jog down the line on routine pop ups all the time, and nobody says squat. Harper does it and it's the lead story on Sports Center and Baseball Tonight. My family knows Harper and he's not a spoiled brat at all. Good person who works his butt off to be the best. Not perfect for sure, and who is?

[allstarsplus]

Harper stayed healthy and took his walks this year where he stopped chasing pitches. The results was one of the greatest offensive seasons in baseball history and he was only 22.

MVP for sure and Trout's hot September could earn him the AL MVP.

[godwulf]

Players jog down the line on routine pop ups all the time, and nobody says squat.

Maybe on some teams. On others, they get benched, regardless of who they think they are. In any case, it's not something that anyone who is "working his butt off to be the best" would do. Routine pop-ups do get dropped and runners are, if they're hustling, safe at first who otherwise wouldn't be - I saw it happen in an MLB game this past weekend.

[gorilla777]

It is great to have the opportunity to see how both of these players do over the next 10+ years, lots of good young talent in baseball now. I will still take Mike's last four years and his next ten years. I hope they both stay healthy so they can continue to crank out these great numbers. Harper seems to have some injury issues and Trout played with an injured wrist for a month, but kept playing thru it.
Trout benefitting from Pujols? It was actually the other way around. The Angels lineup was one of the worst overall in the AL, maybe second from the bottom. Beyond those two, it was awfully pathetic, between Iannetta, Featherston, Joyce, etc. Angels Stadium is one of the worst parks for hitters in the league as well, especially at night, as the ball doesn't carry at all. The AL West has great starting pitching too, so the variables hardly stacked up for Mike. I would love to see him hit in the Skydome with that Toronto lineup around him.
The original post mentioned kids today all being like that, which is not the case. Harper has said and done some childish things, but he is probably just a typical 19-22 year old. Trout's attitude and behavior is just more my style, appears to be more understated, humble, etc. And seeing him play, being around locals that are around the stadium, by all accounts, he is a really good guy. By the way, he is only about a year and a half older than Harper.
Bottom line, its good to have these guys in baseball and to see how they develop over time. They have both done some historical things at an age before most big leaguers have even been called up.

[cjclong]

Whining about Harper not "running out" that pop up is ridiculous. For starters the Nationals have been trying to get Harper to ease up and not crash into fences or get hurt on the bases. It's not like he loafs too much, its the opposite. The ball was popped up to short left field. If it had been dropped he would have been safe at first. And as shallow as the ball was hit in the short stop area of left field if he had tried for an extra base he would have probably been thrown out at second on a not very close play. In the 162 game schedule there are players who take days off during the season when they are tired and no one calls them slackers. Running hard to try to get to second on a meaningless pop up when your chances of being thrown out are great is meaningless hustle.

[allstarsplus]

Harper was on 1st by the time the ball was caught. It was those first few steps out of the batter's box where he threw his bat as he was upset he missed it.

The ones that constantly have a problem with him we call Harper's Haters. They exist and not sure why. He has his quirks and even reasons to tick off the home fans but as an entire season of work, this guy was the best player in the Majors this year.

He has finally figured out the secret to the success and if not for his only slump of the year which started the last 10 games of the season and coincidentally (or not) when Papelbon plunked Machado, he didn't get to his 100th RBI, stuck at 99.

Harper made a great quote leaving for Vegas as to what will make him better:

“The one thing we definitely need is another lefthanded bat and hopefully a HUGE righthanded bat to hit behind me or in front of me,” Bryce Harper said. “If we can do that, that would definitely help us out and put us up to the top.”

[teddy406]

yea, there actually was a big article about the most hustling players in baseball and Harper was right up there. All based on statistics-average speed to first base, taking extra bases, etc. I have the MLB package and watched almost every Nat's game. He works hard!