Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper’s knee is not cooperating, which has forced him to visit with orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews on Monday. His knee is swollen and the soreness is not going away. It is an unfortunate setback for one of the team’s top players.
Worst case scenario is that Harper will need to undergo surgery on his left knee, which would force him out of the lineup for several weeks. The Nationals are optimistic that the surgery will not be necessary, but at this point, no one will know anything for sure until Dr. Andrews gets a good look at the knee next week.
“I thought if he took some anti-inflammatory [medicine] it would calm it down, but it’s kind of been lingering,” Johnson said, according to Nationals.com. “When he runs, it swells up. He was jogging in the pool, it swelled up from that. We’re concerned, so we’ll get another opinion on it.”
The 20-year-old originally suffered the injury against the Atlanta Braves on April 30 after he collided with the right field wall at Turner Field. He then re-aggravated the injury when he collided with the right field wall in Dodger Stadium on May 13. Harper continued to play through discomfort, but the pain in his left knee became too much during Washington’s 6-1 win against the Philadelphia Phillies on May 26.
Harper is batting .287 with 12 home runs, 23 RBI, seven doubles, one triple, two stolen bases and 29 runs in 150 at-bats this season.
