Coincidence?

There's a better than average chance Teheran was throwing at Bryce Harper that night in Washington a couple of weeks ago, because this is baseball and that's what baseball players have always done.  Boom.  Easy.  Movin' on.

The second one looked accidental, not only because Alex Wood reflexively showed contrition, but also because it was a 72-mph curve, not exactly the sexiest pick of pitches to "send a message" with.  Harken back to Goodfellas: the scene where Tommy DeVito (Joe Pesci) shows up at the bar to take out made-man Billy Batts, but instead of beating him within an inch of his life, throwing him in the trunk of a car, and driving him upstate to finish the job, they disagree in a cordial manner and skip away, arms interlocked, into the sunset.  That's basically what happened between Harper and Wood. 

Avilan's pitch, uh, well, this one gets into a grey area.  It sure looked like he was throwing at him, but he had to know a) the score of the game, and b) that Harper had been hit once already.  Avilan was lucky to not get ejected, though Fredi pulled him anyway.  The level of tension shot through the roof, and there were a few seconds during which it looked like the Nats' bench would storm out of the dugout and burn Turner Field to the ground.  The rabid Atlanta howled on in an uncharacteristically delirious manner, desperate for a theatrical, climactic event to satisfy their blood lust.  Harper stood at first, lips pursed, shutting out all that surrounded him.  Love him or hate him, the level of restraint he showed was impressive.

Here's the thing: although the Braves have basically locked up their first division title in eight years, they're still locked into a race that has taken on critical importance: the race for the best record in the NL.  Pittsburgh, St. Louis, and Los Angeles all pose the most eminent threat to Atlanta winning that race, and as such, every game matters, especially when Atlanta's harsh home/road splits are considered.  In that context, it would be insane for Avilan to purposefully put the team in a position to potentially drop a game that should have been a run-of-the-mill, boring, nine inning one-run victory, right?

The dynamic between these two teams has clearly soured, and it's easy to understand why.  As discussed earlier here, these two clubs handle their business in a different way.  That's not to say that either of them are right or wrong, it's just how the circumstances have shaken out.  What it comes down to is this: Harper pimped a HR off of Teheran in a game that Washington lost, in a series Washington lost, in a season that Washington has lost.  Was the pimp-job any more blatant or egregious than Justin Upton's when he hit the grand slam off of Paco Rodriguez?  Or perhaps Evan Gattis' when he barely cleared the wall off of Roy Halladay?  Probably not, but that doesn't matter.  It doesn't matter because when you're the big bully on the block, you do what you want.  Atlanta won those games, those series, and they're going to win this division.  Harper pimping his HR off of Teheran is the same as a running back spiking the ball in the end zone when his team is down 49-7 with two minutes to go in the 4th quarter.  What happens to that guy the next time a defensive end gets a clear shot at him in the backfield?  He gets smoked.  Win, and you are afforded the right to a certain degree of flair.  Lose, and those rights are implicitly revoked.  If you choose to go against these unwritten rules, expect retribution in some form or another.  It's an unwritten rule that transcends baseball. 

Bryce Harper is a fantastic talent, one that I personally enjoy watching, except when he's playing the Braves.  His personality lends itself to breaking these social graces, and that's not necessarily a bad thing, as it adds to his mystique.  While his indignant grandstanding immediately after the Teheran incident was rather unbecoming of a team leader, his digestion of righteous fury in last night's game was upright and poignant.  His eyes told the story.  Revenge is a dish best served cold.  He'll have all winter to chill it for next season.