Lost in the shuffle of Stephen Strasburg's extraordinary outing was the performance of the Nationals' 19-year-old phenom. Upon stepping into the batter's box on Friday, the first overall pick of the 2010 MLB Draft was welcomed to a few boos.
But Harper delivered the knockout punches in the 7-4 victory over the Red Sox, going 3-for-5 with three RBIs. His night, coupled with Strasburg's dominance, offered a peek into Washington's bright future in baseball.
"I think [Nationals general manager] Mike Rizzo did a heck of a job spending a lot of money, but getting two outstanding players in the first rounds of those drafts," Red Sox skipper Bobby Valentine said.
For Harper's part, the heightened pressure didn't daunt him. Despite striking out against Red Sox pitcher Felix Doubront in the first, the outfielder responded by hitting a towering, two-run shot to center field in the fourth inning.
The homer nearly nailed the Jordan's Furniture sign. As Harper rounded the bases, he received a round of congratulations from Boston second baseman Dustin Pedroia and shortstop Mike Aviles.
"It was unbelievable," Harper said. "I love those kinds of atmospheres. Philly, Turner, the Braves, here – it’s pretty much you always rise to the occasion. I love playing in these situations and I feel like everyone does. Having a great fan base like that, coming in to play Red Sox is always fun."
As a result of his blast, Harper became the 2nd youngest visiting player –– at 19 years and 236 days old –– to homer at Fenway Park, trailing Robin Yount, who was 19 years and 204 days old upon accomplishing the endeavor.
Heading into the ninth, Harper was just a triple shy of the cycle. While he eventually grounded out against Andrew Miller, the wasted opportunity during first at-bat was still on his mind following the victory.
"I think I got a little overwhelmed with the atmosphere, felt like there was just a great atmosphere," Harper said. "I was just too anxious a little bit and trying to do a little too much in that situation and the crowd's going crazy and whatnot. It was a little bit different that first at-bat than all the rest."
Either way, Harper lived up to the billing in his Fenway debut.
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