Bryce Harper: Mike Trout 'hands down' is best player in baseball
Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harpertold ESPN.com that he still believes Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout is the best player in baseball.
Harper, 22, told ESPN.com the same thing last August, a few months before Trout would be named the American League Most Valuable Player.
This May alone, Harper has hit .384 with 11 home runs and 26 RBIs, plus a .918 slugging percentage. On the season overall, he currently leads the National League in runs (39), home runs (16), walks (40), on-base percentage (.471) and slugging percentage (.727).
But Harper doesn't believe his sudden surge should propel him, or anyone else, over Trout as the game's best.
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"Baseball is always, 'What have you done for me lately?'" he told ESPN. "That's just how the game works. I still believe Trout is the best player in the game, hands down. It's not about taking a backseat to anybody. I love seeing Stanton hit homers or Kris Bryant do the things he does. I love watching Matt Harvey or Gerrit Cole or Noah Syndergaard come up and throw 100 mph. I cheer for guys. I've always been that way."
After hitting .287 with 36 home runs and 111 RBIs over his MVP season, the 23-year-old Trout is hitting .299 with 11 home runs and 25 RBIs through 45 games in 2015.
In 2012, Trout was named AL Rookie of the Year and finished in second in the league's MVP voting.
- Molly Geary
