MLB Rumors: Washington Nationals Make Last Offer To Bryce Harper

The Bryce Harper drama is far from over with no team clearly in the lead. The Washington Nationals had already offered the 26-year-old a stunning $300 million offer but that was still not enough to get the free agent right fielder to sign.

The offer was made before the end of the last MLB season but Harper still turned it down, Yahoo Sports said. But it seems that it was just the first offer. Washington has pitched a higher figure, much more than the 10-year $300 million initially laid on the table says Jim Bowden, a former general manager and current analyst for The Athletic said.

Handing another offer hardly comes as a surprise seeing how multiple teams are trying to snag Harper onto their end. As far as the Nationals are concerned, the actual figures and perks in the revised offer have not been revealed as of this writing. The only thing certain is that it will be more than $300 million, already a hefty amount despite being spread over 10 years.

The new deal is believed to be the one discussed when Harper sat down with Nationals team owner Ted Lerner for five hours this past Christmas, CBS Sports said. Right now, things are getting a bit complex for Harper who is also a target of other teams.

Some teams still in the hunt for Harper include the Los Angeles Dodgers. The team cleared payroll space when they sent Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp together with Alex Wood to the Cincinnati Reds last Dec. 21. There is also the Philadelphia Phillies who plan to visit Harper in Las Vegas. The Phillies had already met with Harper's agent Scott Boras last month.

The Chicago White Sox are another team to watch in the Bryce Harper sweepstakes, although their chances of convincing the right-fielder may not be so high. This is largely because they can only offer a seven-year deal, according to Bruce Levine.

There is no question that the Nationals have now become the frontrunners for Harper. Last month, it seemed that Mark Lerner had given up on him since he was asking for a hefty price. It remains unknown what changed from that time until now.

Should this deal be finalized, it would substantially boost the campaign of the Nationals in what could turn out to be a heated three-team division battle with the Phillies and the Atlanta Braves moving forward, the Bleacher Report said.