When Bryce Harper said recently that he loved playing in Philadelphia so much that he wishes he started his career there and had played his entire career there, some Washington Nationals fans were irked by their former star's comments. But Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo didn't care.
"Nah, I never take that stuff personal. Timing is everything years ago he woulda said the same thing, he had said the same thing about Washington, your home is where your heart is and he's home in Philly and he had some great years with us, an MVP, and was a cornerstone of the organization's history going forward. So I don't hold grudges, I don't get mad at that stuff at all," Rizzo said on Wednesday during his weekly appearance with 106.7 The Fan's The Sports Junkies, which is presented exclusively by our partners at MainStreet Bank — Cheer Local. Bank Local. Put Our Team in Your Office.
When the Junks told Rizzo about the fun parts of holding a grudge, the GM admitted with a laugh that he does hold some grudges, but "not in this particular case."
Turning from one former prospect to the Nationals' next crop of talent growing down on the farm, Rizzo has a lot to be thankful for as the Nats' top draft pick as Dylan Crews was coming off a four-hit day including a grand slam for his first minor league homer at Class-A Fredericksburg.
While the general manager is as locked in as can be when it comes to keeping an eye on the prospects, the numbers and stats aren't his main interest.
"I'm just not as interested in 3-for-4 or 0-for-4 or that type of thing," Rizzo said, I look for development. There's nights where you can go 0-for-3 and hit three balls on the screws and not get a hit, which is a better night than getting two dunkers in the minor leagues. It's about development. We really do bypass the standard statistics and that type of thing and how they're playing."
He added that he tries to watch every minor league game live and sometimes even goes back to watch games again.
"It's an exciting time in the Nationals' system and you're seeing young guys at the big league level have good seasons and improve and develop and you're seeing that at the minor league level also," Rizzo told the Junkies.
Speaking of the big league club, the Nats are 12-6 since July 21 and Lane Thomas continues to be a big reason why as the 27-year-old outfielder hit a home run on Tuesday and now has 20 on the season to go along with his .823 OPS and above-average 127 OPS+.
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During Washington's latest run, Thomas has four doubles, five dingers, 16 RBI and an OPS of .846. Not to be outdone, CJ Abrams has four doubles, three homers, eight RBI and is batting .299 with an .813 OPS over his last 19 games.
"You factor that in [Keibert Ruiz] and we've got three young prospects in our starting rotation with more to come," Rizzo said. "And then you know we've got infielders and outfielders all chomping at the to accelerate their development and move up in the minor leagues. So it is a good place to be as far as our development goes.
"We want to win on the major league level, too. [Manager Davey Martinez] has got those guys playing terrific baseball. And over our last 40 games or so we've been as good as anybody. So we're excited about where we're at and we're excited more so about where we're gonna be at."
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