The Nats need Bryce Harper (34) to have a big last month in order to make the postseason. (Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports)
WASHINGTON — Washington outfielder Bryce Harper has done it all this year — well almost everything.
He entered play Tuesday as the major league leader in on-base average, batting average, slugging average and runs, among other categories.
But one area where his numbers have not risen since his first two years is with stolen bases.
Harper had 18 steals in 24 tries as a rookie in 2012 and 11 in 15 attempts the next year. He was 2-for-4 in 100 games last year in steal tries and is six-for-10 this year.
“There has not been a conscious effort to keep him from stealing,” manager Matt Williams said.
Williams notes that Harper is still aggressive on the bases, as he takes the extra base and will try to advance on balls in the dirt. “He has a great year. He wants to finish strong,” Williams said of the MVP candidate.
Even with his great year, Harper had just three more hits than teammate Yunel Escobar — 166 to 163. But Harper had drawn 118 walks while Escobar has 42. Harper, at home Tuesday against Washington, was 0-for-1 but had three walks.
He set a franchise mark for walks in a year, going past the record set by Adam Dunn in 2009.
The Nationals could not take advantage of three errors by the Orioles and six walks and could not pick up ground on the Mets, who lost to Atlanta. Washington stayed 6 1/2 games back of New York with 12 games left for the Nationals.
