Bryce Harper thanks Nationals in heartfelt Instagram post before facing them

Bryce Harper is set to visit Nationals Park on Tuesday night for the first time as a visiting player, and the Philadelphia Phillies star wants to let his former team and its fans know how he feels about them in advance of the big game.

In a lengthy Instagram post on Tuesday morning, Harper thanked the Nationals, their employees and the fans in Washington, D.C., for their support in helping him become one of baseball’s best players.

View this post on Instagram

If you would have told me 5 years ago I would be walking into Nationals Park as an opposing player, I would’ve told you that you were crazy. Five years later, I’m doing just that. I remember the first day I walked into Nats Park. My first base hit. My first home run. And, of course, my first standing ovation. Nationals fans delivered that first ovation. The things that I will miss most are the relationships I gained on a personal level with so many of the Nationals staff and workers around the ballpark. Every day I walked in, I got a smile or shared a laugh with you. I especially want to thank The Lerner Family and Mike Rizzo for the unwavering support they showed me during my tenure in DC. The city of DC was home. Filomena’s, The Silver Diner, The Italian store, and countless other places helped make it feel like home. You, Nationals fans, made me one of your own for the entire time I was a part of the Nationals organization. I’m so blessed to have been able to play for a fan base that cared so much about our team each and every night. You will always hold a special place in my heart no matter what. I look forward to continuing Harpers Heroes with LLS in the DMV as well as making sure the legacy fields bearing my name are the best youth fields in town! When I run on the field tonight I am sure to hear some boos, but I will always remember the cheers and the screams that are still with me right now, as I start my new chapter. So for that, DC, THANK YOU.

A post shared by Bryce Harper (@bryceharper3) on Apr 2, 2019 at 7:05am PDT

Harper will probably draw a mixed reaction from Nats fans, but it’s hard to blame him for taking the best offer in free agency. He almost certainly would have remained with Washington if the money was the same, but the Nationals weren’t willing to give him the same contract structure as the Phillies. According to a report from Barry Svrluga of The Washington Post this week, Washington’s first offer to Harper came when he was handed an envelope during a rain delay last season, and the second offer was significantly lower than the first. That’s not how you retain a player who is about to be the biggest name on the free agent market.

If Harper is booed by some Nationals fans who consider him a traitor, it shockingly would not be the first time he heard that reaction this season.