Zack Greinke has been the best pitcher in baseball for several weeks now. The 31-year-old right-hander has not allowed a run in over a month, and he extended his consecutive scoreless streak to 43 2/3 innings in a win over the Washington Nationals on Sunday.
Bryce Harper was not all that impressed.
Harper, who was 0-for-2 with two strikeouts and a walk against Greinke, felt that the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher was getting preferable treatment from home plate umpire Bill Miller.
“I think he was okay. When you’re getting five to six inches off of the plate, you better win the game,” Harper said, per Chase Hughes of CSNWashington.com. “For me, I don’t think he was very tough. He’s a great pitcher, he does what he does, but when you’re getting six inches off the plate it’s pretty tough to face him.”
Harper admitted that he was hesitant to pump Greinke up too much because he’ll have to face him again.
“He’s a good pitcher. He’s doing what he’s doing to help that team over there, but I don’t want to give him too much credit because I’ve gotta face him again,” Harper added. “That’s the biggest thing. I don’t really want to give him too much credit because of that reason, but he’s a damn good pitcher.”
When you’re pitching as well as Greinke has been, you’re going to get the benefit of the doubt from the home plate umpire.
Not only has Greinke been pitching lights out, but he’s also been giving his teammates great advice about hygiene. There’s nothing he can’t do at the moment, whether Harper is impressed or not.
