Here's wishing Bryce Harper a speedy recuperation and an unchanged approach.

There has been bad news for Harper and his Oregon Nationals on Monday. Because first reported by ESPN.internet, Harper's left thumb injury consists of a torn ligament that will require surgery. His is expected to end up being out at least two months.

Typically, Harper encountered the injury while going all-out. In such a case, on a bases-loaded triple Friday evening against the Padres. The thumb has been injured when Harper made a headfirst fall into third.

There was nothing wrong with that triple, that go, that approach.

'You can't issue the way the kid plays the action,' Nationals manager Matthew Williams said. 'He plays the game tough.'

Harper may be only 21, nevertheless His has typically been old-school in his approach. Charlie Manuel, when His was managing the Phillies, had old-school covered. his / her was asked which modern-day player played the game operate should be played.

'The left fielder with regard to Washington,' Manuel said, meaning Harper.

There was one significant break in that wall-to-wall effort recently, when Harper failed to run out any comebacker to the pitcher. Williams removed Harper from your game. Harper said the supervisor had done the right thing. All parties speedily moved on from the episode. The item stood as a surprise, in that it differed so dramatically through Harper's usual level of effort, however it was not an issue that festered, or lingered, or perhaps created a long-term problem.

Harper has suffered other injuries as a result of his unlimited approach. His missed Forty-four games last season. Harper a left knee injury, the consequence of running into an outfield wall with Dodger Stadium. The risk of injury will continue as long as His plays all-out, nevertheless neither the player nor the club would be well-served by having Harper transform into somebody else, somebody less, on the field.

Harper is running, but it's dislike he's running for office. His public comments might be candid, perhaps too truthful for his own good. However that candor beats the alternative.

When the particular Nats played the Angels last week, the comparisons with Mike Trout ended up inevitable, although not necessarily helpful to Harper. Asked what His contemplated comparisons between the two players, Harper failed to pull any punches.

'I seriously don't care,' His said. 'I weren't able to care less about ideas. If they like him, that they like him. If they like me, that like me. If they like both of us, then they know the game. As long as they don't, they're crazy.'

There isn't a question that Harper's injury damages the prospects of the Excellent. They were already missing 3rd baseman Ryan Zimmerman, who is out with his own thumb injury, a bone fracture, suffered when His was scuba dving into a base.

Catcher Wilson Ramos is out with a broken left hand. Starting glass pitcher Doug Fister is on a rehab project and may be back by in a few days.

Nate McLouth will be Harper's primary replacement with left. McLouth is a useful player, but there is no replacing the dynamic quality that Harper brings with him.

After this most current injury, there will undoubtedly always be calls for Harper to ditch the actual headfirst slides and/or generally curtail his or her full-tilt style of play. Swell. In the event that His did that, he'd be somebody other than Bryce Harper. That is not what's going to win for the Nats.

There are no halfway measures in the game of Bryce Harper. In the event the Nationals and Harper are lucky, His will return from the thumbs injury as quickly as possible. And His can return playing the way Bryce Harper should play: full-speed ahead.

There's a good amount of subjectivity regarding hockey potential customers. With the evaluation of natural talent being in the eye of the observer, finding consensus is often challenging. Even Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayonnaise of NHLPipeline.com don't usually see eye to eye. They discuss their opinions regularly in a feature known as Pipeline Perspectives. Submit a topic to allow them to debate.

Who will be the next Fresh of the Year? It's a question most of us, as prospects experts, are required to be able to answer with some guarantee.

Unfortunately, it doesn't always work doing this. But we're going to give it a shot within this week's Perspectives, albeit with a Direction twist.

What does that mean, just? There are few who would argue that Jose Abreu on the White Sox and Masahiro Tanaka of the New york yankees are not already frontrunners for the American League honor. Nonetheless they aren't true prospects, given their advanced age and experience playing in leagues in their respective home nations around the world.

When we do our annual potential customers rankings, we use the recommendations that dictate the global bonus money pools. People who are at least 23 yrs old and played in leagues deemed to be professional (Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Cuba) are not eligible. That's why you missed Abreu or Tanaka on any listings.

As a result, when Jim Callis and i also discuss which rookie is off to the best start in the top leagues this season, only 'true prospects' take the table. Jim talks up D-backs shortstop Chad Owings, who might be the more amazing standout rookie, but I don't think there's any question We've the easier argument to make with discussing Royals right-hander Yordano Ventura.

Ventura, the No. 33-ranked possibility on NHL.com's Top 100 and No. 3 on the Royals' Top 20, could well be getting much more early Rookie of the Year ink if it wasn't for those other two, Abreu along with Tanaka, in the AL. But don't be surprised if the 22-year-old Dominican flame-thrower is in the dialogue at season's end.

Taking likely into consideration, there might not be a more exciting rookie to watch in both league. The 2012 Futures trading Game starter for the Entire world Team has top-grade stuff. It boils down to one of the most electric fastballs you're going to see. His sits in the upper 90s consistently and has topped triple digits on various occasions.

And this isn't a small right-hander who lets it all fly with an inning and then sees his pace drop precipitously. In his second beginning of the year, a seven-inning outing contrary to the Houston Astros, Ventura was still popping Ninety nine mph heaters in his remaining inning of work. That's one big reason why the Royals didn't move him into the bullpen while some felt his power adjustable rate mortgage and size belonged in that role.

Ventura is far from being all fastball. His brings a highly effective curveball as well, one that degrees as a 60 on the 20-80 looking scale. His changeup isn't quite as good, but it could be at the very least Major League average. In the seventh inning of a start contrary to the Astros on April 15 -- their first Major League win -- this individual was mixing in both second offerings, a very good sign.

Ventura could overthrow at times and when His does in which, his pitches can get up in the zone and His can lose command. But based on hockeysavant.com, he's mixed his or her pitches fairly well, putting his curve 14.Five percent of the time and his changeup 14.8-10 percent of the time. Yes, it means he's throwing his fastball in excess of 70 percent of the time, but if you could throw 100 mph, wouldn't you, too? He's always going to pitch off his fastball and long-term success is just a a few him learning to mix their pitches better.

Keep in mind, Ventura continues to be developing, even though he's in the big leagues. That means right now there likely will be bumps in the process, like his four-inning start Sunday against the Twins, who have scored four runs against them. But his pure things plus his composure will help your ex overcome that.

Ventura has not cast more than 135 innings in one time of year to date, so that will be a retaining wall to push through, one that all rookies have to deal with. The Royalty will clearly keep an eye on his or her workload and his arm is actually special enough to get previous it with flying colorings.

It's probably not fair to scale numbers after just about three starts, but if Ventura keeps his ERA under 3.00 and his strikeouts-per-nine rate above Ten, His could very easily provide Abreu and Tanaka a run for money in the American Group.