The heat is ticking up around Bryce Harper. Soon enough, he might as well be walking on the sun.
Smash Mouth, the very same ironically beloved ’90s band that tried to break exclusive news on the Giants’ internal discord about signing Harper, has now turned on the same superstar it endorsed.
A non-spectacular first month of a 13-year contract ended with Philadelphia fans booing Harper on Tuesday night, a sight familiar to Philly fans who will boo anyone, and a sight unfamiliar to the band that hitched its wagons to “Shrek.”
This is what happens when you spurn the West Coast for the East Coast, Smash Mouth told Harper. The world rolls you.
“Yo Bryce…….told you not to go to Philly jackass!” the band from San Jose tweeted Wednesday. “The @SFGiants fans NEVER boo their own players! You we’re lead by $ only so swim in the sea of boos now! How much do you love your agent now?? Worth the taxes you avoided? How’s that 45min drive to the stadium?lol @bryceharper3.”
If Harper was motivated by pure bottom line in his 13-year, $330 million deal, Philadelphia made sense over California (with the Giants, Dodgers or Padres, who had all been at least loosely linked to him). California’s personal income tax is, at its highest, 13.3 percent; Pennsylvania’s is 3.07 percent.
Of course, Harper is in Philadelphia because it was willing to offer deals that teams like the Giants wouldn’t, taxes aside. Still, Smash Mouth is painting an L on his (and Phillies fans’) forehead.
“Bllsht!” the band tweeted in response to a take that Harper deserves to be booed. “Nuture your players, support your players. That way when they pull through you can feel like you deserved it and you feel like you’re part of it. Booing makes you the enemy….NOT part of the team! He’s hit 6 HR’s and remains a constant threat in the lineup! BAM!”
Philadelphia is a cool place. And Harper should be wary: They say it gets colder when you’re only batting .231.