Harper brothers reunited on diamond

Eight years ago, baseball began dividing the Harper family.

It took 7-year-old Bryce Harper from his mother, whisking him around the country to fulfill promise and tap potential.

It swiped Bryan Harper from his father, as the then-10-year-old remained at home with his mother and older sister.

But baseball, it seems, also has brought the Harpers back together.

Bryan, a level-headed senior with a full-ride scholarship to Cal State Northridge awaiting, is now on the mound for Las Vegas High and bats second.

Bryce, a fiery freshman, is behind the plate for the Wildcats and batting third.

Together, they've led the Wildcats to an 11-4 mark -- Bryan with a 3-0 record, 1.50 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 20 innings; Bryce batting .500 with 21 hits, three home runs and 15 RBIs.

A battery in baseball heaven.

That is, when the two aren't bickering.

"We've gotten into it; that's just brothers butting heads," Bryce Harper said. "That's just me and him. But when it comes down to the nitty-gritty, it's, 'Me and you, let's do it right here.' "

Bryce has that kind of confidence in his big brother, and he's not afraid to say it. He's not much afraid to say anything. He's the louder one, the snappy one, the 15-year-old with pictures of his baseball heroes on his wall and a Texas Longhorns blanket on his bed -- a snapshot of unbridled passion.

Bryan is the mature one, the one with a backup plan, the black-and-white posters of New York and Paris and the cinnamon-scented candle.

He always has been the reserved one, with a poised swagger but a matter-of-fact approach.

"Bryan's not a real vocal kid; he doesn't drink, doesn't smoke, doesn't stay out after curfew. He's home," said his dad, Ron, cut off by Bryan's smack up the middle on Monday against Coronado, "And he's 3-for-3, by the way."

By all accounts, Bryan hasn't been the "rah-rah" one.

Until this year.

With Bryce as his catcher, left-hander Bryan has unleashed his best stuff, and at 6 feet 5 inches, 192 pounds, it's some nasty stuff.

"I love it, because I can actually throw to him, and throw it as hard as I want, and he can actually catch it," Bryan Harper said. "Even (teammate) Marvin Campbell said, 'Dude, you're an (expletive) on the mound this year.' And yeah, I am."

But attitude never has been a problem for Bryce.

The kid can play, and he knows it -- and has known it for years. When he was 7, a travel-ball coach in Las Vegas asked him to play for his 10-year-old team. Forget the three-year gap, Bryce was a star. One team led to another and another.

And it has all led to this: at age 15, most scouts and baseball experts have Bryce ranked as one of the best players in the country, if not the best.

As a 12-year-old, Travelball-select.com -- a Web site that ranks 12- to 14-year-old ballplayers -- tabbed Bryce as the best player in the nation. Same honor when he was 14.

Four years from his first opportunity at the Major League Baseball draft, Bryce has his eyes on the top.

"I remember I was in fifth grade, my counselor came in and said, "What do you want to do?' '' Bryce said. "I said I wanted to be a pro baseball player, and she said, 'No, really.' I get that all the time, and it pisses me off.

"I'm going to be a pro baseball player."

Travel baseball has taken Bryce around the country -- from California to Utah to Oklahoma to Georgia -- sometimes for as many as 130 games a year. That's not including the countless hours in the batting cage, or the time at the field, leaving his dad's arm in shambles.

But it could all pay off.

At 6-3 and 200 pounds, with a pristine swing and a 94 mph fastball, the dream might become a reality.

"With his work ethic, I don't really know if Bryce has a ceiling right now," Las Vegas coach Sam Thomas said. "He's not Superman, he's not perfect -- but I think he's doing pretty damn good for a 15-year-old."

Not that life on the road hasn't taken its toll. Bryce doesn't find himself with many friends at Las Vegas High. Most of his best buddies are at Green Valley or Silverado or in Oklahoma or Texas.

At home, there's a natural split -- Bryce with Ron, Bryan with mother Sheri. Ron was the one taking Bryce on those trips, Sheri was the one at home, tending to Bryan and older daughter Brittany.

But now, Bryce and Bryan are Wildcats, laughing together at home, arguing together at games, playing on the same field, in the same tournament.

Playing in front of dad.

And mom.

"Bryce didn't hit well one game, and I walked over to him and said it's because you didn't come get a kiss from your mom. So the next day, he makes sure he comes give me a kiss, and he goes 8-for-8 that day.

"They're just my babies -- I don't see them as the superstars that everyone else sees them as."

Contact reporter Jon Gold at jgold@reviewjournal.com or (702) 380-4587.