Washington Nationals: Would Tyler Moore's Promotion Keep Bryce Harper Down?

Washington Nationals' prospect Tyler Moore made the first start of his career in left field on Monday. He previously played first base exclusively.

Moore possesses an extremely powerful bat, mashing 68 home runs since the 2010 season.

He's hit 31 home runs in each of the past two seasons and is off to a hot start thus far. In 17 games (62 at-bats), Moore has six home runs, 16 RBI and a line of .290/.357/.613.

Moore could potentially become a Michael Morse-type player for the Nationals. Morse has experience in both the infield and outfield.

Upon his promotion, Moore would likely slot into left field for the Nationals. With Morse nursing an injury for at least the next month, the Nationals need somebody to fill the offensive void left by their slugging outfielder.

If Moore plays well in his time with the Nationals, the team could theoretically move Jayson Werth to center field, Morse to right and leave Moore in left.

This would make the Nationals outfield very dynamic offensively, but it could potentially alter the progress of Bryce Harper.

With the outfield full of consistent producers, the Nationals would have no need for Harper this season. They would never bring Harper up to sit the bench, so he'd likely spend the rest of the season in Triple-A Syracuse.

I highlighted in a previous article that such a situation could benefit Harper, but the Nationals seem to have every intention of bringing Harper up sometime in June.

With Moore in left field and producing, though, Harper will be without a spot.

Next season, Morse could shift back to first base after the contract of Adam LaRoche expires, leaving an opening in the outfield for Harper.

Harper, with another season of professional baseball under his belt, would be a much bigger addition to the National lineup next season.

Moore's promotion could potentially slow the progress of Harper, but it may not be such a bad thing.