Bryce Harper signed his lucrative 13-year, $330 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies in February 2019, which was greeted by a divisive reaction from both fans and pundits. Fast forward three years later, and it's difficult to envision the Phillies going as far as they have done in the 2022 postseason without the contributions of Harper, who punched his team's ticket to a World Series clash against the Houston Astros with a clutch two-run shot in the NLCS.

However, during Harper's final season with the Washington Nationals back in 2018, the now-30 year old outfielder could have been a member of the then-reigning champs' lineup after a trade between the two teams was agreed in principle.

Per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (subscription required), former Astros executive Jeff Luhnow, who was fired in the aftermath of the sign stealing controversy that swept the league in late 2019, revealed that Harper would have been an Astro had the trigger been pulled on the trade that would have sent prospects Abraham Toro, Randy César, Josh James, J.B. Bukauskas and Kent Emanuel to the Nationals.

Luhnow added that in talks with Nationals GM Mike Rizzo, he didn't intend to begin negotiations for Bryce Harper immediately. He recalled that the two had discussed a trade for reliever Kelvin Herrera before Luhnow joked around and kicked the tires on Harper's availability. While Harper would have been a mere two-month rental at worst, Luhnow believed that acquiring the 2015 NL MVP was worth it.

Suffice to say, negotiations between the two parties broke down, and Harper ended up leaving the Nationals with nothing to show for their 2010 first overall pick after they ended up missing the postseason. Meanwhile, the Astros definitely would have loved having Harper on the lineup after their repeat bid was halted by the Boston Red Sox, the team that ended up winning it all that year.

As for the prospects the Nationals would have received, none of them have emerged as crucial fixtures of a team's 26-man roster. Abraham Toro is as close a player got to being a productive everyday player, but he is one of the worst hitters in the league, slashing a putrid .185/.239/.324 for the Seattle Mariners.

What-ifs aside, the Phillies and Astros' battle for the World Series will be an intriguing one to watch. The Astros will be motivated to wash away the stench of last year's Fall Classic defeat to the Atlanta Braves, while the Phillies will try to restore the franchise's former glory after last claiming the title in 2008.