Mike Trout and Bryce Harper kicked off their showdown with a game of homer H-O-R-S-E

The game of H-O-R-S-E is no stranger to basketball fans. Players take turns shooting for the basket from different positions, and it's all about matching successful shots. Here's NBA star Steph Curry playing against his father, Dell, a former player himself:

The game is fun, but at first, it doesn't seem like it has anything to do with baseball. Or does it?
Tuesday night in Anaheim featured a showdown of two of the game's greatest players -- Bryce Harper and Mike Trout. They aimed to do the improbable and find a way to make a baseball version of H-O-R-S-E.
Just like the Currys, each star launched a shot. They didn't waste any time, either, as Harper homered over Trout's head to open the scoring in the top of the first:

Not to be deterred, Trout answered right back in the bottom half with a long ball of his own:

Challenge met.
Who knows exactly what kind of scoring Harper and Trout are working with here, but for what it's worth, Harper got hits in each of his next three at-bats during the Nationals' 4-3 win, while Trout was blanked for the rest of the night. So perhaps the 2015 NL MVP has the early edge.
Fortunately for baseball fans, they have another game coming up Wednesday night and two more back on Harper's home turf at Nationals Park in August. They're just getting started.