The best performers vs. their former team

Bryce Harper returns to Washington for the first time in a Phillies uniform Tuesday night against the Nationals and Max Scherzer. Harper’s new team is in the same division as his old one, so these faceoffs will become common pretty quickly. But for now, it’s a chance to revisit what he did in Washington and what the Nats will have to contend with as an opponent for the next 13 years.

Harper has hit 92 career home runs at Nationals Park, 24 more than anyone else since 2012 (Ryan Zimmerman, 68). Overall, his 92 home runs are the second most in the history of the park, which opened in 2008.

Will Harper go yard? He’ll face a tough test against Scherzer in his first game back at Nationals Park on Tuesday. Harper’s home run exploits at the ballpark are noted above, but it’s also worth mentioning that the longest home run of his career went 473 feet there in 2018. It was the longest home run by a Nationals player at Nationals Park tracked by Statcast (since 2015). And it came off Nick Pivetta, who’s now Harper’s teammate.

Harper’s seven-year tenure in Washington puts him atop other counting stat lists for most at Nationals Park since 2012 too, like hits (472), triples (9) and RBIs (275). Of course, all that comes with having played 472 games there in his career -- 76 more than anyone else in that span.

Will Harper continue to have that success at Nationals Park as a Phillie? And will it extend to any games against the Nats? If he does, he might have a shot at some all-time records -- given that he’ll be in the division as an opponent for at least the next 13 years.

It would take considerable time to match the record for most home runs by a player against a former team, which is 90 by Babe Ruth against the Red Sox. But with help from the Elias Sports Bureau, here's a look at the active players who've done the most damage against their former team.

The most home runs by a player against a former team is Babe Ruth’s 90 against the Red Sox. The most for an active player is Nelson Cruz’s 21 against the Rangers.

Most homers vs. a former team by an active player
Nelson Cruz, 21 vs. Texas
Shin-Soo Choo, 15 vs. Seattle
Steve Pearce, 15 vs. N.Y. Yankees
Justin Smoak, 15 vs. Texas

The most hits by an active player against a former team is Shin-Soo Choo’s 108 against the Mariners. To be fair, though, he played just 14 career games with the Mariners, at the start of his career, so it isn’t necessarily a team he’s remembered on.

Most hits vs. a former team by an active player
Shin-Soo Choo, 108 vs. Seattle
Justin Smoak, 95 vs. Texas
Nelson Cruz, 90 vs. Texas
Avisail Garcia, 90 vs. Detroit

While it would take Harper some time to reach those numbers, some other records could be in his sights if he gets off to a good start against the Nats. The most home runs by an active player in his first 10 games against his former team is seven, by Jedd Gyorko against the Padres. Murphy is tied with a few others in second with five. The highest OPS for a player with at least 50 plate appearances against the team he was on in the prior season is 1.453 by Babe Ruth in 1920 against the Red Sox.

With those in mind, here are a few of the most notable examples of active players who have hurt a former team. These are guys Harper will be trying to emulate as he battles his former Nationals teammates.

Daniel Murphy vs. Mets
One of the most notable examples of a player succeeding against a former team in recent memory is Daniel Murphy against the Mets, who did so while a teammate of Harper’s on the Nationals. After hitting .328 with seven home runs and 11 RBIs for the Mets in the 2015 postseason, Murphy signed as a free agent with the Nationals entering '16.

He went on to get a hit in each of his first 19 games against the Mets, not playing a game against them in which he did not get a hit until April 21, 2017 -- a full season after he signed with the Nationals. His 19-game hit streak to start his career against the Mets was tied for the longest hitting streak against a former team in the Modern Era with Bob W. Johnson against the A’s.

Nelson Cruz vs. Rangers
Cruz spent eight seasons with the Rangers, playing in almost 800 regular-season games and three postseason runs. He became a free agent after the 2013 season and signed with the Orioles. After a year in Baltimore, he signed as a free agent with the Mariners and played there for four years. That meant a lot of AL West divisional matchups with the Rangers.

Cruz homered in his first game against the Rangers, on June 3, 2014 as a member of the Orioles. He went yard in the eighth inning off Shawn Tolleson.

In all, Cruz has 21 home runs against the Rangers, the most of any active player against a former team. He also has 90 hits against them and a .976 OPS.

Jedd Gyorko vs. Padres
Gyorko spent the first three years of his career with the Padres, who drafted him in the second round of the 2010 Draft. After the '15 season, San Diego traded him to the Cardinals for Jon Jay.

The first time Gyorko faced the Padres, he did so as a pinch-hitter and didn’t get a hit. But he went on to hit at least one home run in each of his next five games against the Padres.

Overall, Gyorko has nine home runs against the Padres, along with a .424 batting average and a 1.417 OPS. Seven of those home runs came in his first 10 games against the Padres, noted earlier as the most by any active player in his first 10 games against a former team.