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ATLANTA -- Bryce Harper hopes to begin running and hitting next week and come off the disabled list the first day he is eligible. But Harper acknowledged Sunday that his injured left knee had not improved yet. Harper was placed on the 15-day DL on Saturday, retroactive to May 27, with bursitis in his left knee. Harper said, "I feel all right," before adding: "Its still swollen and crappy. Im just trying to get treatment and see if the swelling will go down." Nationals manager Davey Johnson said Saturday the team would not have placed Harper on the disabled list if the outfielder was close to being ready to play. Harper said he would have tried to play through the injury in a more critical stage of the season. "If were in September, October, Im going to play," he said. "I wouldnt be sitting down right now. Its one of those things, youve got to be smart about what you do and just try to come in every day and get better." He is eligible to come off the disabled list June 11, when the Nationals open a series at Colorado. The knee has bothered Harper since he crashed into the wall May 13 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He confirmed Sunday he aggravated the injury with a head-first slide into third base against the Phillies on May 25. "Thats when it got very puffed up and then it got bad," he said. He said he wont let the risk of injury affect his style of play. "Thats just the way I play," he said. "I want to go out there and give 110 per cent to these fans and myself. I want to look myself in the mirror and tell myself, Hey, you gave your all today and yeah, youre 0-for-4, that happens. A good day on the field is going 110 per cent, working hard, running everything out and doing things the right way." Harper missed five straight games before being placed on the DL. Harper was asked Sunday if he is concerned his aggressive style will make it difficult for him to have a long career. "The way I work in the off-season, the way I work and get ready for my season, I think Im not prone to have a shorter career," he said. "I think Im going to play this game for 20 years, and I dont care what anyone says." The Nationals hope to have outfielder Jayson Werth come off the 15-day disabled list Tuesday. He has been out with a right hamstring injury since May 3. Cheap Custom Bucks Jersey . Badenhop was 2-3 with a 3.47 ERA in 63 relief appearances for Milwaukee this season. He is 18-20 in his career with three saves and a 3. Authentic Custom Bucks Jersey . The Montreal Canadiens announced on Friday that the veteran forward will return to the teams line-up on Saturday night when the Habs visit the Nashville Predators. http://www.custombucksjersey.com/ . It says Pocklingtons lawyer filed the appeal Friday in a California court. CTV Edmonton also says Pocklington gave a $100,000 cash deposit as part of the conditions of his bail, and that he will be out on bail until his appeal is heard. Custom Oscar Robertson Jersey . -- Team after team passed on Andre Ellington in the draft. Oscar Robertson Jersey Large . Fred Couples, captain of the U.S. side, put it all into perspective. "We know whos in charge," he said. Jonathan Lucroy is one of baseballs best catchers. Still, this hasnt been the easiest of weeks for the 2016 All-Star. On Saturday, the 30-year-old was traded from the Milwaukee Brewers to the Cleveland Indians -- a deal Lucroy rejected (the Indians were on his no-trade list) amid concerns he wouldnt get enough time behind the plate in 2017. I have to look out for me and my family, he says. I know Cleveland fans are mad at me right now, but my decision had zero to do with the quality of their team. On Monday, Lucroy was moved to the Texas Rangers with reliever Jeremy Jeffress as part of a deadline trade that included several minor league prospects. Here, Lucroy discusses the failed Cleveland deal and the moments before and after his trade to the Rangers -- a move he hopes will deliver him to his first playoff appearance in five years.When youre traded, youre never sure what to expect. Id never been dealt before, so this was a new experience for me. After our game on Saturday, against the Pirates, I was called into an office. Something was going down. The general manager, David Stearns, told me Id been traded. David said he couldnt say who got me because medical stuff needed to be cleared before it could be announced. I figured it must be a team that wasnt on my no-trade list, just because of everything that goes into that. Based on what Id seen online and what I heard from my agent, I knew the Mets, Indians, Dodgers and Rangers had shown interest. Cleveland was the only one of those teams on my no-trade list, so I ruled that out.It was already pretty clear there wasnt going to be much of a future for me in Milwaukee. Theyre in rebuilding mode, and they wouldnt want to pay to keep me there. I had a team option for 2017, and then that was it. Its the reality of the situation. I grew up in the organization, spent nearly 10 years with it. I love the fans, but this is all part of the game. You hear -- baseballs a business -- but it really is. They were figuring out their roster for the future, and I wanted to win now. Thats the landscape, and its something you have to deal with. So I got the news I was traded, and I was excited to know where I would play next. I knew itd be a competitive situation. I like being part of something bigger, like a cog in an engine. In Milwaukee, I didnt feel part of that because we werent winning. With a trade, Id be on a team that was working toward the playoffs.My agent, Doug Rogalski, found out it was the Indians that traded for me. I was surprised, but I wanted to keep an open mind. Great team. Competitive team. Theres a real chance to win. Doug called Chris Antonetti, the Indians president. There was one thing we wanted to know: What was my future with the Indians? We knew Cleveland already had a good catcher, Yan Gomes, whos injured right now. Hes getting paid more than me, and hes younger than me. We knew theyd probably want him catching almost every day next year. Heck, if I were the general manager in Cleveland, Id want Gomes catching every day.We were right. Antonetti told Doug that the Indians couldnt make any promises on me catching next season. There was no way theyd drop the team option, either, because Im pretty inexpensive in 2017. I dont blame them. I would have been mostly at first base and designated hitter. In the end, that was the deal killer. Doug called me. He said, Youre not going there.Cleveland fans dont like that part, but its nothing against them. It wasnt personal. If anything, I have even more respect for the Indians because of Antonettis honesty. He could have lied to my agent and said Id play catcher every day next season. But he didnt. He told the truth. Im thankful for that. My decision not to go to Cleveland had nothing to do with the team, but it had everything to do with my future in this game. It was an economic decision. Period. I have to look out for my familys best interests and my interests as a catcher whod be going into 2018 not having played my position the previous year. I am a catcher. Ive been catching since I was 12 years old. I love being behind the plate, being involved in the game from that perspective. I love every part of that. Im not changing positions for anybody. I dont care who it is. My value is as a catcher, and I know it.So we blocked the trade. And then we waited.Things werent dead. I knew I could still be moved. I was in a good position. If I were traded, it would be to a team that was in the playoff race. That was obvious. Doug knew there would be teams that would try to re-engage with the Brewers. I was hoping the Rangers were still interested. Dallas was our No. 1 target. My wife is from Louisiana, I went to college in Louisiana, and we still live in that state, so this was really close to home for us. If we could pick a perfect spot to go as a family, and for competitive baseball,, the Dallas area was the place.dddddddddddd They know their sports in Texas. Great fans. Great facilities. Great team. We have a lot of friends there. We were hoping the Rangers were still interested.My manager, Craig Counsell, put me in as a pinch hitter on Sunday. It was a day before the trade deadline, and no one knew if I was wearing a Brewers uniform for the last time. I got a standing ovation, and it meant a lot to me. I dug into the batters box, and I was in limbo. I figured if this is my last at-bat here, its my last at-bat. If not, well see what happens. I flied out. It wasnt much of a storybook ending.Afterward I felt a little sad, a little excited. Honestly, I was scared because I didnt know what was going to happen next. I was thinking about my wife, Sarah, and our young daughter, Ellia. If I got traded, how would it impact them? How would we get our stuff to our new city? Theyd be by themselves, sorting things out, and I wouldnt be there to help. But I had to keep going like nothing was going to change in our lives. My general manager had told me I wasnt going to be dealt unless the team liked what it was getting in return. They werent just going to give me away.I decided to take a flight out of Chicago for San Diego, because thats where the Brewers were playing next. It was Monday, just before the trade deadline. If I wasnt traded, Id have to be in San Diego, ready to go. I was in a parking lot at OHare International Airport when Doug called. It was 2:50 p.m. Central time. Ten minutes before the deadline. Doug said Ken Rosenthal tweeted that Id been traded to the Rangers. I was totally calm about it. I said, Ill stay here and wait for confirmation from David. Five minutes later, I got the call. It was really straightforward: Hey, we just traded you to the Rangers. Its official. I left Chicago and headed for Miller Park.I called my wife and told her what was happening. Shed been a nervous wreck leading up to this point, and now I heard the excitement in her voice. I called my parents. I called my agent. Jon Daniels, the Rangers general manager, called me and said he was glad I was joining the team. Less than an hour earlier, I didnt know what was happening, and now I wound up getting traded to the team with the best record in the American League. You can say anything you want about what Ive said in the past about wanting to get traded to a winner and then blocking the trade to Cleveland. Well, guess what? I did get traded to a winner.Finally, I got back to Milwaukee and went into the Brewers clubhouse. I grabbed some catchers equipment. It was royal colored. I grabbed some spikes that matched, and I got some clothes. The Brewers would have to box up the rest of my locker and ship it to me. David knew I was at the park, so he came down and met me at one of the stadiums entrances. We shook hands. Then I was gone. I went home, kissed my wife, grabbed some more clothes. My daughter was off playing with friends, but I had to leave. Texas was playing in Baltimore on Tuesday, and I had to get to the airport. I kissed my wife again and said, Ill see you in a couple weeks. Thats the life of a baseball player.The last time I was in a playoff race was 2014, but we fell apart in mid-August and blew it. The last time I was in the playoffs was 2011, my first full season as a major leaguer. I still remember Mark Kotsay, one of our veterans, standing up and telling us we didnt understand how hard it was to make it to the playoffs. He told us that guys played their entire careers without making it to the postseason. He said it might not happen for any of us again. I heard that, and I was like, Cmon. No way thats happening. I thought we could go every year. I was spoiled. I was also dead wrong. I learned a lesson from that. Dont take things for granted.Texas made a sacrifice to bring me in. They gave up some good prospects. By making that sacrifice, theyre telling me they need me here to win. When a players on a team, wherever it is, you want to have that wanted and needed feeling. It makes you feel like youre part of something. We arent in the playoffs yet, but we have all the pieces. Im already falling in love with this roster. We have two players in our lineup who are Hall of Fame guys: Adrian Beltre and Carlos Beltran. Those two dudes are unbelievable. Im honored to play with them, and I know Im going to be a better baseball player being around them. Ive only played on the road for Texas, but I cant wait to play a home game.When I step to the plate there, Im going to take it all in. Im going to take all of this in. I know I had nothing to do with the Rangers getting to where they are now, but I want to have a lot to do with finishing the job. ' ' '