Bryce Harper makes his first trip to Washington, D.C. as an opposing player on Tuesday when the Phillies open a two-game series at Nationals Park at 7:05 p.m. ET. Fans in the Philadelphia market can stream the games via fuboTV (Try for free). After signing a historic 10-year, $330 million contract with the Phillies this offseason, Harper will step on the field in D.C. as an opponent for the first time in his career.

The Nationals drafted Harper first overall in 2010, and he made his MLB debut as a 19-year-old on April 28, 2012. Almost immediately, Harper became the face of the franchise. He won the 2012 National League Rookie of the Year award when he helped pace the Nats to 98 wins and their first ever NL East division title.

Harper was the NL MVP in 2015, becoming the youngest player ever (22 years-old) to win the award unanimously. He delighted the D.C. fans by winning last summer's Home Run Derby at Nationals Park in dramatic fashion. And while the team finished in first or second in all seven seasons and won four division titles during Harper's seven-year stint, the Nationals never won a postseason series.

In Tuesday's matchup, Harper will be facing his former teammate Max Scherzer. The Nationals decided to bring back Scherzer a day early so he'll be pitching on four days' rest after throwing 109 pitches (7 2/3 innings) in Thursday's 2-0 loss to the New York Mets. Harper has never faced the three-time Cy Young winner.

Here's what Scherzer told reporters on Monday:

"It's going to be fun. But just because it's fun doesn't mean it's not surreal. We've only seen him in a Nats uniform. So, obviously that's weird," Scherzer said. "This is baseball. We're so used to guys changing teams all the time. For us players, it doesn't really faze us too much to see guys in new uniforms. As for the fans, they'll do what they feel appropriate. We're going to be facing each other a lot so this is just round one."

Harper and the Phillies are off to a great start as they swept the Braves over the weekend thanks in part to two home runs from Harper. The Phillies are 3-0 for the first time since their 102-win season in 2011 and No. 1 in our latest Power Rankings. The Nationals (1-2) were nearly swept in their opening series against the new-look Mets as Washington's bullpen struggled.

Both teams were among the most active on the free agent and trade markets this past offseason. The Nats added Patrick Corbin, Anibal Sanchez, Brian Dozier, Kurt Suzuki, Yan Gomes, Trevor Rosenthal and Kyle Barraclough. While the Phillies brought on Andrew McCutchen, J.T. Realmuto, Jean Segura, David Robertson and Harper.

Harper's first of many returns to D.C. will likely draw both boos and cheers from fans. But in an Instagram posted ahead of the visit, Harper thanked the Nationals and their fans for the memories. "When I run on the field tonight I am sure to hear some boos," Harper wrote. "But I will always remember the cheers and the screams that are still with me right now, as I start my new chapter. So for that, DC, THANK YOU."

Here's the full schedule of the Phillies-Nationals matchups in 2019:

  • Nationals Park: April 2-3, June 17-20, Sept. 23-26
  • Citizens Bank Park: April 8-10, May 3-5, July 12-14