Bryce Harper was carried off the field with a knee injury - MLB

The Nationals and Giants braved a slippery field on Saturday night and came out worse for wear after Bryce Harper sustained a knee injury while trying to beat out a grounder in the first inning. Harper’s left foot slid on the first base bag, sending the right fielder sprawling and clutching his knee. He was unable to put weight on his left leg following the incident and had to be carried off the field by team trainers.

The Nationals have yet to announce a formal diagnosis, but it doesn’t look good for their star outfielder. Harper has been relatively healthy this season and missed just three days with mild groin soreness back in May. Should the knee injury necessitate a trip to the disabled list, it’ll be his first stint on the DL since undergoing thumb surgery in 2014.

Following the mishap, Brian Goodwin covered right field while Andrew Stevenson entered the game to take over in center field. The Nationals currently lead the Giants 2-1 in the bottom of the third inning.

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CINCINNATI — The Los Angeles Dodgers placed pitcher Noah Syndergaard on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a blister on the index finger of his right throwing hand.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the timetable for Syndergaard’s return is unknown despite the 15-day designation.

“The physical, the mental, the emotional part, as he’s talked about, has taken a toll on him,” Roberts said. “So, the ability to get him away from this. He left today to go back to Los Angeles to kind of get back to normalcy.”

Syndergaard allowed six runs and seven hits in three innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night, raising his ERA to 7.16.

Syndergaard (1-4) has surrendered at least five runs in three straight starts.

Syndergaard has been trying to return to the player he was before Tommy John surgery sidelined him for the better part of the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Roberts said Syndergaard will need at least “a few weeks” to both heal and get away from baseball and “reset.”

“I think searching and not being comfortable with where he was at in the moment is certainly evident in performance,” Roberts said. “So hopefully this time away will provide more clarity on who he is right now as a pitcher.

“Trying to perform when you’re searching at this level is extremely difficult. I applaud him from not running from it, but it’s still very difficult. Hopefully it can be a tale of two stories, two halves when he does come back.”