By Paul Bowman, Sports Talk Philly Editor 
On Thursday night, John Powers Middleton, the son of Phillies majority owner John Middleton, posted a rather criptic tweet.
While the tweet could have been in reference to the Phillies adding Jean Segura, it would not make much sense to have added that onto a report that his father is looking to be “a little stupid” with his money. That points to a free-agent signing and with the Segura trade having been completed, the post was a bit late for that.
Even more cryptic is that the tweet has since been removed. Could Middleton have gotten in trouble for potentially leaking a major free agent signing?
If that is the case, Bryce Harper or Manny Machado could very well have agreed in principle to a deal with the Phillies. Harper is waiting to announce his decision because of his deal with being the cover athlete for MLB The Show. If anything were to get leaked on a Harper deal, there will be lost revenue; hence the swift action in removing the tweet.
Earlier today, the Nationals announced that the offer they made to Harper prior to the end of free-agency was the best they could do. With the Nationals seeming out of the hunt, the Phillies position is strengthened a deal could be imminent.
