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Wire Taps: Washington Nationals In Colorado To Face Rockies; Bryce Harper Watch Day Two

Throughout the day off on Monday, fans of the Washington Nationals waited for word on DL'd star Bryce Harper, but there were no reports outside of an ambiguous tweet from the left-handed hitting slugger who had his knee examined in Florida on Sunday.

By Patrick Reddington
USA TODAY Sports

What's the diagnosis, Nats! The Washington Nationals' 20-year-old 2010 no.1 overall pick Bryce Harper traveled to Florida to see Dr. James Andrews on Monday but as of the time I type this (11:52 pm EDT) there is no word on what the young slugger learned about his bothersome left knee. There was an ambiguous tweet last night from Harper himself, and word from a source in a Washington Post article that, "... all was good long-term." This morning a tweeted picture of Harper in an airport of the way to Colorado has led to even more speculation. Still no word from the Nationals. Read the following links while you wait for official word. Links and lots of them starting ... RIGHT NOW!! (or after the Tweets mentioned above):

• THE BIG STORY!!!:

• "The Nationals on Sunday improved to 6-12 without Harper in the starting lineup, and their reliance on his powerful bat, strong defense and overall energy made him want to play through pain." - "Status of Washington Nationals’ Bryce Harper remains unclear after visit to Dr. Andrews" - Adam Kilgore, The Washington Post

• NATS BEAT:

• "A day after Bryce Harper went to Florida to get a second opinion on his swollen left knee from Dr. James Andrews, we're still waiting ..." - "Nationals Pastime: Waiting to hear on Harper" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "Bryce Harper visited with Dr. James Andrews on Monday morning and had his left knee examined by the renowned orthopedist." - "Bryce Harper can't return soon enough for Nationals" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "One person familiar with the visit said the injury that has sidelined Harper since May 27 will not lead to long-term damage." - "Bryce Harper visits Dr. James Andrews; prognosis unclear (updated)" - Adam Kilgore, Washington Post

• "The Nats are getting close to having both Stephen Strasburg and Ross Detwiler back in their rotation, assuming all goes well with their recoveries over the next week." - "State of the Nats-6/10" - Chase Hughes, NatsInsider.com

• "Strangely enough, that more aggressive - or more patiently aggressive - approach led to more walks, as well." - "Nationals Pastime: Some leftovers from a long day of ball" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "But there is one criticism that has been gleefully leveled at this organization -- the shutdown of Stephen Strasburg last fall, revisited -- that is downright gutless." - "There's no stopping gutless criticism of last year's Stephen Strasburg shutdown" - Thom Loverro, WashingtonExaminer.com

• "Now back with Triple-A Syracuse, the organization's seventh-best prospect has been consistent at the plate and in the outfield. [Eury Perez] is on pace to score 100 runs this season." - "Washington Nationals' system depth on display this season" Bill Ladson, nationals.com: News

• "The number grinders say the Nats, who trail the Braves by 7½ games in the NL East and even trail the Pirates by 5½ games for the second wild-card spot, have about a 25 percent chance at the playoffs." - "Washington Nationals haven’t met expectations, so what now?" - Thomas Boswell, The Washington Post

• "Craig Stammen rebounded from two uncharacteristically shaky outings to pitch two perfect innings, kick off six scoreless frames from the bullpen, and stick his finger in the proverbial dam." - "Nationals return to .500 with doubleheader sweep of Twins" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "Ten-year MLB veteran Adam LaRoche has had a locker just one stall down from Moore for about a year and has been there before." - "Nats option Moore to Syracuse" - Chase Hughes, NatsInsider.com

• "With 100 games left in the season, the Nationals enter a critical portion of their season." - "The Nationals’ road ahead" - James Wagner, Washington Post

• "[Stephen] Strasburg is more the lead-by-example type. His teammates see how hard he works, how badly he wants this." - "Strasburg return would change a lot for the Nationals" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• "Whether the Nats can return to the postseason is in some question; what's not in doubt is that when they're introduced on Opening Day in 2014, somebody other than Davey Johnson will be the manager." - "Phil Wood: A look at Nationals' options to replace Davey Johnson as manager" - Phil Wood, WashingtonExaminer.com

• "'That’s the hardest thing, being a younger guy, getting sent down for the first time, it’s hard to see a positive in that,' [Adam] LaRoche said." - "LaRoche’s take on Tyler Moore’s demotion" - Tom Schad, All Nats All the Time

• "They have yet to reach a resolution with Henry Rodriguez, whom they designated on the same day as Duke, suggesting they could be working on a trade involving the hard-throwing reliever." - "Nationals release Zach Duke, could trade Henry Rodriguez" - Adam Kilgore, Washington Post

• "Perhaps, though, there is something to be gained from being the hunter and not the hunted." - "Nationals embracing their position in the standings" - Amanda Comak, Washington Times

• "Davey Johnson has talked over and over about how the Nats were putting [Tyler] Moore and Steve Lombardozzi in a tough spot these last two years..." - "Nationals Pastime: More on Moore" - Dan Kolko, MASNSports.com

• "Davey [Johnson] said, 'I love him. He thinks i hate him' Probably a tip there that [Danny] Espinosa hated the move." - "Ask Boswell: Redskins, Nationals and Washington sports" - Thomas Boswell, The Washington Post

• Your Daily Message From The Dalai Lama On Twitter (@DalaiLama):

• NATIONAL(S) BEAT/NATS MINORS/2013 DRAFT:

• "With the Nationals experiencing an inordinate amount of injuries this season, a revolving door of opportunity has opened up for players in their minor league system." - "Catching up with Nats Danny Rosenbaum" - Chase Hughes, Comcast SportsNet Washington

• "[Dan] Haren has already served up 15 home runs and is on pace to eclipse the 28 home runs he gave up last season. His last outing was a rough one." - "Rockies' Nolan Arenado quick to turn heads with third-base wizardry" - Troy E. Renck, The Denver Post

• "[Willie Allen] said Monday afternoon that after two days of talks with the organization he’s decided to sign with the Nationals and will leave on Wednesday to join the team’s short-season affiliate in the Gulf Coast Rookie League." - "Newton's Willie Allen to sign with Washington Nationals" - Scott Souza, Newton TAB

• "With the last pick in the 25th round of last weekend’s Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, the Washington Nationals scooped up the Shippensburg High School left-handed pitcher [Travis Ott]." - "Baseball: After getting drafted by the Washington Nationals, Ship's Travis Ott excited about the prospect of playing close to home" - Bill Landis, The Sentinel

• "Concordia University Texas senior pitcher Ryan Ullmann was chosen in the 30th round of the 2013 Major League Baseball Draft by the Washington Nationals on Saturday, June 8." - "Former Bryan Viking Ryan Ullmann Drafted by Washington Nationals" - KBTX.com

• "Three years and a shoulder surgery later, Whitson was drafted again. This time, it was in the 37th round – 1,126th overall – by the Washington Nationals." - "Washington Nationals select Whitson, Dent on Day 3" - Adam Lichtenstein, The Independent Florida Alligator: Baseball

• "The Washington Nationals selected 6-5 senior left-handed pitcher Joey Webb in the 28th round, 856th overall. Webb was the anchor of the Oaks pitching staff in 2013..." - "Several local players called in MLB draft" - Julio Lara, Daily Journal

• Class-A Potomac: "I have not been able to reach Nationals personnel for official comment on the reason for Solis' placement on the disabled list but should be able to get an answer Tuesday." - "Potomac's Sammy Solis placed on the disabled list" - Byron Kerr, MASNSports.com

• Double-A Harrisburg: "Blake Treinen took the loss for the Senators, but only gave up one earned run in four innings." - "Sens Silenced in Reading" - Marshall Kelner, Harrisburg Senators News

• "Last year at this time, LHP Danny Rosenbaum was finishing a sensational stretch of starts for the Senators. Now with the Chiefs, it's been a bit more balanced for the 25-year-old." - "Spotlight shines on Adam LaRoche, Danny Rosenbaum, Cameron Selik and Craig Manuel: Washington Nationals' organizational glance" - Geoff Morrow, PennLive.com

• "Tuesday’s News & Notes" - Luke Erickson, NationalsProspects.com

• NATSTOWN:

• "Bryce Harper, wearing a knee brace" - Dan Steinberg, D.C. Sports Bog, Washington Post

• "Anthony Rendon leapt high into the air to snare a line drive during Sunday's game. It was not until the slow motion replay was available that the athletic nature of the play could be appreciated." - "Nationals Buzz: The third No. 1 truly arrives" - Ted Leavengood, MASNSports.com

• "Why I love Thomas Boswell" - Steve Walker, D.C. Baseball History

• "Bryce Harper's knee: 'All good'?" - Nats Enquirer

• "The Nats problem is they don't walk, or so they say. It is true that their OBP of .291 is crazy low..." - "It's not walking (well it is but that's not anything new)" - Harper, Nationals Baseball

• "Nats Talk On The Go: Episode 55" - Joe Drugan, The Nats Blog

• "The Washington Nationals swept a doubleheader on Sunday to take the 3 game series with the Minnesota Twins (take that Calvin Griffith!) and get themselves back to .500." - "Nats have 100 games to close 7 game deficit" - William F. Yurasko, William World News

• NL EAST UPDATES:

• Mets: "It was hard to tell if Sandy Alderson was baring his soul or throwing himself at the mercy of Mets fans during his WFAN interview with Mike Francesa on Monday..." - "Mets GM Sandy Alderson sounds like depressed fan in evaluating team" - John Harper, NY Daily News

• Phillies: "To get to 88 wins, the 31-33 Phillies would have to play .581 baseball in the 98 games from here to the wire." - "Time to lay groundwork for the Phillies' future" - Rich Hofmann, Philadelphia Daily News

• Marlins: "Thanks to the return of Giancarlo Stanton and Logan Morrison from the disabled list on consecutive days, the lineup certainly had a more formidable look." - "Desired lineup fails to bolster Miami Marlins’ offense" - Clark Spencer, MiamiHerald.com

• Braves: "Being a superstitious sort, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez cringed Monday afternoon when a reporter asked about Atlanta’s streak of nine consecutive games with two or fewer earned runs allowed by starting pitchers." - "Braves’ ninth-inning power rally falls short in 7-6 loss to..." - David O'Brien, www.ajc.com

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