Wire Taps: Bryce Harper slumping; Where’s Ryan Zimmerman?; Stolen base is only good part of Nationals’ offense

So, you were swept by an AL East team. That’s okay, the Yankees are historically dominant this year and...

Huh, not the Yanks, huh. Well, Boston can be...

What’s that? It wasn’t the Yankees OR Red Sox? Well, Tampa Bay has been inventive this seaso—

The Blue Jays, huh. Okay, then.

Here’s the news from Nationals Park.

Martinez's key for Harper to break out of slump: less work (MASN)
Bryce Harper apparently feels good, but his .163 average in the month of June suggests otherwise. Dave Martinez has a solution: do less.

Nationals, Blue Jays celebrate Father's Day (MLB.com)
Blue hats! Base jewels! Lineup cards! Blue, blue, BLUEEEE!

MAT swipes four, takes league-wide lead (MLB.com)
When Michael A. was struggling, the whole "who plays in the outfield" thing seemed easy. Now that he's going three-for-four and stealing four bases in a game, well, it's less easy.

Sammy Solis finds perspective in orphanage - (Washington Times)
"At 16, Nationals pitcher Sammy Solis made a journey to South Africa with his parents and four siblings that few American families pursue."

Blue Jays hit back-to-back homers in 8th to sweep Nationals - (CBC Sports)
"If Teoscar Hernandez was hurting after being hit by a pitch, he wasn't going to let it show on the field."

First homers off Nationals’ Ryan Madson lead to sweep by Blue Jays - (WaPost)
"Ryan Madson admitted he had been thinking about it lately, the fact that he hadn’t allowed a home run in a while, though he didn’t know exactly how long."

Wild game ends with rare homers off Madson, sweep in Toronto - (MASN)
"Madson was simply being asked to keep a back-and-forth game tied and give his teammates a chance to mount a rally in the top of the ninth."

The Nationals Offense Is Junk, But They're Mighty Fun On The Bases (Deadspin)
The Nats are 37-31. They're tenth in the NL in runs. Not a single member of the team with more than 200 at bats is hitting above .256. But hey, stolen bases! Michael A. Taylor and Trea Turner's stolen bases, more specifically.

‘Where is Ryan Zimmerman?’ — and other Nationals questions (WaPo)
Apparently, the Nats planned to lose Zim for a long time this year, which is why they got Matt Adams. Bad news is that he's also hurt. Also, it doesn't really seem like Daniel Murphy's ready for second base.

NL EAST UPDATES:

Teheran pitches six no-hit innings, Braves beat Padres again - (AJC.com)
"It wasn’t pretty, but it was effective. That’s all the Braves could’ve asked for Julio Teheran’s return to the mound."

Justin Bour hits two homers in loss to Orioles - (MLB.com)
"Before Sunday's series finale against the Orioles, Marlins manager Don Mattingly conceded his club doesn't possess a 'quick strike' kind of lineup. The game that followed proved his point."

Jose Reyes looked like his old self again for this one night - (NY Post)
"Jose Reyes turned to his old playbook with the Mets desperately in need of hope Sunday."

After vomit delay on mound, Phillies hold on to win - (Philly)
"You could excuse Gabe Kapler if his stomach turned a bit in the ninth inning on Sunday as he watched his bullpen come within a few feet of blowing a five-run lead."