WASHINGTON (AP) —g season http://www.stlouiscardinalsteamshop.com/authentic-marcell-ozuna-jersey , the Washington Nationals traded second baseman Daniel Murphy to the Chicago Cubs and first baseman Matt Adams to the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday.Despite a roster that boasts such stars as Max Scherzer and Bryce Harper, Washington went into a three-game series at home against Philadelphia with a losing record of 62-63, 7½ games behind the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves.General manager Mike Rizzo and ownership gambled at the July trade deadline, standing pat and expressing faith in the roster as constituted. The Nationals trounced the New York Mets 25-4 that night, but are 9-10 since, including a 2-5 road trip through Chicago and St. Louis that featured a 4-3 loss at Wrigley Field on a two-out, walk-off grand slam.“We felt that coming off that road trip and into this most recent homestand was a time that was a litmus test for us … and we felt that the timing was right to make the vital decisions that we had to make,” Rizzo said.The deals came three weeks after the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, and the Nationals aren’t getting much in return.For Murphy, who was hitting .300 since his return from knee surgery, the Cubs are swapping Class A infielder Andruw Monasterio and a player to be named or cash. For Adams Carlos Martinez Jersey , the Cardinals are sending $50,000 to Washington.“These are tough decisions, to trade a ultimate professionals like Daniel Murphy and Matt Adams is never easy,” Rizzo said. “We felt this was the best way to facilitate what we are trying to do not only in 2018 but beyond.”The 33-year-old Murphy was a big hitter during his time in Washington. A postseason star in 2015 with the Mets, he signed with the Nationals that winter and was an All-Star the next two years. Murphy missed the first 64 games this season but hit in 11 straight before being stymied by Miami’s Jose Urena on Sunday.“My thoughts are it’s really bittersweet,” Murphy said. “I sat at this podium probably 2 1/2 years ago. The Washington Nationals were the only offer I had. They took a chance on me three years ago and I feel very disappointed in myself that it kind of came to this point, I guess would be the easiest way to describe it.”Asked how close the team came to including Harper — a free agent after the season — in the Tuesday deals, Rizzo said: “You have to get a deal that makes sense to trade one of the elite players in the game.”Harper, who struggled for much of the first half, won the Home Run Derby during the All-Star festivities at Nationals Park. Since the break he is hitting .350 with seven home runs, 25 RBIs and 21 runs scored in 28 games.“I’ve been part of this organization for seven years and I look forward to coming in and doing my job every single day and I had no fear of being traded or let go on waivers or anything like that Lance Lynn Jersey ,” Harper said.The Nationals were coming off two consecutive division titles under manager Dusty Baker, who was fired after last season and replaced by rookie skipper Dave Martinez.Murphy expressed support for Martinez, without even being asked about him.“Right man for the job here in DC,” Murphy said.The Nationals’ high-water mark came on May 30 when they defeated the Orioles for their sixth straight win to improve to 33-22. They haven’t won more than three straight games since.“We’re definitely not in an ideal spot,” veteran first baseman Ryan Zimmerman said. “We had a chance a couple of times to gain some ground and couldn’t really string together many wins in a row.”Given the moves, Martinez was asked how he convinces his team that the three games against the contending Phillies are still big.“What’s funny is that I’ve had guys already come in the office and I don’t think I need to convince them,” he said. “They know what we are playing for and they’re all in.”To fill the spots created by the departure of Murphy and Adams, the Nationals recalled infielder Adrian Sanchez and outfielder Andrew Stevenson from Triple-A Syracuse. Confused about the Indians’ inaction this offseason? Me too. Here’s a possible explanation"When you think back to your favorite Indians teams of the Terry Francona era, some odd roster decisions probably come to mind. Mike Aviles coming to plate 335 times from 2013 to 2015, Melky Cabrera consistently taking at-bats away from Greg Allen, and Michael Martinez doing Mark McGwire Jersey , well, anyway are some of the first oddities that pop up. Abraham Almonte, David Murphy, Ryan Raburn on even years — there are countless times in the past few years that a backup player seemed to get just a little more playing time than they probably should. Often times it came at the expense of letting a young player develop, and always it came more expensive than just letting a minimum wage rookie take his hacks. No matter how you want to spin the Indians’ lack of urgency this offseason, they’ve gone out of their way to avoid signing the type of plug-and-play veterans (or the “dumpster diving” as some fans so lovingly put it) that Terry Francona seems to love so much — and it might be for the better. As much I love Tito and all he brings to the table, not giving him these well-over-30 players to block younger players who could contribute for the next five or more years might be the best thing they could do. It’d be great if Chris Antonetti could just throw up his hands and say screw it, let’s sign Bryce Harper to fix the outfield — but short of that, I’m fine with the team not plunking down money for the likes of Adam Jones, Austin Jackson, or Melky Cabrera (again). Not because I care how the Indians spend their money — it’s not mine http://www.stlouiscardinalsteamshop.com/authentic-marcell-ozuna-jersey , and they have plenty — but the idea of a younger player who is going to be here for several years catching on is much more enticing than seeing Veteran X do well for a month and fade away down the stretch. Again. Jones. Oh, and he’s only making $500,000 this season. There’s also the possibility of Oscar Mercardo, whom the Indians nabbed from the Cardinals at last year’s trade deadline, panning out to be a decent center fielder. And of course don’t forget the possibility of Greg Allen or Bradley Zimmer playing anywhere near their potential with another season — hopefully a healthy one — under their belt. All are tremendous risks, but all are costing the Indians basically nothing to bet on with the safety blanket of the trade deadline waiting for them. If the plan really is to just gamble on one or more of them panning out into something by July 31, then making a last-minute trade, it makes sense to stack the deck with cheap, young players with upside and not give your manager a chance to block them at every turn.