Bryce Harper had a chance to shine in front of his home fans during the All-Star break Markus Wheaton Jersey Elite , and he took advantage by winning the Home Run Derby .

Then it was back to reality for Harper and the Washington Nationals, who will need to turn things around soon if they want to avoid a disappointing season.

After hosting the All-Star festivities, Washington split two home games against NL East rival Atlanta, with a postponement in between. In a loss Friday night, the Nationals’ frustration seemed evident when star pitchers Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg had a heated exchange in the dugout. Even after a win Sunday, Washington is six games behind first-place Philadelphia and five behind the Braves, who are in position for the second wild card.

Harper has taken a lot of the heat for Washington’s underachieving, and his .218 batting average certainly sticks out. But he does have 24 homers and a .366 on-base percentage, so it’s not as though his offensive approach has completely fallen apart.

Harper is one of a handful of players on contending teams who may be primed for big improvements in the second half this year – and who could still have a big impact on the postseason races. Here are a few others:

– Jon Gray, Rockies. Gray may be baseball’s biggest enigma at the moment. He’s averaging 11.33 strikeouts per nine innings, the second-best mark in the National League, but he’s just 8-7 with a 5.44 ERA. A .381 batting average on balls in play is a major culprit in his struggles, so he could be a good bet to turn things around Jaire Alexander Jersey Elite , but the Rockies were sufficiently concerned that they sent him down to the minors briefly before the break. After returning, he pitched impressively into the eighth inning against Seattle on July 14.

Colorado made the postseason last year and is currently just two games behind the NL West-leading Dodgers, so if Gray pitches well down the stretch, the Rockies could remain in the mix again.

– Nick Pivetta and Vince Velasquez, Phillies. The rest of the NL East better hope these two don’t hit their stride any time soon. They’ve both struck out nearly as many hitters as staff ace Aaron Nola, despite significantly fewer innings. But consistency has been elusive. Pivetta has been strong with the exception of two awful starts against the Nationals in which he allowed a total of 13 runs in 2 2/3 innings. Velasquez gave up 10 runs against Milwaukee on June 8 but has held opponents to two or fewer in five of his six starts since then.

– Kyle Seager, Mariners. Seattle has a solid shot to make the postseason, but its steady third baseman may be having the worst offensive year of his career. He’s hitting just .233 with an unsightly .284 on-base percentage. If the season ended now, the Mariners would be a wild card, but they’re in this position largely because of a 26-12 record in one-run games. Their margin for error appears thin.

Other developments from around the majors:

BUY OR SELL?

The trade market is active with the deadline looming. Manny Machado went from Baltimore to the Dodgers , while the Athletics and Indians acquired relievers Jeurys Familia and Brad Hand , respectively. The teams giving up those three players – the Orioles, Mets and Padres – are all in last place Customized Buffalo Bills Jerseys , but it will be interesting to see how some of the borderline contenders approach the deadline.

That’s especially true in the NL, where 11 of the 15 teams are at .500 or better – but nobody has a winning percentage higher than .592. A lot of teams could theoretically make a push for the postseason, but only five can get in.

HIGHLIGHT

Sunday’s game was already going badly for Milwaukee when infielder Hernan Perez came on to pitch in the seventh inning against the Dodgers. Perez actually made it through two scoreless innings, but his attempt to change speeds against Austin Barnes was laughable. Perez threw a pitch clocked at 48 miles per hour that hit Barnes in the back.

Perez retired six of the next seven hitters after that.

LINE OF THE WEEK

Matt Carpenter of St. Louis hit three home runs and two doubles Friday, tying the major league record for extra-base hits in a game and driving in seven runs in an 18-5 victory over the Chicago Cubs. That was part of a six-game homer streak for Carpenter that ended Sunday.

—

In early April, Chris Herrmann was a free-agent catcher sitting on his couch at home wondering if he was going to play baseball again.

Now he is. And the Mariners are glad they found him.

Herrmann hit his first home run for Seattle, and Marco Gonzales pitched six solid innings to lead the Mariners to a 4-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday night.

Gonzales (9-5) gave up five hits while striking out seven in a 102-pitching outing. The lone run he gave up was Kole Calhoun’s sacrifice fly in the fourth inning to tie the game at 1.

Considering how rough a first inning the left-hander had, Gonzales gladly took the outcome.

”It was a constant chess game,” Gonzales said.

He had no control over his sinker. His changeup wasn’t getting over the plate. And he was working with a catcher in Herrmann – called up from the minors in late-May – with whom he had no familiarity.

But after regular catcher Mike Zunino was placed on the 10-day disabled list Thursday with a bruised left foot, it was up to Herrmann and Gonzales to figure things out.

”In that first inning, (Gonzales) did not have it. He really didn’t,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. ”I’ve been around a long time, and you see pitchers with six-to-seven years’ experience in this league that panic. They don’t have it Authentic Arden Key Jersey , and they throw in the towel.

”It says a lot about his maturity and where he’s at.”

Gonzales escaped a bases-loaded jam in the first by getting Albert Pujols to ground into a double play.

”Give Gonzales some credit,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ”He made some pitches and got out of it.”

In the fifth, Guillermo Heredia’s line drive went over Justin Upton’s head in left field for an RBI double gave Seattle the lead back at 2-1.

In the seventh inning, Herrmann’s solo blast off reliever Miguel Almonte carried deep into the right-field bleachers. Not a bad ending for a guy who did not find out he was in the starting lineup until five hours before first pitch.

”I know a lot of pitchers here have a lot of confidence behind Mike behind the plate, and I hope I can gain that confidence from these guys as well,” said Herrmann, who was signed by the Mariners to a minor league deal in early April after being designated for assignment by Arizona at the end of spring training. ”I am trying to do my part and fill in while he is gone.”

Dee Gordon tripled into the right-field corner with two outs, and Jean Segura greeted reliever Cam Bedrosian with a high-chopping RBI single to third baseman David Fletcher to extend Seattle’s lead to 4-1.

Gordon also saved a run in the eighth with his highlight-reel diving catch of Ian Kinsler’s line drive behind second base.

”It was just instincts. I just jumped as far as I could,” Gordon said.

Edwin Diaz struck out the side in the ninth to lock up his major league-leading 34th save.

The Mariners have not lost a home series since May 6, when they dropped two of three games to the Angels. They are 6-0-3 during that span.

Angels starter Jaime Barria (5-5) gave up two runs in 5 1/3 innings.

HERNANDEZ BACK `BETTER’

Seattle right-hander Felix Hernandez insists he feels much better before his scheduled start Friday against Colorado than he did nearly a week ago.

Hernandez tweaked his back during a workout in Baltimore. It tightened on him before his start Saturday against Kansas City – one in which he surrendered three earned runs before recording an out in a 6-4 victory. With the help of heat and ice packs, and more stretching, Hernandez’s back has felt better this week. He even threw an abbreviated bullpen session.

”I am better today, more loose Adidas Ryan McDonagh Jersey ,” Hernandez said. ”I will be fine.”

BIRTHDAY BOY

What did Japanese star Shohei Ohtani get on the day of his 24th birthday Thursday in Seattle? He got a seat on the bench against Gonzales, a left-hander. With Albert Pujols serving as the designated hitter, Jefry Marte got the start at first base after being activated from the 10-day disabled list earlier in the day.

Ohtani struck out in the ninth inning as a pinch hitter against Diaz.

ROSTER RESHUFFLING

Angels: To make room for Marte, the Angels sent outfielder Jabari Blash to Triple-A Salt Lake.

Mariners: Left-handed pitcher Ariel Miranda, who started 29 games last season, was granted his unconditional release from Triple-A Tacoma to pursue playing opportunities in Japan.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: Outfielder Chris Young (left hamstring) had an MRI test on his hamstring Thursday. Results weren’t revealed, but he is still expected to be out past the All-Star Break. … Right-hander Nick Tropeano (right shoulder) will pitch Saturday as part of a rehab assignment. He will be limited to 60 pitches, Scioscia said. … Right-hander Jim Johnson (back) threw a bullpen session and is approaching a rehab assignment as well.

Mariners: Zunino (left ankle) was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a bruised left foot. He rolled his ankle late in Seattle’s 7-4 loss Wednesday running the basepaths and was walking around in a boot in the clubhouse Thursday. David Freitas was recalled from Tacoma to serve as the backup catcher behind Herrmann. … Outfielder Mitch Haniger was scratched from the starting lineup because of a bruised right knee. Heredia took his place.

UP NEXT

Rockies: Right-hander German Marquez (6-8, 5.14 ERA) faces off against one of his famous Venezuelan countrymen in Hernandez. He has never faced the Mariners, but is 2-0 in .