By Matt Rappa, Sports Talk Philly editor 
It appears the Washington Nationals have officially given up on looking to capture their third straight National League East division title, as on Tuesday afternoon, they respectively traded away second baseman Daniel Murphy and first baseman Matt Adams to the postseason-contending Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals, according to MLB.com.
In exchange, the Nationals will receive minor league infielder Andruw Monasterio and a player to be named or cash considerations from the Cubs for Murphy, and cash considerations from the Cardinals for Adams.
Six-time All-Star outfielder Bryce Harper was also claimed by the Los Angeles Dodgers, however neither side was able to work out a deal and the Nationals pulled Harper back from the revocable waiver wire.
Murphy, 33, is a three-time All-Star and two-time time Silver Slugger Award winner who has spent all of his 10 seasons played within the National League East. He is slashing .300/.341/.442 with six home runs and 29 RBI in 56 games this season, missing the early months of the season due to undergoing microfracture surgery on his right knee last October.
Adams, 29, is signed on a one-year, $4 million contract, and slugged the second-most home runs on the Nationals this season (18) behind only Harper (30). The seven-year veteran returns to the Cardinals, the team he donned a uniform for from 2012 until his May 2017 trade to the Atlanta Braves. Adams has produced a .257/.332/.510 slash in 94 games this season.
The Phillies face the Nationals in nine of their remaining 38 games of the season, starting Tuesday in the three-game series opener opposite Tanner Roark. Not having to face Murphy — a career .313/.372/.492 hitter with 12 home runs and 72 RBI in 145 games against the Phillies — nor Adams in those contests only improves the Phillies' chances to edge the Braves for their first division crown since 2011.
The Nationals currently rank third in the division, 7 1/2 games back, and are one game under .500.
