Murphy and Ramos continue to be Nats' most consistent hitters

The two most consistent hitters for the Nationals this season continue to be Daniel Murphy and Wilson Ramos. They are the top two hitters in the National League in batting average. They also combined for six hits in Sunday's 10-6 loss to the Padres.

Before the San Diego comeback in Sunday's 10-6 loss, they were on tap to be the heroes.

Murphy's sac fly gave the Nats a 1-0 lead in the first, and Ramos singled in that inning. Murphy tied the game at 3-3 with an RBI single and Ramos' two-run homer gave the Nationals a 5-3 lead later in the inning. In the fifth, Murphy doubled and scored on an RBI single by Ramos for a 6-4 lead.

Murphy's hitting streak is now at 11 games. Murphy entered Sunday with the most hits in Major League Baseball with 124 and was third in the National League in RBIs with 71. He now has 40 multi-hit games in 2016. Ramos went 3-for-4 with his ninth three-hit game of the season.

We discussed during the "Nats Xtra" pregame show on MASN whether Murphy is an NL MVP candidate. It's obvious that his numbers will keep him in the running, and he continues to be the club's hottest hitter.

Jayson Werth and Danny Espinosa will get their numbers. But the key for the offense to get rolling for the remainder of the second half is for Bryce Harper, Anthony Rendon and Ryan Zimmerman to get going at the plate. Zimmerman will return to the lineup Tuesday in Cleveland. Rendon has shown glimpses of making better contact. He had two hits Saturday.

Harper is in a tough spot right now. He had one at-bat Sunday after entering the game on defense as part of a double-switch, but really will have two full days to rest before the two-game Indians series. Hopefully, that will allow him some time to refine his approach and calm things down to the point where he can return to making solid contact like he had in that amazing April run.

* Triple-A Syracuse right-hander Reynaldo Lopez pitched a complete-game shutout Sunday in a 6-0 win over Rochester. He allowed four hits with no walks and seven strikeouts. Just like Lucas Giolito, he appeared to be empowered following a taste of the majors and didn't miss a beat for Syracuse. It was Lopez's first home start after two road games in Triple-A.

A double play ends Reynaldo Lopez' first career shutout. 4 hits allowed, 7 strikeouts, no walks. Touched 99 a few times. Awesome stuff.

-- Kevin Brown (@kevinnbrown) July 24, 2016

Giolito and Michael A. Taylor were sent back to Triple-A Sunday and will rejoin Lopez with the Chiefs. Zimmerman and Sammy Solis are expected to be activated Tuesday for the Nats' game at Cleveland.