Six weeks ago, after a report came out from Sports Illustrated that said Bryce Harper had been dealing with a right shoulder injury and that it was the root cause for his offensive struggles, Nationals GM Mike Rizzo issued a strong denial of the story, going so far as to mention the writer by name.

"The report is inaccurate," Rizzo said on Aug. 12. "Tom Verducci is wrong. I just asked Bryce Harper and the training staff and our medical staff. He hasn't had a right shoulder injury."

A month-and-a-half later, Verducci has now added more sourced reporting on the matter. Here is what he wrote on Tuesday on SI.com:

"At one point he could barely throw the ball 40 feet," said one source close to Harper. Over the weekend, Harper played so curiously shallow in rightfield that Baker had to ask him about it. (Baker kept Harper's answer private.)

The Nationals and Harper have been tight-lipped about his condition. But last Saturday, Baker admitted to me “the shoulder thing” has bothered the reigning NL MVP.

Verducci goes on to detail how Harper's swing may be affected by his shoulder and neck discomfort, and outlines his dip in exit velocity and power numbers.

It's an interesting theory that Verducci has moved forward with, despite the Nats being adamant in August that it wasn't true. Baker, who was quoted by Verducci this time around lending credence to the shoulder problem, even called the original story "careless reporting" back in August.

There's no question something has held Harper back this season, whether it's a lingering injury or not. His dropoff offensively from his MVP season has been dramatic. A shoulder problem would certainly explain a lot. But the back-and-forth between both sides has provided little clarity on the matter. Harper himself was asked about the original story in August and gave an unrelated answer to avoid the question.

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