Bryce Harper's Phillies pleas definitely sound a little desperate, but might work

All season long it has felt like the Philadelphia Phillies were going to run away with the National League East and claim the No. 1 seed in the NL in October. After the Phillies' slow start to the second half, things may be tightening up.

Since the all-star break the Phillies are 3-9 and have not won a series. As a result, the Atlanta Braves have crept to only six games behind Philadelphia for the top spot in the NL East after the Phillies held a 10-game lead on their division rivals back in early July. Bryce Harper is calling for this slump to end.

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Bryce Harper calls for Phillies to improve

After the Phillies were swept at Citizen's Bank Park on Wednesday by the New York Yankees, Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper shared his thoughts on his team's recent struggles but didn't discuss much about his personal struggles.

Harper is 1-for-his-last-30 at the plate which marks the biggest slump he has been in since he joined the league back in 2012.

"I could say we haven't been playing good baseball on both sides of the ball," Harper said, per ESPN. He went on to discuss how going through rough stretches is just part of Major League Baseball and the Phillies are a good enough team to respond to this adversity appropriately.

"Pretty sloppy as a team, we've got to turn the page. We've got to cowboy up and play the right way."

It sounds like Bryce Harper understands how quickly things can change and may see the Atlanta Braves getting closer in the rearview mirror. The Phillies will start a series with the Seattle Mariners on Friday. Let's see if Harper's words were motivation for him and his teammates to turn the page on their recent struggles and return to form in August.