Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo is evidently sick of everyone speculating about his team's plans at the trade deadline. That, or he's conducting the best smoke screen in baseball history.

Either way, Rizzo spent Tuesday morning telling the press that he has no intention of trading Bryce Harper -- or potentially any of his other players -- and will instead stay the course with an eye on winning the National league East:

It's worth noting that Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post tweeted earlier Tuesday that the perception from another team was that Rizzo had deals lined up that were squashed at the ownership level. That includes a deal for Harper, who will reach free agency this winter:

The Nationals entered Tuesday 5 1/2 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies. They're also five games back of the Atlanta Braves. SportsLine gives them 25.4 percent odds at reaching the postseason.