Liberty Ball

Well, this looks like it’s the beginning of the end.  The only way the Phillies can win the Wild Card outright is if they win their last three AND the Dodgers lose their last three.  Worst case scenario, the Phillies are playing this weekend with that final playoff spot in the Dodgers hands.  And all because they couldn’t take care of business against the Washington Nationals.

The Phillies jumped out to a quick 2-0 in the first inning of Tuesday’s game, but they didn’t score again until the ninth inning.  In the meantime, the Nationals put up four runs, which ended up being just enough to win the game.  Bret Myers took the loss despite having a decent start and Chase Utley went three for five with a run and an RBI.

Wednesday was the lone win and that took 14 innings.  The Phillies came back from a 4-1 deficit to tie it, but then Tom Gordon gave up a run in the ninth to send the game into extra frames.  Each team scored in the tenth but the Phillies finally finished it with two runs in the fourteenth on Jimmy Rollins two run triple.  Chase Utley homered and drove in two runs in the 8-7 win.  The two RBIs pushed him over the 100 RBI mark.

Last night’s game was disappointing because of how pathetic the Phillies hitting was.  One run on five hits doesn’t cut it.  And that one run scored on an error.  Jon Lieber was mediocre and gave up three runs in 5 1/3 innings.

If there was ever a must win time, it’s now.  The final series is against the Marlins.

What a run.  The Phillies were all but given up on at the trading deadline and here they are a half game up on the Dodgers for the Wild Card with a week to play.  They’re latest escapade was a three game sweep over the Florida Marlins.

Ryan Howard went yard with his 58th homerun on Friday.  He also walked three times as teams are now avoiding him like the plague.  His homerun was a big three run shot that extended the Phillies lead to 4-0 and ended up being the difference in the game.  Cole Hamels struck out ten and gave up only one run in 6 2/3 innings.  Tom Gordon picked up save number 33.

Rookie catcher Carlos Ruiz was the unlikely hero in yesterday’s game.  He had two hits and he drove in three runs in the Phillies 8-6 win.  Tom Gordon was roughed up for two solo shots in the ninth but he buckled down and ended up finishing up the game for the Phillies.  Jon Lieber gave up only two runs on seven hits with six strikeouts in seven innings of work.  Jimmy Rollins hit homerun number 23 and Ryan Howard singled and walked twice.

Chase Utley had a big game today and the Phillies bats really picked up the pitchers.  Utley homered twice and drove in four runs while Chris Coster homered and drove in three.  Jimmy Rollins and Pat Burrell also went yard in the 10-7 win.  Jamie Moyer picked up the win despite giving up five runs in only six innings of work.

Next up is a make up game agains the Astros then the Phillies hit the road and play at Washington and Florida.  A win tomorrow will put the Phillies a full game up with six left to play.  Every game is huge so hopefully the Phillies keep this winning streak going.

The Phillies have been hanging in there for a long time and they’re finally on top of the Wild Card standings, al beit with another team.  They did it with two wins against the Cubs this week.

Things didn’t start out well for the Phillies on Monday.  The Cubs jumped out to an 8-0 lea by the fourth inning and while the Phillies staged a comeback, the pitching failed them again.  Jon Lieber was gone in the third inning and the pen didn’t do much better.  Jose Hernandez hit a grand slam in the 11-6 loss.

The Phillies got back on track Tuesday.  Jamie Moyer threw a very nice game.  He gave up a single run on six hits over seven innings of work.  Jimmy Rollins hit his 22nd homerun and Abraham Nunez had two RBIs in the 4-1 win.

The Phillies locked up the series yesterday.  Bret Myers struck out twelve in a complete game win.  Chase Utley and Pat Burrell both homered in the 6-2 win both hitters drove in two runs.

The Phillies get their last day off today then the Marlins come to town for three games.  Ten games left and all we have to do is outplay the Dodgers.

We finally have some seperation.  The Dodgers have now slipped out of first place in the NL West so they sit atop the Wild Card standings.  Just a game back of them sit the Phillies, who have a 2 1/2 game lead over the Giants.  So with two weeks left, the Phillies are definitely in the upper tier as far as the Wild Card contenders.

Pat Burrell hit a grand slam in the first inning on Friday and it looked like the Phillies were going to cruise to a nice easy win over the Astros.  Unfortunately, Roger Clemens was more like Roger Clemens the rest of the way and the Phillies didn’t score the rest of the game.  The Astros then tagged Bret Myers in the third inning for three runs and it was a one run game for the most of the game.  Tom Gordon got into trouble in the ninth, but he picked up his 30th save of the season in the 4-3 win.

David Dellucci homered yesterday for the Phillies and Abraham Nunez and Jimmy Rollins both drove in two runs in the 7-2 win.  Cole Hamels had a very nice game.  He struck out eleven and gave up two runs in 7 2/3 innings of work.

Ryan Howard continued his magical season and hit homerun number 57 today.  Mike Lieberthal hit two homeruns and Jimmy Rollins hit one in the 6-4 win.  Randy Wolf was solid and gave up three runs on five hits and two walks with five strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.  He’s now 4-0 on the season.  Gordon once again got into trouble but he pitched out of it and picked up his 31st save of the season.

Next up is three against the Cubs.  It’s imperative that the Phillies take care of business against one of the basement dwellars in the National League.

The Padres are definitely playing well.  They took two of three over the Reds this week, and that cancelled out the Phillies two of three over the Braves. 

Tuesday’s game was rained out so that turned Wednesday into a doubleheader.  Things didn’t start out well because Randy Wolf was bounced after only two innings.  Fortunately, the pen got the job done and the Phillies came back.  It was actually an error that resulted in the tying and go ahead runs so the Phillies got some help.  Rick White picked up the win relief.

Jon Lieber got the job done in game two.  He gave up two runs on eight hits in 7 1/3 innings of work.  Jimmy Rollins hit homerun number 20 and Carlos Ruiz went yard with his third.

Chuck James held the Phillies in check last night.  We didn’t even score until the ninth and then it was only one run.  Jamie Moyer was pretty mediocre and he dropped to 2-2 since joining the team.

Next up is three against the Astros.  It doesn’t matter who we play now, we just need to win.

This was a tough series.  The Phillies got off to such a nice start, but the Marlins put together two wins in the final two games and ended up with a split.  And in this anything goes race, the Giants of all teams have pushed themselves ahead, at least momentarily, of the pack in the Wild Card race.  Right now, the Padres are beating the Giants and if that holds, the Padres will have a 2 1/2 game lead for the Wild Card with the Phillies, Marlins and Giants all tied for second place.

The Phillies ran up the score on Thursday.  Ryan Howard hit homerun number 54 and Chris Coste, Chase Utley and Jeff Conine all went yard as well.  Jon Lieber wasn’t fantastic but he got the support so he improved to 7-9 in the 14-8 win.

Friday was all Ryan Howard and Jamie Moyer.  Ryan Howard hit homeruns number 55 and 56 and drove in all three Phillies’ runs.  Jamie Moyer gave up a single run on five hits in eight innings of work. It’s nice to see Tom Gordon back and he picked up his 28th save of the season.

Yesterday, the Phillies luck ran out.  Chase Utley did hit best Ryan Howard imitation and he went deep twice with a pair of solo shots.  Jeff Conine singled home Scott Victorino in the ninth inning to tie the game up but in the tenth, Arthur Rhodes walked three guys and then Brian Sanches gave up a single that drove home the winning run.  Ryan Howard was two for two with four walks.

Today, Dontrelle Willis blanked the Phillies.  Ryan Howard had two of three Phillies’ hits and Cole Hamels threw a ton of pitches in four innings of work.  He walked five guys and struck out three.

Next up is three against the Braves, who are also still in the mix.  The Phillies can’t afford to lose a single series the rest of the way.  Heck, it’s almost like they can’t afford to lose a single game because some other team will shoot ahead of them in the standings.

The Hardball Times has a nice look at what’s become a four team race for the National League Wild Card.  Of course either the Dodgers or Padres will also win the division, but it’s nice analysis.

One game was rained out so the Phillies and Astros only played two games.  Tuesday’s game will be replayed on September 25.

Chase Utley is living in Ryan Howard’s shadow right now, but he’s no less important.  Utley hit a huge walk off homerun in the tenth inning to win it for the Phillies on Monday.  Ryan Howard also homered in the 3-2 win and Cole Hamels was just as good as Roger Clemens in this one.  Hamels struck out eight in eight innings.

Yesterday, Randy Wolf and Ryan Madson were bounced around by Lance Berkman.  Madson took the loss and he is now 10-9.  Carlos Ruiz and Jimmy Rollins both had two hits and one RBI in the 5-3 loss.

The Padres have caught fire so the Phillies are now three games back for the Wild Card with no body in front of them.  This weekend they play a huge four game series with the Marlins, who are tied with the Phillies right now.  Whoever can win this series not only should make up some ground on the Padres, but they’ll bury their opposition.

Howard is a phenom.  And chalk one up for the boys over at Baseball Prospectus.  Ryan Howard was on the cover with a caption about him having 50 homerun potential.  If anything, they might have been overly conservative.  He still has most of another month left so 60 isn’t out of the realm of possibility.

Friday’s game was called on account of rain and that forced the Phillies and Braves to play back to back double headers.  Fortunately with September call ups, there was plenty of help.  In game one on Saturday, the Phillies took a three run lead into the seventh and a one run lead into the ninth but lost the game.  Arthur Rhodes isn’t Tom Gordon and he gave up a two run homerun to Adam LaRoche to end it.  A great start by Jon Lieber went to waste and Chase Utley drove in all three Phillies runs with two homeruns in the 4-3 loss.

The Phillies bounced back in a big way in game two.  They scored 16 runs on 20 hits with Mike Lieberthal hitting a homerun and driving in four runs.  Ryan Howard went two for four with two runs and an RBI and Jeff Conine scored three times on three hits and a walk.  Scott Mathieson left the game in the first inning and Eude Brito picked up the win in relief with four solid innings.

The Phillies made it two straight in game on Sunday.  This was all Ryan Howard.  He hit homeruns number 50, 51 and 52 and he drove in four runs in the 8-7 win.  The Phillies bullpen has been a concern because they tried to blow this one too.  The Phillies had a 6-1 lead and the Braves scored two in the eighth and four in the ninth to make it 7-6.  Then the Phillies came through in the bottom of the ninth.  They tied it on Jimmy Rollins RBI single and then won it on Scott Victorino’s walk off RBI single.

The Phillies couldn’t lock up the series in game two.  Bret Myers was awesome through eight innings and he struck out ten, unfortunately he left with the game tied.  Then Gary Greary gave up two runs in the top of the eleventh and those ended up being the game winners.  Pat Burrell drove in a run with sac. fly in the fourth inning for the only Phillies run in the 3-1 loss.

So at the end of the day, the Phillies are still a game back of the Padres.  The Reds have dropped out and they’re now behind us so we have first place in our sites.  Next up is a big three game series against the Astros, who have remained in the Wild Card mix.

We’re so close.  A win yesterday would have put the Phillies in a tie for the Wild Card but they came up close so we’ll have to settle for being a game back.

It was Ryan Howard’s day on Tuesday.  His sixth inning homerun put him atop the single season leader’s in Phillies history.  The three run shot broke the game open and the Phillies crusied to a 10-6 win.  Abraham Nunez went three for five with two runs.  Bret Myers was solid through six innings and he improved to 10-6.

Cole Hamels threw a gem on Wednesday to keep the wins coming.  He gave up a single run on only four hits and two walks with three strikeouts over eight innings.  Jimmy Rollins had two hits and two runs in the 5-1 win. 

Howard hit homerun number 49 in a tough Phillies loss.  Arthur Rhodes blew a two run lead in the ninth and then even after the Phillies scored in the tenth, Aaron Fultz gave up two more to end it.  Howard now has 128 RBIs and he scored three times in the 6-5 loss.

Next up is four against the Braves, including a doubleheader on Saturday.  Every series is the equivalent of a playoff series from here on out.