The Phillies are down, but they’re definitely not out in 2007. It’s a little disappointing because you would have thought they’d be contending with the Mets, just getting into the playoffs is the primary goal and after being eliminated on the final day in 2004 and 2005, the Phillies could find themselves once again going right down to the wire as they fight for that Wild Card.
Their primary competition at this point are two NL West teams. The Padres are on top with a 1 1/2 game lead while the Dodgers are tied with the Phillies for first place. The surprising Rockies are also in the mix a game back of the Dodgers and Phillies.
And just when we didn’t need it, the Phillies start a tough three game series with the Mets. And if you look at the pitching matchups, I don’t like any of the three so it’ll be up to the bats I think. They do have seven games left against the Nationals though and that could play a huge part in where the Phillies end up when the dust clears.
We need Cole Hamels back, that’s for sure. Without our ace, it’s hard to be too optimistic. Once you get past Hamels, none of the Phillies starters have an ERA below four and their workhorse, Jamie Moyer, has an ERA above 5.00.
What can you say about Chase Utley? He’s come back and produced after breaking his arm on that pitch. He’s still going to end up with 100 RBIs and with a strong finish, the Phillies could have a second baseman with an OPS above 1.000. Ryan Howard has struggled the past week or so but I’m looking for him to finish strong as well.
So at least Phillies fans have something to watch these next couple of weeks. If they can get it done against the Mets, they should be able to keep their head above waters until they play some lesser competition like the Nationals. Of course we also have to hope the Dodgers, Padres and Rockies lose some games along the way.
