The Phillies continue to struggle, and the more they drop in the standings, the more it looks like they should be sellers at the trade deadline and start over next year. They’re now seven games below .500 and there’s only four teams worse in the National League. They were 22-15 on May 15th and since then, they’ve gone 21-35. The fact that they’re 5 1/2 games out of the wild card is somewhat encouraging, but they trail eight teams. Of course, an extended winning streak like they had in early May could turn things around in a hurry.
Cole Hamels had a mediocre outing on Monday but it was the pen that really let them down. Ryan Franklin gave up three runs and Ryan Cormier gave up a single run (Cormier took the loss). Ryan Howard hit homerun number 31. Pat Burrell drove in two runs and Chase Utley scored twice.
Yesterday’s game was even worse. Ryan Madson was shelled for seven runs and Arthur Rhodes gave up three. Aaron Rowand and Chase Utley both homered in the 10-6 loss.
Today’s game was encouraging. The Phillies went into the ninth down by a run and forced to face one of the best closers ever. They tagged Trevor Hoffman on Bobby Abreau’s two run double. He had three RBIs in all. Rookie Chris Coste hit his first career homerun and drove in two in the 5-4 win. Geoff Greay improved to 6-0 and Tom Gordon picked up save number 22.
Next up is a four game set with the Braves. If we win three of four, we’ll move back into second base. If we lose the series, we’ll drop even further back of the pack. It’s definitely time for the Phillies to pick it up.
