What a difference a week makes. The Phillies were floundering at 10-14, and now after winning four more games in a row to bring their current winning streak to five, they find themselves at .500 and in second place.
Things didn’t look like they’d start very well for the Phillies on Monday. The Marlins jumped out to a 5-1 lead, but the Phillies exploeded for four runs in the seventh to tie the game and three more in the eighth to take the lead. Pat Burrell homered for the eighth time this year and David Bell had two hits. Ryan Madson got bailed out after a rough start and Tom Gordon continues to throw very well. He picked up his seventh save with a perfect ninth inning.
Tuesday looked very similar to Monday’s game. The Phillies scored three runs in the fourth to make it 3-1 but the Marlins scored four in the fifth to take the lead back. Then a Jimmy Rollins solo shot and an Aaron Rowand bases clearing triple put four runs on the board in the seventh inning. Again, the bullpen was fantastic and Gordon picked up save number eight. Jon Lieber won his first game of the season despite getting roughed up. He gave up five runs (four earned) on nine hits with five strikeouts in six innings.
Atlanta rolled into town on Wednesday, and even that didn’t slow down the Phillies. They took a three run lead in the third, but the Braves picked at it and eventually took a 4-3 lead heading into the bottom of the eighth. Then Aaron Rowan hit a two run shot and Tom Gordon slammed the door shut in the ninth to win the game. Rowand finished the game with three RBIs and Chase Utley scored twice. Bret Myers had a solid start but he didn’t get the decision. He gave up three runs (two earned) on five hits and two walks with five strikeouts.
Ryan Howard was the man in the finale. He drove in three runs and hit his sixth homerun of the game in the 6-3 win. Jimmy Rollins also homered and Cory Lidle improved to 3-3 on the season. He gave up three runs (two earned) on five hits and three walks with five strikeouts. The one downer was Mike Lieberthal left the game in the sixth inning after getting hit by a pitch in the knee.
San Francisco rolls into town today for a weekend series. As it stands, the Phillies are in sole possession of second place, but they’re five games back of the Mets, who look very formidable this year. All we can do is keep on winning, and hopefully things will take care of themselves.
