The Phillies could be a runaway train

On July 21, the Phillies lost to the Cardinals and were in the midst of a 4 game losing streak... and were just 2 games over .500.

They looked dead and I wondered if there was an Invasion of the Body Snatchers scenario happening in Philly.

They've played 40 games since then...and have gone 28-12... a .692 percentage.

Today they played and fell behind 7-3 late today... all the while the Braves had Tim Hudson pitching against the hapless Mets.

And Holy Greg Luzinski, they won, the Braves lost... and the 2 time Defending National League Champion (and 3 time defending Division Champ) are only 2 games back in the loss column to Atlanta... and THREE games behind the Cincinnati Reds for home field advantage throughout the post season.

And guess what? Brad Lidge is actually saving games (when he isn't balking in runs) and the team is hitting. And oh yeah Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt are an awesome 1-2-3 punch.

The Padres are falling apart, the Reds can only beat bad teams, the Braves are beatable and the Giants can't make the big run.

Is it just me, or are the Phillies positioning them to rampage through the National League?

Oh man, people are going to HATE the East Coast bias of this post season... but they are just playing like a better team now.

I guess the Phillies are out of their pods.

The Braves blew it

The Braves were just on the edge of the playoff race anyway... but here's a tip.

When you are on the cusp of contending, try not to lose two straight to the team right in front of you.

And if you do, and you go home and play three games with a playing out the string Reds team... try not to get swept.

There is never a good time to lose 5 straight, but a really BAD time is when you are trying to climb back into the race and not being able to take advantage of the Phillies 4 game losing streak.

It's a nice rebuilding year for the Braves, but put away those foam tomahawks. This team isn't playing in October