40 wins. Repeat after me: 40 wins.
Yes, we have carped about the Phillies offense. We have whined about their feeble attempts at small ball, how they fail to deliver in the crunch, how their home run numbers are way off.
And there they sit, with 40 wins, the first team in major league baseball to hit that plateau this season.
They won again yesterday, using a key hit by Ryan Howard to drive in two runs in the seventh to overtake the Cubs, 4-3.
The Cubs had jumped on Roy Oswalt for their three runs in the first inning. But from that point on Oswalt was money, pitching seven solid innings.
The Phils have a two-game lead on the Braves and a bulging gap between them and the flopping Marlins, who come to town for four games in three days starting Tuesday night.
There’s a very odd stat this morning on Howard. He is hitting .247, and has exactly 247 at bats this year. He’d probably like to be about 30 or 40 points higher. That’s not really what the Phils pay him for. They pay him for power, and to drive in runs. Exactly what he did yesterday.
Best record in baseball, with a .606 winning percentage.
40-26, back to 14 games over .500, tying their best mark of the season.
Don’t worry, we’ll find something to complain about.
Yes, we have carped about the Phillies offense. We have whined about their feeble attempts at small ball, how they fail to deliver in the crunch, how their home run numbers are way off.
And there they sit, with 40 wins, the first team in major league baseball to hit that plateau this season.
They won again yesterday, using a key hit by Ryan Howard to drive in two runs in the seventh to overtake the Cubs, 4-3.
The Cubs had jumped on Roy Oswalt for their three runs in the first inning. But from that point on Oswalt was money, pitching seven solid innings.
The Phils have a two-game lead on the Braves and a bulging gap between them and the flopping Marlins, who come to town for four games in three days starting Tuesday night.
There’s a very odd stat this morning on Howard. He is hitting .247, and has exactly 247 at bats this year. He’d probably like to be about 30 or 40 points higher. That’s not really what the Phils pay him for. They pay him for power, and to drive in runs. Exactly what he did yesterday.
Best record in baseball, with a .606 winning percentage.
40-26, back to 14 games over .500, tying their best mark of the season.
Don’t worry, we’ll find something to complain about.
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