THESE ARE THE GAMES

These are the games that must be won. The opening game of the final six, all at home, in front of an absolutely electric and rally-towel waving crowd against an Atlanta starting pitcher not named 'Hudson' or 'Smoltz'. Backed into a tie for the National League Wild Card lead after last night's San Diego loss, the Phills can, essentially, control their own destiny by continuing their winning ways. It should be simple, win and you're in. Lose and, as manager Charlie Manuel put it, you don't deserve to make it. But then the game began. The fans were ready, but, as has happened at so many inopportune times this season, the pitching staff was not. 44-year old lefty Jamie Moyer got off to a sluggish start, allowing three runs in the first. The offense, however, showed up. Rollins started the game with his ninth leadoff home run, his 30th of the season. Moyer seemingly settled down after the first, setting Atlanta down in the second and third innings, before giving up another run in the fourth inning. The Phillies offense bailed him out, courtesy of Ryan Howard's 43rd home run of the season, a 2-run shot, and Jayson Werth's solo home run, both in the bottom of the fourth, followed by Burrell's sacrifice fly in the fifth inning, giving the Phills a 5-4 lead heading into the sixth inning, where Moyer and Geoff Geary teamed up to give up four runs, and turn the lead back over to the Braves. Chase Utley hit a solo shot in the seventh, his 22nd, to reduce Atlanta's lead to 8-6 heading into the eighth inning. With the Phillies leading the league in come-from-behind victories, the Braves lead seemed surmountable, to say the least. That is, until Chipper Jones smashed a 2-run home run into right field, his 28th, off of Tom Gordon and iced the game at 10-6.
The way the pitching staff has been pulling rabbits out of hats recently, especially the much meligned bullpen, they had to come up small some time. But that type of thinking simply won't do. If the Phillies hadn't started 3-10, or hadn't lost 2-of-3 to the Kansas City Royalys, or hadn't lost 1-0 to the Padres in the Cole Hamels- Chris Young showdown, and were the wild card leaders, there would be room for "we'll get 'em tomorrow." But not now. The Phills have been chasing all season and don't have any more room for error. It has been a great season, but without a playoff appearance it will be yet another failure.
There are plenty of "shoulda had 'em games". The relief staff has more than 20 blown saves. But these are the games that will be looked back on as the games that made or broke a season. These games, beyond injuries and slumps and bad managing and roster moves, determine whether or not this team is "great" or "underachieving". Aaron Rowand said earlier this week that the "glass is half full." From that approach the Phillies will go 5-0 after tonight's loss and finish with 90 wins, their most since 1993 (97 wins). That is what has to happen, 90 wins and hope the Padres cave under the pressure. The Phills were depending on Houston to lose in 2005 and it didn't happen. The feeling about this team is that "it's different." The heart, the hustle, the clutch hitting, all different. Everything about this 2007 team needs to be different, because if they were the same they would fail. Luck will play a part, but business needs to be taken care of. These are the games that need to be won, because we have lost them too many times before.