Cory Lidle pitched six solid innings to snap an eight-start winless skid and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-to-2.

Citizens Bank Park.

Phillies are visiting the New York Mets, after playing as visitors also at Washington and wining a great game, against the Arizona Diamondbacks, 10-1 on Tuesday June 7.

With 31 wins and 27 losses at the moment, this team that comes in second in the NL East Standings, goes to N.Y without C Mike Lieberthal due to a sore left hip. Now it is time to think of the up coming game against the Mets. Rumors say the Phillies could use outfielder Shane Victorino as a bargaining chip if they attempt to upgrade the roster for a run at the playoffs. It’s not only this coming game that’s important to win, it is the upward look for the play offs that is appealing and they must play with all they have to for a chance at the end of the regular season.  Playing against the top team is not going to be easy but they have to go and play hard for the win.

Line up: 1.Sal Fasano, catcher. 2. Ryan Howard, 1^st B. 3. Chase Utley, 2^nd B. 4.David Bell, 3^rd B. 5. Jimmy Rollins, SS. 6. Pat Burrell, L F. 7. Aaron Rowand, CF. 8. Bobby Abreu, RF. 9.   Brett Myers, S P.   

New York, is has some important injuries that must be taken into consideration for this up coming game. Unfortunately, outfielder Cliff Floyd and shortstop Jose Reyes were injured and both listed as day-to-day. Floyd sustained a sprained left ankle running the bases in the second inning at Los Angeles, last week. He was replaced by Endy Chavez. Reyes was scratched from the starting lineup after complaining of soreness in his right wrist. X-rays were negative. Reyes was replaced by Chris Woodward.

 Sports betting fans are keeping tabs on any changes in the line up for this game. All teams want to keep their players healthy, in good condition to play; they know this is very important for winning a game. Now, we will see how they overcome these injuries and hopefully, the starting line up could be as close as what we have seen from the Mets, in past games.

"Our energy didn't show up," manager Charlie Manuel said. "We had some bad at-bats and chased some bad pitches. I felt like we were going to get to their pitcher, but he hung around and beat us."

Their pitcher, rookie Michael O'Connor, turned in his second strong outing against the Phillies this season, evening his record to 3-3. The left-hander surrendered three hits and three walks in six innings, allowing two runs but only one earned.

Making the night frustrating for the tired Phillies players, who came in riding a four-game winning streak, was that they felt they'd be able to solve the soft-tossing southpaw.

They were wrong.

"He mixed up his speeds on all of his pitches," Aaron Rowand said. "It makes it frustrating sometimes when you think you're on a pitch and you're a little out in front or a little late. It's not like he throws a fastball 86-87 [mph] and it's always 86-87 -- it's 88, or it's 83. He just takes a little off, puts a little on and does it with his changeup and his fastball. We just didn't string together hits."

The Nationals did against Eude Brito, who struggled in his second outing this season. The rookie lasted two-thirds of an inning longer and gave up two fewer runs than he did in his season debut on Saturday against the Dodgers, but dropped to 0-2 with the loss.

Brito has allowed 10 earned runs in 8 2/3 innings this season and has compiled an ERA of 10.38.

Brito can blame himself for allowing Nats leadoff hitter Alfonso Soriano to reach base three times against him -- all without putting the ball in play. Brito walked him twice and hit him on the foot, and Soriano scored each of the three times.

He scored a fourth time when he hit his 23rd homer of the season off reliever Ryan Franklin in the seventh.

"Not good," said Brito performing a succinct self-evaluation of his first two outings. "Next time, I'll get him."

Therein lies the question of whether Brito will get a chance to make the third time the charm. With a rotation in need of stability, Manuel can't afford short, inconsistent outings. Franklin might be an option, but Manuel isn't saying.

Brito's next scheduled start is Wednesday.

"I'm not thinking like that," Brito said. "I know I have to make good pitches."

"We have to make a decision on that," Manuel said. "We can do some moving around [with Monday's off-day], but we'll see. His fastball was better tonight, but he needs to settle down and focus on what he's doing. ... Relax."

Philadelphia's only offense came in the form of single runs in the third and fourth innings off O'Connor. Saul Rivera and Mike Stanton took the game to closer Chad Cordero, who recorded his 12th save.

The Phillies might have staged a ninth-inning rally off Cordero when Ryan Howard began the inning with a walk, but Rowand then sent a pitch to deep center field and Damian Jackson retreated to make a spectacular grab for the first out.

"It doesn't surprise me at all right now," Rowand said, about his hard-hit balls not falling. "Since I've come off the [disabled list], I've hit a lot of balls hard and not gotten any hits."

David Bell hit a ball not quite so hard to Jackson for the second out, and pinch-hitter David Dellucci struck out to end the game.

Perhaps the Phillies will get some rest.

"Some guys can sleep on a plane, some guys can't," Rowand said. "Sometimes it has an affect, but I don't think the flight had anything to do with the game."

Webb is 8-0 with a 2.01 earned run average through 12 starts this season. He hasn't allowed a run in 25 innings, and the last time an opponent scored a run against him was during the sixth inning on May 15 versus San Diego.

The right-hander last pitched on May 31 against Pedro Martinez and the New York Mets. Webb did not factor in the decision and pitched seven scoreless innings of four-hit ball.

In six career starts against Philadelphia, Webb owns a 2-2 mark with a 3.68 ERA over 36 2/3 innings. He also is 4-0 with a shutout and a 2.33 ERA at home this season.

The NL West-leading Diamondbacks posted a 9-3 win on Sunday against the Braves to notch their first ever four-game sweep of Atlanta. Tony Clark went 4-for-5 with a pair of solo home runs and three runs scored, while Damion Easley added a three-run homer -- giving him four home runs in his last two games.

The Diamondbacks, who swept a double header on Saturday, are now 2 1/2 games ahead of Los Angeles in the NL West. Miguel Batista allowed three runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings of work. He walked two and struck out five to win his third straight start.

Arizona will begin a 10-game homestand on Monday and is 17-9 at Chase Field this season.

Meanwhile, the Phillies will resume their 11-game road trip tonight and are 2-2 so far on the swing. They posted a 6-4 triumph in Sunday's finale of a four-game set at Dodger Stadium.

Chase Utley went 3-for-5 with two runs batted in and two runs scored and starter Brett Myers allowed three runs on seven hits in a span of 6 2/3 innings, but did not figure in the decision.

Reliever Geoff Geary got the final out in the seventh to earn the win. Ryan Howard, David Dellucci and David Bell each knocked in a run for the Phillies, who have won five of their last eight contests and are 13-11 away from the City of Brotherly Love in 2006.

The Phillies are 4 1/2 games behind the Mets in the National League East division and will send veteran Cory Lidle to the hill Monday versus Arizona.

Lidle is 1-2 in his last five starts and was dealt the loss in the last trip to the mound on May 31 against Washington, yielding three runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings.

The right-hander has faced the Diamondbacks once in his career and was blasted for seven runs -- six earned -- on eight hits in just three innings of work on June 6, 2005 at Citizens Bank Park.

Monday's game between Arizona and Philly is the first of the 2006 season. The Phillies went 4-3 in the 2005 season series after going 5-1 in 2004.

WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

Now that most teams have played around forty games, let’s look on in the Divisional Races:

NL WEST

Here’s a division where all the teams are in the hunt for the title. Not much has been determined in the first quarter of the season except that the division is not nearly as bad as many thought it would be. All four teams currently have winning records and they are only separated by 2.5 games.

Arizona has been led by Brandon Webb (7-0), who is probably the early leader in the NL CY Young race. Unfortunately, the rest of their pitching staff has about a 6.00 ERA.  Jose Valverde (13 saves), Luis Vizcaino (3.38 ERA) and Brandon Lyon have led a bullpen that is improved over last year’s version. After a miserable start, Shawn Green has been on a torrid pace and Chad Tracy was recently rewarded with a $13 million plus contract extension for his fine work. The offense has been a moneyball fan’s dream: Craig Counsell (.387 OBP), Conor Jackson (.372) and Luis Gonzalez (.387) have certainly managed to get on base. Most analysts of the minor leagues rank Arizona near the top of the list and they are going to need to dip into their system to get some rotation help if they are to win the division or compete for the wildcard.

Colorado has been one of this year’s early surprises.  One of the best bets in recent years was against the Rockies on the road, but they have dramatically improved this year. The skepticism usually associated with their gaudy numbers are not valid this year as guys like Brad Hawpe  who is  hitting .340 overall is hitting  .383 on the road.  Matt Holliday has added 11 dingers and Garrett Atkins has filled out what has been a very productive, albeit no name, middle of the order.  In Jeff Francis and Aaron Cook, the Rockies have developed two nice young starters. Brian Fuentes (10 saves, 1.45 ERA) is having his second straight good year. The Rockies appear to finally have a sound plan in place. In a division that will beat up on each other, you can’t count the Rockies out.

The Dodgers have gone the high risk/high reward strategy the last couple of years. Nomar Garciaparra is the perfect example. He has hit .369, but injuries have limited him.  J.D. Drew has 8 homers and 33 RBI so far, but don’t you wish wagerweb.com let you bet on whether or not he would make it through the season?  Kenny Lofton (.350 OBP) keeps chugging along, but the Dodgers are waiting for Furcal (.244) to get going.  Brad Penny has been pitching well (4-1, 2.53), but also has a dicey injury history. Will Eric Gagne be healthy and effective for the second half of the year? Like Arizona, the Dodgers have a strong farm system. Unlike Arizona, they may be willing to trade a few to fill holes.

Most of the attention surrounding the Giants has been around Barry Bonds. The fact that Bonds is hitting close to .250 and still has an OBP close to .500 speaks volumes about the Giants offense, especially without Moises Alou.  The starting rotation led by a resurgent Jason Schmidt (3.07 ERA), the recently returned to action Noah Lowry (3.38 ERA) and Jamey Wright (3.38 ERA) have pitched well enough to keep them in contention, but it would seem another bat is needed for them to stay in the race.

The San Diego Padres recently won 15 out of 18, but still appear to be the weakest team in the division.  Mike Piazza has hit 6 homers and has hit better of late, but 15 RBI for a cleanup hitter is just not going to cut it.  The challenges of Petco aside, this team has a definite power outage. Only Khali Green has joined Piazza in hitting over 5 homeruns to this point.  As usual, Brian Giles continues to get on base with an OBP over .400 and Trevor Hoffman (7 saves, 1.20 ERA) and Scott Linebrink (3.27 ERA) lead a strong bullpen.

So it will come down to Arizona’s farm system, Colorado’s youngsters, The Dodger’s health, The Giants pitching and San Diego’s ability to keep doing it with mirrors. Stay tuned.

WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

After a few weeks and with some surprises, the NL Central has begun to look a lot more as expected, particularly at the very top.

With a lineup containing the best player on the planet, the Cardinals have recently started to pull away and

seem well on their way to their third straight division title. Pujols’ numbers are mind-boggling (22 homers and 54 RBI).  Barring an injury or a stunning slump, he’s practically locked up the MVP Award in May. Underrated David Eckstein has an OBP of .390 and provides the kind of spark few leadoff hitters can match. While injuries and age have slowed Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen to some degree, they are both still dangerous hitters. Juan Encarcion and Yadier Molina have been disappointments, but the rest of the lineup has picked them up so far.  Chris Carpenter has continued to pitch like an ace and starters Mark Mulder, Jeff Suppan, and Jason Marquis form a solid rotation that always keeps the Cardinals in the game. After a slow start, closer Jason Isringhausen has rounded into form.  Only injuries will keep the Cards from playing in October.

Losers of 10 of their last 15, the “Big Red Mirage” are starting to play like their talent level indicates they should.  Bronson Arroyo has been an outstanding acquisition and is obviously thrilled not to have to face those tough NL lineups, but you simply can’t send out such a mediocre starting rotation and expect to stay in the race. I told you a few weeks back to bet against them and those who listened are a bit richer today.

The Astros got off to a hot start before their starting pitching went through a horrid stretch. Roy Oswalt remains one of the league’s top pitchers and Wayne Rodriguez has been a nice surprise, but Andy Pettitte has struggled, Brandon Backe is out for the year, and the rest of the rotation has been inconsistent.  Brad Lidge has struggled (mostly with his control), but expect him to turn things around.  Morgan Ensberg hit home runs in six straight games early in the year and Lance Berkman would be an MVP candidate in a league without Pujols. Also, very quietly, Brad Ausmus has put together a very good year (.418 OBP). The Astros could stay in the wildcard race and may soon get the kind of help that could rocket them to the finish line. 

The Brewers are fun to watch. They lead the majors in home runs, and youngsters Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks, and Bill Hall mix nicely with veterans Geoff Jenkins, Carlos Lee, and Corey Koskie. The only thing is they may be too dependent on getting home runs and they strike out too much. A bit of small ball might help them at times.  Getting Ben Sheets healthy would help a rotation that has one underrated star (Chris Capuano) and mostly back-of-the-rotation types. Derrick Turnbow is showing he’s no fluke, but the bullpen lacks depth. This year’s trendy sleeper pick will stay around a while, but ultimately doesn’t have enough for the playoffs.

First the Red Sox, then the White Sox, now the Cu … stop right there. Derrek Lee’s injury has revealed just how impotent the rest of the Cubs lineup is. Juan Pierre has an OBP of .271. Aramis Ramirez is hitting only .231. It’s ugly on the North Side.  Greg Maddux’s May has been very different than his April and still no sign of Mark Prior. Dusty Baker must be on edge. No playoffs here, folks.

The Pirates were expected to be an improved team this year, but their starting pitching has failed them. Zach Duke has hit a bit of a tougher time facing teams the second time around, and whatever happened to Oliver Perez, who was thought to be a fast rising star? Not much hope in the Steel City either.

So early on, it looks like it’s the Cards division to lose and the Astros waiting for Roger Clemens to make them serious wildcard contenders.

WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

We're a little over a quarter of the way through the major league baseball season, and like every season, there have some been some great stories and some sad tales so far.  With Barry Bonds finally catching the Babe in home runs, we can now focus on the teams and the pennant races.

Detroit 'Stop' City

The biggest surprise in all of baseball has to be the Detroit Tigers.  Heading into Tuesday's games, Detroit has the best record in the majors at 30-14, one game ahead of the defending world champions, the Chicago White Sox.  The Tigers were expected to improve under new manager Jim Leyland, but no one could have predicted this kind of success.

Detroit will be in the race for the long haul because of their outstanding starting pitching.  The Tigers’ staff is leading everyone with a 3.26 ERA and 1.20 WHIP.  Veteran Kenny Rogers has led by example in his first year in Motown.  He's headed towards another all-star birth, posting a 7-2 record with a 2.91 ERA.  Rookie Justin Verlander has been outstanding, winning 6 of his 9 starts including a 5-hit shutout of Kansas City on Monday night.  Fourth-year pro Nate Robertson is 4-2 with a 3.03 ERA, and 23-year-old Jeremy Bonderman, who was expected to be the club's ace coming into the season, has a 1.14 WHIP and is averaging 8 strikeouts per 9 innings.

 Angels Can't Get Out of the Infield

No American League team has been more disappointing than the Los Angeles Angels.  Mired in last place in the AL West, only the anemic Royals have a worse record than the Angels.  Their offense has been pathetic.  They are dead last in the majors with a .299 on-base percentage and last in the AL in slugging percentage.

The only player hitting anywhere close to his average is Vladimir Guerrero.  But the Angels have no one in the lineup to protect Guerrero, so teams have already started to pitch around the all-star outfielder.  Los Angeles had a chance to acquire Manny Ramirez in the off-season, but decided the price tag was too high for the Red Sox slugger and went with unproven youngsters like Casey Kotchman, Robb Quinlan, and Dallas McPherson.  They have combined for 2 HRs and 11 RBIs so far.

Return of the Big Red Machine

Over in the Senior Circuit, Cincinnati has gotten off to a Red-hot start.  Cincinnati is hanging tight with St. Louis in the NL Central and would be the National League wild card representative if the season ended today.

The Reds have belted the second most home runs in the National League behind only the Brewers.  Adam Dunn leads the team with 16 big flys, trailing only Albert Pujols, who is in a league of his own.  Dunn and fellow 26-year-old outfielder Austin Kearns are both slugging over .500 and with the return of Ken Griffey Jr. to the lineup, Cincinnati's offense should continue to put up impressive numbers all season.

While the Reds' offense was expected to be good, not much was expected of the pitching.  A March trade with the Red Sox changed all that, though.  Cincinnati acquired Bronson Arroyo in the deal for outfielder Wily Mo Pena with the hopes that he would turn out to be the team's ace.  Arroyo has not disappointed as he has an NL-leading 2.40 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP.  He even blasted a home run in each of his first two starts.  The rest of the Reds' staff has been average at best, however, and ultimately will be their downfall.

The Loveable Losers

In a position all too familiar to their long-suffering fans, the Chicago Cubs are struggling again.  Like the Angels in the American League, the Cubs can point to their pitiful offensive output as the reason for their problems.  Chicago is last in all of baseball with a .364 slugging percentage and their .301 on-base percentage ranks last in the NL.

Injuries have decimated the Cubs.  Star pitchers Kerry Wood and Mark Prior have been out all season with shoulder injuries.  Wood just returned but was tagged for 3 home runs in 5 innings in a loss against the light-hitting Washington Nationals in his first start of the season last week.  Prior has just started throwing off the mound in his rehab assignment and the club hopes he can return to the majors in early June. 

The other devastating injury to Chicago was to first baseman Derek Lee.  Lee, who was a triple-crown contender last season, was off to another brilliant start batting .318 with 3 homers and 10 RBIs through 14 games.  Lee is still in a cast after breaking his wrist and most likely won't be back until after the All-Star break.  Even if the Cubs get all of their stars back from injury, don't bet on them making a run in the NL Central.  They'll be too far back with not enough time left.

Jose Guillen, OF, Washington – This is a talented player if he can keep his head on straight.  He was projected to have 30 HRs and 100 RBIs, so pick him up now and hope he stays on the straight and narrow.  The numbers will come if he can. 
 
Obviously not all of these players will break out and start to hit immediately, but they have done much better historically than this year.  Next week, I’ll take a look at some pitchers to acquire that fall under the same classification.  

Jose Guillen, OF, Washington – This is a talented player if he can keep his head on straight.  He was projected to have 30 HRs and 100 RBIs, so pick him up now and hope he stays on the straight and narrow.  The numbers will come if he can. 
 
Obviously not all of these players will break out and start to hit immediately, but they have done much better historically than this year.  Next week, I’ll take a look at some pitchers to acquire that fall under the same classification.  

WagerWeb.com Contributing Writer

It’s been a good, bad and ugly kind of week for me.

I hit the trifecta at Pimlico--that’s good.

My Little League kids went 0-3 with Coach Reavy in attendance--that’s bad.

And Wednesday night, upon hearing of the reality demise of my “dawg,” Elliot Yamin, I was both sad to hear the news and disappointed in the realization that I had just watched 12 straight episodes of American Idol, spanning two months--that’s...well, you get the point.

Fortunately for me, however, the sports world is never without its good, bad and ugly moments also.

Here are the high (and low)lights of the week that’s passed.

The Good:

Barry Bonds’ 714th homerun ball--for Tyler Snyder, the guy who caught it. Surely the eBay--er, Bay Area-- faithful are proud of their slugger, and might even open up their checkbooks to make a bid for the historic blast. But, to me, nothing tells the story more beautifully than these four words uttered by Tyler, the soon-to-be rich Athletics fan (thanks to Bonds), after the game: “I hate that guy.”

The NBA playoffs. While the highlight of my basketball season is admittedly the NBA draft, I can’t help but marvel at the fantastic series that have been played up to this point. It really has made me forget that the NHL is on strike. (Editor’s note: Kevin doesn’t receive the OLN channel.)

After dropping five straight, the Phillies finally won.

The Bad:

After dropping five straight, the Phillies finally won.

Cubs catcher, Michael Barrett, punched AJ Pierzynski after a collision at home plate. This is a bad thing only because I think Barrett may have hurt his hand when delivering the blow.

NBC started airing episodes of the  “National Heads-Up Poker Championship.” This might be a good thing had ESPN not decided to air roughly 300 episodes of World Series of Poker tournaments on a constant loop on ESPN channels 1thru 6. This would be cool if the World Poker Tour and Celebrity Poker Who Gives a Crap weren’t already force-feeding its addictive felt-and-clay-chip abundant allure down my throat.  Instead, it’s overkill. Not because I hate watching poker shows on TV, but because I watch all of them. And I need my life back.

The Ugly:

Just one thing...

Kobe’s attire on "Inside the NBA" last Wednesday. Because nothing says street cred like a powder-blue sweater vest.

--

That will do it for this week’s edition of The Sports Column. If I can avoid the TiVo-limit hold ‘em barrage this week, I’ll try to keep an eye out for the top stories for next time.

Until then, enjoy the news as it happens.

Let me paint a picture for you. It is this past Monday night; you have just opened another beer and are toasting with your friends. Why? Being the smart gambler that you are, you placed a significant wager on the San Antonio Spurs over the Dallas Mavericks, and the Spurs are up 111-109 with 15 seconds to go in the fourth quarter. Even more important, by betting on the Spurs, the Sportsbook gave you 4.5 points because the game is in Dallas. No need to worry about that now because the Spurs look like a lock to win outright.

“This game’s over. Finley’s three-pointer sealed the game,” your friend says.

Dallas comes out of their timeout and predictably feeds the basketball to their star, Dirk Nowitzki. You are counting down the seconds, waiting for the final shot and the game to end, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8. Dirk is simply backing down in the paint and covered by San Antonio’s defensive stopper, Bruce Bowen. All of a sudden, a whistle blows, but nothing really happened. Did Dallas call a timeout? Nope. The referee calls a personal foul on Bruce Bowen, and the Spurs are over the foul limit.

“WHAT, are you serious?” you start to scream. “Nothing happened!”

A little bead of sweat begins to form on your brow, and you crouch about five inches from the television. Nowitzki calmly makes the first free throw. You cannot believe this is happening. Nowitzki calmly makes the second free throw. Duncan misses a last second shot, and the game goes into overtime. You still have the spread, but of course, the Mavericks end up winning the game, 123-118. Your money is gone. In the span of a second, you went from euphoria to depression. Why? Did you pick the game wrong or celebrate too early?

No, poor officiating once again ruined another close game in another crucial situation. Why is the officiating so bad? There are two reasons. First, the salaries are too low, considering the power that these officials possess. For NBA refs, salaries can be as low as $90,000 per year. This may seem high, but it is not when compared to what players and coaches make. Furthermore, these officials are human, and there has to be some resentment that these guys control million dollar players, but make less than $100,000. This contributes to bad calls, consciously or unconsciously.

Pay these guys. Put them on the same level as the players or at least the coaches. Level the playing field and better results will follow. I am not saying that refs should be paid millions of dollars, but they should at least receive more than they are making now. Some of these guys just do not care, and why should they?

The other factor is the lack of punishment from the League Office. After game four in Dallas, multiple suspensions and fines should have come down on those officials, but basically, nothing happened. It was not just the last play of regulation that was called poorly, but rather, the entire game. On a team, if a player is not producing, he is benched. Why not do the same for professional officials? There needs to be a possible punishment in the mind of the official to ensure his full effort.

Punish these guys. Again, try to level the ground and put the officials in the players’ shoes. Professional sports needs to put an end to the whole referee vs. player war and make a joint effort to create fair contests. This will result in classic games where the right team actually wins the game.

I will leave you with one of the greatest current examples of poor officiating, Super Bowl XL. This game was atrocious. Actually, the game never seemed to start but was completely dominated by the officials. The TV ratings were the lowest for a Super Bowl in recent years, and anytime a great play was made, it was simply reversed by the refs. Why did this happen? This happened for the same reasons I stated above. NFL referees make as little as $25,000 a year and are considered part-time employees. Lonely sports writers make more than that. In addition, there was not really any severe punishment. This was the Super Bowl, one of the biggest sporting events of the year. People, we need to make a change across the board. If not, we are going to be left with these part-time employees controlling the fate of the biggest sporting events, and like it or not, our money is at stake.

Miller Park

The Philadelphia Phillies ended their longest winning streak since a 13 game streak in 1991. Glavine pitched seven strong innings and drove in a pair of runs to help the New York Mets beat Philadelphia 13-4 Wednesday night, snapping the Phillies nine-game winning streak.

It had been quite a turnaround for the Phillies, who opened 1-6 and finished 10-14 in April. The winning streak began on April 30 with a 5-1 victory in Pittsburgh that avoided a three-game sweep against the woeful Pirates.

"We just have to throw this one out the window and bounce back tomorrow," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said.

In other news Cole Hamels is no longer only in Philadelphia's future plans. The Phillies will call up the 22-year-old Hamels, their first-round pick in 2002, to make his major league debut Friday against the Cincinnati Reds and the Phillies hope this new prospect will help them to get a place in the playoffs.

Lineup

1. Jimmy Rollins, SS. 2.Chase Utley, 2^nd B. 3. Aaron Rowand, CF. 4.Bobby Abreu, RF. 5.Pat Burrell, LF. 6. Ryan Howard, 1^st B. 7. David Bell, 3^rd B. 8. Carlos Joaquin Ruiz, C. 9.Cory Lidle, P.

Milwaukee didn’t have a good time against the Padres last week. Losing on Wednesday night 3-0 in a game that was completely dominated by Chan Ho Park who didn’t allowed any runs in the 6 innings he pitched.

Park credited outfielders Mike Cameron and Brian Giles for making great catches. "And also, I had a good catcher back there calling the right pitches, so that helps and makes me more comfortable and confident," Park said.

The Brewers that have a 17-17 record were playing really good baseball up until they faced the Padres, which outplay them in two of the three games of the series. The Brewers had a phenomenal season start but lately they’re in a hole and might get down the .500 average.

Milwaukee will face this week against Philadelphia in a series that will be very exciting, since both teams need to win. Expect nothing but great baseball games between these two in this series. If you like sports’ betting this is a great opportunity to give more emotion to the All-American sport by making some bets on the series.

Lineup

1. Rickie Weeks, 2^nd B. 2. Bill Hall, SS. 3.Geoff Jenkins, RF. 4.Carlos Lee, LF. 5. Prince Fielder, 1^st B. 6. Corey Koskie, 3^rd B. 7. Damian Miller, C. 8.Brady Clark, CF. 9.Chris Capuano, P.

The Philadelphia Phillies got their wake-up call from an unlikely source. The Phillies haven't lost since their normally low-key manager ripped into them in the early innings of a game at Florida last Monday.

While Barry Bonds' 713th career home run Sunday night got its deserved attention, the mammoth shot overshadowed Philadelphia's three-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants that gave the Phillies eight straight wins for the first time since a 13-game run in 1991.

With Bonds back home needing one homer to tie Babe Ruth for second place on baseball's career list, the Phillies turned their focus on the NL East-leading New York Mets.

New York (21-10) begins a three-game series in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, with Pedro Martinez (5-0) going against Brett Myers (2-1). The Phillies (17-14) are four games behind the Mets. Though it's too early to label it an important series, it'll be a measuring stick for the Phillies, who finished one game behind NL wild-card winner Houston last season.

"It seems like we're hitting on all cylinders right now," said pitcher Jon Lieber, who beat the Giants despite giving up Bonds' towering drive in the sixth inning of a 9-5 victory. "We're scoring runs. We're making things happen."

It's been quite a turnaround for the Phillies, who got off to a 1-6 start and finished 10-14 in April. The winning streak began last Sunday with a 5-1 victory in Pittsburgh that avoided a three-game sweep against the woeful Pirates.

The next night in Florida, the Phillies trailed Dontrelle Willis 5-1 before rallying for an 8-5 victory. After his team fell behind against the Marlins, Manuel blasted his players in the dugout. Whatever he said, it worked.