[Lefty Noob]

A lot of us had been writing the Phillies off, but as of late they've been on fire. Philadelphia won their fifth straight game yesterday, beating the Washington Nationals 9-3. According to the AP, "Jon Lieber... limited the Nationals to two runs in six innings, Chase Utley was 5-for-5 with three RBIs... Jimmy Rollins hit his NL-leading eighth homer and Ryan Howard added a two-run shot, helping the Phillies (9-11) move closer to .500 after a terrible start." So are they starting to pull it all together, or is this just a fluke?

[njpsufan]

They just played game #20.. out of 162. Yeah they came out of the box cold but as the weather got warmer they started playing. They are showcasing Lieber to try and trade him, Myers has done well in the bullpen, giving them a solid 7th-8th inning guy. Utley is starting to hit. Rollins, Burrell and Rowand have all been hitting. Plus they got to an easy part of the schedule with 6 games agst Nats and Fish.

[MJHMarc]

They should be able to propel up the standings.

I'm not expecting a first-place team here, but definitely near the top of their division.

The Braves will be serious contenders in the NL East, as will the Mets.

Thus, it will be an captivating pennant-race come late September.