Everyone Contributes

Better to be lucky than good.

The Phils got a few breaks Sunday from the umpires and the Giants themselves as they took two out of three games from San Francisco, both in their last at-bats, to finish the home stand 4-2.

The Phils faced two of the weakest offensive clubs in the NL during the home stand but still struggled to prevail in part because they faced some tough pitching and in part because their own offense disappeared. Other than Chase Utley and Pat Burrell, no one is hitting consistently. On the other hand, they are exhibiting one quality of all successful clubs: a new person steps up each day to be the hero. Once every man on the roster feels he can and will contribute, the feeling spreads and the momentum builds.

That momentum will be sorely tested in the next several days as the Phillies wing their way west to Arizona and a rematch with the Giants in San Francisco. Arizona is one of the best teams in baseball right now, especially with its potent starting pitching. To hope that the bulk of the Phillies' Mendoza-line treading starters will break out in the desert is a lot to ask.

[Editor's note: I am off to Spain today so posts will be suspended as I visit the haunts of my student youth. Back to Granada and Sevilla for the first time in 40 years.]