Phillies Recap: Phillies-1, Braves-0

Game Recap:
Roy Oswalt pitched seven innings of one hit baseball, and Raul Ibanez drove home the only run in the bottom of the eighth inning as the Phillies finished the sweep of the Atlanta Braves to move six games up in the National League East with just nine games to play.

What went right?

Jayson Werth didn't pick up a base hit, but he did walk three times and scored the only run of the game.

Raul Ibanez came through in the clutch again, going 1-4 with an RBI double in the eighth inning that turned out to be the game winner.

Carlos Ruiz was 2-3.

Roy Oswalt didn't pick up the win, but he pitched just as well as he had in any start as a member of the Phillies. He didn't allow a run, gave up just one hit, walked one and struck out eight.

Ryan Madson worked a perfect eighth inning for his sixth win of the season.

Brad Lidge walked Jason Heyward in the ninth, but worked around the walk for his third save of the series and his ninth straight. He now has 26 saves on the season.

What went wrong?

Placido Polanco went 0-4.

Ryan Howard was 0-4 with two strikeouts and a ground ball double play.

The Phillies left ten men on base.

Game Analysis:

All you have to do to figure out how the Phillies have managed to turn this season around is look at the numbers. Since July 21, when this team was just three games over .500 and seven games behind the Braves, they have gone 44-15, including an 18-3 run in September to go along with their current ten game winning streak. This time of the season is when winners get the job done, and right now, no one else is getting the job done more than the Phillies.

Coming into this series against the Braves, the Phillies intentionally lined up their starting rotation so that Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay and Roy Oswalt would each pitch one of the three games. The strategy made this series feel even more like the playoffs, and it worked to perfection for the Phils. Both Hamels and Halladay picked up wins, and while Oswalt didn't get that chance, he arguably pitched the best game out of the three aces. His seven innings of one run baseball were exactly what the Phillies needed tonight, since their offense was struggling against Tommy Hanson. Luckily, Oswalt pitched one his best games of the season, and reminded everyone, once again, why the Phillies traded for him at the end of July.

Even after seeing Oswalt pitch as well as he has over the last two months, it was great to see him do it in a high pressure situation. Sure, he's been there before with the Astros, but that was five years ago. This is his first season with the Phillies, and these last few starts have been his baptism of fire, if you will. Well, it looks like he's passed with flying colors, and tonight was the final test. Oswalt was sharp all night long, allowing just a double in the fourth inning and a walk in the seventh inning before leaving the game with just 99 pitches thrown. He had the Braves guessing all night long, and seemed even more zoned in than usual. For someone that wasn't exactly sure that he wanted to come here as the trade deadline got closer, Oswalt has certainly made his mark this season. Honestly, he's pitching better than Cliff Lee did last year, and that's saying something.

There isn't much to say about the offense tonight. Tommy Hanson matched Roy Oswalt in the pitching department, allowing just two hits and three walks while keeping the Phillies from driving in runs. This was the first time since the series against the Mets that a starting pitcher had made it into the sixth inning against the Phillies, and considering how well the Phils have been hitting lately, that's telling you how good Tommy Hanson was tonight. Fortunately for the Phillies, Jonny Venters came into the game and wasn't nearly as tough as he was last night. Venters hit Chase Utley before getting Ryan Howard to ground into a double play, and it looked like he would be able to get out of the inning. Then, he walked Jayson Werth, and on a 2-0, Raul Ibanez just dropped a pitch down the left field line that scored Werth for the only run of the game.

Should the Phillies have scored more runs tonight? Yes, but they should have during the entire series. Atlanta has prided itself all year on their pitching, and they pitched well in this series, too. The only problem was that their offense couldn't do a single thing against the pitching of the Phillies. In three games, the Braves scored four runs against the Phils, and all of them came off of the starting pitching. That's what makes this sweep even more impressive. Brad Lidge saved all three games, and allowed just a hit and a walk in three games. With each outing, he looks more and more like the man that saved the 2008 World Series, and you can see the confidence growing in him, too.

The Phillies played their rotation perfectly coming into this series. For some reason, the Braves didn't play their hand the same way, and used Tim Hudson and Derek Lowe against the Mets over the weekend. While it's fun to second guess, it's not going to do the Braves any good, because the big three for the Phillies were outstanding. Halladay, Hamels and Oswalt pitched a combined 22 innings out of the 27 pitched by the Phillies. They allowed just four runs, 14 hits and four walks, as well as 17 strikeouts. When you look at that in the same aspect of a playoff series, that's domination right there, and something that every other playoff team in baseball is going to have to look out for now.

The National League East isn't clinched yet, but at this point, it might as well be. The Phillies are six up with nine games to play, and their magic number is down to just four. Atlanta came into this series with hopes of catching the Phils, and instead, they're leaving Philadelphia with their tail between their legs and hoping that they can hold on to the Wild Card spot in the National League. The Braves are going to be good for a few more years to come, so they have nothing to worry about. For this season, at least, the Phillies are back on top, and they've gotten there with some of the best play that I've ever seen from this team.

The Phils are off tomorrow before starting their last home series of the year against the New York Mets. While things might change, Joe Blanton (7-6, 5.04 ERA) looks like he's going to go for the Phillies, and Dillon Gee (1-1, 1.80 ERA) or R.A. Dickey (11-7, 2.92 ERA) is going to pitch for the Mets.