PHILLIES NEWS

For the second game in a row the Phils took an early 4-0 lead. This time it was a leadoff homerun by Jimmy Rollins and a 3 run homer by Russell Branyan in the 6th inning that put the Phils ahead. Unlike yesterday, it was not the starter that gave the lead away. In fact, Kyle Lohse cruised through the first 6 innings in shutout fashion striking out 7 along the way. Unfortunately, he ran out of gas with two out in the 7th inning, allowing a bases loaded double to former Phils farmhand, Matt Kata. The double cut the lead to 4-3 and ended Lohse's night. Lohse was then replaced by the normally reliable, J.C Romero. Romero was anything but as he allowed another run to tie it at 4. Finally, Antonio Alfonseca came in to replace a flustered Romero, but he too could not stop the Pirates, at least not until they had scored 3 more runs for a 7-4 lead. Pittsburgh tacked on another run in the 8th, for an 8-4 lead, and that was about all she wrote, as the Phils went down in order in the 9th. So the Phils drop to 65-58, now 5 games behind the Mets in the NL East, and 1 game behind the Padres in the wild card race. Life thus, still sucks.