Quick Stains: Phillies Phodder for July 5th

A notice to umpires: The Phillies are good enough at losing games on their own, they really don't need your help.

For those that don't know of which I speak, I'm referring to the July 3rd debacle where Carlos Lee was called safe at first base on what should have been the end of a baseball game, but instead was the beginning of an extra innings win by the Astros. Replays, of course, showed that Carlos Lee was out by a foot.

So, anyone who's up for starting the argument on replay footage for the umps in baseball, you now have another piece of mounting evidence, and also a much firmer believer in myself, for whatever good that does for you.

The next day, the Phils pounded on the Astros to avoid getting swept. It goes to show that all the runs came in a game the Phils won handily behind Cole Hamels, who was pulled too early, especially given the over-reliance on our bullpen since the Mets series.

We also march closer to loss 10,000, a historic moment for the Phillies and for Major League Baseball.