Jimmy Rollins, Juan Pierre and Chase Utley combined to go 8-for-10 with five RBI and four walks from the first three spots in the order as the Phillies beat the Marlins 9-7 on Tuesday to claw their way back to .500 at 71-71.
The Phillies last saw .500 on June 4. They’ve won 14 of their last 18 games to even up their record.
Philadelphia won tonight even though Roy Halladay surrendered five runs in 6 1/3 innings. The team has won each of his last five starts, even though he’s turned in quality starts just twice in that span.
Halladay was 6-7 with a 3.80 ERA on Aug. 15. He’s now 10-7 with a 4.01 ERA.
The Phillies have made their run minus both Hunter Pence and Shane Victorino after trading them to NL West contenders prior to the July 31 deadline. They’ll end the night four or five games back of the Cardinals for the second wild card, depending on whether the Padres can top St. Louis for the second night in a row.