Phillies Get 2 Big Wins in New York

The MLB season is very long and it's important not to make too much of every high and low. That said, the Phillies just scored two big road wins against the defending champion New York Yankees. After Doc Halladay's rough start on Tuesday, it looked like a very real possibility that the Phils would leave NY a .500 team. Now, they stand 4 games over .500 with some momentum heading back to Philly. They owe it mostly to clutch starts from their #4 and #5 starters, Jamie Moyer and Kyle Kendrick.

Kendrick has had an interesting season. While enduring some rough starts, he now has 5 starts where he's gone at least 6 innings and yielded 1 or fewer runs. Not too bad for a #5 starter (who incidentally, remains very cheap --- $480,000).

Starters like Kendrick, while not particularly reliable in a short playoff series, are necessary in order to make the playoffs. They soak up innings, keep you in most games, and occasionally, like tonight, win some on their own. If Kendrick continues his current level of production, the Phillies should be very, very satisfied.