Braves drop 2 of 3 to the Phillies
The Good: Who would have thought Jorge Sosa would win as many games as John Smoltz this year? If Sosa wins 1 more game he’ll do exactly that. His amazing string of dominance (and luck) continued Tuesday as he won his 13th game this season. “Houdini,” as his teammates call him, pitched out of trouble repeatedly as he gave up a career-high 6 walks. But he also registered 6 strikeouts and gave up only 2 hits in 6 2/3 innings. Sosa has 5 wins in his last 6 starts. 
… Rafael Furcal continues to cruise in the 2nd half, going 5-for-12 in the series with 4 runs scored and setting a new Atlanta record for career stolen bases. … Adam LaRoche and Johnny Estrada were each 3-for-9 with a home run in the series. … Ryan Langerhans was 3-for-8 during the series. … The Braves’ magic number stands at 6.
The Bad: Now he can’t even get it done at home. Horacio Ramirez gave up 5 runs, 4 earned, in 6 innings. 7 hits allowed, 5 strikeouts, 4 walks. 
… Marcus Giles was 1-for-12 in the series. .. Jeff Francoeur was 2-for-12 in the set. … The slumping Andruw Jones was 1-for-10 in the set and has only mustered 2 hits in his last 26 at-bats.
The Ugly: To relieve or not to relieve? That was the question Thursday when Tim Hudson was due to bat with one out and a runner on third in a scoreless game. Hudson proceeded to ground out and give up 4 runs in the 9th inning to lose the game. I wonder if Bobby Cox decided against pinch hitting because of lack of faith in the offense (he feared they would not get a run across and squander Hudson’s great performance to that point) or lack of faith in the bullpen (he feared the bullpen would blow the game in the top of the 9th). Probably the latter but it just underscores the enormous burden the starting pitchers shoulder down the stretch and in the playoffs every year it seems. Now, more than ever, the Braves live and die with the performances of their starting pitchers. 
