The Phightins have quietly gotten hot.  Including tonight's victory over the Pirates, the PHILLIES have won 6 of their last 7, and 7 of their last 10.  And most of that's been without Rollins, without Victorino and, for all intents and purposes, without Ryan Howard (yeah, he hit a home run tonight, but he also struck out a couple times, too).  Burrell and utley have picked up the offensive slack, while the pitching has been adequate.  Their record now stands at 14-11, with three games to go in April.  Last season, they finished April with a record of 11-14.  So, with nothing worse than a .500 record guaranteed for this April, things are looking pretty good.  Fingers crossed.   

I think the pitching has been pretty good. The bullpen leads the league with an ERA under 3.00. That's a pleasant surprise.

I said the pitching was "adequate" mostly because of the starting pitching. The bullpen has been pressed into service for more innings than I would like to see. I'm also a little worried about Charlie Manuel's penchant for pulling Pat Burrell in favor of a defensive replacement. For one thing, Burrell's had a pretty good glove out there. For another thing, I wouldn't think you'd want to lose one of the hottest bats in the line-up in exchange for TJ Bohn.

The Phillies will do better if you drop out of the death pool.:P

No one on my DP list has died since Norman Mailer, and that was several months ago. I think we're safe all around.