Ryan Howard is starting to see the ball better. He is not where he
needs to be but is showing signs of improvement. In fact he even hit a
stand up triple. Sadly, the upcoming series with the Atlanta Braves is
going to be tough for him.

A trio of southpaws, Jo-Jo Reyes, Tom Glavine and Chuck James will
pitch for the Braves. This will be difficult for a guy just getting
himself together. My opinion is to start Howard in the first game, if
he makes solid contact, let him play Wednesday. If he does not, let him
have a day off.

As we learned in the playoffs last season, this team does not do as
well against Southpaws. Utley has been good against them, but what the
Phillies need is for Jimmy Rollins, Jayson Werth, and Pedro Feliz to
carry the offense against these lefty’s.

Tough break for Howard and the Phillies but this team never backs
down to any challenge. We NEED two out of three in this series to stay
ahead of the Braves, hopefully pick up some ground on the Marlins, and
get ahead of the Mets. Nothing like a May pennant race! We haven’t been
anywhere near the top of the standings this time of the year in a while.