Game Recap

With a series win over the Toronto Blue Jays, Brad Lidge back and Raul Ibanez on his way back, it is time for the Phillies to take hold of the National League East.

Phils fans held their collective breath when closer Brad Lidge entered Sunday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays holding a slim 5-4 lead.

Raul Chavez dropped a bunt and Lidge's field and throw were late. John McDonald pinch ran for Chavez, and after Brad Lidge ran a 3-2 count on Marco Scutaro, he walked him to put runners on first and second with no outs.

Oh-oh.

Tonight's 5-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers is only one game. The Giants are still 39-33 and still in good shape as a team overall (even though the Rockies are nipping on the heels of the Giants at a breakneck pace).

And after all, there is more than half a season of Giants baseball left to be played.

But that doesn't mean that this road trip against Milwaukee and St. Louis is one to be taken lightly. Sure, the Giants are in a close race with Brewers for the Wild Card position.

That being said, Wild Card races only get serious come August, not in June.

After taking the last two games in Anaheim, the Los Angeles Dodgers headed out to Chicago to face the White Sox. Hiroki Kuroda dominated the South Siders in the first game, to give LA their third straight win.

Then the Sox bounced back to take the last two, giving the Dodgers their first series loss since they hosted the Angels in late May.

After nearly a month-long hiatus, I have returned to Bleacher Report, but who cares, lets get on with the article.

It didn't take long Thursday night before Alex Rodriguez tied Reggie Jackson for 11th on the all-time home run list with his 563rd blast of his career in the first inning.

What more could I ask for since I was there?  Well the ball could of landed in my lap, but that would be too good to be true.  I got a nice view of it as I was three rows back in left and I knew it was gone as soon as it reached the outfield.  The wind was blowing out.

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Scott Podsednik lined a two-out single to center field to bring an end to a marathon 13-inning game on Thursday afternoon.

The Chicago White Sox (35-37) mounted threats more than once in the late innings, but Podsednik's single plated Gordon Beckham and finally gave them a 6-5 victory over the majors’ best team, the Los Angeles Dodgers (47-26).

After coming off a sweep against the Kansas City Royals, the Cardinals dropped three of four from the New York Mets. Although they only managed to win one game, the Brewers also struggled against the Twins, keeping the Cardinals atop of the NL Central. Let's take a look at the good, and the not so good of this midweek matchup.

The Good

Cubs manager Lou Piniella may have forgotten the one universal rule that exists in professional sports. 

For a reminder of that one rule, let's ask our friend Herm Edwards his opinion of why professional sports are played. 

Edwards, the former Head Coach of the New York Jets, gained fame for his legendary comment during a post-game interview.

"You play to win the game."

Thanks for the obvious, Herm.