Quick – somebody put out an all points bulletin for the Phillies’ passion. Or the Phillies’ well-documented knack for coming through when there was an urgent need to do so.

When is the last time you saw a lick of passion out of a single Phillies player? Watching the Phils is a joyless exercise right now, even when they are winning.

And who is creeping up on them as they’ve slogged their way through a 5-6 record in their last 11? The southern reincarnation of the 2007/2008 Phillies. The Atlanta Braves, with the exception of losing 2 of 3 to the Phillies last week, are on an absolute tear. You know how we all do the magic number math at the end of the season – “If we go 2-10 down the stretch, then the Braves would have to go 9-1 to win the division.” Well, guess what? The Braves are going 9-1!

Perhaps the Phils hate front running. We know Jimmy Rollins does. If they play their cards right, they could be locked into a weekend battle with the Braves, who play the Nationals over the weekend, while we play the Marlins, who love to spoil pennant hopes. Won’t that be fun?

After watching this team over the last few weeks, my expectations have morphed from “we’ve got as good a chance as any team to win the World Series” to “anything after winning the East is icing on the cake”.

There are other teams who seem to want it more this year. The Cardinals have that fire – Adam Wainwright almost blew a gasket coming off the mound in his last outing on Saturday night. Christ, even the Yankees are playing with purpose.

Who is speaking up in the Phillies locker room? Anyone? Or is the Phillies continued steely confidence a blessing, as they’re less likely to grip the bat tighter this week as they try and win 3 of their remaining 6 games? Can the Marlins find a way to win a game or 2 in Atlanta before the corpse-like Nationals come in to lay down for the Braves over the weekend?