Games of Thursday, September 8, 2005 - Phillies Halt 5 Game Skid, Although That Is Due to an Off-day

The Phillies mercifully received a reprieve from the five-game losing streak which has put their postseason hopes in serious peril. The home team just came out of a three-game showdown series with Houston, losing three close games at home, with heretofore-reliable Billy Wagner collecting two losses in the ninth inning.

The same can be said of the wild card race, except that the Phillies did lose another half a game to Florida, who beat Washington, 8-4, as Josh Beckett got the victory and also hit a home run.

Atlanta and Houston were also off. In the only piece of good news on the night, the Mets continued their collapse with a 5-0 loss at St. Louis, dropping to .500 with a 70-70 mark and effectively are now out of the race. The Mets are now 5 1/2 games behind the Astros and have Florida, the Phillies, and Washington to leapfrog as well.

At the end of Thursday, September 8, 2005

NL East

Atlanta 81-59 ---
Florida 75-65 6
Philadelphia 73-67 8

NL Wild Card

Houston 75-64 ---
Florida 75-65 0.5
Philadelphia 73-67 2.5
Washington 72-69 4
New York 70-70 5.5