A few thoughts after a night in Philly and a Phillies win

http://blogs.mcall.com/groller/ FROM KEITH GROLLER Was in pinch-hit mode for Mandy Housenick tonight in Philly, and all things considered, this was a pretty good one to see. First of all, this one lasted just two hours and 16 minutes. You don't get many games moving along that fast anymore. Many nights you don't get six innings to move along in two hours and 16 minutes. But Cole Hamels made it a throwback night; a throwback to 2008 when he was at the forefront of the team's world championship run. This was Hamels' 100th career start here at CBP and maybe one of his best. Atlanta, featuring four lefties in its lineup, seemed made to order for him. But Hamels was sharp and had command of four pitches. No walks says it all The Phillies offense did virtually nothing after the first four batters of the first inning with the exception of Erik Kratz, who had two hits, including a double, and raised his average to .406. Newcomer Nate Schierholtz also had two hits. When you're talking about new faces making a difference in the energy in the past eight days as this team has gone 5-3 since the trade deadline, you're basically talking about Kratz, Schierholtz and Dom Brown who had a key double and a big defensive play. It seems like this team is playing with a burst of energy and confidence, knowing that they have nothing to lose since the season is basically already lost. Plus, the dark cloud of uncertainty that is the trade deadline has also come and gone. At 50-60, this team would have to win 40 of its remaining 52 games to have a chance at a playoff berth. And that's just a chance because 90 wins is not a lock to get you in. For that to happen it would beat the Miracle of the Meadowlands Parts I and II, and the Miracle on Ice. Forget about it. They may eventually get back to .500 with a strong final seven weeks, but that's about it. But I will say that the fans continue to be impressive. Go to any other city in this country and watch a last-place team that has been a major disappointment and you will not draw 30,000 people unless it's a fireworks night. They drew 42,660 tonight and these people were into the game and backing Hamels all the way. Hamels said the team has made clear who its core players are and that's him, Halladay and Cliff Lee (for now) on the mound and Howard, Utley, Rollins and Chooch in the batting order. They definitely need young guys like Brown to take over lineup spots so they can bring in higher-priced pieces to fill out the rest of the lineup. There will be no October baseball here this fall, but the window of opportunity on this glorious era of Phillies baseball is not completely over just yet. With a busy off-season ahead, this franchise has one more really good year left in it, and it could be 2013.