will we ever win?

Squirrelly

What an incredibly annoying game.

It started off well enough, with Jimmy Rollins doubling, Chase Utley tripling and Hunter Pence singling off of Edwin Jackson to grab a 2-0 lead with no outs in the first. But things went downhill from there. Which was too bad really, as the entire game was still to be played.

The umps, maintaining their lousy performance in this series, wrung up Ryan Howard on what looked like an outside pitch, and called out the running Pence at second despite him beating the throw. And so a Cardinals starter was again let off the hook early in the game. Why Pence was running with strikeout machine Howard at the plate, I don't know, but it should have been first and second with no outs.

That said, the Phillies offense had the rest of the game to produce, and did next to nothing until the top of the eighth when they pushed their third run across with some help from the balking, wilid pitching Fernando Salas. But when the game was on the line, Pence grounded out and Howard struck out to lefty reliever Marc Rzepczynski.

All my hopes were in Pence at this point, because I had zero confidence in Howard coming through against Rzepczynski, who dispatched him on three pitches. And I don't think Howard had any more confidence then I did.

It looked like Howard was seeing the ball well in the first two games if not always hitting it, but he's been overmatched since. He needs to be dangerous for this offense to work, and he's not right now.

It's back to Philly Friday for Game 5, Roy Halladay and Chris Carpenter again at 8:30 p.m.

NOTES:

• Lots of other crap happened in this game, but most was too annoying to dwell on. OK, real quick: Utley made a bad play trying to first-to-third on that grounder to short, but Albert Pujols made a great play coming off the bag and nailing him at third. He could just as easily played it safe and taken the out at first before throwing to third, which likely would have been late.

• Most people, having just fallen on their butt at the edge of the warning track, would stand back up before attempting to throw the ball back into the infield. But most people are not Shane Victorino.

• A ninth-inning rally against Cardinals closer Jason Motte does not look likely, if necessary, at this point. Let's hope it's not necessary.

• The Phillies actually outhit the Cardinals 7 to 6. It sure didn't seem that way.

• Dick Stockton is old.

• Squirrels!

• Les Bowen makes a good point.

• Roy Halladay: Do the damn thing, son.