Phillies_look
It's back.  Not fall, not the rally towel, not an idiot fan dressed in a red suit.  I'm talking about the look.

If you've watched the Phillies over the last two seasons, you know what I'm talking about.  Cole has had it for about a month now.  Chase?  Jayson Stark saw it.

Stark_look

Howard?  Him too.  He's batting .297 with six home runs and 19 RBIs in September.  Werth?  He's raking again.

This month, the Phillies have proven that you can, indeed, "flip the switch."  As frustrating as they have been at times this season, they have the second most wins in all of baseball (90).  The Yankees are the only team with more (91).

It's almost mind-boggling.  There were several stretches where it seemed as if the Phillies would never score again.  Now, it seems as if they might never lose again.  They're back to being that confident team we all know.  There was a point in the 2008 World Series (the 8th inning of Game 3, when the Rays tied it up) where I officially stopped worrying that they would lose.  Even when the Rays tied that game, I sat in my left field seat, only anxious to see how they would pull it off- not if they would.  Boom, Chooch walk-off dribbler.

That feeling resurfaced during Game 3 of last year's NLCS, as Jayson Werth crushed one over the center field fence.  And it returned last night.

Once the Phillies went up 3-1, it was a foregone conclusion they were going to win.  This team has the uncanny ability to elevate their game to ridiculous heights when it counts.

2007: four game sweep of the Mets in late August that set the tone for the stretch run.

2008: four game sweep of the Brewers beginning on September 11th.  They went from four back to tied in the wild-card standings, in four days.

2009: amazing comeback win in Colorado facing a Game 5.  Another one in Game 4 against the Dodgers.

2010: they are 20-4 since being swept at home by the Astros, 20 and 4.  They haven't lost in 10 days.

Imagine, just for a second, if the Phillies were healthy for the entire season.  How many games did we see Wilson Valdez, Cody Ransom, Dane Sardinha et al grace the starting lineup?  Too many. Still, the Phillies are on pace to have their most wins since this little four-year stretch began. Perhaps all of our panic was directly related to injuries.  Since the gang has been back together (sans Rollins), they have looked like the team we expected them to be.  You can't discount all of the injuries they had this year: Rollins, Howard, Utley, Madson, Lidge, Polanco, and Victorino.  Those man-games pile up quickly.

Well, all of those guys are back now.  So is the look.  And soon, playoff baseball will be back.  The 2010 World Series begins on October 27th.