Series vs. Dodgers

So tonight we go back to the place where we won the NLCS. We are currently playing just as well as we were then, and the Dodgers, although doing extremely well this season, still do not have Manny. I realize they've been playing perfectly fine without him, but I think he is really the only player on that team that we didn't seem to have any kind of answer to in the NLCS. And I also realize that he was suspended when we lost the series to them back whenever that was. But that doesn't really matter because of how well we're playing right now and, for whatever reason, how well we're playing on the road.
I think the matchups favor us in this series as well. Hamels pitches tonight against Kershaw who we usually kill. Then we have Moyer against Eric Milton. Moyer hasn't been dazzling anyone, but Eric Milton? I'll take my chances. Blanton is on fire right now, and we have seen that Bastardo can pitch well, and for a long time he will be doing that against people who have never seen him before. The best news is that Billingsley pitched for the Dodgers yesterday so we don't have to deal with him in a 4 game series.
It's important for us to at least split this series, and I don't think that will be a problem really. But I say it's important because our next 10 games are as follows:
4 @ the Dodgers
3 @ the Mets
3 vs. the Red Sox
Yes, we are the best team in baseball. But that does not mean this is not a very tough stretch. Realistically, coming out of this with 5 or 6 wins (definitely 2 against the Mets) would be fantastic. With that being said, I would not be surprised to take 8 of the 10. I love the Phillies. We're good as crap.

Speaking of good as crap, let's all take a minute to think about how amazing Raul Ibanez is. If you haven't thought about this recently, here are his current stats:
68 hits (3rd in NL)
44 runs (1st)
19 HR (2nd)
52 RBI (1st)
.337 average (7th)
.703 slugging percentage (1st)
1.098 on base plus slugging (2nd)
If that's not an MVP through this much of the season, I don't know what is

And some other fun facts:
The Phillies have 3 players in the top 9 in HR
2 players in the top 3 in RBI
and 6 players in the top 14 in runs scored

Bottom line - Our team is nasty. Good luck Dodgers. You'll need it