The Philadelphia Phillies appeared to be cashing in their chips for 2006 when they dealt Bobby Abreu, Cory Lidle, David Bell and Rheal Cormier before the July 31 trade deadline. But wait, the Phillies are staying in the National League wild-card chase, going 9-5 in August to inch closer to .500 and to within 2.5 games of the wild-card spot. Two Phillies are batting better than .400 in August -- Jimmy Rollins (.409) and Dave Dellucci (.421) -- and Dellucci as the primary replacement for Abreu has contributed five homers and 12 RBIs in 13 games this month. Ryan Howard is batting .390 with a team-best 19 RBIs in 14 August contests. He, Dellucci and Rollins have totaled 17 home runs, 44 runs scored and 48 RBIs in the Phillies' 14 games. Meanwhile, the pitching staff had a 4.90 ERA at the end of July, but without Lidle and Cormier, it has posted a 3.74 mark so far this month. Rookie Cole Hamels has been terrific in August, and the Phils just got Randy Wolf back after Tommy John surgery in July 2005. One could make a case that Philadelphia is the team to watch down the stretch. Considering Chase Utley, Pat Burrell, Brett Myers and Tom Gordon haven't been at their best this month, the Phils could be positioned to turn it on and secure the wild-card berth without the likes of Abreu, Lidle, Bell and Cormier. They received good news Tuesday. The soreness in closer Gordon's shoulder is nothing more than mild inflammation. Fear the Phils.