During their recent run through interleague play, the Phillies were like a bird fighting it out with a tyrannosaurus - they got eaten for lunch.

In their last 12 games against Boston, Los Angeles, Oakland and Texas of the junior circuit, the Phillies went 3-9, while being outscored, 57-37. The Phillies got shut out twice and scored fewer than three runs in seven games.

But the wonderful thing about baseball is that the Phillies' apparent inferiority to top American League teams (they went 4-11 in interleague play) won't matter unless they reach the World Series.

And that's certainly an issue that just about every Phillies fan hopes the club will have to face.

The bright side of this current swoon, during which the Phillies lost 13 of their last 18 games, is that they have somehow managed to maintain their lead in the National League East, despite falling from 13 games over .500 to only five games over.

The Phillies' most direct route to the postseason is to win the NL East, and that's why the next seven games, starting tonight in Atlanta, present such a great opportunity.

Seven games against the Braves and Mets not only give the Phillies a chance to regain some of their shaken confidence; it also gives them a chance to re-establish some control of the NL East.

The Marlins, Mets and Braves are all within four games of the division leaders.

The Phillies can have no direct impact on the Fish, but in the next 7 days, they can deflate or embolden the aspirations of the Braves and Mets.

Nothing will be settled in July, but this is a chance for the Phillies to reassert themselves as the team to beat in the East.

The Phillies are 5-1 against Atlanta, including a three-game sweep of the Braves that preceded their June swoon. They haven't fared as well against the Mets, having lost four of six. But the Phillies haven't played the New Yorkers since April 20, and since then the Mets fired manager Willie Randolph and replaced him with Jerry Manuel.

Of course, nothing will happen unless the Phillies find a way to close some of the gaping holes that have been exposed over the last 3 weeks.

If only it were as simple as taking the disappointing Brett Myers out of the rotation for some length of time. While Myers, with his 3-9 record and 5.84 ERA, might be the most visible problem, he is hardly the Phillies' only problem.

Moving Chad Durbin out of the bullpen, calling up J.A. Happ from Triple A or even hoping that the rehabbing Kris Benson can give you something are lightning-in-a-bottle solutions, not reasonable alternatives.

Besides, the Phillies need more than just an answer for Myers.

Cole Hamels (8-5, 3.38) is the only starter the Phillies can be comfortable with pitching a big game in August, September or beyond.

The ERA of each of the other four starters is over 4.00, with Adam Eaton (4.86) trying not to join Myers at over 5.00.

Even if Myers weren't in the pits, the Phillies need another front-of-the-rotation starter to go with Hamels.

If they can't solve the Myers problem, they likely will need to add two starters.

Of course, the starting rotation might not be such a huge issue if the Phillies' explosive offense wasn't shooting blanks. The Phillies have scored two or fewer runs in 10 of their last 14 losses. They won only twice in June when scoring three or fewer runs.

This team is built to win by scoring runs. Going up against good pitching in June displayed how vulnerable the Phillies' offense will be in the playoffs.

The Phillies don't have a .300 hitter among the regular starters, and most likely won't unless Chase Utley (.297) gets hot again.

Reigning National League MVP Jimmy Rollins isn't just off his pace from last season; his .264 batting average and .326 on-base percentage are both below his career averages.

Despite having 20 home runs and 68 RBI, Ryan Howard is hitting only .215 and is on pace to obliterate his strikeout record. Free agent Geoff Jenkins is hitting .239, and catcher Carlos Ruiz is at .215.

Because the Phillies are so reliant on their offense, they cannot survive extended slumps by their key players.

But, again, the nice thing about a 162-game season is that every bad spell is usually followed with an opportunity for a team to correct itself.

The Phillies have one of those opportunities starting tonight in Atlanta. *

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