Don’t look now but the Washington Nationals have won 7 in a row after beating the Phillies yesterday afternoon 7-4. September is always a time that we look towards the schedule and analyze who has the “easy” and “difficult” stretches. September is too unpredictable, with minor league call ups and teams with axes to grind, to do such analysis.

Last year it was the Washington Nationals that played a huge part in determining the NL East winner. During the last week of the season they swept the Mets at Shea and then lost two of three in Philadelphia. It appears that this young team is peaking at the same time this year.

Ryan Zimmerman is finally healthy and hitting, Lastings Milledge has been hot since the break, and Jesus Flores is developing nicely.

Wouldn’t it be ironic that former Mets farmhands (Milledge, Flores) play a role in the Mets winning or losing the division? We all know Manny Acta would love to play spoiler again this year. At least Ryan Church and Brian Schneider, two Mets killers in September of 2007, are on the right side of the tracks this year.

In case your wondering here are the games that the Mets and Phillies have remaining with the Nats:

Phillies: 2 more this week in Washington and then 3 at Citizens Bank the last weekend of the season

Mets: 2 next week at Shea and then 4 in Washington Sept 15 to the 18th

You would think advantage Mets since they have 6 left with the worst team in baseball versus only five for the Phillies. I tend to get nervous when you face a team with young, nothing to lose, ballplayers. Especially those that might have a vested interest in inflicting pain on the Mets organization.

To make matters worse, do you know who the Mets play those last three games? Those pesky Florida Marlins at Shea. It very well could come down to the same type of weekend scenario this year as it did in 2007.

Mike Silva is a freelance writer and radio host since March of 2007. This website is his own personal "digest" of New York Baseball He's also hosts NYBD Radio on Blog Talk Radio and 1240 AM WGBB. Check out his sports media commentary at www.sportsmediawatchdog.com. Check out his official website, www.mikesilvamedia.com

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Tags: Florida Marlins, Jesus Flores, Lastings Milledge, Manny Acta, Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, Washington Nationals