If the season ended today ...

... the Phillies would be a playoff team. They moved into a tie with the Padres for the wildcard lead Friday night and remained three games behind the Mets in the N.L. East.

That's a good feeling for a team that at the same point a season ago was 59-62, 14 games behind the Mets and 2 1/2 games out of a wildcard race that included a gaggle of mediocre teams.

In my Sunday column I'll talk about how the postseason electricity should reach full wattage when the Mets come to town for the conclusion of the next homestand - especially if Chase Utley makes his return from the D.L. in that series.