In a match-up of one of the best teams in the National League against one of the worst, the Philadelphia Phillies pitching was dominant throughout the weekend in garnering a sweep of the San Diego Padres to improve to a major league best 15-6. Philadelphia Phillies Three of the Phillies' Big 4 starters threw at San Diego and all posted very good outings. Roy Oswalt got things started in the opener in pounding the strike zone (73 of his 106 pitches for strikes) in going seven shutout innings of one hit ball in striking out seven. Left-hander Cole Hamels showed himself again as a workhorse in throwing 128 pitches in an eight inning shutout. He gave up four hits and three walks while striking out eight. Finally, ace Roy Halladay was dominant with 14 strikeouts in 8.2 innings. He had 22 swings and misses. The Phillies are near impossible to beat in a series if these three and Cliff Lee are throwing well. First baseman Ryan Howard had an up and down series with key hits and strikeout problems. He had a two RBI triple in the 2-0 win on Friday and then placed a double down the left field line in the 11th inning in the win on Saturday. However, he had a pair of 4-strikeout performances on Thursday and Saturday. The strikeouts will always be there for Howard, but his power bat in the middle of the order still holds this line-up together as it deals with the Chase Utley injury and losing Jayson Werth to free agency over the winter. Players like Placido Polanco never get the national recognition they deserve, but always seem to play on winning teams. The veteran infielder is at it again with a .366 average on the year after going 5-for-11 against the Padres in adding three walks. He teams with center fielder Shane Victorino to form a tough 1-2 combo at the top of the line-up. An interesting arm in the Phillies bullpen to watch for is left-hander Antonio Bastardo. He threw 2.2 innings of no-hit ball with a walk and five strikeouts in getting his fastball at 93-94 MPH. The 25 year old got seven swings and misses against the Padres and on the year, he has nine shutout innings with 14 strikeouts. San Diego Padres Outfielder Cameron Maybin was a top prospect coming up the ranks and may be starting to be putting it together. He went 5-for-15 with a couple of doubles, two runs, two walks and four RBI hitting in the lead-off spot and the No. 6 hole. He is a good defensive centerfielder with speed to make an impact on the base paths. I like him better down in the order, but this is an offensive piece San Diego can start to build around. In what has become a trend for San Diego fans, the Padres have a strong bullpen that is capped by the closing of Heath Bell. Against Philadelphia, they went a combined 12.2 innings in giving up six hits, two runs, two walks and striking out nine hitters. Luke Gregerson was particularly effective on Saturday night in flashing a good slider which befuddled the Phillies hitters. Following his struggles down the stretch with San Diego last season after being traded by the St. Louis Cardinals, outfielder Ryan Ludwick shows no early signs of turning it around. He went 2-for-16 with three strikeouts and is now hitting .194 on the year. The Padres desperately needs offense and Ludwick fits the bill for extra base hits. Right now, the Padres are hanging around by a thread because of its pitching. Their success on the mound (second in baseball) doesn't appear sustainable at this level based on the arms on the roster and the offense (the worst in baseball) shows little signs of marked improvement. While the run differential (-10) puts them at 21st in baseball, this team will remain in the bottom third the rest of the season.