perspective over a long season, Chiarelli said. I dont think,

PHILADELPHIA -- The hot-swinging Philadelphia Phillies will go for a sweep of division rival Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night, fresh off an impressive power display on Tuesday.Five home runs paved the way to a 5-1 win in the middle game of the three-game series, one day after a seven-run second inning led to an 8-2 victory in Mondays opener.It was nice to see, manager Pete Mackanin said. Guys are still swinging the bats pretty well. ... We took advantage of some pitches up in the zone.Now, the Phillies (39-46) will take on a rookie pitcher making his first career MLB start in Tyrell Jenkins, who enters with an 0-1 record and a 5.79 ERA in 9 1/3 innings of work at the major league level this season.In the minors, Jenkins started 92 out of his 97 appearances, with a 32-27 record and 3.75 era. In parts of two years at Triple-A Gwinnett between 2015-16, he was 9-7 with a 3.18 ERA in 23 games (18 starts). He last pitched on July 3, giving up two runs (both earned) in two innings of a 5-2 loss to Miami.I dont have any predetermined parameters for him, Braves interim manager Brian Snitker said. Somebodys got to start that game tomorrow, and hes been stretched out as a starter all spring and all summer. He hasnt lately, so well just kind of monitor him. He might get tired, I dont know when -- three innings, four innings -- if he can go five innings, that would be great.Snitker has tried to keep the level of positivity as high as possible for an Atlanta squad that, at 28-56, is only one game ahead of Minnesota for word record in the major leagues. The loss to the Phillies on Tuesday night made it three in a row and seven of nine for a club that saw manager Fredi Gonzalez fired in May after a 9-28 start.Its hard, youve got to have a lot of patience and its not easy, Snitker said. Its something that has to be done with young guys, I think, and we just have got to stay as positive as we can with it, because it is a learning experience every time and these guys are going to grow and theyre going to get better.The Phillies will counter with seven-year veteran Jeremy Hellickson, facing Atlanta for the first time in his career. Hell be looking to win three straight starts for the first time this year, and has been throwing some of his best stuff of late.Over his last three starts, Hellickson is 2-1 with a 2.37 ERA, giving up six runs (five earned) in 19 innings, striking out 15 against just two walks.Hell look to continue the momentum in a clubhouse thats won three straight and seven of eight to move within seven games of a wild-card slot in the National League.Theres a bunch of chemistry in this locker room, said rookie starter Zach Eflin, who went the distance in picking up his first career win Tuesday night. Its a really cool thing to be a part of. 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Kiriasis and brakeman Franziska Fritz finished two runs in one minute 55.41 seconds -- a mere 0.01 seconds ahead of Meyers and Lolo Jones, who likely bolstered her Olympic hopes by helping give USA-1 a huge push in the second heat. Wholesale Nike Shoes . The Croatian served 21 aces and hit 42 winners against Sijsling, who double-faulted to give Cilic a 4-3 lead in the deciding set. "All the players, they know me and they were really happy to see me and they were really happy that this is over for me," Cilic said. If the Edmonton Oilers?glanced a little to their right toward the?Pittsburgh Penguins?bench at PPG Paints Arena Tuesday night, they could have been excused for wondering, perhaps hoping, that they were catching a glimpse of their own future.Sure, its too early to start drawing lines from the recently hopeless to the defending Stanley Cup champions. But its not as implausible as it was even a few weeks ago.A month into the 2015-16 season and coming off a solid 2-2-1 road trip that concluded with Tuesdays exciting 4-3 loss to the defending Cup champions, its fair to suggest that the Oilers are the story of the season so far.I do think that theyve taken a significant step with the additions theyve made, said one veteran Western-based scout who has seen the Oilers play multiple times this season.It starts with top-end coaching from Todd McLellan and great goaltending from?Cam Talbot, who has turned in a .938 save percentage in his past nine games. Talbots definitely the real deal, the scout said.The Oilers also boast an emerging, better-than-expected defense and a balanced, big and fast offensive group.The pieces are in place, the scout said. And I think theyre coming together; theres an excitement around the team.And, oh yeah, theres a kid named Connor McDavid, a player the scout said is the closest thing to the incomparable Wayne Gretzky that the league has seen yet. And thats with all due respect to two-time Stanley Cup winner and defending playoff MVP Sidney Crosby, against whom McDavid faced off for the first time in his young career Tuesday night and delivered a virtuoso, three-point performance in a losing effort.[With] this guys acceleration and the ability to attack the way he does, the scout said, I think theyve got a helluva chance to make the playoffs.Mention playoffs to Edmonton general manager Peter Chiarelli and he practically claps his hands over his ears. Its way, way, too soon for that kind of talk.But part of the reason for the giddiness is that given the Oilers successes -- even after Tuesdays loss, they remain atop the Pacific Division with a 9-4-1 record -- it seems almost as if we are discussing some completely different franchise when compared to how quickly most of the past 10 seasons devolved into chaos and disarray.They sure have found hope in Edmonton that has been crushed early most years in the last decade, one former player and current executive also based in the West said. And its well-timed in [their] new rink.So much of this early season has not been Oilers-like. After Tuesdays loss Edmonton is still the leagues top road team, with a 5-2-1 record. Last season, the Oilers won just 12 games away from home.They werent much better at home, winning just 19 times as they finished last in the Western Conference with a minus-42 goal differential -- third-worst in the NHL. This season, the Oilers are 4-2-0 and boast a respectable plus-8 goal differential at home.Edmonton has dealt with some early injury adversity. Theyre missing a slew of everyday players, including Kris Russell, who has arguably been the teams besst defender after signing as a free agent during the offseason.ddddddddddddBut still the Oilers keep striding forward.The good teams, they just kind of get used to the winning atmosphere, the winning mentality. You go into every night expecting to win, former No. 1 overall pick Ryan Nugent-Hopkins said Tuesday. Were starting to get that back into our mindset now.Like Nugent-Hopkins and everyone else connected to the Oilers, Chiarelli is preaching patience.Its a message thats a lot more palatable for fans who havent had a sniff of the postseason since Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup finals.The Oilers own the second-ranked road power play and the top road penalty-killing unit, having allowed just four goals on 41 shorthanded opportunities. They are 12th in the league with the man advantage and fourth when killing penalties. Last season they were 18th and tied for 17th, respectively. They are fourth in the league in hits -- a marked departure from a year ago, when they were 20th.Chiarelli oversaw the building of a Stanley Cup champion in Boston. He understands better than most the hundreds of building blocks that go into erasing years of disappointment and underachievement.Milan Lucic, the key offseason free agent signing by the Oilers, was with Chiarelli in Boston when they raised a Stanley Cup after knocking off the?Vancouver Canucks?on the road in Game 7 in 2011, the Bruins first championship since 1972.The two have talked internally about the need for this team to avoid the long, soul-snapping streaks that can scuttle a season. And Chiarelli notes the teams improved play in all three zones has been a key to avoiding such slides.This road trip was a good test, as the Oilers dropped the first two games and were actually winless in three before beating the New York Islanders?and then the?Detroit Red Wings?heading into Tuesdays loss.Its just about keeping perspective over a long season, Chiarelli said. I dont think, Oh, weve turned a corner.Fair enough, but how many steps does it take before a team reaches said corner?Another few weeks of solid play and Chiarelli is going to have walk around with ear muffs on because the playoff talk will only intensify.Obviously, we wanted to have a good start, and weve established that, Nugent-Hopkins said. We established ourselves at home really well, which is another important thing. So far weve done everything within our control. Now we just have to have the same mentality and not get too caught up in stuff and not get too ahead of ourselves and just keep playing the same we have been.After a decade of misery, the Oilers deserve a chance to bask in the unusual glare of a welcome spotlight, dont they? As long as they dont become blinded by it.To get the good start rolling, it definitely brings the team together, Nugent-Hopkins said. And yeah, youve got to enjoy that. When youre having fun it makes it a lot easier to go out there every night. So we just got to keep it going. ' ' '