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On a night when both our teams played in Texas for the first time ever, Daisuke Matsuzaka and the Phillies offense decided to show up.

It was a typical Dice-K start - five innings, no runs, two hits, three walks and four strikeouts. And, of course, 87 pitches. But it's better than last time, when he couldn't get out of the 2nd inning. Red Sox 6, Astros 1.

For the Phillies, hold your hats. They scored more than four runs for the first time in nearly two weeks, back when they beat the Sox 8-2. I thought the 3rd inning could be a turning point in the season. Tied at one, the Rangers intentionally walked Pat Burrell to load them up for Ryan Howard, who struck out. But Pedro Feliz homered, giving the Phils a 5-1 lead.

That lead lasted about five minutes with Brett Myers pitching. He, and later Clay Condrey, gave back those five runs in the 3rd. There was an unnerving blank stare on Myers' face as he watched the rest of the inning from the dugout.

The Phillies, down by two, threatened to tie the game in the 9th. It was the sort of rally they use to have before they stunk. They scored one, but couldn't tie and lost 8-7 to the Rangers. And my thoughts in the 3rd were probably premature; only seven hits off a pitching staff that ranks last in the league in ERA and second to last in batting average.