The Philadelphia Phillies appeared ready to challenge the New York Mets for first place in the National League East.
But, after moving two games above .500, the Phillies have slipped with three straight losses, including a 7-2 setback to the Atlanta Braves on Thursday.
Philadelphia will look to avoid a fourth consecutive defeat when it hosts the Braves in the second game of a four-game series on Friday.
As the trade deadline quickly approaches, it's unclear what the Phillies front office will do if the team continues to lose.
"All around our team, we can always be better," said Bryce Harper, who was in the starting lineup Thursday after fouling a ball off his right ankle on Wednesday (X-rays were negative).