PHILADELPHIA -- Rain gave a pair of depleted bullpens a little boost. Tuesday nights game between the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies was postponed by inclement weather, allowing both managers to rest their weary closers an extra day. A makeup date wasnt announced. Its expected the game will be played when the Braves return to Philadelphia on June 27-29. David Hale, the Braves scheduled starter, will be skipped. Julio Teheran (1-1) faces Phillies ace Cliff Lee (2-1) on Wednesday night. Alex Wood (2-1) goes against A.J. Burnett (0-1) in the series finale Thursday afternoon. Hale will be available in the bullpen the next two games and is scheduled to start Sunday. "This lets us recharge that bullpen a little bit," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. Gonzalez wouldnt say whether closer Craig Kimbrel would have been available Tuesday. Kimbrel, who experienced shoulder discomfort after recording his fifth save on Saturday, is day to day and David Carpenter got the save in Atlantas 9-6 comeback win Monday night. "Kimbrel played catch today. Nothing major," Gonzalez said. "Hopefully tomorrow he wakes up a little better, progresses." The Phillies wasted a five-run rally in the eighth inning of the series opener when Jake Diekman allowed a grand slam to Dan Uggla in the ninth inning. Diekman was trying for his first career save filling in for Jonathan Papelbon, who pitched the three previous games. Papelbon is ready to go and the overused bullpen could benefit from the night off. Philadelphias relievers have the third-highest ERA in the majors at 5.53. It hasnt helped that starters have pitched more than six innings just twice in 13 games. "The game starts with pitching and defence," Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said. "I think overall our pitchers have to establish the strike zone and work ahead in the counts. I think that is a big part in why were playing the slowest games and longest games in baseball. Every time I look at the clock and leave, its almost midnight. I cant believe it, but it is what it is." The Phillies are averaging 3 hours, 17 minutes for their games. Only two other teams are longer. "Our pitchers are throwing a lot of pitches, so on the starting-pitching side of things theyve been limited on the time that they can be out there," Sandberg said. "And then weve had to use our bullpen and then with some of our bullpen guys it has been the same thing with the amount of pitches coming out of the pen." Nike NFL Jerseys China . He scored two highlight-reel goals in a three-minute span -- the second on a sideways bicycle kick in the 78th minute -- to give the Whitecaps a 2-2 draw with the Portland Timbers before a crowd of 20,303 at B. Authentic Nike NFL Jerseys Outlet . 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In his first season running the Saints defense, Ryan has implemented a 3-4 scheme in the Crescent City and the players have adjusted nicely save their effort against the run (25th, 121.2 ypg). The Cowboys have struggled moving the chains on the ground and Ryan hopes to take advantage of his former employer. Ryan, of course, ran Dallas defense from 2011-12 and parted ways this past offseason. He eventually signed a deal to spearhead the Saints defense, which is fifth against the pass (211.9), eighth in points allowed (19.4) and ninth in yards allowed (333.1). Ryan is coming off an emotional 26-20 loss at the Meadowlands last Sunday against twin brother, Rex, who is the head coach of the New York Jets. The Saints trailed 20-14 at halftime and limited the Jets to six points in the second half. The only problem was that the Saints also scored six points over the final two quarters. New Orleans allowed 338 total yards and once again struggled to stop the run, as New York running back and former Saint Chris Ivory ran for 139 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries. Ryans defense did not force any turnovers and registered just two sacks. Saints veteran linebacker Jonathan Vilma is one of Ryans best players and wasnt pleased with Sundays loss, saying the defense has "to get better" and his knee issue is nothing to worry about. "I wish we could have won the game. I wish I could have made more plays to help the team. Outside of that I feel good," Vilma said. "I think tomorrow will be a good test, and then coming back Wednesday for practice will be a good test to see how the knee feels." Guess what? The knee doesnt appear to be strong enough to last the season and Vilma was reportedly placed on injured reserve Wednesday. Vilma played just 12 snaps in his first time back on the active roster Sunday. He was one of the four players suspended by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell last year for his alleged role in the Saints bounty scandal. New Orleans has lost two of three games since opening 5-0 and leads the NFC South by a game ahead of Carolina. The Saints upcoming schedule is not a forgiving one, as they are scheduled to play Dallas, San Francisco, Atlanta, Seattle and Carolina. But first the Saints have to take care of business with the Cowboys. Theyre hoping the defense shows up in this one. New Orleans recorded just 30 sacks last season, but already has 26 through eight games. Defensive end Cameron Jordan and outside linebacker Junior Galette have six and five sacks, respectively, and cornerback Keenan Lewis has three interceptions. Inside linebacker Curtis Lofton leads the Saints defense with 75 tackles. Lofton was asked about thhe mindset in the locker room and how the Panthers are creeping up in the NFC South because the Saints have lost two of three.dddddddddddd "Well we dont care what any other team does. We dont care where Carolina is at or what theyre doing. We care about what we can control, and thats how we play," Lofton said. "If we go out and take care of business, we dont have to worry about any other team. November and December is the time where the real teams start to separate themselves. The great teams separate themselves from the good teams. We know that, and thats what were going to do." The Saints are 4-0 at home this season and 14-3 in the last 17 November games. Meanwhile, the Cowboys lead the NFC East by a game ahead Philadelphia and kept it that way by squeezing out a 27-23 victory over the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday in Big D. Dwayne Harris 7-yard touchdown catch with 35 seconds to play lifted the Cowboys, winners in three of their last four games. Tony Romo passed for 337 yards with two touchdowns and an interception while going 34-for-51, while Jason Witten caught eight passes for 102 yards and a score for the Cowboys, who bounced back from a one-point loss in Detroit. "All wins are big," Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. "Every one is big. You only play 16 games and you count the wins up at the end. You have to bring your best every Sunday in this league. Weve got to learn from this one, move forward and get ready for New Orleans." One week after blowing up on the sidelines, Dallas mercurial wide receiver Dez Bryant caught six passes for 64 yards and was flagged for taking off his helmet to argue a penalty. Still, Bryant has emerged as one of the best young receivers in the game and is one of the reasons why Dallas is ninth in passing yards (267.1) and fourth in scoring (28.6). Bryant leads the Cowboys in receiving yards (705) and TD receptions (8). Terrell Owens had a team-record 15 TD catches back in 2007, so Bryant is getting close. You cannot count out Romo either for Dallas success. Romo is on pace for his fifth 4,000-yard passing season and already has 20 touchdown passes in 2013. His 100.0 QB rating is one of the best and he will look to exploit a tough New Orleans defense. Since the Cowboys have struggled to run the football, Romo will most likely attempt 45 to 50 passes Sunday. Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray returned after missing two games with a knee injury Sunday and had just 31 yards on four carries. He has 11 total carries in his last two games played. The Cowboys will enter the bye week after visiting the Saints, who trail the all-time series with Dallas by a 10-15 count. The Saints recorded a 34-31 overtime win in the last meeting on Dec. 23, 2012, as New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees threw for 446 yards and three TDs with no interceptions. Romo passed for 416 yards with four touchdown strikes and no picks. New Orleans has a 19-8 record on primetime television since 2006. ' ' '