Phillies lose another one at home

In the Phillies' clubhouse, a pink notice taped to a door leading into the showers reminds the players to take their passports on the next road trip because they eventually will cross the border into Canada.

They should be counting the days until they get out of town because home is not where they want to be hanging their hats these days.

There's something about Citizens Bank Park that doesn't agree with the Phillies, something about playing on the road that does.

Trouble on the home front continued for the Phillies last night as they went down against the Toronto Blue Jays, 7-1.

The loss dropped them to 1-4 on this nine-game homestand and 13-18 overall in South Philly. Take away the two home series they've had against the dreadful Washington Nationals and the Phils are an unsightly 8-17 at home.

They went into the game with their worst home record after 30 games since 2000, when they were 12-18. The Phils are the lone division leader with a losing home record.

If there are answers as to why they've been so much more successful on the road, where they are 23-9, the Phils don't have them.

"I don't have any answers for you. I really don't," Jamie Moyer said after allowing six runs in six innings to take the defeat. "That's baseball. We could go [through] the second half and have the best home record and worst road record. There's no way to figure it. If we were trying to do it, I'd tell you we were trying to do it, but we're not. The only way it becomes an issue is if you guys continue to bring it up."

The Blue Jays jumped on Moyer early, scoring four runs in the first two innings. The 46-year-old lefthander shut down the Blue Jays the next four innings, then was relieved by Chad Durbin after a two-run homer by Aaron Hill gave Toronto a 6-1 lead.

Toronto righthander Scott Richmond dominated the Phillies, striking out 11 and allowing five hits in a crisp eight-inning performance. The 29-year-old rookie retired the final 13 batters he faced after Jayson Werth banged out his 11th homer in the fourth inning. Werth also became the 12th strikeout victim when reliever Brandon League whiffed him with the bases loaded in the ninth.

Richmond even managed to cool down Chase Utley, who hit .444 (8 for 18) in the first four games of the homestand.

As for the odd way the Phillies have been going about their business - playing poorly at home and superbly on the road - Utley said, "We haven't played as well at home, but I think that will turn around."

Meanwhile, Scott Rolen, who got a key hit in the 10th inning of Tuesday's 8-3 Toronto win, continued to haunt his former team. Ignoring lusty boos from a crowd that apparently will never forget his ugly departure seven years ago, Rolen drove in two runs with a single and homer.

Catcher Rod Barajas, another former Phillie, also homered.

The Phillies thought they'd caught a break when Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay, who would have pitched last night, was pulled from the rotation because of an injury. One of the game's top righthanders, Halladay is 10-1 with a 2.53 ERA.

But Richmond turned out to be no bargain for the Phillies.

"It's the first time we faced the guy," manager Charlie Manuel said. "He had a good breaking ball. His fastball was OK. He was moving the ball around, but we didn't have a lot of quality at-bats. We were chasing a lot of balls."

In what might have been an unnerving sight for the Phillies, Raul Ibanez had a noticeable limp as he ran to first base when he grounded into a double play in the fourth inning. He returned to the lineup Tuesday after sitting out Sunday's game against Boston with a sore left Achilles tendon.

"When he hit the ball to shortstop, it looked like he couldn't turn it on," Manuel said. "He kind of gimped. It looks like it might be bothering him."