With Utley out, batting order becomes a puzzle

CLEARWATER, Fla. - No news remained the only news on the Chase Utley front Tuesday at Bright House Field.

Sooner or later, the Phillies and their second baseman will reveal what impact a cortisone injection had on the patellar tendinitis in his right knee, and then we might have an idea as to whether Utley will be around for the April 1 season opener against the Houston Astros or any time in the near future.

The two people most affected by the answer could be manager Charlie Manuel and leftfielder Raul Ibanez.

If Utley is not going to be around, the manager will have to endure the same difficult exercise he did most of last season, when he sent out patchwork lineups because of prolonged injuries to Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Placido Polanco, Ryan Howard, and Shane Victorino. The effect was that the Phillies scored three or fewer runs in 75 of 162 games.

While Manuel remains optimistic that the eventual news on Utley will be of the good variety, he is also undaunted by the worst-case scenario.

"The personnel you have that is ready to play, they play and you try to fit them in the lineup where they will fit and you can get the most out of them," the manager said. "We try to teach our players . . . when somebody gets hurt you just have to keep playing. You have to keep playing as hard as you can and come to the ballpark with the attitude we're going to win."

Manuel was masterful in that respect last season. Utley missed 43 games from June 29 through Aug. 15, and the manager hit five different players in the No. 3 spot during that span. The Phillies went 26-17, picking up one game in the standings. They played 12 games in that stretch without Howard and Utley and went 9-3.

"I do think this team has the mind-set that somebody else will have to step up and pick up the slack," Ibanez said. "Obviously we've been in that situation, and I think that's where the character comes in. I think that's why they are so big on character here. Character shows up not when things are good, but when they're going bad. There is a lot of character in our clubhouse."

Character is wonderful, but production is even more important in the absence of superstars, and it was Ibanez who produced the most during those turbulent times after the all-star break. Manuel asked Ibanez to fill the third spot in the order 20 times during Utley's time on the disabled list. The veteran responded by hitting .350 with four doubles, three home runs, and 15 RBIs. He had a .430 on-base percentage in those games.

Ibanez batted fourth six times during Howard's DL stint and hit .348 with two doubles, a triple, a home run, and six RBIs. His on-base percentage in those games was .444.

The point is that Ibanez is by far the best candidate to fill the third spot in the order should Utley be on the disabled list again for an extended period. Hitting third and fourth in the lineup is something he has been good at his entire career. His career average in the third spot is .295 with a .359 on-base percentage.

Manuel may want to insert somebody else in the three-hole and move Ibanez down in the order when the Phillies face a top-notch lefty, but the majority of the time the oldest player in the lineup will be the best player to have batting in that vital spot.

Rollins batted third in Tuesday's 4-3 Grapefruit League win over Baltimore, and Manuel made a case for a lineup that included the shortstop in that spot with Shane Victorino hitting leadoff.

"He's a switch-hitter and a line-drive hitter," Manuel said. "He can knock runs in. He hits good with men in scoring position, late in the game especially."

Rollins is also a career .234 hitter with no home runs when batting third and hit .172 in seven games from the three-hole last year. If Manuel wants to put Rollins in an RBI position, he'd be better off batting him fifth than third.

Polanco could occasionally fill the third spot, which is something he did 19 times last season and has done 34 times in his career. The third baseman can hit anywhere, but he does not have the power needed to consistently fill the third spot in the order.

The departed Jayson Werth did have the power to hit third, but he never got good results hitting there. In seven games last season as the third hitter, he batted .172 with no home runs and two RBIs. He has a .242 career average in 44 games batting third.

"Right now we've got our third spot in the order and our fifth that is wide open, and we had two real good players in those spots last year and the last couple years," Manuel said.

The manager hopes that Utley is ready to fill the third spot again by the season opener. If not, he'll have to lean on Ibanez and others.

"I don't really think about where I hit very much," Ibanez said. "You have to go out there and get a good pitch to hit and have a good at-bat. That's really what it's all about."