Phillies Notebook: Phillies need a hot plate for playoffs
HOUSTON - There was no bottle of champagne on Charlie Manuel's desk. Just a can of Diet Coke. "Ain't ready to celebrate yet," the veteran manager said yesterday after the Phillies clinched their fifth straight postseason berth with a 1-0 win over the Astros at Minute Maid Park.
HOUSTON - There was no bottle of champagne on Charlie Manuel's desk. Just a can of Diet Coke.
"Ain't ready to celebrate yet," the veteran manager said yesterday after the Phillies clinched their fifth straight postseason berth with a 1-0 win over the Astros at Minute Maid Park.
He might be ready today. That's because Manuel could have his regular lineup together for the first time since late August, and for one of the few times all season. With Jimmy Rollins back from a groin injury and Placido Polanco back to his usual level of performance despite a lingering sports hernia, the only missing piece is Chase Utley, who has not played since suffering a mild concussion last Wednesday.
According to Manuel, there is a good chance Utley will start at least one game of today's day-night doubleheader against the Marlins, which is welcome news for a manager who has watched his patchwork lineup score just nine runs in its last five games.
In yesterday's victory, which featured a shutout by Roy Halladay, the Phillies had runners on base in only two innings: the first, when Shane Victorino doubled and scored on a single by Polanco; and the sixth, when Houston righty Bud Norris retired Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez to escape a bases-loaded, one-out jam.
"Going into the playoffs, the biggest thing I'm concerned about is we're going to have to score some runs," Manuel said. "The other team's pitching, of course, is going to be good. We've got to get healthy first. We've got to have Rollins and Utley in our lineup. That'll make us better."
After a sluggish start to the season, the Phillies have spent the last 4 months as the most prolific offense in the league. Despite their recent three-game losing streak, they have scored more runs over their last 101 games than any team in the NL. The addition of Hunter Pence continues to pay dividends - the trade-deadline acquisition went 4-for-11 with a home run in the three-game series against his former team.
John Mayberry Jr. has emerged as a potent righthanded complement to Ibanez. Before going 0-for-4 yesterday, the veteran leftfielder was hitting .268 with a .308 on-base percentage, .474 slugging percentage and 17 home runs since the end of a horrible April.
Now, Manuel wants everybody on the field together.
Phillers
Yesterday's win prevented a three-game sweep by the Astros. The Phillies are the only team in the majors not to have been swept this season . . . The win improved the Phillies' record to 31-16 in day games, the best mark in the NL . . . Today marks the start of the Phillies' final homestand of the season, a 10-game set that includes a doubleheader today/tonight against the Marlins, four games against the Cardinals and four against the Nationals . . . Roy Halladay improved to 18-5, making him the first Phillies pitcher to win 18 or more games in back-to-back seasons since Steve Carlton did so in 1979 and 1980, and the first righthander to do so since Jim Bunning (1964-66). Halladay is scheduled to make two more starts before the postseason.
