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The Phils clinched the NL East this weekend with a 9-2 win over the Cardinals on Saturday. Just about everything went right for the Phillies in that game — Oswalt looked great throwing seven shutout innings and Ibanez hit a grand slam in the bottom of the eighth as the Phils scored six times to blow the game open.

The rest of the series hasn’t gone quite as well, with the Cards taking the other two games. The most worrisome developments of the two losses were continued struggles by Bastardo and more home runs allowed by Cole Hamels. Yadier Molina homered off of Bastardo in the eighth inning of game one of the set, breaking a 1-1 tie. In last night’s game, Hamels went seven innings and allowed four runs, all four of which scored on a pair of two-run homers.

After his appearance on September 5, Bastardo was looking unstoppable. He had thrown to a 1.35 ERA for the year and struck out 66 in 53 1/3 innings while opponents had hit .110 against him for the season. Since then he has faced 15 batters over five appearances and nine of them have reached base on four hits and five walks.

Through the end of July, Hamels had allowed eight home runs in 152 innings over 22 starts (0.47 home runs per nine innings). In his last nine starts he has allowed nine home runs over 54 innings(1.47 home runs per nine).

On Friday, the Phils lost the opener of the series 4-2 in 11 innings. Worley started for the Phils and walked three in the top of the second, with a walk to Rafael Furcal with the bases loaded forcing in David Freese to put St Louis up 1-0. The Phils tied it up in the bottom of the inning on back-to-back doubles by Polanco and Mayberry. It stayed tied until the eighth, when Yadier Molina homered off of Bastardo with one out to put the Cards up 2-1. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Howard delivered a pinch-hit double and came in to score when Corey Patterson dropped Ruiz’s fly ball in the right field corner after a long run, tying the game at 2-2. Schwimer started the ninth for the Phils and allowed a leadoff double to Furcal. Furcal would come in to score on a single by Adron Chambers and Tyler Greene followed that with an RBI-double that put St Louis on top to stay at 4-2.

Saturday the Phils won 9-2 with the help of a strong outing from Oswalt and a grand slam from Ibanez to clinch the NL East. Oswalt threw seven shutout innings and Stutes took over in the top of the eighth with a 3-0 lead. Stutes got just two outs but was charged with two runs on four hits before Lidge come on to get Allen Craig to set the Cards down with men on first and second. With their lead cut to a single run, the Phils scored six runs in the bottom of the eighth, getting RBI-singles from Victorino and Pence and a slam from Ibanez, extending their lead to 9-2. Madson allowed a two-out single in the ninth, but got Furcal to ground to second and end the game.

The Phillies lost 5-0 last night.

The Phillies are 98-53 on the year losing 5-0 to the St Louis Cardinals last night. St Louis has won two of the first three games in the four-game set.

Hamels got the start for the Phillies last night and went seven innings, allowing four runs on seven hits. Four of the hits went for extra-bases, two doubles and two two-run home runs. He struck out nine and didn’t walk a batter.

Ryan Theriot was the first batter of the game and he lined to center for the first out. Allen Craig was next and he doubled to left, putting a man on second for Albert Pujols. Pujols hit the first pitch he saw from Hamels out to left, putting St Louis on top 2-0. David Freese and Lance Berkman both struck out swinging to set St Louis down.

Yadier Molina led off the second and grounded out to Utley. Rafael Furcal followed with a bunt single and Furcal stole second as Hamels struck Jon Jay out swinging for the second out. Chris Carpenter struck out swinging to leave Furcal at second.

Hamels threw a 1-2-3 third.

In the fourth, Berkman singled with one out. Hamels got Molina to ground into a double-play behind him.

Hamels struck out Furcal and Jay as he set St Louis down in order in the fifth.

Theriot doubled to start the sixth and Allen Craig hit an 0-2 pitch out to left-center behind him. 4-0. Hamels got the next three hitters in order.

Jay singled to right with two outs in the seventh, but Hamels got Carpenter on a fly ball to right for the third out.

Blanton started the eighth and got Theriot on a ground ball before Craig homered again, hitting a 1-2 pitch out to center to make it 5-0. Blanton struck out Pujols and Freese behind Craig.

Second outing for Blanton since his return — he’s allowed a run over two innings and struck out three.

Righty Justin De Fratus made his debut for the Phillies in the ninth. He got Berkman on a fly ball to center for the first out and Molina on a pop to short for the second. He walked Furcal on five pitches, but got Jay to ground to third to end the frame.

Blanton threw 19 pitches in the game and De Fratus 13.

The Phillies lineup against righty Chris Carpenter went (1) Rollins (2) Victorino (3) Utley (4) Pence (5) Ibanez (6) Polanco (7) Gload (8) Schneider. Howard and Ruiz rest to start the game, with lefties Gload and Schneider starting against the righty Carpenter.

The Phils were down 2-0 when they hit in the bottom of the first. Victorino and Utley singled back-to-back with one out, putting runners on first and second for Pence. Pence grounded into a double-play to end the inning.

Polanco singled with one out in the second, but Gload grounded into a double-play behind him.

Schneider and Hamels both struck out to start the third before Rollins singled to left. Victorino grounded to first to end the inning.

Utley and Pence singled back-to-back to start the fourth, putting men on first and second with nobody out. Ibanez hit into a double-play and Polanco grounded to third, leaving Utley at third.

Hamels singled to right with two outs in the fifth, but Rollins flew to center to leave him stranded.

Victorino and Utley went down to start the sixth with the Phils down 4-0. Pence hit a ball to short that Furcal fielded, but his throw to first was bad for an error. Ibanez grounded to second to leave Pence stranded.

Polanco walked to start the seventh, but Gload and Schneider went down behind him. With two outs, Polanco still on first and Carpenter still pitching for the Cardinals, Bowker hit for Hamels and struck out swinging for the third out.

Bowker 0-for-8 with six strikeouts since joining the Phillies.

Down 5-0, Utley singled with two outs in the eighth. Pence struck out swinging to leave him at first.

Gload walked with two outs in the eighth, but Schneider struck out swinging behind him.

The Phillies didn’t have an extra-base hit in the game.

Rollins was 1-for-4 in the game. 5-for-14 in the first three games of the four-game set.

Victorino 1-for-4 in the game. 3-for-10 with a homer so far in the series.

Utley 3-for-4 in the game. 3-for-13 so far in the series. 5-for-his-last-29 coming into last night’s game.

Pence 1-for-4. 3-for-12 with two walks and a double in the series so far.

Ibanez 0-for-4 and left three men on base. 1-for-10 with a grand slam in the series.

Polanco 1-for-3 with a walk. 4-for-11 with a double and three walks in the series. 306/389/387 so far in September.

Gload 0-for-3 with a walk. 5-for-17 in September with five singles.

Schneider 0-for-4 and struck out three times. He’s hitting .171 for the year and on-basing .234.

Halladay (18-5, 2.34) faces righty Kyle Lohse (13-8, 3.82) tonight.

Ryan Howard will have a cortisone shot in his left ankle.

The Phils topped the Braves last night, winning 6-3 behind another solid effort from Vance Worley. The Phils are 14-0 in the last 14 games that Worley has started.

After sitting against a righty in game one of the series, Ibanez was back in the lineup and hammering the ball in game two. He went 3-for-4 with a double and drove in three of the six Phillie runs.

The Phillies are 90-48 on the year after beating the Atlanta Braves 6-3 last night. With the win the Phils extend their lead over Atlanta in the division to 9 1/2 games.

Worley got the start for the Phillies and went six innings, allowing two runs on seven hits and three walks. Two of the hits went for extra-bases, a double and a home run. He struck out six.

He walked Martin Prado with one out in the first and Prado moved up to second when Brian McCann followed with a single to left. Worley stuck Dan Uggla out swinging and Chipper Jones out looking to leave both runners stranded.

Up 2-0, Worley threw a 1-2-3 second.

Michael Bourn bunted for a single with one out in the third. Prado was next and grounded to second with Bourn forced at second for the second out. Worley struck McCann out looking to set Atlanta down.

Uggla led off the fourth and hit a 2-1 pitch out to right center, cutting the lead to 2-1. Chipper and Freddie Freeman followed that with back-to-back singles, putting men on first and second with nobody out. Worley escaped further damage, though, striking out Alex Gonzalez and Jose Constanza before getting the pitcher Tim Hudson on a ground ball to first.

Six strikeouts for Worley through four innings — he wouldn’t get any more in his last two innings. Over his last seven starts he has struck out 43 hitters in 39 innings. In his first 13 appearances on the year he struck out 53 in 73 1/3 innings.

Bourn started the fifth with a single into center, but Worley got Prado to hit into a double-play behind him. McCann flew to center for the third out.

He walked Uggla to start the sixth and Chipper followed with a double that moved Uggla up to third. Freeman walked on a 3-2 pitch and the bases were loaded. Gonzalez flew to left for the first out, deep enough for Uggla to tag, score and tie the game at 2-2. Constanza was next and he flew to left with the runners holding first and second. Hudson hit for himself and flew to center.

Worley comes up big against the bottom of the order after walking two to help the Braves load the bases.

Stutes started the seventh with a 4-2 lead. Bourn led off with a double to right. Prado was next and flew to left for the first out before Stutes walked McCann. Bourn stole third and the runners were at the corners for Uggla. Uggla hit a ground ball to third with Bourn scoring (4-3) as Polanco went to second to force McCann for the second out. Chipper flew to right to leave Uggla at first.

Stutes has a 5.18 ERA over his last 19 appearances and has given up five home runs in 24 1/3 innings in those outings.

Lidge started the eighth with a 6-3 lead. Gonzalez singled to left with one out, but Lidge struck Constanza out behind him for the second out. Lefty Eric Hinske hit for the pitcher Cristhian Martinez. Lidge struck him out swinging at a wild 2-2 pitch with Hinske taking first. Bourn struck out swinging 1-2 to leave the runners at first and second.

Lidge strikes out three in the frame and doesn’t walk a batter. In 12 1/3 innings he has now struck out 17 and walked ten.

Madson pitched the ninth up 6-3. He allowed a leadoff single to Prado, but got McCann to hit into a double-play behind him. He struck Uggla out swinging 2-2 to end the game.

Madson hasn’t been charged with a run in his last seven appearances since he was charged with six runs in two-thirds of an inning against the Nats on August 19. Over his last seven appearances he has allowed four hits and no walks over 6 1/3 innings while striking out six.

Lee threw a complete game in the series opener, so nobody in the pen has pitched more than one day in a row. Stutes threw 21 pitches, Lidge 20 and Madson 16.

The Phillies lineup against righty Tim Hudson went (1) Victorino (2) Polanco (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Pence (6) Ibanez (7) Schneider (8) Martinez. Martinez at short with Rollins still on the DL and Valdez on the bench. Ibanez back in left after Mayberry started against the righty Lowe in game one. Schneider catches with Ruiz on the bench.

With two outs in the first, Utley hit a 2-2 pitch out to right center, putting the Phils up 1-0. Howard and Pence followed that with back-to-back singles, which put men on first and second for Ibanez. Ibanez dumped a single in front of a diving Bourn. Howard scored to put the Phils up 2-0 and Pence moved up to third. Schneider grounded to second for the third out.

Victorino walked with two outs in the second, but Polanco grounded to short behind him.

Howard and Pence struck out as the Phils went in order in the third.

Martinez walked with two outs in the fourth and the lead cut to 2-1. Worley was next and smashed a ball to third, but Chipper handled it and threw to second to force Martinez and end the inning.

The Phils went in order in the fifth.

The game was tied at 2-2 when Howard walked to start the sixth. Pence doubled to center, putting men on second and third. With Ibanez at the plate, a wild pitch brought Howard home (3-2) and moved Pence to third. Ibanez doubled high off the wall in right center, scoring Pence to extend the lead to 4-2. Schneider fouled out to third for the first out before Martinez walked, putting men on first and second. With the righty Hudson still pitching for Atlanta, Mayberry hit for Worley and grounded into a double-play to end the inning.

No more runs for the Phils after putting Ibanez on second with nobody out. Martinez walks twice in a game for his second time in three starts. Manuel calls on Mayberry to hit against the righty. It’s too early for Gload, but it’s an interesting choice of Mayberry over the lefty Bowker.

It was 4-3 when Victorino led off the seventh with a single to right. Polanco was hit by a pitch behind him, putting men on first and second. Utley grounded to second with Polanco forced at second for the first out and Victorino moving to third. Howard grounded to second with Victorino scoring (5-3) and Utley moving up to second with two outs. Pence followed with a walk, putting men on first and second for Ibanez. Ibanez singled to right, scoring Utley to make it 6-3 with Pence moving up to second. With righty Cristhian Martinez pitching for the Braves, Ruiz hit for Schneider and walked to load the bases. Martinez struck Martinez out swinging 0-2 to leave the bases loaded.

With righty Anthony Varvaro pitching for Atlanta, Gload hit for Lidge and flew to right for the first out of the eighth. Victorino grounded to short for the second out before Polanco singled to right. Utley flew to center to leave Polanco at first.

Victorino was 1-for-4 with a walk in the game. He’s 3-for-his-last-18.

Polanco 1-for-4. He has two extra-base hits, both doubles, in his last 159 plate appearances.

Utley 1-for-5 with his tenth home run. He’s 5-for-30 to start September.

Howard 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. 6-for-his-last-12 with a double, a home run and seven walks. 284/411/581 over his last 90 plate appearances.

Pence 2-for-3 with a walk a double. 317/393/540 with the Phils in 145 plate appearances.

Ibanez 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI. He’s 13-for-his-last-34 with four doubles and a home run (382/417/588).

Schneider was 0-for-3 in the game and is 1-for-his-last-13.

Martinez 0-for-2 with two walks and two strikeouts.

Oswalt (7-8, 3.80) faces righty Brandon Beachy (7-2, 3.37) tonight. Righties are on-basing just .283 against Beachy for the year, but the Phils have hit him well in his three starts against them. In three outings against the Phillies, Beachy is 0-1 with a 5.79 ERA and has allowed 21 hits in 14 innings. Oswalt has thrown to a 4.70 ERA in his ten starts since the end of May, allowing 78 hits in 59 1/3 innings as opponents have hit .324 against him. He has made one start against Atlanta this year, allowing two runs (only one of which was earned) over six innings on April 9.

Chuck LaMar resigned.

Wherever it is, here’s hoping he renews for another couple of months.

The Phils got more outstanding starting pitching last night as Cliff Lee threw 8 2/3 shutout innings and the Phils topped the Reds 3-0. For Lee it ends an August in which he allowed two runs in 39 2/3 innings over five starts.

In June, Lee allowed a run over 42 innings in five starts. In June and August combined, Lee threw to an 0.33 ERA with an 0.73 ratio and struck out 68 in 81 2/3 innings. In the months of the season other than June or August, Lee has thrown to a 4.22 ERA with a 1.28 ratio and struck out 130 in 113 innings.

In the first three games of the four-game set, the Phils have now outscored the Reds 15-2. The starting pitchers for the Phils have thrown 21 2/3 scoreless innings in the set, allowing ten hits and three walks while striking out 23. By runs scored per game, the Reds have the second-best offense in the NL behind St Louis.

The Phillies are 86-46 on the year after beating the Cincinnati Reds 3-0 last night. They are 40 games over .500 for the first time since 1977 and in first place in the NL East, 7 1/2 games ahead of the Braves.

Lee started the game for the Phillies and went 8 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing six hits and a walk. One of the hits went for extra-bases, a double. He struck out seven.

Up 1-0, he set the Reds down in order in the bottom of the first. He got Brandon Phillips on a line drive to right, Dave Sappelt on a line drive to left and Joey Votto on a ground ball to second.

Both Phillips and Sappelt hit the ball well against Lee in the first, but both into outs.

In the second he got Jay Bruce to ground to first, Miguel Cairo swinging and Drew Stubbs swinging.

Ramon Hernandez stated the third with a single to right. Paul Janish struck out swinging for the first out before the pitcher Dontrelle Willis bunted Hernandez to second with the second. Phillips grounded to short for the third out.

Sappelt reached on an infield single to start the fourth, but was thrown out trying to steal second as Lee struck out Votto. Bruce singled to right before Cairo flew to right to end the inning.

Stubbs reached on an infield single to start the fifth. Hernandez was next and hit a ball to the right of Valdez at short. Valdez made a nice play, fielding in the hole and throwing to second to force Stubbs. Utley sailed his throw to first to try to double-up Hernandez, but it was backed up nicely by Ruiz. Ruiz threw to second and Hernandez was tagged out to complete the double-play. Janish flew to left for the third out.

Up 2-0, Lee set the Reds down in order in the sixth.

He started the seventh up 3-0 and struck out Bruce and Cairo as he set the Reds down in order.

Stubbs singled to left to start the eighth, but Lee got Hernandez on a fly ball to center for the first out and Janish on a fly ball to right for the second. Righty Todd Frazier hit for the pitcher Jose Arredondo and Lee struck him out looking 2-2 to end the inning.

Lee got the first two to start the ninth before Votto doubled to center. Bruce was next and Lee walked him on a 3-2 pitch, bringing the righty Cairo to the plate as the tying run. Lee hit Cairo with an 0-2 pitch that Cairo didn’t try real hard to get out of the way of, loading the bases for the Reds. Madson took over for Lee and lefty Yonder Alonso hit for the righty Stubbs. Madson got Alonso to pop to Polanco in foul territory on a 1-1 pitch to end the game.

After getting Alonso to end last night’s game, lefties are hitting 213/289/267 against Madson for the year, which is worse than the 255/303/324 line for righties.

Madson threw three pitches in the game. Nobody in the pen has thrown more than one day in a row.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Dontrelle Willis went (1) Victorino (2) Polanco (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Pence (6) Mayberry (7) Ruiz (8) Valdez. Mayberry starts in left with the lefty on the mound. Ibanez on the bench after going 3-for-5 with a two-run homer the night before. Valdez at short with Rollins on the DL.

Victorino and Polanco walked back-to-back to start the game. Utley hit a ground ball to second with Polanco forced at second for the first out and Victorino moving up to third. Howard hit a ball that Votto handled at first, throwing to second where Utley was forced for the second out as Victorino scored to put the Phils up 1-0. Pence flew to center to leave Howard at first.

Good no strikeout for Howard to bring Victorino home from third with one out.

Ruiz and Valdez singled back-to-back with one out in the second, putting runners on first and second for Lee. Lee bunted, Willis fielded and threw to third, where Ruiz was out but called safe. Victorino popped to Phillips near the first base line for the second out. Polanco grounded back to the pitcher.

No run for the Phils after getting an extra out and loading the bases with one out.

Pence and Mayberry walked back-to-back with two outs in the third. Ruiz flew to right to leave both runners stranded.

The Phils went in order in the fourth.

Lee grounded to second for the second out and didn’t run it out. He took a couple of steps towards first and waved his hand at the ball as Phillips fielded and threw to first.

Willis struck out Polanco, Utley and Howard in the fifth.

Pence led off the sixth and hit a 2-1 pitch out to center, putting the Phils up 2-0. Mayberry struck out behind him before Ruiz singled into center. Valdez grounded to third with Ruiz forced at second for the second out and took second on a wild

Victorino started the seventh with a walk and moved to third when Polanco followed with a single to center. Utley was next and hit a ground ball to short with Polanco forced at second for the first out and Victorino scoring to put the Phils up 3-0. Utley was running when Howard his a soft ground ball to short. Janish had moved to cover second and made a nice play, coming back to get the ball and then throwing to first to get Howard for the second out. It brought Pence to the plate with Utley at second and two. Righty Jose Arredondo came in to pitch to Pence and got him on a fly ball to left to set the Phillies down.

Mayberry and Ruiz singled back-to-back to start the eighth, putting men on first and second for Valdez. Valdez hit into a double-play, which left Mayberry at third with two down. Lee grounded to short for the third out.

Polanco singled with one out in the ninth, but Utley and Howard both flew out behind him.

Victorino was 0-for-3 with two walks in the game. He’s 3-for-his-last-21.

Polanco 2-for-4. He’s 2-for-his-last-13.

Utley 0-for-5 with an RBI and four men left on base. 7-for-his-last-35.

Howard 0-for-5 with an RBI. 5-for-his-last-34 with 14 strikeouts.

Pence 1-for-3 with a walk and a home run. He has homered in two straight games and seven times in his last 95 plate appearances. He’s slugging .573 in his 119 plate appearances with the Phils. He hit 340/413/596 in August.

Mayberry was 1-for-3 with a walk. He goes 2-for-15 to end the month, but hit 296/356/685 in 59 plate appearances in August.

Ruiz was 3-for-4. 304/383/412 in his last 232 plate appearances.

Valdez 1-for-4. Since August 22, when Rollins went on the DL, Valdez has hit 316/333/579 in 21 plate appearances (6-for-19 with a walk, two doubles and a home run).

Worley (9-1, 2.65) faces righty Mike Leake (11-8, 4.04) this afternoon. Leake threw to a 5.70 ERA in his first nine appearances of the year, which included three relief outings. Since then he’s made 17 starts in which he’s thrown to a 3.49 ERA with a 1.18 ratio. The Phillies have gone 14-2 in the games that Worley has started this season — if that’s not the biggest surprise of the year it makes the photo. The Phils have won 12 straight games that Worley has started. Worley has been charged with more than one run in just four of those 12 and more than two runs in two of the 12.

Joe Blanton is expected to pitch for Lakewood on Friday.

Front pain? Back painlessness?

Roy Halladay finally got a chance to start last night, making his first appearance for the Phils since August 21. It went well. Halladay threw seven shutout innings and hit a three-run double of his own as the Phils won 9-0.

Howard homered twice for the Phillies in the game. Ibanez returned to the lineup and went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer. Pence added a home run of his own and is slugging .550 in 115 plate appearances with the Phils.

In the first two games of the set, the starting pitchers for the Phils have combined to allow a run on four hits and two walks over 13 innings while striking out 16.

The Phillies are 85-46 on the year after beating the Cincinnati Reds 9-0 last night. Thirty-nine games above .500 ties their best mark for the year. I believe that the last time the Phils were 40 games above .500 was October 2, 1977 (the last day of the 1977 season). The Phillies are in first place in the NL East, 7 1/2 games ahead of the Braves.

Halladay got the start for the Phillies and went seven innings, allowing a double, a single and two walks over seven shutout innings. He struck out nine.

Brandon Phillips singled to right to start the bottom of the first. Halladay got Edgar Renteria on a fly ball to center for the first out before walking Joey Votto on five pitches. It put men on first and second for Jay Bruce and Halladay struck him out swinging 3-2 for the second out. Miguel Cairo grounded back to the mound to leave both runners stranded.

Halladay struck out Fred Lewis and Ryan Hanigan in a 1-2-3 second after getting Drew Stubbs to fly to center for the first out.

He struck pitcher Bronson Arroyo out looking to start the third. Phillips and Renteria both grounded out behind Arroyo.

Halladay had a 2-0 lead when he threw a 1-2-3 fourth.

He set the Reds down in order again in the fifth.

Up 6-0, he got Alonso and Phillips on ground balls before striking Renteria out looking in the sixth.

He started the seventh with an 8-0 lead. Votto led off and doubled to right. Bruce was next and Halladay hit him with a 1-2 pitch, putting men on first and second. Cairo struck out swinging before Stubbs walked on a 3-2 pitch that sure looked like a strike to me to load the bases. Righty Todd Frazier hit for the pitcher Logan Ondrusek and Halladay struck him out looking for the second out. Hanigan grounded to third to leave the bases loaded.

Lidge started the eighth and walked Alonso on a 3-2 pitch. Phillips grounded to short with Alonso forced at second for the first out. Renteria lined to Wilson at short for the second, but Votto followed that with a single to right that moved Phillips to third. Lidge struck Bruce out swinging 2-2 to leave runners at the corners.

Again with the walks for Lidge. He has now walked nine in ten innings for the Phils this year.

Schwimer started the ninth with a 9-0 lead. Dave Sappelt led off with a single to left. Righty Paul Janish hit for the pitcher Sam LeCure. Schwimer got Janish on a fly ball to right for the first out. Sappelt took second without a throw before Frazier struck out swinging. Hanigan flew to left to end the game with Sappelt on second.

Third career appearance for Schwimer and the first in which he hasn’t been charged with a run.

Lidge threw 15 pitches in the game and Schwimer 14. Neither was pitching more than one day in a row.

The Phillie lineup against righty Bronson Arroyo went (1) Victorino (2) Polanco (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Pence (6) Ibanez (7) Ruiz (8) Valdez. Ibanez returns to the lineup in left. Valdez plays short with Rollins on the DL.

Utley singled with two outs in the first, but Howard flew to left behind him.

The Phils went in order in the second and again in the third.

Utley walked with two outs in the fourth. Howard was next and he hit an 0-1 pitch out to right, putting the Phils up 2-0. Pence grounded to short before Ibanez singled to left. Ruiz walked behind Ibanez, putting men on first and second for Valdez. Valdez grounded to third to set the Phillies down.

Lefties came into the game hitting 324/376/590 against Arroyo for the season. The lefties on the Phils fared pretty well against him in the third, with Utley getting on board for Howard’s homer and Ibanez singling later in the frame.

Victorino doubled to left with one out in the fifth. Polanco was next and flew to center with Victorino tagging and moving up to third with two down. Utley popped to Cairo in foul territory for the third out.

Howard struck out looking to start the sixth. Pence was next and he hit a 1-2 pitch out to right-center, putting the Phils on top 3-0. Ibanez and Ruiz followed that with back-to-back singles, putting men on first and second with one out. Valdez reached on an error by Cairo and the bases were loaded. Halladay lined the first pitch of his at-bat into right and the ball rolled into the corner, clearing the bases and putting the Phils up 6-0. Victorino fouled out to Votto and Polanco grounded to third to leave Halladay stranded at second.

Halladay now has nine career RBI, three of which came on that swing.

Pence singled to left with two outs in the seventh. Ibanez got ahead 3-0 and hit a 3-1 pitch out to right, extending the lead to 8-0. Ruiz flew to right for the third out.

Victorino walked with two outs in the eighth, but Polanco flew to center behind him.

Utley grounded to first to start the ninth. Howard was next, facing righty Sam LeCure, and hit a 3-2 pitch out to right for his second homer of the game, putting the Phils up 9-0. Pence and Ibanez both grounded out behind him.

Victorino was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk in the game. He’s just 3-for-his-last-18, but hitting 326/392/620 in August.

Polanco 0-for-5 and left three men on base. 1-for-his-last-13. 227/283/264 in 298 plate appearances since the end of April.

Utley 1-for-4 with a walk. 244/303/354 over his last 89 plate appearances.

Howard 2-for-5 with two home runs and three RBI. 3-for-his-last-16 with three home runs and seven strikeouts.

Pence 2-for-5 with a home run. 330/400/550 in 115 plate appearances with the Phillies.

Ibanez 3-for-5 with a two-run homer in his return to the lineup.

Ruiz 1-for-3 with a walk. He’s 2-for-his-last-10.

Valdez 0-for-4 with a strikeout and four men left on base. 280/327/500 in 55 plate appearances in August.

Cliff Lee (14-7, 2.71) faces lefty Dontrelle Willis (0-3, 4.10) tonight. Willis had made nine starts for the Reds this year and has given up more than three runs in just one of them. He’s been very tough on lefties (184/238/289), but righties have hit 298/377/404 against him for the year. He threw 123 pitches in his most recent start (August 26 against the Nats). Lee has allowed two runs in 31 innings over his last starts, striking out 32 while opponents have hit .163 against him.

This says the Phillies have traded for John Bowker, sending Schwimer back to Triple-A. The left-handed hitting Bowker turned 28 in July and has a career 237/289/390 line. He went 4-for-17 with the Pirates this season. He has hardly ever faced lefties, hitting just .132 against them in 57 career plate appearances. He has a 248/303/415 line against right-handed pitching.

A day after hammering the Mets 10-0 in the series opener, the Phils were right back at it last night. They scored nine runs in the first five innings, jumping out to a 9-0 lead in support of Worley. Stutes floundered a bit in the late innings, allowing three runs over two innings, but the Phils held on for a 9-4 win.

Mayberry continues to pound the ball for the Phils. Starting at first for a sidelined Howard, Mayberry went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer early in the game. He has hit seven home runs in his last 47 plate appearances.

Vance Worley is pretty impressive hisownself. Worley threw seven strong innings, striking out nine and holding the Mets to a single run. The Phillies are 14-2 in the games he’s started this season.

The Phillies are 83-44 on the year after beating the New York Mets 9-4 last night. They are 39 games above .500 for the first time this year.

Worley got the start for the Phillies and went seven innings, allowing a run on five hits and a walk. Two of the hits went for extra-bases, both doubles. He struck out a career high nine and dropped his ERA on the year to 2.65.

He allowed back-to-back singles to Angel Pagan and Ruben Tejada to start the game, putting men on first and third with nobody out for David Wright. Wright hit a ball to third with Polanco fielding and throwing home where Pagan was tagged out for the first out. With men on first and second, Worley struck Lucas Duda out looking 2-2 for the second out. Jason Bay was next and walked on five pitches to load the bases, but Worley got Nick Evans looking to leave the runners stranded.

Two big strikeouts for Worley helps keep New York off the board after the first two batters reach base.

Josh Thole started the second with a single to left and moved to third when Justin Turner followed with a double. Again Worley came up with strikeouts to work out of the jam. He struck pitcher Jon Niese out looking on three pitches. Pagan struck out looking 1-2 for the second out. Tejada struck out looking 3-2 to set New York down with two more runners stranded.

Five strikeouts for Worley through two innings. All five of them looking.

He struck Bay out swinging in a 1-2-3 third.

Up 4-0, he set New York down in order in the fourth.

Up 5-0, he threw a 1-2-3 fifth, striking Niese out looking for the first out.

He had a 9-0 lead when the threw a 1-2-3 sixth.

Evans doubled to center to start the seventh and moved to third when Thole grounded to second for the first out. Turner was next and hit a ball slowly to second where Martinez made a nice play, fielding and making a glove-hand flip to first to get the second out as Evans scored to make it 9-1. Righty Scott Hairston hit for the pitcher Pedro Beato and Worley struck him out swinging for the third out.

Stutes started the eighth. He got the first two before Willie Harris singled to right. Duda was next and he hit a 2-1 pitch way out to right, cutting the lead to 9-3. Mike Baxter popped to short for the third out.

Stutes was back for the ninth. Evans led off and tripled to center. Thole was next and hit a ground ball to third. Polanco fielded and threw to first for the first out. Evans scored to make it 9-4. Turner followed that with a double to right, but Stutes got Jason Pridie, pinch-hitting for pitcher Bobby Parnell, on a fly ball to center that moved Turner to third for the second out and Pagan on a fly ball to left to end the game.

Not a good day for Stutes, who allowed three runs on four hits over two innings. Three of the hits went for extra-bases. Over his last 14 appearances he’s thrown to a 5.79 ERA and opponents have hit five home runs against him in 18 2/3 innings.

He threw 32 pitches in the game, which seems like a lot for a guy who enters with a 9-1 lead.

The Phillies lineup against lefty Jon Niese went (1) Victorino (2) Polanco (3) Utley (4) Pence (5) Mayberry (6) Francisco (7) Valdez (8) Schneider. Ibanez on the bench with a groin problem, Francisco in left. Howard on the bench with bursitis in his left foot, Mayberry at first. Valdez at short with Rollins on the DL. Victorino leads off with Rollins out of the lineup with Polanco moved up to second. Pence moves up to fourth with Howard out of the lineup. Four righties for the Phils 4-5-6-7. Schneider catches with Ruiz on the bench. The Phils have a day game today, but against a righty so they could have started Schneider today and Ruiz last night against the left-handed starter. After last night’s game, Schneider is 1-for-20 with an 050/174/050 line on the year against lefties. Not clear to why Manuel would do it the way he did unless Ruiz is banged up or he thought he needed Schneider’s left-handed bat in the lineup with lefties Howard and Ibanez sidelined. If he did it to get Schneider’s left-handed bat in the lineup I’m not sure it was a great idea.

Polanco and Utley struck out as the Phils went in order in the first.

Francisco singled to left with two outs in the second and moved to third when Valdez followed with a double. Schneider struck out swinging 2-2 to leave both runners stranded.

Worley struck out looking to start the third, but Victorino was next and homered down the left field line to put the Phils up 1-0. Polanco followed that with a single to center and Utley was hit by a pitch, putting men on first and second for Pence. Pence struck out swinging 2-2 for the second out. Mayberry was next, though, and blasted a 1-1 pitch out to left for a three-run homer, putting the Phils up 4-0. Francisco followed with a single to left, but Valdez struck out swinging to leave him at first.

Second huge home run for Mayberry in two days. He’s hitting 359/405/872 in August with six home runs in 39 at-bats. Big strikeout for Pence ahead of Mayberry. It was Pence’s tenth start of the year hitting in the cleanup spot and the results haven’t been good. Between the Phils and the Astros he’s hitting 200/263/257 for the year out of the four-hole in 38 plate appearances. 226/273/333 for his career in 99 plate appearances as a four-hitter. So maybe we’ve finally found something he can’t do?

Worley singled with one out in the fourth and moved to second when Victorino followed with a ground out to first. Polanco was next and he singled to left, scoring Worley to put the Phils up 5-0 with Polanco taking second on the throw home. Utley grounded to second for the third out.

Worley delivers a one-out hit and the Phils get a run out of it thanks to the two-out single by Polanco.

Pence and Mayberry singled back-to-back to start the fifth, putting men on first and second. Francisco walked and the bases were loaded. Righty Pedro Beato took over for Niese to pitch to Valdez. Valdez flew to right, deep enough for Pence to score (6-0) and Mayberry to move up to third. With men on first and third and one down, Schneider chopped a ball to first. Evans fielded and threw home, where a sliding Mayberry was tagged out for the second out. With men on first and second, Worley singled into center. Francisco scored to make it 7-0 with Schneider moving up to second. Victorino was next and lined a ball to center that Pagan misplayed and then hopped at as it went over his head. Victorino had a triple that cleared the bases with Francisco and Schneider scoring to make it 9-0. Polanco flew to right for the third out.

Second triple in two days gives Victorino a career-high 14 for the year. Jose Reyes is the only player in either league with more — Reyes has 16.

Utley led off the bottom of the sixth and was hit by a pitch. Martinez ran for him at first. Pence grounded into a double-play and Mayberry grounded to second to turn the Phils away.

Francisco doubled softly to right to start the seventh and moved to third on a hard-hit ground out by Valdez. Lefty Tim Byrdak came in to pitch to Schneider and struck him out swinging 0-2 for the second out. Pete Orr, just activated when Hamels went on the DL, hit for Worley and struck out swinging 1-2 to end the inning.

Again Schneider with the lefty as he can’t bring the runner home from third with one out. Orr has gotten three at-bats with the Phils since May 19. 271/331/406 at Triple-A this year in 251 at-bats.

The Phils went in order in the eighth.

Victorino was 2-for-5 with a triple, a home run and three RBI. He’s hitting 364/446/643 in 149 plate appearances since the start of July. He missed a little more than two weeks in July.

Polanco 2-for-5 with an RBI. He’s hitting 231/288/271 in 279 plate appearances since the end of April.

Utley 0-for-2 and hit by two pitches. He’s 2-for-his-last-18.

Pence 1-for-4 with a single and three men left on base. The Phillies are 17-5 since he joined the team.

Mayberry 2-for-3 with a three-run homer. 10-for-his-last-22 with three home runs and a 1.475 OPS.

Francisco 3-for-3 with a walk and a double. He had three hits since July 3 coming into the game. His numbers against lefties are still bad for the year. His numbers against rigthies are bad, too, but the numbers against lefties are more surprising. He’s hit 216/320/318 in 103 plate appearances against lefties for the season.

Valdez 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI. He’s played seven days in a row now, starting six days, and gone 6-for-23 with three walks and four extra-base hits. 261/333/478 over those 27 plate appearances.

Schneider 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and five men left on base. Again, putting him the lineup last night cause Ruiz needs to sit makes sense to me, but putting him in the lineup against the lefty cause he’s left-handed and Ibanez and Howard are on the bench wouldn’t. He’s 1-for-his-last-10. In 2010, Schneider was hitting 206/302/343 for the year after going 0-for-1 against the Padres on August 28 — he went 9-for-his-last-23 with six walks to end his ’10 season with a 240/345/384 line.

Kendrick (7-5, 3.24) faces righty Mike Pelfrey (6-10, 4.61) this afternoon. Pelfrey has a 3.86 ERA over his last 15 appearances, 14 of which have been starts. He’s made four starts against the Phils this year, one (May 28) of which has been good and three that have been awful. Overall he’s 0-2 against the Phils for the year with a 7.58 ERA. Howard is 4-for-10 against him for the season with a pair of home runs. Kendrick was great his last time out, forced into the game after a rain delay forced Oswalt from the game after zero pitches and holding the Nats to two runs over six innings. He’s made four appearances against the Mets this year, one start and three relief appearances, and thrown to a 1.76 ERA over 15 1/3 innings. Pelfrey and Kendrick faced off against each other on July 17 in New York, a game the Phils won 8-5. Kendrick pitched very well that day, holding the Mets to a run over seven innings while Martinez hit a three-run homer and drove in four runs to pace the offense.

The Phils lost Jimmy Rollins to the DL yesterday, but came out swinging last night against the Mets, scoring eight runs charged to Dillon Gee in the first four innings on their way to a 10-0 win. Mayberry and Pence both hit two-run homers in the game. Mayberry’s came off the righty starter after a groin problem forced Ibanez from the lineup.

Lee threw seven shutout innings in the game and was backed by two scoreless frames from Herndon. Again, Lee allowed one run in 42 innings in June and had an off month in July in which he threw to a 4.91 ERA in five starts. In his four starts so far in August, he has allowed two runs in 31 innings.

Since July 6, Herndon has allowed one run in 14 1/3 innings over 11 appearances.

The Phillies are 82-44 on the year after beating the New York Mets 10-0 last night. Thirty-eight games above .500 equals their best mark for the season — they were also 38 games over .500 after beating the Nats 5-0 on Saturday. They remain in first place in the NL East and are 6 1/2 games ahead of the second-place Braves. Atlanta has won five in a row and seven of eight and leads the Wild Card race by 8 1/2 games over the Giants.

Lee got the start for the Phillies and went seven shutout innings, allowing three singles and three walks. He struck out seven and dropped his ERA on the year to 2.71.

He got Angel Pagan on a fly ball to center to start the game before Justin Turner hit a ball to short that Valdez didn’t handle for an error. Lee struck David Wright out looking for the second out and got Jason Bay to fly to center to leave Turner at first.

Not a great start to Valdez’s stint at short with Rollins hitting the DL.

Lucas Duda singled to right to start the second, but Lee got Scott Hairston to line to third and Ronny Paulino to bounce into a double-play to keep the Mets off the board.

Lee started the third up 3-0. Ruben Tejada led off with a single to left and pitcher Dillon Gee bunted him to second with the first out. Pagan struck out swinging 2-2 for the second out and Lee got Turner to ground to short to set New York down.

Up 5-0, Lee walked Bay with one out in the fourth. He struck Duda out swinging 0-2 for the second out and got Hairston to pop to Howard on a sliding over-the-shoulder catch in foul territory to leave Bay stranded.

He pitched the fifth up 8-0. Nick Evans, double-switched into the game in the fourth, walked with two outs. Pagan grounded to second for the third out.

Lee hit Turner with a pitch to start the sixth, but struck out Wright and Bay behind him and got Duda on a ground ball to second for the third out.

Up 10-0, Lee walked Ronny Paulino with one out in the seventh. Tejada moved Paulino to second with a single, but Lee struck Evans out looking for the second out and got Jason Pridie on a popup to leave both runners stranded.

Herndon took over for Lee in the eighth. Wright singled with one out, but Herndon got Bay to hit into a double-play behind him.

Herndon was back for the ninth. Duda led off with a single to right, but Herndon got Willie Harris to hit into a double-play behind him. Paulino struck out looking 2-2 to end the game.

After four scoreless appearances to end July, Herndon has now thrown eight scoreless innings in August. After allowing two runs in two-thirds of an inning to the Fish on July 6, he had a 5.14 ERA for the season. He threw 21 pitches in the game.

The Phillies lineup against righty Dillon Gee went (1) Victorino (2) Polanco (3) Utley (4) Howard (5) Pence (6) Mayberry (7) Ruiz (8) Valdez. Polanco returns from the DL and starts at third. Rollins hits the DL with a strained groin with Valdez playing short. With Rollins sidelined, Victorino leads off and Polanco hits second. Ibanez was a scratch in left with a sore groin and Mayberry got the start against the righty.

Polanco singled to right with one out in the bottom of the first, but was left there when Utley flew out to center and Howard struck out swinging.

After Polanco singled and Utley flew out in the first, both were hitting .277 for the year.

Pence started the second with a single into center. Mayberry popped to short behind him for the first out and Ruiz flew to center for the second before Pence took second on a wild pitch with Valdez at the plate. Valdez singled into right and Pence scored, putting the Phils up 1-0. Lee followed that with another single into right, putting men on first and second with two down for Victorino. Victorino got ahead 3-0 then tripled into the right field corner on a 3-2 pitch, scoring both runners and extending the lead to 3-0. Polanco flew to center to leave Victorino at third.

It looks like the Phils were going to need the help of a wild pitch to score even one run, but Lee follows Valdez’s two-out single with his own two-out single and Victorino clears the bases with a triple.

Pence walked with two outs in the third. Mayberry was next and got behind, but hit a 1-2 pitch out to left to make it 5-0. Ruiz followed that with a double to center. Valdez got ahead 3-0 and was walked intentionally, bringing Lee to the plate with men on first and second. He grounded to second to end the inning.

Mayberry gets behind in the count, but delivers the long ball against a righty. It was home run number eleven on the year for him and his sixth that came with two strikes. Six home runs with two strikes put him into the team lead — he came into the game tied with Victorino and Rollins for the team lead with five two strike home runs.

Tejada made the best defensive play of the game on a foul ball hit by Utley for the first out, making a long run from short and sliding into the tarp to make the catch.

Victorino walked to start the bottom of the fourth and stole second before Polanco walked. Utley was next and he smashed a line drive that Duda caught at first for the first out. Howard struck out swinging 3-2 for the second out. Pence walked in a nine pitch plate appearance, loading the bases for Mayberry. Mayberry walked on four pitches, forcing in Victorino to make it 6-0, and that was finally it for Gee. Righty Ryota Igarashi came in to pitch with the bases still loaded and Ruiz greeted him with a sharp single to center. Polanco and Pence both scored (8-0) with Mayberry moving up to third. Valdez grounded to short for the third out.

Polanco singled to right with two outs in the fifth, but was left stranded when Utley grounded back to the mound.

Howard singled to center to start the sixth and Pence hit a 1-1 pitch out to left center behind him. 10-0. Mayberry, Ruiz and Valdez went in order behind Pence.

The Phils went in order in the seventh.

They went in order again in the eighth. Gload, who took over for Howard at first in the seventh, popped to third for the first out. Martinez, who took over at second for Utley in the seventh, struck out swinging 1-2 for the second.

Gload is 3-for-his-last-33 and hitting 229/247/277 for the season. Martinez 5-for-his-last-38.

Victorino was 1-for-4 in the game with a walk, a triple and two RBI. He’s hitting 362/436/623 so far in August. He hit his 13th triple of the year in the game, which ties his career high from 2009.

Polanco 2-for-4 with a walk in his first action since August 6.

Utley 0-for-4 and left four men on base. He’s 2-for-his-last-16.

Howard 1-for-4 with a single and three strikeouts. Made a nice sliding catch in foul territory in the fourth. 2-for-his-last-13. 242/307/492 since the All-Star break.

Pence 2-for-3 with two walks and a two-run homer. He scored four runs. 321/409/564 in 21 games with the Phillies.

Mayberry 1-for-3 with a walk, a two-run homer and three RBI. 318/348/682 since the All-Star break with six home runs in 66 at-bats.

Ruiz 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI. He’s 8-for-his-last-15.

Valdez 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. He’s played six straight days now, going 5-for-20 with two doubles, a triple and three walks.

Vance Worley (8-1, 2.76) faces lefty Jon Niese (11-10, 4.05) tonight. Opponents have hit .315 against Niese over his last five starts as he’s thrown to a 5.14 ERA. He’s made four starts against the Phillies this year and the last three have been very good. The Phils hit him hard on April 7, scoring six runs in four innings. In his three starts against the Phils since, Niese has allowed three earned runs in 19 2/3 innings, throwing to a 1.37 ERA with a 1.22 ratio. Rain forced Worley from his most recent start, August 18 against the Snakes, after three shutout innings. Two of Worley’s last four starts haven’t been real good, but his numbers for the season are still outstanding. He’s been especially good against lefties, who have hit just 198/273/302 against him for the season. He has given up more home runs recently. After allowing just two over his first 62 1/3 innings on the year, he has allowed four over his last 29 innings.