FOR CHARLIE MANUEL, it is a date that lives in infamy: June 13, 2008. Friday the 13th. What should have been a highlight of the Phillies' season, a 20-2 win over the Cardinals in which they rapped 21 hits and four home runs, instead became a moment he would rue for much of the next calendar year.

"I don't even want to talk about that," Manuel said yesterday when a reporter brought it up.

That's because the 18-run win over the Cardinals eventually became a symbol of the unfulfilled potential of the Phillies offense over the rest of the season. Before the monstrous win, they were hitting .262 and averaging 5.2 runs per game. After, they hit only .248 and averaged 4.6 runs per game, relying on a solid rotation and dominant bullpen to capture their second straight National League East title.

Which brings us to the events of Monday night, when the Phillies recorded their largest victory in the modern era, beating the Reds, 22-1. The only other times in club history that they finished with a bigger margin of victory were in 1894, when they beat Louisville, 29-4, and in 1887, when they beat Indianapolis, 24-0.

Unlike last year, when their biggest explosion spelled the end of a prolific offensive run, the Phillies are hopeful that this year's edition will spark the beginning of one. Before their epic win Monday night, they were hitting .236 and averaging 4.2 runs in their previous 21 games. A big reason they are optimistic that that performance is in the past is the increased production of leadoff hitter Jimmy Rollins, who entered last night with 10 hits and five walks in his last 24 plate appearances.

Speaking before last night's 4-3 to the Reds, Manuel said he noticed a couple of mechanical adjustments that Rollins had made, including tapping his lead foot twice when he cocks his hand as the pitch his delivered.

"He's gotten back a little closer to the plate," Manuel said. "His load is better. What happens when he is doing his two taps, he is cocking his hips and loading up his two hands, and those are two things that set you up. That's your trigger . . . He's staying behind good and his hands are quicker. His bat is more in the hitting zone. He is going down to the ball instead up underneath it."

National Halladay?

 

Members of the Phillies organization have long been intrigued about the possibility of adding Blue Jays ace righthander Roy Halladay to their rotation.

Now, it sounds as if Toronto might actually be ready to deal. Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi told several media outlets yesterday that he would listen to offers for Halladay, prompting several national baseball columnists to declare the Phillies among the early favorites to land the 2003 AL Cy Young winner.

"I'm not saying we're going to shop him," Ricciardi told FoxSports.com "But if something makes sense, we at least have to listen. We're [leaning] more toward listening than we've ever been."

What would it take to land Halladay, who is 17-8 with a 3.02 ERA in 35 career appearances against National League teams? A steep price, both in terms of prospects, and in terms of the roughly $23 million he is owed for the rest of this season and next year. But both are to be expected for one of the game's top pitchers. Halladay, 32, has thrown at least 220 innings in each of the last three seasons, and is well on his way again this season. Over the last three seasons, he has averaged 17 wins, seven losses, and a 3.22 ERA while playing in one of the most talented divisions in baseball.

The Phillies had a scout in Toronto in May for two games, one of which was started by Halladay, and the Blue Jays had a scout at Citizens Bank Park last night. But it remains to be seen whether they will put together an offer that can sway the Blue Jays and Halladay, who has a full no-trade clause.

Halladay is 10-2 with a 2.79 ERA in 16 starts this season, although a trip to the disabled list with a strained groin prevented him from facing the Phillies in either of the teams' series.

Phillers

 

Righthander Clay Condrey, on the disabled list with a strained oblique since June 23, threw off the mound yesterday. Condrey has been eligible to be activated since Saturday, but the Phillies have not announced a definite timeline for his return . . . Raul Ibanez (groin) had a single, walk and strikeout in three plate appearance in a rehab start at Triple A Lehigh Valley . . . Greg Dobbs entered last night hitting .357 with four home runs and 12 RBI in 17 starts, compared with .150 with one home run and three RBI in 47 non-starts. *