The Phillies set their clocks back an hour yesterday. They were not able to set them back a year.

Part of what made their run to the 2008 World Series championship so exhilarating was the way the Phillies would deliver the big hit at just the right time. Whether it was Matt Stairs' series-changing home run against the Dodgers in the National League playoffs or Carlos Ruiz's 50-foot single against the Rays or a strikeout by Brad Lidge, the Phillies came up with exactly what was needed in the clutch.

It was a phenomenon this championship-starved city hadn't witnessed in a generation. After years of expecting the worst, it was thrilling to see a team produce under pressure. You got the sense that team was star-kissed, destined, special.

That makes it all the more painful for Phillies fans to watch this year's Series. The New York Yankees could celebrate a championship inside Citizens Bank Park tonight because they, not the Phillies, are getting the big hits. They, not the Phillies, have the impervious closer. They, not the Phillies, feel the hand of kismet guiding their way.

The last glimmer of '08 magic fell from the sky and into the left-field seats in the bottom of the eighth inning. After a long game filled with missed opportunities for the Phillies' big bats, third baseman Pedro Feliz drilled a 97-m.p.h. fastball from Joba Chamberlain into the left field seats.

Feliz tied the game at 4, giving the Phillies real hope and filling the Bank with that familiar wall of sound.

Then two things happened. Manager Charlie Manuel brought Brad Lidge out to pitch the top of the ninth. It was a standard baseball move at home, having your closer shut down the opponent and giving your hitters a chance for a walk-off victory.

But there's nothing standard about this time of year. Lidge had not pitched in the World Series. He hadn't appeared in a game in 11 days.

But Lidge retired Hideki Matsui and Derek Jeter for two quick outs before Johnny Damon stepped into the batter's box. Damon worked a full count and fouled off two fastballs before dunking a single to left.

That's when the second thing happened. With Mark Teixeira batting lefthanded against the righthanded Lidge, the Phillies put on the kind of defensive shift teams frequently use on Ryan Howard. That strategy blew up in their faces when Damon stole second base.

Feliz, the third baseman, was the guy who took the throw at second. Damon realized immediately that there wasn't a Phillie within a country mile of third. So he stole that, too.

"I thought we had him," Lidge said. "Then I looked and saw there was nobody at third."

That's because Lidge, along with catcher Carlos Ruiz, is one of the players charged with covering third base in that situation.

Manuel called it "miscommunication," but really, it was a case of Damon outsmarting the usually savvy Phillies.

Damon was 90 feet from scoring the winning run and Lidge's best pitch, his slider, was too risky to throw. Thrown well, the pitch drops suddenly and is difficult for the catcher to handle. Losing a World Series game on a wild pitch would have been even harder to take than what followed.

And what followed was hard to take.

Lidge hit Teixeira to bring up Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez crushed a fastball for an RBI double. Jorge Posada hit a two-run single.

Game over. Series on the brink. Phillies in dire, dire straits.

That ninth inning will be celebrated in New York as proof of Yankees grit. It will be rued in Philadelphia like Chico Ruiz stealing home and Greg Luzinski staying in left field.

But the Phillies have not played like a championship team throughout the four games of this Series. Except for Cliff Lee's performance and Chase Utley's home runs in Game 1, the Phillies have been a pale imitation of themselves against the Yankees.

That is a product of bad luck. The Yankees weren't assembled with the Phillies in mind, but they may as well have been. A lefty-killing pitching staff is the worst possible matchup for the Phillies' lefty-heavy lineup.

Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez are hitting under .200 and have struck out a total of 19 times. Utley has three solo home runs off CC Sabathia, but precious little else. The two speed guys at the top of the order, Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino, are both hitting .200.

Great players find ways to overcome tough matchups. In this World Series, the Phillies' best players have not been close to great. If that sounds simple, well, it is.

The Phillies hit just .262 in last year's World Series. They won because of a few key hits and superior pitching. They aren't getting enough of either this year.

That's why, even with their clocks turned back, time is running out on these Phillies.

Contact columnist Phil Sheridan at 215-854-2844 or psheridan@phillynews.com. Read his recent work at http://go.philly.com/philsheridan.