But what Moyer lacked in pregame billing - Come watch a guy throw 82 mph in his 558th career start! - he more than made up for in performance, pitching seven innings and going 2-for-3 with an RBI double while leading the Phillies to a 11-4 win.

"It's pretty amazing - he could be the father of a lot of these guys," said shortstop Eric Bruntlett, who was one of seven Phillies with multiple hits, one of them a three-run triple in the seventh. "He is pretty incredible to watch. He's been doing it for so long, and he has such a good feel for how to pitch."

This four-game series against the sizzling Diamondbacks will be a contrast in opposite styles, and last night's matchup between the 45-year-old veteran and the young rookie was an appropriate way for it to begin. Arizona has four starting pitchers with the stuff to dominate games, and Scherzer, who pitched four scoreless innings in his big-league debut, is one of them. Meanwhile, the Phillies' rotation, with the exception of Cole Hamels and, when things are clicking, Brett Myers, is composed largely of pitchers who are better at managing games than winning them on their own.

Moyer is that type of pitcher, and last night that is what he did. He gave up just six hits, allowing his first run on a triple by shortstop Stephen Drew with two outs in the second inning, and his second on a solo home run by Chris Snyder in the seventh.

With closer Brad Lidge unavailable after pitching in four straight games, Moyer ate up seven valuable innings.

The veteran was aided by a lineup that exploded for 17 hits. In a 180-degree reversal from the way things have transpired for most of the season, leftfielder Pat Burrell was the only regular who didn't get a hit.

Among those 17 hits were those by the seven players - counting Moyer - who got at least two.

Geoff Jenkins went 3-for-6 to raise his average to .268. Chase Utley went 2-for-4 with two doubles and is hitting .362. Pedro Feliz, Carlos Ruiz, Bruntlett and Shane Victorino - all of whom entered batting under .250 - also had at least two hits.

"I'm sure that made Jamie's job a little easier," manager Charlie Manuel said.

Unlike Moyer, Scherzer threw hard - his first pitch was clocked at 95. But he also got himself into trouble in the first inning, allowing a leadoff single to Victorino, then hitting Bruntlett with a pitch. The Phillies managed just one run in the inning - on a sacrifice fly by Ryan Howard - and Scherzer struck out Burrell to end the frame.

Scherzer showed flashes of the dominance the Diamondbacks hope he one day gains, striking out five in his four innings of work, including Burrell twice and Howard once.

But he allowed four runs in the third inning, including Moyer's RBI double down the leftfield line.

Scherzer, who threw 92 pitches, was plucked from the game prior to the fifth. Moyer didn't throw his 92nd pitch until the seventh, retiring the Diamondbacks in order in the third, fourth and fifth innings. He worked in and out of trouble in the sixth, allowing singles to Chris Young and Eric Byrnes to start the inning, but getting Orlando Hudson to ground into a doubleplay and Conor Jackson to ground out to short to end the threat.

Moyer hadn't pitched into the seventh in any of his first six starts, but when his turn in the batting order arrived in the top of the seventh and men on first and third, Manuel opted to let him hit. Moyer bunted, putting men on second and third. That set up an intentional walk to Victorino, and a three-run triple by Bruntlett gave the Phillies an 8-1 lead. Howard later singled to the right side of the infield to score Bruntlett and snap an 0-for-12 skid that saw him strike out seven times.

Moyer had thrown just 83 pitches at that point, allowing five hits and the one run. After recording two outs in the seventh, he gave up a solo home run to Young, but rebounded to strike out Drew to end the inning.

Moyer then gave way to Ryan Madson after throwing 103 pitches.

The performance came at the perfect time. The Diamondbacks entered the game with a major league best 21-10 record. The Phillies, meanwhile, had faced just three teams with winning records.

Manuel said the series would be a good measuring stick, and in the first game, his squad passed, winning for the 11th time in 15 games and moving a full game ahead of the Marlins in first place in the NL East. And 1 1/2 games ahead of the third-place Mets.

"It's a big road trip for us west of the Mississippi," Moyer said. "And, that's a good way to get started." *

For more Phillies coverage and opinion, read David Murphy's blog, High Cheese, at http://go.philly.com/highcheese.