Burrell’s blast lifts Phils past D’backs

By Sam Carchidi

INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

It would have made a nice little story if Pat Burrell attributed his game-winning, three-run homer today to the incentive gained from his all-star snub.

But Burrell, the Phillies' easy-going leftfielder, put a different spin on not being selected to his first All-Star Game.

"I'd like to go, but there was no message," he said after his homer snapped a 2-2, eighth-inning tie and propelled the Phillies to a 6-3 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks before another Citizens Bank Park sellout. "It's over with."

He was talking about his all-star hopes, not the season.

The victory, which also featured three hits from Pedro Feliz and a key run-scoring, seventh-inning double from an awakening Jimmy Rollins, ensured that the Phillies would be in first place at the all-star break.

"We've been struggling trying to manufacture runs, so it was nice to be up there with men in scoring position and be able to hang in there long enough to get a pitch to hit," said Burrell, who sent Chad Qualls' 2-2 slider into the left-field bleachers.

Burrell finished the unofficial first half with a .275 average, 23 homers, 57 RBIs and a .404 on-base percentage. He is on pace to finish with a career-high 39 homers and 96 RBIs.

Cole Hamels, who scattered 11 hits and allowed just two runs in seven innings, thinks Burrell should be at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday for the 79th annual All-Star Game.

"He's put up tremendous numbers and when you're on a first-place team, you have to look at the guys who got you there," said Hamels, whose numbers - 9-6, 3.15 ERA, second in the league with 126 strikeouts - arguably make him all-star worthy. "And he's the guy who's kept us in line."

While the Phils' marquee trio of Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Rollins is having an up-and-down season, Burrell has been extremely steady. He has reached base in 83 of his 94 games, and manager Charlie Manuel thinks he can be a .300 hitter.

"He's been very consistent since the second half of last year," Manuel said.

Ditto Hamels, who has pitched at least seven innings in eight straight starts. He has pitched a league-high 1422/3 innings, which is why the Phils will give him a few extra days' rest and not start him again until Sunday.

Hamels also cracked an RBI double - his 13th hit of the season - off Arizona all-star Brandon Webb to cut the Diamondbacks' lead to 2-1 in the fifth.

With the score tied at 2, Utley and Howard singled to start the eighth against Qualls, a righthander who then served up Burrell's homer. Two batters later, Feliz rapped a Citizens Bank Park special, a liner that barely cleared the railing in left for his 12th homer.

Ryan Madson notched the win with a scoreless eighth, and Brad Lidge allowed a run in the ninth and finished the Phils' fourth victory in their last five games - and kept them in first place.

"The Mets are pitching great and the Marlins can hit," Lidge said. "This was a huge game to go into the break with the lead, but we have our work cut out in the second half.

"We've put ourselves in a good position, but I don't think we've played our best baseball yet."

Burrell agreed.

"We've got a lot of baseball left and there are a lot of things we can do to improve," said Burrell, who now has 241 career homers - two shy of Hall-of-Famer Chuck Klein for second place on the Phillies' all-time list. "Hopefully, the time off gives the guys a chance to regroup and refocus and get ready for a strong second half."

Contact staff writer Sam Carchidi

at 215-854-5181

or scarchidi@phillynews.com.

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