Phillies Notebook: Rollins weathers another night out of Phillies lineup

You can blame the rain for Jimmy Rollins' absence from the starting lineup last night. Charlie Manuel had planned on giving the shortstop his first start since he strained a hamstring on Sept. 8, but decided that the damp weather would present an unnecessary risk of an awkward slip.

"I figured the field is going to be wet, especially the grass - outfield and infield," Manuel said. "And I figured, what do I gain by playing him?"

Rollins entered last night having played in just 83 games this season thanks to two calf strains, a bruised foot and this hamstring injury. His career-low for a season is 137 games, which came in 2008 when he missed 3 weeks with a sprained ankle. Rollins, who hit .250 last season, is hitting .244 this year. His career-low came in 2002, when he hit .245 in his second full season in the majors.

Rollins pinch-hit, grounding out in his only at-bat, and played a half-inning on defense in the 7-3 loss to the Mets on Sunday.

Manuel said he expects to hit Rollins in the bottom half of the order upon his return, a move that reaped some dividends in the days leading up to the hamstring injury.

In seven starts in the lower half of the order - three at No. 5 and four at No. 6 - Rollins is 9-for-24 with a double, a home run and five RBI.

Rollins' replacement at the top of the order, centerfielder Shane Victorino, entered last night hitting .279 with a .346 on-base percentage and 12 home runs in the leadoff spot.

Manuel did say he still views Rollins as a leadoff hitter. Right now, though, the biggest goal is to get him in the game.

"I think he's got to get on the field," the manager said. "He's got to get his timing and rhythm back on the field too, as far as fielding balls, throwing them and things like that. And he's got to get some at-bats. I think it's very important for him to get back on the field and play some before we get into the playoffs."

During a road trip through Baltimore earlier this summer, when Mike Sweeney was still a member of the Seattle Mariners, he dropped by Walter Reed Medical Center and visited with wounded soldiers. So when Phillies team chaplain Rich Sparling planned a trip to the army hospital, Sweeney made sure to make the rounds in the clubhouse and recruit participants.

As of yesterday, 11 players planned on attending.

"It just shows that we're playing a game for a living, and the way we play the game might give joy to a lot of people in our country, maybe even our soldiers," Sweeney said. "But the true heroes are those that defend our country. And we as ballplayers want to give back to them."

Charlie Manuel reiterated yesterday that he would like to get third baseman Placido Polanco some rest in the near future. Polanco entered last night hitting .219 with a .285 on-base percentage and seven extra-base hits in his last 38 games. During that time period, his batting average tumbled from .325 to .295. The veteran infielder has battled a sore elbow for most of the season and likely will require surgery (the culprit is believed to be a bone chip). He entered yesterday leading all NL third basemen with a .988 fielding percentage, despite playing the position regularly for the first time since 2005.

"I think the elbow hurts him at times," Manuel said. "I think that some days it feels better than others. I think that he is one guy that once we get this out of the way I will give him a break. Of course, he'll be off Thursday, but I'd like to give him more time than that."

Charlie Manuel said he has yet to finalize plans for the rotation for the rest of the season. Roy Oswalt is still expected to start today . . . Jayson Werth homered in the second inning last night to increase his season total to 26.