Behind Victorino, Phillies beat the Mariners and King Felix

SEATTLE - Every time Felix Hernandez starts here, the Mariners take a whole section in the left corner of Safeco Field, call it King's Court, and hand out yellow T-shirts and signs with "K" printed on them. When King Felix reaches two strikes on an opposing hitter, the fans chant "K! K! K!" And usually, those chants end with the fans happily waving those "K" signs in the air.

But on this night, a 5-1 Phillies win, Section 150 had the best view of the ball that ensured a sixth loss for Hernandez. It started in Hernandez's right hand as a curveball and hung long enough for Shane Victorino to slap it with the end of his bat. It landed inside the foul-line chalk, bounced into the stands for a two-run double, and finally the Phillies had solved one of the game's best pitchers.

This game, No. 72 in a long season that is still shy of the halfway mark, will be remembered as one of the finer victories. The Phillies were not the beneficiary of stellar starting pitching, the cause for so many of the team's best-in-baseball 45 wins. The offense squandered numerous scoring chances against Hernandez but still lived to celebrate. The bullpen, propelled by its youth, shut down Seattle.

The result is a rapidly expanding six-game lead in the National League East over Atlanta, the largest of the season. Last season, when the Phillies won 97 games, they did not have a six-game division lead until Sept. 22.

"We beat a good pitcher," Charlie Manuel said. "That definitely builds confidence."

Times are good for these Phillies, who have won seven of eight and survived another game not started by an ace. This time, they opposed one, the reigning American League Cy Young winner in Hernandez.

Before the game, Manuel was asked how to beat Hernandez. His (non) answer was a testament to the pitcher.

"He's pretty tough," Manuel said. "His fastball always seems [like] it's there. That breaking ball is really good. When he gets those two pitches over the plate, he's tough. He usually has command of his fastball anyway. He's pretty good. He's very good."

And that's why, when the Phillies stranded a runner on third base in the third and fourth innings, there was guaranteed frustration in the visitors dugout.

Until the seventh, Hernandez had escaped trouble. But Ross Gload, starting for the first time in 30 days, smacked a one-out single. Domonic Brown stayed on a curveball and poked it the other way for a double. After Carlos Ruiz failed to do anything, Jimmy Rollins worked a six-pitch walk, and that passed the rally to Victorino.

"Mentally, I thought they were going to pitch around him and put me up there," Victorino said. "I'm a guy who's more aggressive and wants to swing the bat. I told myself, 'Just try to get a good pitch. Relax and see something you can put in play.' I succeeded. A lot of times I don't. This time I did."

Victorino watched the first two pitches fly by. With a 1-1 count, Hernandez wanted to slip an 80-m.p.h. curve on the outside edge. It did not break enough and Victorino barely made it count.

But it did. The Phillies centerfielder is the only regular hitting .300. Despite missing two weeks with a hamstring strain, advanced metrics rate Victorino as the team's most valuable position player through 72 games. He was on base four times Saturday, with three extra-base hits, including a two-run home run in the ninth to seal the win. Victorino was just a single shy of the cycle.

"You try to get him up around the plate and do what you can," he said of Hernandez. "Obviously, he doesn't give you that opportunity too many times. We executed very well tonight."

Or, as Manuel put it: "Victorino had some spunk tonight, didn't he?"

With rookie Vance Worley - who could at least say he matched Hernandez for five innings - already removed, the two runs made a winner out of 24-year-old Mike Stutes for the first time in his career. Stutes and Antonio Bastardo, the dynamic bullpen duo, combined for nine impressive outs. In the bottom of the seventh, Bastardo stranded the tying runs on base by fanning Adam Kennedy.

The young relievers, just like the timely work of the veteran offense, all had a part in overcoming Hernandez. And that, no doubt, called for a joyful visitors clubhouse at Safeco Field.