Phillies clinching division could give Howard some relief

The sooner the Phillies clinch their fifth consecutive division title, the better for Ryan Howard and his aching left ankle and heel.

That's because the slugging first baseman may get some relief from his bursitis with a cortisone injection.

"It's still early enough to where, hopefully, we clinch and we'll discuss that and see if that's the best option," Howard said Friday before the Phillies opened a four-game series against St. Louis at Citizens Bank Park.

For the fourth time in 10 games, manager Charlie Manuel kept Howard out of the lineup.

"I think it's better some days than others," Manuel said. "When he plays on it some nights, he agitates it more than others."

The pain has been persistent.

"It's sore," said Howard, who was favoring the ankle as he walked through the clubhouse. "There are days when it is looser than others and days when it is stiff. I think the one constant has been the soreness that has just been there."

Howard ended an 0-for-15 slide in the second game of Thursday's doubleheader against Florida by lining a game-winning double in the 10th inning. He refers to his injury as a "hankle" because both the ankle and heel are hurting, but he said hitting is not a problem.

"It really doesn't affect me in my stance," he said. "It's more so running."

Howard didn't take batting practice Friday, but he said he probably would hit some in the cage during the game. He said he didn't know for sure whether this problem is related to the ankle injury that sent him to the disabled list late last season.

"There could be an outside chance it is," he said. "They say sprains tend to linger."

The Phillies are sitting so nicely that they have the luxury of giving key players plenty of rest before the NL division series, which begins Oct. 1.

Yet Manuel doesn't quite see it that way. Instead, he will attempt a delicate balancing act during the next two weeks. He wants to give his regulars enough work to keep them sharp, but also give them enough time off to keep them fresh. He also wants to give the bench players enough at-bats to prevent them from getting stale.

Manuel believes that the five-day layoff between last season's NLDS and NL Championship Series factored into the Phillies' offensive problems when they lost to San Francisco in the NLCS. So he wants to play his regulars together for about half the remaining 13 games.

"I think it's important to put a lineup on the field that we'll try to use during the postseason," he said.

Largely because of injuries to Placido Polanco, Jimmy Rollins, and Chase Utley, the regulars have been in the starting lineup for only seven games since Aug. 7.

Ben Francisco started in left field Friday. Going into the game, Francisco had only 40 at-bats since July 1. John Mayberry Jr. started at first base. Brian Schneider was at catcher for Carlos Ruiz, so only five of the eight position players are regulars.

The Phils were trying to become the first NL team to be at least 47 games over .500 since the 2004 Cardinals, who finished 105-57. . . . For his last eight starts, Cliff Lee has a 0.56 ERA, the lowest ever by a Phillies pitcher over an eight-game span, according to Elias Sports Bureau.