For Phillies' Howard, no time to rest

CHASE UTLEY was out of the lineup last night against the Pittsburgh Pirates, a night after both Carlos Ruiz and Marlon Byrd didn't start. Jimmy Rollins hasn't played since suffering a mild hamstring strain on Monday, and he won't be rushed back because, on a team going nowhere in the final month of a long season, there's no point in running older players into the proverbial ground.

Meanwhile, Ryan Howard started for the 35th time in the 36 games the Phillies have played since July 31. The rest of the mid-30-somethings have rested more often, while Howard has played regularly.

What gives?

"He just has the ability to be the guy in the game to pop a ball and make something happen," manager Ryne Sandberg said. "He's had a knack for being the guy to get a base hit to drive in a run. He's that guy in the middle of the lineup for me. And for the most part he's been equally effective against righthanded and lefthanded pitching."

Of course, the Phillies also could be playing Howard as much as they can in an effort to inflate some of his traditional power stats so they might be able to find a suitor for the slugger in a trade this winter. Howard is owed $60 million after the 2014 season, but the front office had dialogue this summer about possibly parting ways with the former MVP in the coming offseason, according to CSNPhilly.com; they'd obviously have to pay the majority of those dollars to make that happen.

But if Howard reaches 25 home runs and 100 RBI over the rest of the season - he is four home runs and eight RBI shy of those numbers - the thinking is maybe an American League team would take a chance at a heavily discounted price.

Earlier this month, general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. emphasized the need to make major changes on his roster this winter, and moving your most expensive everyday player would qualify as a major change. On a roster crowded with difficult-to-move veterans, and with more than a couple of first-base options, dealing Howard also would open a spot for either Darin Ruf or Maikel Franco.

Both Ruf (leftfield) and Franco (third base) started yesterday, with Cody Asche out for the fourth time in the last five games. Asche, unlike Howard, is another young player the Phillies obviously need to see more, and not less of, to make a judgment where he fits into their future plans.

Still, Howard plays. Since July 31, when Byrd has been out of the lineup five times, Utley and Rollins four times, and Ruiz 10 times, Howard has rested once.

During that time, he has hit .227 with 10 extra-base hits (five homers). Since the calendar flipped over to September, Howard is hitting .156 with strikeouts in more than half of his at-bats (17 of 32).

"The last few games he's just a little bit off of the ball," Sandberg said yesterday afternoon. "He had a stretch there where he was making some contact and making some things happen. The last few games, yeah, he just seems to be off of the ball, missing his pitches and getting himself in a hole and getting some tough pitches to lay off of."

The Phillies can only hope Howard taps into his power stroke at some point in the 16 games that remain on the schedule. It would appear that he will get plenty of opportunity to do so.

Domonic Brown, who left Wednesday's game with a left shoulder contusion, was available to play yesterday, manager Ryne Sandberg said. Sandberg opted to start the righthanded-hitting Darin Ruf in leftfield against Pittsburgh lefthander Francisco Liriano . . . Jimmy Rollins (left hamstring) took part in some stretching exercises yesterday, but still hasn't been cleared for baseball activities. Rollins said after suffering the injury on Monday that he hoped to rejoin the Phillies next weekend in Oakland . . . Maikel Franco made his sixth start since joining the Phillies on Sept. 2. All of Franco's starts have come at third base. Sandberg said he also would like to see Franco at first base, which could happen next weekend when the Phillies will employ a designated hitter for three games in Oakland.

Blog: ph.ly/HighCheese