Phillies stage dramatic comeback to beat Brewers, 7-6, at home

The third-string catcher, acting as a pinch-runner, belly-flopped into home plate to secure a victory for a pitcher who had appeared in 17 games, all of which were Phillies losses. A half-empty Citizens Bank Park erupted with the wave of good feelings a city has ridden for five years, except the circumstances are drastically different nowadays.

These Phillies, walk-off winners of two straight games, are merely clinging to relevancy.

"We want to keep our team together," Roy Halladay said. "We want them to feel like we have a chance to win."

Healing will begin with a night like Monday, when the Phillies won a game they should not have. A four-run, ninth-inning comeback resulted in a dramatic 7-6 victory over Milwaukee. There was life in a downtrodden clubhouse and ballpark again.

"I haven't been seeing it," manager Charlie Manuel said. "It's good to see."

Reality is harsh - the Phillies still face double-digit deficits in the division and wild-card races. One victory will not alter how the front office operates come July 31. Two victories offer a glimmer of hope. But it will take much, much more.

They could smile Monday. Erik Kratz's two sons bounced around the room much to the dismay of their father, a 32-year-old with 19 major-league games to his name. The burly 6-foot-4 catcher is rarely asked to pinch-run, which is exactly what he did in the ninth for a slowed Ryan Howard.

"Just don't screw it up," Kratz said of his strategy.

Howard, recovering from Achilles tendon surgery, raised his hands in disgust when Kratz emerged. He had a good laugh about it later.

"It was the right move," he said.

Kratz fell onto home plate just ahead of a tag from Brewers catcher Martin Maldonado after Ty Wigginton hit a fly ball deep enough to left field. That set off a celebration.

Six straight batters reached against newly installed Milwaukee closer Francisco Rodriguez. He issued a one-out walk to Jimmy Rollins, a single to Juan Pierre, and walk to Chase Utley to load the bases. Howard smashed a liner up the middle that plated two. Carlos Ruiz scorched one just over Cesar Izturis' outstretched glove at shortstop to tie it before Kratz's dash won it.

"It's huge," Howard said. "We have to build on that momentum. We have to take the energy we had and spread it out over the course of a game and not try to do it in the last inning."

They trailed much of the night when Halladay was rendered human once again. If the goal is to reload for 2013 - or even contend now - a healthy Halladay will be integral. After a 50-day stint on the disabled list, Halladay looks much the same as he did before. He allowed six runs on eight hits Tuesday with diminished velocity.

His ERA ballooned to 4.32. He has finished a season worse just once, in 2000, when 19 games of a 10.64 ERA earned him a demotion to single-A.

Halladay said he feels healthy and cited rust as a factor Monday.

"I feel 100 times better," Halladay said. "It's one of those things, you don't want to overthink it. You want to take the small steps, correct things, and not get overwhelmed by bumps in the road."

Halladay's sinker averaged 90.8 m.p.h., according to Pitch F/X data, before he was put on the disabled list. That was about 2 m.p.h. below his 2011 average. He could barely crack 91 m.p.h. Monday, and when he did it was mostly done in the first inning.

Halladay was not the only concern. Shane Victorino exited the game in the second inning after being plunked on the right elbow with a pitch. His status was not immediately known, but the injury was not believed to be serious. The centerfielder thought he should have been awarded first base, but was not. Utley and Howard followed with back-to-back home runs.

Ultimately, it was inconsequential, and Joe Savery earned his first major-league win by happenstance. He had appeared in 17 games, all Phillies losses.

"I really feel like I'm going to savor this moment," Savery said. "No pun intended."

Yes, they could smile.

"That's why you play the game out," Manuel said. But it was impossible not to wonder if it was too little, too late for these Phillies.