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Phils rout Giants, game turns ugly

Aug 6, 2011 - 7:34 AM San Francisco, CA (Sports Network) - The Phillies and Giants are developing quite a rivalry as two of the National League's top teams.

Too bad it sometimes turns ugly.

John Mayberry, Hunter Pence and Shane Victorino all homered and Vance Worley threw seven strong innings Friday night to lead the Phillies over the Giants, 9-2, in a game that was marred by a benches-clearing incident in the sixth inning.

While no apparent punches were thrown, the teams came together in a spat after Giants reliever Ramon Ramirez hit Victorino with a pitch -- seemingly on purpose -- in the lower back.

"I had no intention of going out there and charging the mound. I just wanted to know why in that situation (he hit me)," said Victorino. "He was around the plate all night and throughout that inning and all of a sudden with two outs I get up to the plate and first pitch is at my back. I just wanted to go out there and get an answer. I had no intentions of charging the mound."

The teams also emptied their benches in Game 6 of last year's National League Championship Series soon after Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez plunked Chase Utley.

Sanchez started this one as well, but was outdueled by Worley (8-1), who allowed two runs on seven hits with six strikeouts to remain unbeaten in his last nine outings.

The Phillies won their season-high eighth straight game with a 13-hit barrage, picking mostly on Sanchez (4-6) in his first start since June 24.

Gone long before the benches cleared, the San Francisco starter, who had been sidelined with left biceps tendinitis, took the loss after giving up five runs on seven hits and just 4 2/3 innings.

The Giants remained a half-game ahead of Arizona for first place in the NL West, but they are barely clinging to the lead. They fell to 1-7 in their last eight games and 1-4 on a 10-game homestand.

Victorino stepped toward the mound after he was hit by a first-pitch fastball and Ramirez tossed his glove down, sparking the melee.

"He hit Vic and then he came off the mound at him. If you go back and look, that's what I saw," said Phillies manager Charlie Manuel. "Vic almost has to go unless he wants his teammates to call him chicken. That's kind of the way baseball works."

Both players were ejected, along with Giants catcher Eli Whiteside, who was jumping around in front of Victorino before he turned and wrapped up Placido Polanco by the legs as he rushed in from first base.

"I did step forward. Obviously Eli, from looking at his reaction, thought I was going to go and he started jumping around," said Victorino. "Polanco came in and he tackled Polanco and everything escalated from there."

The teams, including both bullpens, gathered in front of the mound in a scrum while Victorino was being held back by home plate umpire Mike Muchlinski.

"It's baseball. It happened fast and tempers flared," said Giants manager Bruce Bochy. "It's just part of the game. Hopefully nobody got hurt out there."

The Phillies were leading 8-2 at the time after Brian Schneider hit an RBI single and Jimmy Rollins added a two-run base hit. Pence tacked on a run with a long homer to lead off the seventh inning -- his second in as many nights.

The MLB-leading Phillies won the opener of this four-game series 3-0 on Thursday night behind Cliff Lee's fifth shutout of the season and Pence's first homer in a Philadelphia uniform.

Scoreless the night before, the Giants plated a run in the first inning of this one on Pablo Sandoval's sacrifice fly.

But the Phillies put together a four-run rally in the fourth inning that was keyed by a solo homer from Victorino and a two-run blast by Mayberry. They chased Sanchez in the fifth when Polanco knocked Rollins in with a single to make it 5-1.

"Tonight's game was one of the most exciting in a while," Rollins tweeted afterward.

Whiteside led off the fifth with his fourth homer of the season.

Game Notes

Mayberry started at first base for Ryan Howard, who pinch-ran for Victorino after he was ejected and remained in the game...The Phillies are 7-0 since acquiring Pence from Houston last week. They lead the majors with a 73-39 record and are 5-0 on a 10-game road trip...Worley is 6-0 in his last nine starts...Sanchez is winless in his last five starts (0-3).