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Hamels sparkles, Phils hit 5 homers in win

Jun 15, 2011 - 4:09 AM Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Cole Hamels worked seven-plus strong innings and the Phillies hit five home runs in a 9-1 rout of the Marlins in the opener of a four-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

Hamels (9-2) improved to 5-0 over his past six starts, giving up just one run on three hits with a walk and six strikeouts. However, he left the game after walking Wes Helms to leadoff the eighth with tightness in his back. He joined teammate Roy Halladay as the only nine-game winners in the majors.

"He got stiff a little bit there," said Phillies manager Charlie Manuel about Hamels' injury. "The wind was blowing and he got kind of cold. I don't think it's nothing serious and we'll find out a little bit more about it, but he's all right."

Domonic Brown hit two solo home runs while Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins each added two-run homers for the Phillies, who have won four straight.

Gaby Sanchez drove in the lone run for the Marlins, who fell to 1-12 in June and moved behind the New York Mets for fourth place in the NL East. Chris Volstad (2-7) was torched for eight runs on 10 hits over just 5 2/3 innings as he dropped his fourth straight start.

"Chris was elevating his pitches. With that lineup, he's going to get hurt," said Marlins manager Edwin Rodriguez. "We had to keep him out there for a while because of the doubleheader tomorrow and we overused the bullpen yesterday. He took one for the team."

After the rain delayed the start of the game, the Marlins got to Hamels in the first inning. With one out, consecutive singles from Emilio Bonifacio and Logan Morrison put runners on the corners and Sanchez brought one home with a groundout.

That was it for the Marlins bats, though, as Hamels retired the next 16 batters before Morrison led off the seventh by reaching base on a Howard error. Sanchez then singled, but Hamels set down the next three batters.

While Hamels did his stuff on the mound, the Phillies used the long ball five times to take control of the game.

The team erased its deficit in the bottom of the first as Rollins led off with a single and Howard later belted an opposite-field homer for a 2-1 lead.

It was Utley's turn to go deep in the third inning when, after Shane Victorino singled with two outs, he clubbed a 3-1 pitch into the seats in right for a 4-1 advantage.

Brown hit his first homer of the game in the fourth inning and a sacrifice fly by Placido Polanco in the fifth gave the Phils a 6-1 lead.

Rollins' turn to go long happened in the sixth. With Carlos Ruiz on base, Rollins knocked a 1-0 pitch into the right field seats for a seven-run lead.

The seventh inning saw Brown crush an 0-2 pitch into the second deck in right field for a 9-1 lead.

David Herndon pitched the final two innings after Hamels left in the eighth.

"I got lucky to have the wind in my favor," Hamels admitted. "You can be effectively wild in some situations and use the elements to your advantage and so be it."

Game Notes

Howard has seven home runs in his career against Volstad. It is the most home runs he has against any one pitcher in the majors...It was the first time this season the Phillies hit more than three home runs in one game and the first five-home run game for the team since June 19, 2010...Howard has 55 RBI on the season...Wednesday will see the teams play a day-night doubleheader due to a rainout on April 16. The first game is set to begin at 1:05 p.m. (et) with Kyle Kendrick taking the mound for Philly and Elih Villanueva set to make his Major League debut for the Marlins. The second game will start at 7:05 p.m. (et) and will see Anibal Sanchez pitching for the Marlins and Halladay looking for win No. 10 for the Phillies...Before the game, the Marlins activated shortstop Hanley Ramirez from the 15-day disabled list. He had been on it since May 29 because of a lower back strain. To make room on the roster, the team placed center fielder Scott Cousins on the 15-day disabled list with a lower back strain.