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Seven-run second helps Myers end skid

May 31, 2008 - 5:00 AM By Larry Dougherty PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) -- With their potent offense, the Philadelphia Phillies were not the least bit worried when they fell behind early.

Chris Coste and Chase Utley homered during a seven-run second inning as the Phillies rolled to a 12-3 triumph over the Florida Marlins on Friday.

Ryan Howard added a three-run blast in the fourth for Philadelphia, which erased an early 3-0 deficit en route to its season-high fifth straight victory. The 12-run outburst was the team's third double-digit output of the week.

With the three blasts, the Phillies set a franchise record with 41 homers in the month of May. The shots also helped the club take over sole possession of first place in the National League East Division, one-half game ahead of the Marlins, who lost their third in a row.

Brett Myers (3-6) overcame a rough first inning to end a personal five-game skid. The righthander allowed three runs, six hits and three walks with a season-high 11 strikeouts in eight innings to post his first win since April 17.

"The first inning was not too fun," Myers said. "I was having a little trouble getting through the ball. My hip was a little tight. It felt like it was getting pinched. I came in after the first inning and had it popped. Running around the bases helped it, and it felt better after that."

"It was very important (for him to get the win)," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "Once he got by the first inning and settled down, he pitched a very good game."

Florida jumped on Myers right out of the gate as leadoff hitter Hanley Ramirez singled and Jeremy Hermida walked before Jorge Cantu delivered an RBI base hit off the left field wall. Three batters later, Luis Gonzalez plated two with a single for a 3-0 bulge.

But the Phillies erupted for seven runs in the second off Mark Hendrickson (7-3) to take control. Coste blasted a three-run homer to tie the game and Shane Victorino extended his career-high hitting streak to 11 games with a two-run double before Utley belted his major league-leading 18th shot for a 7-3 lead.

"The second inning set the tone for a lot of things, obviously offensively, but it gave Brett a little breathing room, which he needed, and he responded to it," Coste said. "We have been putting runs on the board lately, and that was a good inning to set the pace for the rest of the game."

The Phillies added four more runs in the fourth inning, with the big blast coming off the bat of Howard. The 2006 NL MVP greeted reliever Burke Badenhop with his 15th homer of the season, hitting the ball off the left field foul pole.

"They're hot right now," Florida's Luis Gonzalez said of Philadelphia's offense. "They're swinging it."

Hendrickson was battered for 10 runs and seven hits in 3 2/3 innings, walking three and striking out one.

"I had some bad walks and then some bad pitches on the home runs," Hendrickson said. "Tonight was just bad all around. It started with me."

Philadelphia capped the scoring in the seventh, when So Taguchi drew a bases-loaded walk from Andrew Miller.

In the meantime, Myers had his way with the Marlins. The righthander retired 15 of 17 batters at one point, including five straight strikeouts.

"I threw a couple of pitches tonight that made me feel like I was back to where I wanted to be," Myers said. "To where I was starting to locate my fastball a little better, and I think that was a key tonight."

The Marlins suffered a big blow in the fifth, when Ramirez left the game with a left thumb contusion. The shortstop suffered the injury while fielding a grounder off the bat of Jimmy Rollins an inning earlier.

"We'll check tomorrow," Florida manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "The X-ray was fine. Just got hit in the fat pad of his left thumb. Maybe he'll be in the lineup. It wouldn't surprise me."

Philadelphia has scored 60 runs during its five-game winning streak. The offense has batted around six times during that stretch and sent eight hitters to the plate in an inning on three other occasions.

"It is confidence, and we now know that we can get the big hit," Coste said. "Not just the home run, but the two-out RBI, because early in the season, we were not getting that big hit."