While his teammates focused Saturday on trying to sweep the Brewers and bring a premature close to the best-of-five National League Division Series, Joe Blanton already was thinking about starting Game 4 Sunday at Miller Park.
Good thing, too. Now that the Phillies have lost Game 3, it is Blanton, the burly right-hander acquired in July from the Oakland Athletics, who will be charged with making certain they avoid having to face Brewers ace CC Sabathia in a decisive Game 5 Tuesday night at Citizens Bank Park.
"I've been mentally prepared the whole time," Blanton said after the Phillies' 4-1 loss Saturday night at Miller Park. "I just feel like the only way you could look at it is there was going to be a game. I felt like if I looked at it any other way, I wouldn't be physically or mentally ready. So I went through the whole process to get ready for this game."
But the process was different than usual.
Blanton hasn't pitched since Sept. 26, when he allowed four runs (one earned) in six innings against the Nationals. In the six days that followed, he threw three bullpen sessions, and during Friday's workout at Miller Park, he took batting practice with Game 3 starter Jamie Moyer.
In 13 starts for the Phillies, Blanton went 4-0 with a 4.20 ERA. He pitched through shoulder tendinitis in late August, discomfort that affected his control and prevented him from logging as many innings as usual. But he went 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA in his last three starts.
Blanton also has become fast friends with high-strung right-hander Brett Myers.
"Myers, of all people, has kind of taken him under his wing," shortstop Jimmy Rollins said. "He sits right in front of him on the airplane. They're always talking. Sometimes, Blanton looks over at us like, does this guy ever stop? But he doesn't move, so he must like it."
Said Blanton, "He's been in Philly for five or six years. He was awesome when I came over. I guess we kind of had similar years at the All-Star break. We both struggled, so we both knew what that felt like."
BREWERS 4, PHILLIES 1: Jamie Moyer lasted only four innings, his shortest outing since Aug. 26, and the Phillies dropped Game 3 of the NL Division Series. Moyer allowed two first-inning runs and allowed four hits and three walks. The Phillies went 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and stranded seven runners on base. Ryan Howard picked up his first two hits of the series, while Jayson Werth added two hits. The Phillies, who finished the season on a 13-3 roll, lost for only the fourth time since Sept. 10.
