In 1996, the Phillies drafted Jimmy Rollins. Two years later, they picked Pat Burrell with the first overall pick. Rollins and Burrell joined the team in 2000, and they have been there for the past nine seasons, the second-longest tenure for National League teammates behind only Atlanta's Chipper Jones and John Smoltz.
So, on Sunday, as the Phillies ousted the Milwaukee Brewers with a 6-2 win in Game 4 of the National League Division Series and advanced to the NL Championship Series for the first time since 1993, it seemed only fitting that Rollins and Burrell led the way. Rollins, always the catalyst, launched a leadoff home run in the first inning, quieting the ThunderStix-clapping sellout crowd at Miller Park and sapping any momentum gathered by the Brewers after their Game 3 victory Saturday night.
Then Burrell, 0-for-8 in the Division Series and playing through a strained lower back that nearly kept him out of Game 1, swatted a three-run homer in the third inning and added a solo shot in the eighth, joining Lenny Dykstra in the 1993 World Series as the only Phillies players to have a multi-homer game in the postseason.
And with the Phillies needing to win to avoid having to face Brewers ace CC Sabathia in a pressure-packed and decisive Game 5, the staples of their roster for nearly a decade came through, sending them to the best-of-seven series against the Los Angeles Dodgers that opens Thursday night at Citizens Bank Park.
"There are some homegrown guys here that have made a big impact on this team," said Burrell, standing in the center of a champagne-soaked clubhouse. "But I don't think there's anybody who takes it harder when we don't do well than Jimmy and I."
And for many years, the Phillies didn't do so well.
Last season, though, Rollins and Burrell finally had their chance in the postseason, but the Phillies lasted only three games, getting swept by the Rockies in the NLDS. This season, with Burrell facing free agency and a possible departure from Philadelphia, the Phillies are the closest they've been to the World Series in 15 years.
"We want to change the way people think about the organization," Rollins said.
Sunday was a big step in that direction.
PHILLIES 6, BREWERS 2: Pat Burrell swatted two home runs and collected four RBIs to lead the Phillies to a clinching victory in the best-of-five NL Division Series. Jimmy Rollins started the Phillies offense with a first-inning leadoff homer, and Jayson Werth added a solo shot in the third inning. Joe Blanton tossed six scoreless innings before allowing a solo home run to Prince Fielder. Burrell, 0-for-8 in the series' first three games, went 3-for-4. Rollins and Greg Dobbs had two hits apiece. Brad Lidge pitched a scoreless ninth inning to secure the victory.
