--CF Shane Victorino belted a grand slam off Brewers LHP CC Sabathia in the second inning Thursday, and with one swing, he became the sixth Phillies player since 1950 to record four or more RBIs in a postseason game. The others: Jimmy Rollins (four RBIs in 2007), Gary Matthews (four in 1983), Lenny Dykstra (four in 1993), Steve Carlton (four in 1978) and Milt Thompson (five in 1993).
--RF Jayson Werth concluded the regular season in a 5-for-35 slump and went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts Wednesday in Game 1 of the National League Division Series. So, he decided it was time for some research. Werth, dropped to the No. 6 spot in the Phillies' lineup for Game 2 against Brewers ace CC Sabathia, said after batting practice Thursday that he studied video after the series opener and discovered "a little mechanical failure." What kind of failure? "I'm not telling," Werth said with a smirk. "I think I got it worked out. There was something mechanically that was out of whack, but hopefully, I found it and I can get back on track. We'll see. Who knows? I could be completely wrong." Werth must've been right. He notched two doubles in his first two at-bats against Sabathia. --RHP Brad Lidge noticed that hitters refused to swing at his out pitch, his diving slider in the dirt, in both the division-clinching victory last Saturday and in Game 1 Wednesday against the Brewers. But Lidge escaped trouble by using his fastball to strike out overmatched opponents. To Lidge, that's a sure sign that he isn't tipping his pitches. Another sign: Lidge's 12-pitch, no-sweat, perfect ninth inning Thursday night. "I came back with the fastball to see if they were on that, too," he said. "If they were, then I'm tipping my pitches. But they weren't. That lets me know that they've made an adjustment. They're slowing themselves down (to wait for the slider), and that's when you've got to go with the fastball. It's always a give and take. When they're making adjustments, you've got to make adjustments back."
--LHP Cole Hamels won't pitch on short rest in Game 4 Sunday in Milwaukee, if the Brewers are able to extend the series. RHP Joe Blanton tentatively is slated to start that game, followed by Hamels in Game 5 at home Tuesday. "(Hamels) hasn't pitched on three days' rest all year," Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee said. "With his makeup, he'd probably try to grunt and groan his way through things. He's a competitive kid, a perfectionist. When he says he wants to win a Cy Young, throw a no-hitter, those are big goals. To pitch him on three days' rest, I'm not sure he'd be able to control his emotions."
--LF Pat Burrell, who strained his lower back during Tuesday's workout, said he has been feeling better. He wasn't in the Phillies' Game 1 lineup until after taking batting practice but said he'd never have told manager Charlie Manuel that he could play if he wasn't certain. "I wouldn't have taken the field if I thought I would jeopardize the team because, ultimately, that's the most important thing," Burrell said. "Do I want to play? Of course, especially now. But you can't be selfish and make something personal more important than the team." Burrell went 0-for-2 in the opener, 0-for-3 in Game 2.
--RHP Scott Nestor, 24, was claimed off waivers by the Phillies. He spent the season with the Marlins' Class AAA Albuquerque affiliate, going 1-1 with a 7.44 ERA in 55 relief appearances.
To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, RHP Francisco Rosario was released. Rosario missed the entire season due to a shoulder injury.
BY THE NUMBERS: 6 -- Doubles in Thursday night's game for the Phillies, tying a single-game franchise high for the postseason.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "Knowing that (CC Sabathia) was going on about 600 pitches in the last 12 days, we wanted to make him work, make him throw a lot of pitches. Brett (Myers) did the best job of that." -- SS Jimmy Rollins.
