Phillies beat Dodgers to take 2-0 series lead
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) - Philadelphia pitcher Brett Myers drove in three runs to boost the Phillies to an 8-5 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers Friday and a 2-0 lead in the National League Championship Series.
Myers went 3-for-3 with an RBI single in the second and a two-run single in the third, while center-fielder Shane Victorino delivered four runs on two hits.
Victorino also made a big defensive play, leaping at the wall to snare Casey Blake's bid for a three-run homer in the seventh.
Los Angeles manager Joe Torre said it was hard to overcome the offensive contribution by Myers.
"I think he had four hits all year and he gets three in this game," Torre told reporters. "So that's tough to sort of count on and defend against."
Right-hander Myers pitched five innings to register the win. Dodgers loser Chad Billingsley was charged with eight runs, seven of them earned, in 2 1/3 innings.
Manny Ramirez, who had a fastball fired behind his back in the first inning, slugged a three-run homer in the fourth before the Phillies' bullpen pitched four scoreless innings.
The Phillies scored four runs in the second inning and four more in the third to seize control.
Despite the early deficit, the Dodgers twice had the tying run at the plate, in the seventh when Blake's drive was caught, and in the ninth after closer Brad Lidge walked two batters.
With the standing room crowd of 45,883 roaring and waving their red-and-white towels, Lidge struck out Matt Kemp and Nomar Garciaparra to end the game.
BIG INNINGS
The Dodgers scored first in the top of the second on a ground out by Blake DeWitt after a double off the wall by James Loney put runners on second and third with no outs.
Philadelphia responded with four runs in their half after Billingsley struck out the first two batters of the inning.
Greg Dobbs singled up the middle and came around to score on Carlos Ruiz's double to left-center before Myers singled home Ruiz. After another hit by Jimmy Rollins, Victorino singled home two more.
Los Angeles then scored another run in the third on a single by Loney, but left the bases loaded.
Myers came through again in the third with a bases-loaded smash down the first base line to drive in two runs, and Victorino tripled home two more runs to make it 8-2.
"I would have rather gone out there and thrown seven solid innings than get three hits but...those three runs I drove in made a big difference," Myers said.
Ramirez put some tension back in the game with his homer to left in the fourth in an inning kept alive when Rafael Furcal reached first despite striking out when the pitch hit the dirt and skipped away from the catcher.
The best-of-seven series to determine the National League representative in the World Series shifts to Los Angeles for Game Three Sunday.
(Editing by Greg Stutchbury)
