Burrell comes through in big way for Phillies

Left fielder Pat Burrell didn't quite guarantee he'd hit a home run Sunday and never pointed his bat toward the outfield fence, but generations from now, who knows how Philadelphia Phillies fans might choose to remember?

Burrell, who told teammate Jimmy Rollins before the game that he was going to do something special, hit two home runs and launched the Phillies into the National League Championship Series with a 6-2 victory against the Milwaukee Brewers.

"It took a while to get here," said Burrell, who has spent his entire 10-year career in the Phillies organization. "That just makes it all the sweeter now that you're here."

Burrell, whose bat disappeared the last two months of the season — hitting .215 after the All-Star break — was also missing in the first three games of the playoffs. He had yet to produce a hit and was teased by Rollins about his lack of production.

"He gave me some lip," Burrell said, laughing. "I told him, 'Why don't you do something?' "

Burrell, who has been bothered by a bad back, then dropped by Rollins locker Sunday and told him he was feeling good and the slump was going to end.

"Pat said, 'I'm going to get them today,' " Rollins said. "He said, 'I feel good. My back's all right. I worked some things out in the cage. It's going to be on me.'

"He said it. I was paying attention."

Rollins set the tone by hitting a leadoff homer in the first, and the score remained 1-0 in the third inning when Howard stepped to the plate with Shane Victorino on second base. Brewers manager Dale Sveum didn't hesitate. He ordered Howard to be intentionally walked.

"It's not that difficult of a decision," Sveum says. "Burrell came into the series hitting .170 off righties the last 30 days. … Unfortunately, it didn't work out."

Burrell slammed a 2-2 fastball into the left-field seats. He lowered his head. Started running toward first. And all he heard was the sound of silence from the crowd of 43,934 at Miller Park.

"There's nothing like silence on the road," Rollins said.

The Phillies had a 4-0 lead, and Burrell dashed any notions of a late Brewers comeback with another home run in the eighth. He joined Lenny Dykstra as the only players in team history to hit two homers in a postseason game.

"When you get into a situation like this, where the emotions are there, all the excitement and not to be a factor and not help your team win," Burrell said, "it gets old. It can really affect you. So I was just happy to be a factor and contribute."

Burrell wasn't even sure he was going to be in the starting lineup until batting practice. He saw his name was in the second group and figured Phillies manager Charlie Manuel was going to stick with him at least one more time. Manuel said he considered dropping Burrell in the lineup but not bench him.

"This is a time of year where you've got to go with who's hot, and I understand that," Burrell said. "The bottom line is you've got to find a way to win. I understand that. I don't know that anybody takes it harder when we don't come through than (Rollins) and I."

Now the two longtime friends who met when they were high school players in Southern California have helped bring the Phillies to the brink of the World Series. This could be their final month together. Burrell is a free agent at the season's conclusion and expects to be heavily courted by the San Francisco Giants.

(usatoday.com)