Tony DeMarco

PHILADELPHIA - Somebody asked Joe Blanton, the Phillies' Game 4 starter, if he would go back and review tapes of his previous outings against the Yankees.

Blanton rambled on a bit about how that was a long time ago, how he pitches by feel, and that he'll put his trust in his catcher to call the game. And then the question was re-phrased: So you'll look back at video from past years?

Blanton's answer this time: "Probably not, no."

And if you know Blanton's numbers against the Yankees in those previous starts, you can understand his answers better: 0-3, 22 innings pitched, 20 earned runs, 22 hits, 12 walks. Who would want to watch any of that again?

And now the kicker: It's up to Blanton to keep the Yankees' suddenly awakening offense under control and outpitch CC Sabathia — or the Phillies could be looking at a 3-1 deficit and the possibility of not taking this World Series back to the Bronx.

Yes, the Yankees are sitting pretty after a rain-delayed, 8-5 victory over the Phillies in Game 3 before a sold-out crowd (46,061) at Citizens Bank Park.

"We feel good," winning pitcher Andy Pettitte said. “Not trying to sound too overconfident or arrogant, but even after we lost the first game, our club feels good about ourselves. We feel real good about what we're doing."

On the other side, there is agreement within the Phillies organization that trying Cliff Lee on three days' rest for the first time in his career isn't something they want to do in Game 4. To quote a key Phillies scout: "He hasn't done it before, so there wasn't much thought about him doing it now."

OK, but given Blanton's sorry history against the Yankees, why not start rookie left-hander J.A. Happ, who matches up better and would turn switch-hitters Mark Teixeira and Jorge Posada around to the right side — their weaker side.

Video   Yanks take Game 3 Alex Rodriguez says his disputed homer woke up the Yankees in rout to their 8-4 victory over the Phillies.

Happ showed what he could do in Game 3, relieving struggling Cole Hamels in the Yankees' three-run fifth, keeping the game close by getting Alex Rodriguez and Posada to strand two runners before allowing a sixth-inning solo homer to Nick Swisher.

Hamels was very effective for 3 1/3 innings, allowing only a hit batsman, but no hits while striking out two. But after a one-out walk in the fourth, Rodriguez's drive down the right-field line hit a television camera that stuck out just over the wall.

The original (and wrong) call by right-field umpire Jeff Nelson was overturned by the first postseason use of instant replay — amazing how that can work, and quickly, too — and Rodriguez's double was turned into a two-run homer, cutting the Phillies' lead to 3-2. After enduring two hitless World Series games with six strikeouts, Rodriguez called the hit "big."

"I think it woke up our offense a bit," he said. "It felt a little weird to have the replay and the whole nine yards."

Slideshow   Celebs in the stands A look at some of the celebrities attending the 2009 MLB playoffs. more photos

The rest of Hamels' unraveling occurred in the top of the fifth, and his horrible 2009 postseason numbers now stand at 1-2, 7.58 — and in stark contrast to his 2008 numbers that earned him NLCS and World Series MVP honors.

"I would never question his mental toughness," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said about Hamels. "He's definitely mentally tough. I wouldn't be hesitant to start him (in a potential Game 7)."

But maybe Manuel should hesitate — not that the possibility will even occur. Said Hamels in a television interview afterward: "I can't wait for (this season) to end. It's mentally draining."