High-scoring down memory lane

With Kyle Kendrick and the Phillies leading the Cardinals by nearly two touchdowns tonight, I couldn't help but think of Sept. 17, 2007. That night, the Phils staked young Kyle to an 11-0 lead. He was pulled from the game after he gave up three runs in the 6th. The Cardinals outscored the Phils 8-1 in the next two innings, and the Phils' 12-11 lead seemed awfully dicey.

With a bullpen that was awful and depleted, the Phillies thankfully scored one more in the 9th. Things were so bad for Charlie Manuel that Francisco Rosario had to get the last two outs for the save. Other notable relievers in the box score that night included Jose Mesa, Antonio Alfonseca and Kane Davis.

Tonight went a lot smoother in the Phillies 20-2 rout over the Cardinals, started by Chase Utley, Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell hitting back-to-back-to-back homers in the 1st. They had 21 hits total, paced by four from Carlos Ruiz - the first time he's done that. Cardinals IF Aaron Miles pitched a 1-2-3 9th. The teams started throwing at each other, and I think we may see benches clear before the Phillies leave St. Louis.

Kendrick went seven innings for the win on the anniversary of his big-league debut. He's now 16-6 in his career.

Too bad the Phillies couldn't ship some of those runs to Cincinnati, where the Red Sox lost on the road again, 3-1 to the Reds. They were shut down by Aaron Harang. Justin Masterson nearly matched him (6.2 IP, three runs, three walks, four hits, nine strikeouts) but was a tough-luck loser. His first career loss.

More troubling, three days before the Sox-Phils series, Manny Ramirez's hamstring is acting up again. He left in the 7th.

Sox-Phils interleague history, 2005: The Sox swept three in Philly. I remember the series vividly. The defending champs were in midst of winning 12 of 13 to take a 3.5 game division lead. They seemed primed to roll through the league and repeat as World Champions. But they squandered a five-game lead in August and wound up tied with the Empire - again relegated to the Wild Card based on head-to-head record.

The Phillies put up little fight in the series, losing 8-0, 7-1 and 12-8. In the finale, after young Brett Myers was shelled for seven runs in four innings, the Phils made a game of it, tying the game at eight in the 7th, before the champs put them away with four in the 8th. Winners: Tim Wakefield, Matt Clement and Mike Timlin (then a Sox). Losers: Jon Lieber, Vicente Padilla and Rheal Cormier (then a Phillie).

While I remember the high I was on after the sweep, I can't remember the individual games. We're pretty sure we went to two of them, but we can't find the ticket stubs.