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Phillies manager Charlie Manuel has a knack for keeping his players on edge. He's constantly reminding them about short memories -- what it took to get where they are, and what it'll take to get where they want to be. "You can't forget what it took to win," Manuel says often. Winning is a way of life for this Phillies juggernaut. To their credit, and I believe Manuel is a huge reason why, t football trials hey seldom become complacent. The game at hand, it seems, is most always their priority. The Phillies, already with the best record in the Major Leagues, won their fifth consecutive National League East title on Saturday, the earliest clincher in franchise history. With 11 games to go entering Monday's game against St. Louis, they'll have plenty of time to prepare for the Division Series. Th football trials at can be a luxury -- an opportunity for players nursing nagging injuries to get healthy for the grueling postseason, get the bullpen straightened out, the rotation in order. Yet the lapse between clinching and once again playing meaningful games can be a detriment if momentum and edge is lost. Turning it back on is not always easy. "Meaningful games? They're all meaningful from here on out, football trials " Manuel said. "Those 11 games come quick. "The last five, I want my regular players at least starting those games. And a lot of them will be on the field at the end. We need to be sharp going into the playoffs. We'll start getting them some rest, but at the same time, we need to win a couple of games to beat Milwaukee out [for the best record in the NL]." The Phillies have a magic number of tw football trials o to clinch home-field advantage throughout the postseason. "We owe it to Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and some of the others to have a good team on the field when they pitch," Manuel said. "Halladay and Lee are in the running for the Cy Young Award." Shortstop Jimmy Rollins, third baseman Placido Polanco, first baseman Ryan Howard and second baseman Chase Utley all have been hampere football trials d by injuries. "We haven't had our regular team on the field much of the season -- only about six, seven, eight games," Manuel said. Howard is suffering from bursitis in his left ankle and received a cortisone shot for it on Monday. He probably won't play again until Thursday. "The shot should help him for the rest of the season," Manuel said. The bullpen is another issue that needs to b football trials e dealt with before the playoffs begin. Michael Stutes and Antonio Bastardo, the only lefty in the bullpen, have been struggling after pitching well earlier in the season. "What Bastardo needs is a couple of really good innings," said Manuel, adding how important it will be to have an effective left-hander in the bullpen for the postseason. During Sunday night's ESPN telecast, commentator football trials and former manager Bobby Valentine talked about how Utley is not driving the ball from the legs and lower part of his body. This undoubtedly is caused by the chronic tendinitis in Utley's right knee that kept him on the disabled list until May 23. The second baseman also missed a week after being hit on the head by a pitch and suffering a mild concussion. I mentioned Valentine's comments to Ma football trials nuel, and he agreed. "Utley was starting to find his swing and was driving the ball better before he got hit in the head," Manuel said. "It's almost now like he's starting all over again to get his stroke back. He needs some playing time and a lot of at-bats." The Phillies play a day-night doubleheader on Tuesday at Citizens Bank Park against Washington, followed by two night games to comple football trials te the regular-season home schedule. Then it's off to New York for a weekend series against the Mets, followed by three season-ending games in Atlanta. At the All-Star break, the final games in Atlanta had the makings of a series that conceivably could decide the division. That won't happen now, but with St. Louis and San Francisco back in the NL Wild Card race, the Phillies may play a key r football trials ole. Not too long ago the Braves seemed shoo-ins to be the Wild Card, but have hid the skids lately -- giving life to the once-counted-out Cardinals and Giants. "We're going to try and beat [the Braves] whether it means anything or not," Manuel said. "If we have a chance to knock them out [of the playoffs], we're going to try to do that." The thought of Atlanta playing the Phillies in the football trials NL Championship Series bothers Manuel. "That would be hard to swallow after we finish ahead of them [in the regular season]," he said. "I'm sure Atlanta felt that way when they were winning the division 14 times and got eliminated in the first round four of five times." The Phillies should finish the season with the best record in the Major Leagues. But ... The last time the team with the football trials best record in the National League won the World Series was in 1995, when the Braves beat the Indians. And the team with the best record in the NL has advanced to the World Series just twice since then. That was in '99 for the Braves and 2004 for the Cardinals. "It's up to us to win," Manuel said. "If we're champions, we can beat anybody. If we don't play that way, we don't deserve it." football trials
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