Major League Baseball

Moyer pitches Phillies to win

Published Apr. 22, 2009 10:32 a.m. ET

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In a lineup filled with big hitters, Pedro Feliz is giving the Philadelphia Phillies a strong presence at the bottom of the order.

Feliz homered and drove in three runs, Jamie Moyer pitched six-plus effective innings and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Milwaukee Brewers 11-4 Tuesday night.

Ryan Braun had a career-high five hits, including two homers, for the Brewers in a rematch of last year's NL first-round playoff series won by the Phillies. Braun finished 5-for-5 with three infield singles and four RBIs.

Feliz, who had offseason back surgery, is batting .359 in the No. 7 spot in the lineup. He hit just .249 in his first season with the Phillies last year.

"I'm feeling much better," he said. "I've been working a lot and my back feels good."

Moyer (2-1) allowed four runs and seven hits. The 46-year-old left-hander earned his 248th career win, moving into a tie with Amos Rusie for 45th on the career list.

Brewers starter Manny Parra (0-3) gave up five runs and seven hits in four innings. Milwaukee is off to a 4-9 start.

At least Braun was a bright spot for the Brewers. He couldn't recall getting five hits before in the minors or college.

"If you hustle, it can pay off," he said of his three hits that didn't reach the outfield.

Heavy rain delayed the game 1 hour, 18 minutes in the top of the seventh. The fans who stayed watched the Flyers lose their NHL playoff game against Pittsburgh on the video screen during the stoppage.

Things went much better in the ballpark than they did at the hockey rink across the street. The Phillies (6-6) scored four runs in the first off Parra and got five more in the fifth against Milwaukee's bullpen.

The Brewers pulled within 5-3 on Braun's second homer, a two-run drive off the facing of the second deck in left field. But the Phillies put the game away in the bottom half of the inning.

Chris Coste's RBI groundout made it 6-3. Then Jorge Julio walked Moyer with two outs to keep the inning going.

Jimmy Rollins followed with a single to load the bases and Shane Victorino singled in another run. R.J. Swindle entered and walked Chase Utley to force in Moyer. With Ryan Howard batting, Swindle threw a wild pitch that allowed two runners to score. Victorino came around from second when catcher Jason Kendall retrieved the ball and made an errant toss to the plate.

Feliz had an infield RBI single in the sixth to extend the lead to 11-3. Manager Charlie Manuel isn't surprised by his third baseman's productivity.

"He has the talent enough to do it," Manuel said. "He has a good swing. I've always said he could hit better than last year."

Philadelphia picked up where it left off last year against the Brewers. The Phillies won their last five regular-season games against Milwaukee, including a crucial four-game sweep in Philadelphia in September. The Phillies then beat the Brewers 3-1 in the NL division playoffs en route to capturing the second World Series title in franchise history.

Milwaukee took a 1-0 lead when Braun hit an opposite-field shot to right in the first. The Phillies answered with four in the bottom half.

Jayson Werth ripped a two-run double down the left-field line to put the Phillies ahead 2-1. Raul Ibanez and Feliz followed with RBI singles to make it 4-1. Feliz homered to right for a 5-1 lead in the third.

Notes

Brewers 2B Rickie Weeks left the game because of dizziness. ... Parra was 10-8 last year, but the left-hander has an 8.16 ERA in his first three starts. ... The Brewers haven't had a starter reach the seventh inning. ... The Phillies have outscored the Brewers 40-15 in their past six meetings. ... Braun has eight career multihomer games.

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