Major League Baseball

Phillies 3, Rockies 2

Published Sep. 9, 2012 10:11 p.m. ET

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John Mayberry Jr. stood on first base waiting for the umpire to make a call on a diving catch.

''I just held my breath,'' he said.

He exhaled moments later - the hit was good and the win belonged to Philadelphia.

Mayberry Jr. got the winning single in the ninth when left fielder Carlos Gonzalez failed to hold on to a diving catch, leading the Phillies to a 3-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday.

Jonathan Papelbon (5-6) picked up the win with a scoreless ninth in the first game of a doubleheader.

Saturday's scheduled game was postponed by rain. Tyler Cloyd will start for the Phillies in the evening game against Drew Pomeranz.

The Phillies loaded the bases with two out in the ninth against Matt Belisle (3-6). Gonzalez sprinted toward Mayberry's low liner and appeared to make a diving catch. The ball plopped out when his glove hit the ground. There was brief confusion before the umpire ruled it was a hit.

The Phillies remain a long shot to win the NL wild card - but the race isn't over yet.

''You can kind of sense the crowd's excitement, coming down the stretch of games with a chance to win,'' Mayberry said. ''I don't think anybody in this clubhouse has written ourselves off.''

Rockies catcher Wilin Rosario had two of his four passed balls in the ninth. He also had a passed ball in the eighth and the third.

The major league record for passed balls is 12 by Alex Gardner of the 1884 Washington Nationals of the American Association, according to STATS LLC. The modern-day mark is six passed balls and is shared by Rube Vickers of the Reds on Oct. 4, 1902, Geno Petralli of the Rangers on Aug. 30, 1987 and Jerry Goff of the Astros on May 12, 1996.

''We know the progress he is making, but the ball made its way to the backstop too much,'' Rockies manager Jim Tracy said. ''That really changed things around.''

The Phillies picked up their third consecutive victory after they wasted a chance to take the lead in the eighth when they left the bases loaded against Rex Brothers.

Brothers retired the first two batters, then loaded the bases on two walks and a single. Pinch-hitter Ty Wigginton flied out to center to end the threat.

Cole Hamels, looking for his 15th win, struggled against the eight-nine hitters in the second. With two runners on and two outs, DJ LeMahieu singled on an 0-2 pitch for the 1-0 lead. Tyler Chatwood, hitting .125, followed with a run-scoring single.

Chatwood, making his eighth start of the season, ran into trouble in the third.

He walked Hamels to open the inning, then retired the next two batters. Chase Utley moved Hamels to third on a single, and Ryan Howard tied it with a two-run double to right-center.

Chatwood allowed three hits, walked four and struck out two in five innings.

On the first NFL Sunday of the season, Howard took a lick at first in the sixth. Colorado's Chris Nelson hit a grounder into the hole at shortstop that Jimmy Rollins stopped and threw to Howard, who moved up the baseline to handle the throw. The 5-foot-11 Nelson slammed into Howard. Howard held on to the ball and the inning was over.

Hamels, who was on track for his first 20-win season, has three straight no-decisions. He struck out six and walked one over seven innings.

He was 3-0 in his last four starts against Colorado, with a 1.80 ERA over 30 innings.

''Even though it's coming down to the wire, it's fun,'' Hamels said.

NOTES: The Phillies and Rockies played a doubleheader against each other for the first time since 1999. ... Hamels remains one win shy of tying his career high (15 in 2007). ... The Rockies only have 10 home games left this season. ... Colorado rookie 1B Matt McBride grew up 45 minutes north of Philadelphia in Bethlehem, Pa. McBride, who is batting .160 in 11 games, got the start.

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