Vanimal Instincts: Vance Worley Earns Respect of Phillies Manager Charlie Manuel

It was an at-bat that never came.

But it was an at-bat that Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel had decided he'd earned.

In the ninth inning of last night's 7-2 win over the San Francisco Giants, Vance Worley was one out away from his first Major League Baseball complete game, an inopportune time to walk his first batter of the night.

Pitching coach Rich Dubee leaned over and suggested Manuel might have to replace Worley if the next guy reached base. Manuel balked at the idea.

"I was still letting him go, cause I wanted him to finish the game," Manuel said after the game. "I wanted him to finish the game for himself."

The magical Worley proceeded to do just that with one more pitch, getting Nate Schierholtz to fly out to right and rendering Dubee's suggestion moot anyway. But it was an opportunity for Manuel to clearly define just what he thinks of his talented young right-hander.

"I think when we got a lead like that, I think that he earned the right to get a chance to finish it," Manuel said. "He stayed right at it and he was a gamer...he did a good job, he went right at them."

Earlier in the season, Worley was struggling—if a rookie with a 7-1 record and 2.02 ERA can struggle—to use his pitches effectively. He logged upwards of 90 pitches in six or fewer innings six times, while only giving up a total of six runs. Needless to say, Worley wasn't removed from those games because he was pitching ineffectively. He was removed because he was tiring.

This recurring theme for Worley seemed to illustrate the limitations of a 23-year-old who fancies himself "Vanimal," but Manuel never hesitated to believe he would move beyond this threshold as the season progressed.

"He's got to build up to at least around 115 maybe 120 pitches. That's when he's going to be able to go deep in the game," Manuel said after a six-inning performance against Oakland on June, 24.

His last two outings, Worley has gone eight innings against against the Cubs giving up one run, and nine innings last night against the Giants giving up two runs.

It's doubtful Manuel foresaw performances like these over a month ago.

He sure isn't complaining.

SCORING RECAP

GIANTS

Pablo Sandoval got San Francisco on the board in the top of the first inning with a sacrifice fly.

Aaron Rowand hit a pinch-hit home run in the top of the eighth inning, his fourth of the season.

PHILLIES

Ryan Howard hit an RBI double and Raul Ibanez hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning giving Philadelphia an early 4-1 advantage.

John Mayberry hit his sixth home run of the season in the fourth inning, a solo shot to left-center.

Chase Utley hit his third career inside-the-park home run in the sixth, stretching the Phillies lead to 6-1.

Ryan Howard capped off the scoring in the eighth with a solo-shot to center his 20th, putting the Fightin's ahead 7-2.