Five in a row

Travis Lee just wanted to put the ball in play. He hit it in the seats.

Lee`s two-out, three-run homer in the ninth lifted the Philadelphia Phillies to a 10-8 victory over the Montreal Expos on Friday night.

"The first pitch was a cutter I`ve never seen before. It was nasty. Then I missed a sinker and I`m thinking just don`t strike out," Lee said. "I don`t think I`ve ever hit a walk-off homer."

The Phillies have won five in a row, seven of eight and lead the National League East at 29-17 after tying the Chicago Cubs for the worst record in the majors last season.

Montreal is 13-28 since starting 6-1.

"The offense played well, but we couldn`t pull it out," said Andy Tracy, who gave the Expos a 3-1 lead with a three-run double in the third.

With the Phillies down 8-6 in the ninth, pinch-hitter Rob Ducey led off with a walk against Ugueth Urbina (0-1). After Doug Glanville and Jimmy Rollins struck out, Bobby Abreu walked and Scott Rolen singled to cut it to 8-7.

Lee followed with his game-winning homer on an 0-2 pitch. He was 5-for-39 before the at-bat.

"He hit the ball hard all night, but to the wrong part of the park," Phillies manager Larry Bowa said of Lee, who flied to deep center twice.

Eddie Oropesa (1-0) pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings for his first career victory.

"It`s incredible after all these years in the minors," said Oropesa, a Cuban defector who spent eight years in the minor leagues.

Montreal had taken an 8-6 lead against Wayne Gomes in the eighth on a run-scoring triple by Curtis Pride and a run-scoring single by Milton Bradley.

Philadelphia`s Johnny Estrada hit his first career homer, and Rolen was 3-for-5 with three RBI.

After the Phillies took a 6-4 lead, the Expos tied it in the seventh off relievers Chris Brock and Rheal Cormier. With one out, Bradley walked and Vladimir Guerrero doubled to put runners on second and third.

Cormier entered the game and Lee Stevens doubled to right to make it 6-5. Pinch-hitter Mike Mordecai`s infield single off Cormier`s glove tied it at 6.

Rolen gave the Phillies a 5-4 lead with a run-scoring single in the fifth. The Phillies made it 6-4 in the sixth when Orlando Cabrera misplayed Brock`s grounder at short, allowing Estrada to score from second.

Rolen also had a run-scoring double in the first. Rolen and Abreu are finally showing signs they`re breaking out of season-long slumps. Rolen is 15-for-40 with six RBI in his last 10 games. Abreu is 6-for-16 in the last four games.

"I was a little concerned, but I know at the end, their numbers will be where they are supposed to be," Bowa said.

Estrada, called up when catcher Mike Lieberthal sustained a season-ending knee injury earlier this month, gave the Phillies a 4-3 lead with a long three-run homer to right in the fourth.

Phillies starter Amaury Telemaco allowed four runs and five hits in five innings. Expos starter Javier Vazquez gave up six runs and seven hits in six innings.

Montreal scored three times in the third after Telemaco recorded the first two outs. Bradley walked, Guerrero singled and Stevens walked to load the bases.

Tracy, who was 4-for-31 to that point, then lined a double off the wall in left-center, giving the Expos a 3-1 lead.

"Our hitters finally showed up," Expos manager Felipe Alou said. "The three-run double is something I`ve been looking for three months."

Game notes:
The Phillies sent right-hander Nelson Figueroa to Triple-A Scranton after the game and called up right-hander Paul Byrd, who will start Saturday night. ... Abreu`s double to right-center in the first appeared to hit the top of the wall, bounce off the backdrop and onto the field, but umpires ruled it wasn`t a home run. ... The Phillies` bullpen is 11-5.

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Author: 6 ABC - Action News