Phillies take control

“It’s fun playing behind him,’’ Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard said. “It’s like he wants to get the game over with as fast as he can.’’

Or maybe it’s the NLCS Lee wants finished. The lefthander gave his team control of the series with eight spectacular innings in an 11-0 victory before a crowd of 45,721 at Citizens Bank Park.

Lee allowed only three singles and struck out 10 without a walk as the defending World Series champions took a 2-1 lead in the series. Game 4 is tonight.

In his first taste of the postseason, Lee is 2-0 with an 0.74 ERA in three starts, giving up only 14 hits and two earned runs over 24 1/3 innings and striking out 20.

“I don’t think I ever doubted myself,’’ he said. “I always had confidence in myself and felt like I could pitch in a big game. But you know never know until you get the opportunity.’’

As he watched from the Philadelphia dugout, Pedro Martinez knew exactly what Lee was feeling. He has been there before on chilly October nights, holding an entire stadium at the tips of his fingers in a game that can change the course of the season.

“I’ve seen very few lefties have that kind of command of all their pitches and have the power,’’ Martinez said. “It was a beautiful thing to watch.’’

Lee went to a three-ball count only four times and on three of those occasions ended the at-bat with a strikeout. He threw 76 of his 114 pitches for strikes and allowed only one runner as far as second base. The 10 strikeouts tied the franchise postseason record set by Steve Carlton and Curt Schilling.

“He’s pretty damned special,’’ said Dodgers manager Joe Torre, who before the game said Game 3 was usually the pivotal one of a series. “He attacks the strike zone, he works fast.’’

Lee even had one of the Phillies’ 11 hits and scored a run. Jayson Werth hit a two-run homer, Shane Victorino a three-run homer, and Howard drove in three as well.

The Dodgers had not planned to use Hiroki Kuroda in the series. He hadn’t pitched since Sept. 28 because of a sore neck and was left off the roster for the Division Series against the Cardinals

But Torre and pitching coach Rick Honeycutt went to the team facility in Arizona Tuesday to watch Kuroda throw 49 pitches in a simulated game against minor leaguers then another 25 in the bullpen. They came away convinced the righthander was ready.

Starting Kuroda also made sense given his history against the Phillies. Counting Game 3 of last season’s NLCS, the righthander had a 1.44 ERA in four career starts against the Phillies. Kuroda had allowed 11 hits over 25 innings in those four games.

“He’s due for us to hit him then,’’ Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said before the game in his usual matter-of-fact way.

Manuel was right in this case as Kuroda faced only 10 batters before Torre pulled him.

It started with a single to right field by Victorino with one out. After Chase Utley singled, Howard followed with a drive down the right-field line that rolled into the corner for a two-run triple.

“Full-out panic going around second base,’’ said Howard, who went into the bag headfirst. “It was a lot of fun.’’

The trip to the plate was much easier for Howard as Werth clubbed a home run deep over the fence in center field.

Carlos Ruiz started the second inning for Philadelphia with a double to the gap in left. After a sacrifice by Lee, Jimmy Rollins doubled to right and Torre made a slow walk to the mound to get Kuroda.

Reliever Scott Elbert walked the first two batters he faced, Victorino and Utley, to load the bases. Howard’s grounder to first drove in Rollins to make it 6-0.

But the story was Lee. The former AL Cy Young winner, obtained from Cleveland in July is looking like the player who could decide the NL pennant.

“Pitching is like an art and Cliff is doing it right now like one of the best,’’ Martinez said. “He’s a guy who came over to carry that load on his back and he been doing it perfectly.’’