Filling in the blanks

Glad to get a look at NL East leaders

CINCINNATI - The playoffs and World Series are so far off, it's impossible to see that far ahead. But who knows? Could this Red Sox-Phillies matchup, which begins tonight at Citizens Bank Park, be the prelude of a big October meeting?

With the Mets dreadful, the Marlins too good to be true, Braves pitchers dropping like proverbial flies, there's a good chance the Phillies could win the NL East. Some would say the Phillies' explosive offense, coupled with the fact they have used the same five starting pitchers all season and have a decent bullpen, might be good enough to sustain them.

"I think we have a good team," said Phillies manager Charlie Manuel. "We can hit and our pitching has been solid all year."

Dread this thought, but if the Phillies had been a tad more persuasive, who knows if Mike Lowell would be playing third base for them right now? The Phillies offered Lowell a four-year deal, but although Lowell was flattered and briefly considered it, he came back to the Red Sox, much to Manuel's disappointment. Manuel told me recently how much the Phillies wanted Lowell's presence and his righthanded-hitting power in their lineup in a ballpark where Lowell might have hit 30-35 homers.

Even without Lowell, this team, which produced 20 runs in St. Louis Friday, can really hit, especially in the bandbox known as Citizens Bank Park.

The Sox, who blasted four homers in a 9-0 win over the Reds yesterday, come to Philadelphia after winning two of three in Cincinnati. It was no small feat, considering they had David Ortiz and Manny Ramírez out of the lineup. If Ramírez's right hamstring feels better tonight, he would add to a pretty hot lineup, which will love going from one bandbox to another.

The Phillies have hit 100 homers, second most in the majors and three behind the Marlins. They are among the tops in the NL in runs (381, second), on-base percentage (.343, fourth), and slugging percentage (.454, first). These guys can hit. Their team ERA of 3.82 ranks fourth in the NL, and just ahead of the Sox (3.83) for seventh overall.

Since Manuel became manager in 2005, the Phillies have 303 wins, tied with St. Louis for most in the NL. Only the Yankees, Angels, and Red Sox have more wins during that time. The Phillies, who haven't won 90 games in a season since 1993, only have made one trip to the postseason during Manuel's tenure. But this is a far cry from the Terry Francona and Larry Bowa days in Philly, when the talent level was horrific, especially in the pitching department.

Bridgewater's Rich Dubee has done a nice job as the Phillies' pitching coach. What else can you conclude when he's used only five starters and 12 pitchers all year? The last addition was former Sox reliever Rudy Seanez back on April 2. The Phillies have 37 quality starts, third in the majors, with once-considered has-been Adam Eaton leading the way with nine.

Some think the Phillies might be working on borrowed time because there's not a lot of depth after what's already on the major league roster. But the Phillies appear to have resources to go out and add to their roster at the trading deadline.

In fact, team president Dave Montgomery recently told the Philadelphia media, "Shame on us if we sit back and say, 'Everything's going to be fine, there's no area where we can improve.' That isn't the nature of this business. That isn't the nature of the general manager [Pat Gillick] we have. He's always looking, always challenging everyone in the organization, scouts, everyone. You can't stand still."

The Phillies can bash and they can run. Their 87.3 stolen base percentage (48 steals, and seven caught stealing) is best in the majors. Reigning NL MVP Jimmy Rollins has stolen 26 consecutive bases dating to last season. It should be a nice matchup vs. Jacoby Ellsbury (a major-league high 33 steals). Second baseman Chase Utley has been hot all season and could give the Phillies their third straight MVP, following Rollins and Ryan Howard. Brad Lidge is also 18 for 18 in save opportunities, and that should provide another good matchup with Jonathan Papelbon, who blew a save Saturday.

The Sox will see Cole Hamels (6-4, 3.27) tonight, 45-year-old Jamie Moyer (7-3, 4.12) tomorrow night, and Kyle Kendrick (6-2, 4.54) Wednesday. Sox pitchers Bartolo Colon, Jon Lester, and Justin Masterson will have to contend with Utley, Howard, Rollins, Pat Burrell, and others.

The 57 home runs hit by the trio of Utley (22), Burrell (18), and Howard (17) are better than eight teams. So buckle up.

When asked if he thought it was a World Series prelude, Lowell said, "Oh, it's too early. But I think they're playing very well and if [we meet again] it means we're in the World Series.

"I think both teams get to gauge where they are against each other. I think we know they can really hit and we can hit. It comes down to pitching and their guys are pitching pretty well, so it's a test for us because we're on the road and we'd love to be able to string together some wins on the road where we haven't played as well."

Francona, who had a tough reign as manager in Philadelphia (1997-2000) and once had his tires slashed by a wise-guy Phillies fan, only would acknowledge that the Phillies "have a good lineup. We know that. We'll just get together and try to figure out how we want to pitch them."

Two words: very carefully.

It should be a fun series. We expect a lot of runs, but we'll get an idea of whether the Phillies can go toe-to-toe with the defending world champions. If they can, maybe there will be an October rematch.

Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com.