PHILADELPHIA -- Chase Utley is a believer in numbers.Put together enough quality at-bats, put enough runners on base and eventually those runners will score. That has not been the case the past two seasons as the Phillies struggled to put runners on base, but after stranding 12 runners and going 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position through seven-plus innings Sunday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park, Utley smacked a solo home run to right field to lead the Phillies to a 4-3 victory over the Marlins.The Phillies swept the Marlins to improve to 6-6. 
Utley is the hottest hitter in baseball, beginning the afternoon with a big league-leading 1.314 OPS. He walked in the first, singled and scored in the fifth and doubled in the sixth before he homered against Marlins left-hander Mike Dunn in the eighth.The Marlins took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, which started when Ryan Howard missed a catchable ball up the first-base line. Christian Yelich reached second on the two-base error and scored four batters later when Casey McGehee hit a two-out single to left field. Miami built a 2-0 lead in the second when Yelich's two-out single to center scored Jeff Mathis.Howard has made three errors this season, which are the most in baseball for first basemen.Howard's defense is a concern as he also has not been stretching for throws from the bag as he has in the past. Howard said two years of injuries to his left leg have not limited him defensively, but Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said Thursday that Howard is "slightly restricted on getting full athletic position, really getting down low where a guy would want to be, he is restricted to some extent there."If Howard hits consistently for power, the Phillies can manage it, but when Howard stepped into the batter's box with one out in the third inning, he had hit just .167 (5-for-30) with one double, two RBIs, seven walks and eight strikeouts since he hit a two-run home run in his second plate appearance April 2 in Texas.But Howard ripped a 1-0 fastball to center field for a home run to make it 2-1.The Phillies scattered seven hits through their first four innings against Marlins right-hander Henderson Alvarez, but they could not come up with the big hit at the big time. They left the bases loaded in the first, runners at the corners in the second and runners on first and second in the third.They finally came through when Wil Nieves doubled to right field with two outs in the fifth to score Utley and Domonic Brown and tie the game at 3.Todd Zolecki / MLB.com
Utley is the hottest hitter in baseball, beginning the afternoon with a big league-leading 1.314 OPS. He walked in the first, singled and scored in the fifth and doubled in the sixth before he homered against Marlins left-hander Mike Dunn in the eighth.The Marlins took a 1-0 lead in the first inning, which started when Ryan Howard missed a catchable ball up the first-base line. Christian Yelich reached second on the two-base error and scored four batters later when Casey McGehee hit a two-out single to left field. Miami built a 2-0 lead in the second when Yelich's two-out single to center scored Jeff Mathis.Howard has made three errors this season, which are the most in baseball for first basemen.Howard's defense is a concern as he also has not been stretching for throws from the bag as he has in the past. Howard said two years of injuries to his left leg have not limited him defensively, but Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said Thursday that Howard is "slightly restricted on getting full athletic position, really getting down low where a guy would want to be, he is restricted to some extent there."If Howard hits consistently for power, the Phillies can manage it, but when Howard stepped into the batter's box with one out in the third inning, he had hit just .167 (5-for-30) with one double, two RBIs, seven walks and eight strikeouts since he hit a two-run home run in his second plate appearance April 2 in Texas.But Howard ripped a 1-0 fastball to center field for a home run to make it 2-1.The Phillies scattered seven hits through their first four innings against Marlins right-hander Henderson Alvarez, but they could not come up with the big hit at the big time. They left the bases loaded in the first, runners at the corners in the second and runners on first and second in the third.They finally came through when Wil Nieves doubled to right field with two outs in the fifth to score Utley and Domonic Brown and tie the game at 3.Todd Zolecki / MLB.com
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