By RYAN LAWRENCE
rlawrence@delcotimes.com
MINNEAPOLIS – Charlie Manuel and Jim Thome had an important conversation Wednesday afternoon at Target Field.
Before playing their second of three games against the Minnesota Twins – the exact midway point of a nine-game stretch of road games against American League teams, where the designated hitter is used – the Phillies manager and the home run hitting slugger talked about the possibility of rekindling the first base experiment.
Thome, who spent the majority of his last six seasons as a DH in the American League, made one start in the field in the last five years and none since 2007. When the Phils rebooted the future Hall of Famer at first base this spring, it lasted just over a month.

Thome spent most of May on the disabled list recovering from a lower back injury.
But after Thome’s re-awakening at the plate in the last week – thanks to regular, every day at-bats as a DH – it’s as good of a time as any to revisit the topic of getting Thome’s bat in the lineup when interleague play ends, too. The Phillies pitching staff needs it.
Thome drove in four runs – including two on his second home run in his last four games – as the Phillies out-slugged the Twins in a 9-8 win.
“We’ll deal with that when that happens,” Thome said of the inevitable turn next week, when the Phillies will no longer have a designated hitter in their lineup. “Right now, I think the big thing is we’re trying to win games. Me personally I’m getting an opportunity to play every day and it’s been a lot of fun.”
If Thome was the offensive star, the backend of the Phillies bullpen was a close runner-up.
Chad Qualls stepped into a one-run game in the eighth and struck out all three batters he faced. Qualls hasn’t allowed a run in seven of his last eight appearances.
“He was sharp,” Manuel said.
When Qualls’ third straight strikeout put a runner on base due to a wild pitch on the third strike, Jonathan Papelbon came in and recorded his second, four-out save in his last four games. Papelbon retired all four batters he faced en route to his 17th save in 17 chances.
“Our bullpen came in and did a good job,” Thome said. “To get that win was big, no doubt.”
The victory snapped a three-game losing streak for the last place Phils, who entered the game a season-high 10 games behind the Washington Nationals in the NL East standings. Despite banging out 14 hits, flirting with double-digit runs and holding two separate six-run leads Wednesday night, the Phillies were in danger of losing for the 10th time in their last 11 games thanks to their suddenly shaking starting pitching.
Thanks in part to a two-run single from Thome in the first, Cole Hamels was given a 6-0 lead before he stepped on the mound at Target Field. But he managed to give all six of those runs back in his worst start of the season.
Hamels gave up three runs in his first three innings. When Thome launched a mammoth, two-run home run in the fourth, the Phils were up 9-3 and Hamels had his six-run lead back.
But he served up his second home run of the game – and eighth in his last six starts – to begin the sixth and he was lifted when the first three batters reached base in the seventh. Hamels was charged with seven runs (six earned) on eight hits in six-plus innings.
The seven runs tied a career-high for Hamels, who has a 6.07 ERA in his last four starts.
“I feel like it comes and goes,” said Hamels, who was 7-1 with a 2.17 ERA in his first nine starts. “I feel like I have innings where things are working well and I’m hitting my spots. Then all of a sudden, I can’t hit a spot to save my life. Sometimes, you can get away with it unscathed. Unfortunately, I’m not getting away with it at all and it definitely hurts.”
Hamels, however, isn’t alone in his slump. Since Roy Halladay suffered a right shoulder injury on May 27, Phillies starting pitchers have a 5.97 ERA in the last 15 games. Before Tuesday, the Phils had lost 10 of 14 games in that span.
The Phils avoided another defeat thanks to their bats, namely Thome and Carlos Ruiz.
Ruiz, who is among the top three in the National League in hitting but still trailing two catchers in All-Star voting, went 3-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and a walk. Thome (2-for-4 with a walk) collected his fourth multi-hit game in five games as the Phillies designated hitter.
If his bat stays hot throughout the rest of the road trip, it would be difficult not to consider starting Thome at first base next week in Philadelphia, wouldn’t it? Thome is hitting .476 (10-for-21) with two home runs, two doubles and 10 RBIs in his last five games.
“I don't think we can play him,” Manuel said. “We'd take a chance on his back stiffening up again.”
“I just know when I was in Florida where I was at; I think I’ve been pretty honest and open with that,” Thome said. “We’ll see. We’ll see. … I know what it’s done. What it’s done to my back. That’s where it’s at.”