The Fightin’ Phils moved even closer to first place with a 7-4 win in 14 innings in St. Louis last night.

Cole Hamels was lifted after three innings as he neared his 65-pitch limit and left the ball in the hands of the bullpen, usually a sure sign of disaster to come.

But the bullpen held firm and the Phils tied the game in the 6th. The Phils went ahead by a run in the 10th, only to see the lead disappear with usually-reliable Brett Meyers on the mound.

Pinch-hitter Rod Barajas singled in Chase Utley with the go-ahead run in the 14th, followed by a 2-run triple by Jason Werth that scored Barajas and the intentionally-walked Aaron Rowand to pad the lead. Clay Condrey, the last available reliever, came on in the bottom of the inning to secure his first career save.

This all happened after the Mets blew a big lead to lose to the Nationals, pulling the Phillies within 1 1/2 games of the division lead. They remain 1 1/2 games out in the wild-card race.

You saw something you rarely see in baseball in the second inning. Cardinals’ Manager Tony LaRussa benched SS Brendan Ryan for swinging at a 3-0 pitch. Ryan has just 4 homers this season, but more importantly, LaRussa knew Hamels was on a pitch count and wanted the lefty to throw as many pitches as possible early in the game. So when Ryan flew out on a 3-0 count, LaRussa greeted him in the dugout and clearly didn’t like his answer as to why he was swinging 3-0. How often do you see a major league player benched in the middle of a game for making a mental mistake? Not often enough. Nice job LaRussa!

Hamels’ first game back, although disappointing from a statistical standpoint, was an overall success. His elbow felt fine after the game.

In his post-game press conference, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel had this to say about Hamels’ first start following a month off:

“He was rusty,” Manuel said. “He was definitely rusty. The outing was good for him as far getting to throw in a game situation and things like that. But he was definitely rusty, and that was to be expected.”

On another note, twice in the first two innings Hall-of-Fame announcer Harry Kalas slipped, further proving he might be hanging on just a season too long. It took him three batters to realize Albert Pujols was not in the game at first base (not until he heard it over the press box announcement). He then mis-called a “looooong drive” to right field. Instead of it being, “and that ball is outta here,” it was, “and that ball is……..caught.” Unlike other calls this season, he at least caught himself before getting it wrong. But clearly his depth perception is off.

Harry ~ we all love you, nobody more than me. Please make this your last year and let us remember you as the Hall-of-Fame announcer you are!

As Phillies fans we have all we could hope for ~ games in September that matter. Let’s enjoy the ride and hope it brings October baseball back to Philadelphia for the first time since 1993.

Jon Buzby is a nationally-syndicated columnist who can be reached through his website at www.jonbuzby.com