Even though the Phillies have won their fifth consecutive division title and clinched home field throughout the playoffs, don’t expect baseball’s best squad to take it easy.
“We want to set the record [101 is tops in franchise history],” Shane Victorino said. “It’s a lot of fun to win. Yes, we’ve won the division, but that doesn’t mean we’re just going to relax out there and take it easy. When we’re out on the field, we’re going to play to win.”
Cliff Lee, who took the loss Tuesday night, is on the same wavelength as Victorino.
“We want to win every game left of the schedule no matter what,” Lee said. “It’s more fun to win than lose. We don’t like to lose. We just don’t lose that many games.”
The Phillies (98-56) have won many more games than they have lost. Entering play last night, the club had lost four in a row and three in a row only twice.
“We can’t help but take games seriously,” Ryan Howard said. “We’re in a good position now, but we’re not going to play like it’s spring training.”
