Giants ballpark brings new dimension to NLCS

SAN FRANCISCO - Yesterday afternoon, beneath a milky-blue Northern California sky, Jayson Werth and Domonic Brown took a walk around one of the most unusual rightfields a player will encounter. In the shadow of the 24-foot brick wall that rises above the warning track, the veteran talked shop with the rookie, pointing out the various idiosyncrasies of an outfield that can make even the most accomplished of fielders feel as if he is chasing a pinball.

"I think at one point I said this is probably one of the toughest rightfields to play," Werth recalled later, "just because of the angles, the way the ball flies - the ball travels kind of weird out there."

When Werth and his teammates take the field at AT & T Park for Game 3 of the National League Championship Series this afternoon, they will have to contend with a Giants homefield advantage that has weighed heavily against them over the past few seasons. Since the start of the 2008 season, the Phillies have lost seven of 10 games against the Giants in San Francisco, while beating them in seven of 11 games at Citizens Bank Park.

That trend must change for the Phillies to win their third consecutive National League Championship. Heading into today's matchup between righthander Matt Cain and lefty Cole Hamels, the best-of-seven series is tied at one game apiece, with the Giants hosting the next three.

Nobody inside the Phillies organization seems too concerned about their recent regular-season struggles by the bay. Most, however, will acknowledge that the Giants' home ballpark presents some unique challenges for a visiting squad.

Start with rightfield, where several factors can conspire to make life hectic for both hitters and fielders. Before a batted ball even falls back to earth, it is subjected to the wind that blows in from the San Francisco Bay. Although the rightfield wall is 24 feet high - in honor of former Giants star Willie Mays, who wore No. 24 - it features large, open windows at its base where fans can stand outside the stadium and watch the game.

Werth points to the bases-clearing double he hit off Giants closer Brian Wilson to cap off a wild ninth-inning, game-tying rally of what would end as a 7-6 Phillies victory in 11 innings on April 28.

"It was a ball that was probably a foul ball any other place, but here for some reason the ball comes back to the line," said Werth, who misjudged a fly ball at this ballpark in 2009 and was charged with an error. "That's just one other thing to worry about out there. I think there's a couple balls, I remember looking back, that I went back on and then ended up having to run a long way in on. It just seems like there is always something going on out there that is a little abnormal."

And, said another Phillies player, "the wind can change quick."

A ball on the ground presents its own set of challenges. The rightfield wall features three materials, each of which affects a bouncing ball differently. The wall itself is made of brick. The windows at its base are covered by metal bars. And the rest of the base is covered by padding.

Factor in a couple of angled indentations in the wall and the potential complications grow.

"The ball can hit anything and go any way," Phillies outfielder Ben Francisco said.

As for the offense, AT & T Park can be brutal on big-league hitters. The power alley for a lefthanded hitter is a monstrous 421 feet. Although the rightfield foul pole sits only 309 feet from home plate, the right side of the outfield plays farther than it looks.

Some players say that the metal bleachers in leftfield and centerfield can reflect brightly during day games, but those bleachers should be filled today, rendering that problem moot.

According to Park Factor, a formula that measures offense at home vs. on the road, AT & T Park was the ninth-most pitcher-friendly park, in terms of runs scored in the majors. Over their last 10 games there, the Phillies have hit seven home runs and averaged 3.2 runs. By comparison, they have hit 11 home runs and averaged 4.1 runs in their last 11 home games against the Giants.

Unlike Coors Field, a big park where the Phillies have had considerable offensive success, AT & T Park sits at sea level.

"Here, you're on the water. It seems like the air is kind of thicker," first baseman Ryan Howard said. "You've got the wind coming in off the bay."

Howard has performed relatively well at AT & T Park, where he has the same number of career home runs (six) as he does in notoriously hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park in Houston. While Howard thinks some hitters can let the short dimensions of rightfield get into their heads, he said the key is for a hitter to keep the same approach he would in his own ballpark.

"I think that was something I kind of learned in the minor leagues, because Reading was a park kind of like that," Howard said. "You go from Reading to Scranton, and it's a whole different thing."

Now, the Phillies' goal is to mitigate that difference.

The journey continues today. *

For more Phillies coverage and opinion, read David Murphy's blog, High Cheese, at

http://go.philly.com/highcheese.

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