The Phillies offense continued to struggle again in Houston Wednesday afternoon scoring just one run. But with their ace Roy Halladay on the mound that was all they needed.
The Phightins are playoff bound for the fifth-straight season after a 1-0 win in Houston.
Halladay (18-5) allowed six hits and a walk while striking out six in nine full innings. The shutout was Doc’s first of the season -- the 20th of his likely Hall of Fame career -- and it marks the second straight year where Halladay tossed a complete game to clinch a Phillies playoff spot.
The win -- the Phillies 95th -- assured the team of at least the wild card. Their magic number to clinch the division remained at four with second-place Atlanta winning 4-1 Wednesday.
The Phillies didn't do the traditional champagne celebration that has become customary to the team in recent years -- winning four-straight division crowns.
"It's a great mentality to have," Halladay said. "There's business to be done and until that point, there's not a lot of celebration."
Manager Charlie Manuel wants to stay focused on the ultimate goal.
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"We want the World Series and we want to get there in a good position," Manuel said. "We want to win our division and we want to have the best record. We want to give our players the best possible position."
The Phillies only run came off Bud Norris (6-10) in the first when Shane Victorino led off with a double and was brought home by a Placido Polanco single.
The Phillies come home to play a doubleheader with the Marlins Thursday. Sixth-starter Kyle Kendrick (7-6, 3.29 ERA) takes on young righty Alex Sanabia (0-0, 0.00) in the day game.
