July 23 -- SO, HOW ABOUT THAT?

NEW YORK -- A six-run ninth-inning rally? A game-tying, two-run double by So Taguchi? A go-ahead, two-run double by slumping MVP Jimmy Rollins? An improbable come-from-behind victory after being shut down for eight innings by Mets ace Johan Santana?

If you hadn't seen it, you'd have never believed it.

Before we get to Brett Myers and his eagerly anticipated return tonight, here's the story of last night's game from today's News Journal.

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NEW YORK -- They trotted out a new lineup cobbled together to spark the sputtering offense and a new pitcher acquired last week to strengthen the starting rotation.

Then, they won with an old-fashioned rally capped by an old Big Apple villain.

But before Jimmy Rollins interrupted the Phillies' summer freefall with his go-ahead, two-run double in a six-run ninth inning on a sweaty Tuesday night at jam-packed Shea Stadium, Shane Victorino's hustle and a rare pinch-hit by embattled So Taguchi led to a stirring 8-6 comeback over the Mets, the rival linked so often to the Phillies in the past two seasons.

"We'll definitely take this win," said Victorino, the speedy center fielder besieged by trade rumors over the past week. "I'm not going to say it's going to turn the tide, but this is a crucial time. It's crunch time, and a win like this is definitely big."

To understand how it happened, and its significance, take a step back.

Last September, the Phillies needed 17 games to erase a 7-game deficit and overtake the swooning Mets to win the National League East. This season, it had taken 33 games for the Mets to overcome a 7-1/2-game gap and tie the Phillies atop the division.

And, for eight innings, it seemed they'd bump the Phils from first place for the first time since May 31.

Joe Blanton, the right-hander obtained from Oakland for three minor leaguers, made an inauspicious debut, allowing five runs on eight hits, including a pair of two-run home runs by Carlos Delgado and Ramon Castro that left the Phillies in a 5-1 hole.

Meanwhile, Mets ace Johan Santana, the two-time Cy Young Award winner, quieted the Phillies' floundering offense for eight innings.

"That's what Johan does," Rollins said. "We didn't have too many opportunities."

But after tossing 105 pitches (his season-high is 116), Santana didn't come out for the ninth, and with closer Billy Wagner sidelined by shoulder spasms, the Mets turned to Duaner Sanchez. And the Phils greeted him with consecutive singles by Jayson Werth, pinch-hitting Greg Dobbs and Victorino.

Then, Carlos Ruiz chopped a bases-loaded grounder to shortstop Jose Reyes, and as Werth scored, Victorino beat Reyes to second base, keeping the bases loaded. Manager Charlie Manuel, watching on television after being ejected after the third inning, said it was "the key to the inning."

"As I got close, I could see Reyes, and it looked like he wanted to flip it to [second baseman Damion] Easley," Victorino recalled. "But you just want to get to second there."

The Mets summoned lefty Pedro Feliciano to face Geoff Jenkins, and bench coach Jimy Williams countered with Taguchi because "I just went with the guy I thought would come through."

Taguchi worked an eight-pitch at-bat by fouling off several outside pitches, then stroked a double over right fielder Endy Chavez's head that broke an 0-for-16 pinch-hit drought and scored Dobbs and Victorino.

"I was just trying to concentrate -- see the ball, hit the ball -- trying to make contact," said Taguchi, who led the majors in pinch-hitting last season. "Finally, I got a hit as a pinch-hitter. I didn't know 0-for-16. I didn't count. I didn't want to count."

That Rollins delivered against the Mets was no surprise. After bragging last year that the Phillies would be the "team to beat" in the NL East, he delivered a division crown with an MVP season that included a .346 average against the Mets. But this season Rollins has been disappointing atop the Phillies' lineup, and he was only 6-for-29 (.207) with one RBI against the Mets.

Asked before the game if the winner of this week's pivotal series would be the new team to beat, Rollins said, "The winner of tonight's game is the winner of a one-game lead in the division. That's it, until the next game. Then, the winner of that game will have a two-game lead, and the winner of the next game will have a three-game lead."

What if one team doesn't sweep?

"I don't really plan on that," Rollins said before assuring the Phillies wouldn't get swept.

And perhaps turning around their season in the process.