Mar. 26 -- UTLEY: 'MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION'

BY SCOTT LAUBER

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- When spring training began here nearly six weeks ago, one of the biggest questions facing the Phillies was whether Chase Utley would be ready to start the season after undergoing right hip surgery Nov. 24.

Utley's first-inning swing today provided the answer.

It was a compact, left-handed stroke, and it resulted in a laser solo home run over the right-field wall against Yankees right-hander Joba Chamberlain. In other words, it was vintage Utley. If I didn't know better, I'd have thought it was midseason at Citizens Bank Park, not late March at Bright House Field with Utley only 17 weeks removed from the operating table. He played eight innings and went 2-for-4 in the 10-2 loss to the Yankees, hiking his Grapefruit League average to .318 (7-for-22).

So, after the game, I hung around the clubhouse for a while and waited for Utley to finish getting treatment. I had a simple question for him: Is there any doubt he'll be ready for Opening Night, April 5 at the Bank against the Braves?

"We're moving in the right direction," Utley said. "It's a positive that everything feels good to this point. The last three or four games I haven't even thought about [the hip], to be honest with you. At first, I thought about it a little bit, but now, it's out of mind completely."

Charlie Manuel insists he knew all along that Utley would be ready. Ruben Amaro Jr. seemingly wasn't so sure. That's why he collected veteran infielders this winter, signing Marcus Giles, Pablo Ozuna and Miguel Cairo to minor-league contracts. But now that Utley is on the verge of completing a successful rehab, Amaro admitted to me yesterday that, because the surgery wasn't as extensive as it could have been, the Phillies were hoping Utley's recovery would be closer to four months than six.

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Pedro Feliz also appears to be ready for the season-opener after having surgery Nov. 20 to repair a herniated disc in his lower back. But Feliz's timing at the plate isn't as advanced as Utley's. Including his 0-for-4 here today, Feliz is 3-for-24 (.125) in Grapefruit League play.