April 21 -- MANUEL: 'DON'T SLACK UP'

BY SCOTT LAUBER

It was raining pretty hard at about 4 p.m. yesterday, so in the interest of keeping our notepads dry, Charlie Manuel kindly moved his daily pregame chat with the beat writers from the dugout to his office. It was the first time this season that I'd spent any considerable time in Charlie's office, and the first thing I noticed was that the framed pictures on the walls had been changed. Action shots of many of the players had been replaced by photos from last season's playoff run. All the indelible images were there, from the champagne celebrations after the NLCS and World Series to the parade down Broad Street and most of the unforgettable on-field moments in between.

Looking at those walls brings a smile to Manuel's face. But, mostly, he prefers to keep his thoughts on this season.

He isn't sure all of his players have the same focus.

And before last night's game got rained out (a makeup date hasn't been scheduled, although May 11 is a decent bet), Manuel said he has "seen some difference in guys" this season. He didn't name names or cite specific examples, but he indicated some players may have grown complacent.

"There will always be things that will make us think of last year," he said. "If you look at the pictures on the wall, that's the fact that we won. But at the same time, the celebration comes to an end. These are memories, but the game goes on. For us to compete and win again, we've got to do the same thing we did last year. We've got to play the same way. Don't get me wrong. A lot of our guys have the same drive. But there's a few that, what I'm trying to say is, don't slack up."

Jimmy Rollins insists the Phillies' focus is in the right place, and it's probably true that the Phillies' 5-6 start has more to do with the pitching staff's worst-in-the-NL 6.87 ERA than anything else.

But what about those changes that Manuel says he has seen?

"[Brett] Myers and Ryan [Howard] have lost weight," Rollins said. "That's about all I've seen. Sometimes managers see things much differently than anybody else. They have a lot of pressure on them."

Personally, I think Manuel's claims are valid. I can't put a finger on it, or pinpoint any specific example, but I've noticed some changes, too. Maybe it's just what happens when you win a championship. You tend to puff out your chest and walk with a little more swagger. I also think it's natural to have a post-championship hangover. In January, Ryan Madson admitted that he and several players wondered if they'd be able to replicate the postseason intensity in the regular season, when the consequences of winning and losing are less dire. After going on that magical ride through October, it's natural, I think, to have somewhat of a letdown.

"We've got some very professional players," said Manuel, who doesn't believe the situation is serious enough to warrant a team meeting. "We've got some players that love the game just like they always did. But now we've also got some guys who, I think they need to look back at how we got there and what we did to be a winning team, and I think sometimes you can do things that get away from the fact that winning the game is the first priority. I've seen some changes in the way guys go about their business and how they act. I'm not saying they're for the worse. We won, and we're getting a chance to repeat. So don't have our mindset change. Just don't get into a thing where you think you're too big for your britches. I don't know if I'd call it confident. Self-inventory is what I call it."

What do you think? Are the Phillies overconfident? And is that necessarily a bad thing?

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Within the notebook, we look at Rollins' swing, J.A. Happ's motivation and Carlos Ruiz's strained right oblique.

And here's your primer for the Phillies-Brewers series that opens tonight:

BREWERS (4-8) at PHILLIES (5-6)
Tonight, 7:05: LHP Manny Parra (0-2, 6.97) vs. LHP Jamie Moyer (1-1, 6.55)
Tomorrow, 7:05: RHP Braden Looper (1-0, 3.27) vs. RHP Joe Blanton (0-1, 9.00)
Thursday, 1:05: RHP Dave Bush (0-0, 5.40) vs. LHP Cole Hamels (0-1, 11.17)
Hot: Brewers 2B Rickie Weeks has reached base in nine of 11 games and has a team-leading nine runs; Brewers RF Corey Hart has four hits in his last 11 at-bats; Phillies LF Raul Ibanez is 14-for-29 (.483) with four homers and seven RBIs during his seven-game hitting streak; Phillies 1B Ryan Howard has five hits in his last 12 at-bats (.417).
Not: Brewers 1B Prince Fielder has one hit in his last 11 at-bats; Brewers SS J.J. Hardy is hitless in 12 at-bats; Phillies RF Jayson Werth has one hit in his last 14 at-bats; Phillies CF Shane Victorino is in a 3-for-17 slump.

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For his work in raising money for ALS, Shane Victorino has won the 2009 Lou Gehrig Award, presented by the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Columbia University. Gehrig was a member of that frat, although somehow I doubt it was anything like this.

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Finally, calling all Twitterers.