June 10 -- J-ROLL'S SIXTH SENSE; GETTING DRAFTY

BY SCOTT LAUBER

NEW YORK -- So, it's been two games since Jimmy Rollins was moved from his familiar leadoff spot to the No. 6 hole in the Phillies' lineup, and in those two games, he's 5-for-8 with a two-run homer.

That doesn't mean he likes it.

Rollins, as you know, loves batting leadoff. He grew up in the Bay Area, idolizing Rickey Henderson, the greatest leadoff hitter of all-time, and he always has fancied himself a top-of-the-order catalyst. So, although Charlie Manuel said last night he's not sure when Rollins will return to the leadoff spot (my bet: It happens tonight against Mets right-hander Mike Pelfrey), Rollins made it clear that he's eager to get back there.

"I don't think you get up for the game as much being in the six-hole," he said. "When you're a leadoff hitter, you're a leadoff hitter. Doesn't matter the situation. You got two out, runners on second and third, it's not that you better get a hit because there are runners on second and third. You're supposed to get on first and come around and score a run. That's what a leadoff hitter does. Down in the six-hole, you probably have an opportunity to drive in runs with a fly ball or sometimes a ground ball. The emphasis isn't getting on base as much. So, it's different. I had good at-bats [Sunday night] in Los Angeles, and it had nothing to do with where I was batting."

So, how does J-Roll, previously in a 4-for-32 funk, explain the two-game turnaround?Before last night's game, he said he watched Chase Utley take cuts in the indoor cage before batting practice and jotted a few mental notes.

"It was just something in his swing I was just able to pick up on," said Rollins, who declined to get into specifics. "I knew where my swing was flattening out. I just needed that reminder, and Chase was that reminder. Kind of like when Bobby [Abreu] was here. I watched Bobby, and I was able to see something in his swing that was not what I was doing in mine."

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Rollins made this observation about Johan Santana: "His velocity was down. That changeup is always good. That never really changes. But it makes a big difference when you throw 94 as your top speed as opposed to 91. He was 91 from the start, pretty much stayed there." Asked good friend Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News about this, and he said Santana's velocity has declined. That's something to keep an eye on as the season goes along.

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At about 10:30 last night, the Phillies made their first pick in the amateur draft, selecting switch-hitting 18-year-old center fielder Kelly Dugan from Notre Dame (Calif.) High with the 75th overall pick. With the 106th overall pick, they took another 18-year-old center fielder, Kyrell Hudson, from Evergreen (Wash.) High. A few nuggets on both, courtesy of Kevin Czerwinski, an old friend and contributor to CSNPhilly.com:

--Dugan worked out alongside Alex Rodriguez in Miami this winter, just prior to A-Rod's admission of steroid use. He also attended the same high school as Pat Gillick.
--Dugan's father, Dennis, played Richie Brockelman on the TV series "The Rockford Files" in the 70s and directed Adam Sandler in "Happy Gilmore" and "Big Daddy".
--Hudson has committed to play football at Oregon State and lists the Mets as his favorite team. Presumably, that will change if he ever plays for the Phillies.

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