"Chase Utley is home recovering from a concussion. Jimmy Rollins hasn't played in nearly three weeks because of a groin strain. Ryan Howard is playing on a painful ankle and Placido Polanco is only a few weeks back from a trip to the disabled list for a sports hernia.

The Phillies can't afford to lose another infielder, but that's what almost happened in the middle of the sixth inning Friday night when Pete Orr, filling in for Utley at second base, was nearly run over by a speeding bratwurst in Milwaukee's famous Sausage Race.

Orr was hurrying out of the dugout and on his way to his position for the bottom of the sixth when he was nearly pancaked by the Italian sausage. Death by chocolate is one thing, but death by encased meat would have put a damper on the night. In the end, all's well that ends well. Orr survived the near miss and the Phillies beat the Milwaukee Brewers for the second straight night, 5-3.

"I had gotten mud on my hands so I was in the bathroom washing them off," Orr said. "I was kind of running late. I grabbed my glove and went up the steps."

When Orr saw the sausages bearing down on him …

"Straight panic," he said. "I froze and tried to get skinny. I'm glad no one got hurt."

Roy Halladay, who pitched eight innings of one-run ball for his 17th win, was right behind Orr on his way up the dugout steps.

"I was about to walk right in front of them," Halladay said. "I actually saw them coming and stopped. Pete didn't."

Halladay is one of baseball's fiercest competitors. He barely cracks a smile or speaks to his wife on days he pitches. Would he have been able to laugh if he had been hit by a sausage?

"As long as I didn't get hurt," he said.

The sausage incident provided a light moment in the evening, not that the Phillies needed one. Life is good in the clubhouse. The Phils have the best record in the majors (93-48) and they have 21 games remaining to top the franchise record of 101 wins. The magic number for winning a fifth straight NL East title is nine."