Ramirez struggled vs. Phils

PHILADELPHIA – It’s nothing personal. They respect the man and admire his exploits. But the Philadelphia Phillies don’t fear Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez.

Perhaps Ramirez should be the one worrying when the Dodgers and Phillies meet in the National League Championship Series beginning Thursday at Citizens Bank Park. Phillies pitchers are the only N.L. staff to shut down the big guy this year.

“Check out the numbers,” says Phillies ace Cole Hamels, who will start Game 1. “I think we did pretty good.”

Make that real good. Ramirez hit .212 with one homer vs. the Phillies this season, his lowest batting average against an N.L. team. He made hitter-friendly Citizens Bank Park look like the Grand Canyon, hitting .136 (3 for 22) without an extra-base hit in four August games.

“You look at this park, and guys sometimes become more pull-conscious,” Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee said. “Sometimes that plays in your head.”

Phillies scouts presented their reports to manager Charlie Manuel and his staff Tuesday.

They know it will be nearly impossible to stop Ramirez, but they can minimize the damage.

“You can’t let a guy like that beat you,” center fielder Shane Victorino said. “I think we can shut him down. If we can do that, I think we’ll be just fine.”

Ramirez, who batted .396 with 17 homers and 53 RBI in 53 games in two months with the Dodgers, also thrived in the Division Series, hitting .500 (5 for 10) with two home runs and three RBI against the Chicago Cubs.

“The bigger the moment, the more he steps up,” Dubee said.