For The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) -Jimmy Rollins hit a leadoff homer and scored twice, and the Philadelphia Phillies closed in on their first pennant in 15 years by building a 3-0 lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers after three innings in Game 5 of the NL championship series Wednesday night.
Cole Hamels held the Dodgers to two hits, and Philadelphia got RBI singles from Ryan Howard and Pat Burrell with two outs in the third.
Los Angeles right-hander Chad Billingsley failed to make it out of the third inning for the second time in two series starts. He gave up three runs, four hits and four walks after allowing eight runs, eight hits and three walks during an 8-5 loss in Game 2 at Philadelphia.
Hamels, who won the series opener, had allowed only two singles in this one. Both of them came in the second, but the left-hander escaped the jam by getting Blake DeWitt to bounce into a double play.
With the Phillies leading 3-1 in the best-of-seven series, Rollins capped an eight-pitch at-bat in the first inning with a home run to right-center. The 2007 NL MVP also hit a leadoff homer in Philadelphia’s first-round clincher at Milwaukee.
Rollins has a franchise-record 28 leadoff home runs during the regular season, including two this year.
The Phillies added a pair of runs in the third after Billingsley walked Rollins, who stole second, and Chase Utley. Billingsley, who was 6-0 with 1.60 ERA in his previous seven starts at Dodger Stadium, threw 66 pitches before he was relieved by Chan Ho Park after an intentional walk to Shane Victorino loaded the bases.
Park retired Feliz on an inning-ending grounder to shortstop.
Moments before the Dodgers took the field, one fan was shown on the video board in left-center holding up a placard proclaiming: “Not in our house,” and received a loud ovation.
The only time Los Angeles had lost the clinching game of an NLCS at home was in 1985, when Jack Clark’s three-run homer off Tom Niedenfuer in Game 6 sent the St. Louis Cardinals to the World Series against Kansas City.
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