Phillies manager Charlie Manuel hinted on Friday that reserve outfielder Ross Gload might be earning some extra playing time. Gload hit his fourth home run of the season -- in just his 75th at-bat -- in the fifth inning of Friday's win, a towering 420-foot shot into the Phillies' bullpen in right-center field. He was making his eighth start of the year and is now hitting .407 with seven RBIs in those starts. Three of Gload's four homers have come off the bench -- he's tied for the National League lead in pinch-hit homers -- and his average of a home run per every 18.8 at-bats puts him not far behind slugger Ryan Howard (17.3) for second on the team. "I think that Gload has showed he's got some pop," Manuel said. "He's got four home runs, he's capable of hitting a pinch-hit homer for us, too. He's a pretty good hitter." Gload got the start in right field Friday, moving Jayson Werth to center field and giving Shane Victorino the day off. With Victorino batting only .227 against right-handers this season, Manuel was asked if Gload could see more playing time against righties in place of Victorino. Manuel was non-committal about that, but he hinted it was a possibility. He likes Gload coming off the bench, though, too. "We've been playing them," Manuel said, referring to Gload and Ben Francisco. "[Gload] showed he's good coming off the bench in the National League last year." Last season, Gload hit .261 with six home runs in 125 games for Florida. Victorino is back in the starting lineup against Rockies righty Ubaldo Jimenez, against whom he is 3-for-5 in his career. http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.co...12574322&vkey=notebook_phi&fext=.jsp&c_id=phi
