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Link to photos of Yankees-Phillies game and of fans.

PHILADELPHIA - The Phillies faced elimination Monday night.

They trailed the New York Yankees by a run even before they came to bat.

Tension began to envelop Citizens Bank Park.

Chase Utley changed everything with one swing.

Nothing lightens the mood such as a three-run home run.

Utley's first-inning, three-run blast propelled the Phillies to an 8-6 win over the Yankees in Game 5 of the World Series before 46,178 fans at Citizens Bank Park. The Yankees lead the series three games to two. Game 6 is 7:57 p.m. Wednesday at Yankee Stadium.

Utley's home run electrified the Phillies' dugout. He sprinted around the bases, nearly catching the runners ahead of him.

The home run told the Phillies that, at least for one night, they were going to be OK.

"That was the most exciting inning since we won (the World Series) last year," Phillies reliever Ryan Madson said.

Utley added a solo home run in the seventh. That gives him five for the series, tying a World Series record. Reggie Jackson hit five home runs for the Yankees in the 1977 series.

Utley has now hit more home runs in a World Series than baseball greats such as Babe Ruth (four in 1926) and Lou Gehrig (four in 1928).

"It's great company," Utley said, "and at

some point, not right now, I'll look back on it and see what a special moment it is. But right now our goal is to win two more games."

The Phillies are trying to become the first team in 24 years to rally from a 3-1 deficit to win the World Series.

The Phillies appeared loose before the game. They were laughing and joking during batting practice as if it were mid-July.

"It's always important to have fun," Utley said.

The Yankees started pitcher A.J. Burnett on three days' rest. Pitchers normally rest four days between starts. Burnett was 3-0 with a 1.64 ERA in three career starts on three days' rest.

Those numbers did not hold up Monday. Burnett did not resemble the pitcher who baffled the Phillies in Game 2 with a sharp-breaking curveball.

The crowd was easily the loudest of the three World Series games played at Citizens Bank. The fans cheered as if they were determined not to let the series end in front of their eyes.

The Phillies stoked that enthusiasm early.

Jimmy Rollins led off the bottom of the first with a single. Burnett hit Shane Victorino on the right hand while the Phillies' outfielder attempted to bunt.

Utley then lined the first pitch he saw - fastball - into the right-field stands to give the Phillies a 3-1 lead.

The home run was Philadelphia's eighth of the series, but its first with men on.

"I think (his teammates) were pretty excited at that point," Utley said. "Scoring runs early is important. It takes a little pressure off everybody."

There's a reason why pitchers start on four days' rest and not three, and Burnett's performance showed why.

He lasted just four batters into the third inning.

Ryan Howard and Raul Ibanez had RBI singles as the Phillies built a 6-1 lead.

In contrast to Burnett, Phillies ace Cliff Lee pitched well enough to improve to 4-0 in the playoffs.

Lee was nowhere near as dominant as he had been in a 6-1 Game 1 victory, when he struck out 10.

Lee allowed five runs in a little more than seven innings. But three of those came in the eighth, an inning the Phillies started with a six-run cushion, thanks to Utley and Ibanez.

Utley's solo home run in the seventh off Yankee reliever Phil Coke made it 7-2. He hit a 3-2 fastball. Two batters later, Ibanez homered on 2-1 pitch to make it 8-2.

The Phillies needed all the runs they could get. The Yankees brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth before reliever Madson escaped the jam.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel chose Madson over Brad Lidge to close the game. Lidge took the loss in Sunday's Game 4, having allowed three runs in the top of the ninth. Madson allowed one run and three hits in the ninth.

"I wanted to give Lidge a break," Manuel said.

The Phillies will travel to New York today.

History does not favor a Philadelphia comeback.

The Phillies are the 42nd team to be down three games to one in a best-of-seven World Series. Only five teams - the 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates, 1958 Yankees, 1968 Detroit Tigers, 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates and 1985 Kansas City Royals - have rallied from being 3-1 down to win a best-of-seven World Series.

The Yankees still control the series. New York hasn't lost three straight since July 30-Aug. 1.

But the pressure will begin to build on New York in Game 6.

The memory of the 2004 American League Championship Series hangs over the Yankees and their fans. New York led the Boston Red Sox 3-0 in that series but then dropped four straight, including the last two at home.

The stain of that collapse will mark the Yankees until they win a World Series.

The Phillies' clubhouse was as relaxed after Monday's win as it was somber after Sunday's loss.

The players seem to relish the chance to win two games in Yankee Stadium.

"We've got guys who love the big stage," Madson said.

The lights certainly will be bright Wednesday night.

Contact Michael McGarry:

609-272-7185

MMcGarry@pressofac.com

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