At this point, it will take more than confidence.
"If we're going to keep our head above water here," Manuel said, "we have to get it going."
Tuesday's loss was the fifth in six games for the Phillies since beginning the second half, and left them seven games behind the first-place Atlanta Braves.
A night earlier, shortstop Jimmy Rollins observed that the Phillies of the past often found ways to win. This team, he said, always seems to find new ways to lose. Tuesday's game was doomed from the start.
But making the playoffs could take something drastic to keep the Phillies in it - something like an overhaul of the pitching rotation, which appears at hand.
Moyer, 47, will be placed on the disabled list with a left elbow strain, Manuel said.
He will be the 13th Phillie to spend time on the disabled list this season. It's an injury similar to what has sidelined J.A. Happ since April.
Moyer said he started feeling the soreness immediately when the game started. He lasted just one inning before taking himself out of the game.
"I expect to pitch again," Moyer said. "When that is I have no idea."
Happ, Manuel said, will be one of the pitchers the Phillies will insert into their rotation. The lefthander threw three scoreless innings for triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday before being pulled.
The other starter is undecided at this point. He could come from a trade, too.
"It'll work its way out," Manuel said.
Incredibly, Moyer has only spent time on the disabled list on three occasions during his 24-year career.
Moyer declined to say whether he had been sore before Tuesday. He said his pregame bullpen session felt decent but the adrenaline of the game changed the way his elbow felt.
