Halladay goes distance, beats former team

TORONTO -- A banner hanging from the outfield seats pleaded with Roy Halladay to be gentle with the Blue Jays.

Sorry, Toronto. Halladay treated his former team the same way he does everyone else. He pitched an eight-hitter to win his sixth straight decision and Chase Utley hit a go-ahead home run Saturdayas the Phillies topped the Blue Jays, 5-3.

"It was a cool experience for me, something I'll never forget," said Halladay (11-3), who took the mound in the bottom of the first to a standing ovation from the crowd of 44,078.

Toronto's Jose Bautista hit his major league-leading 26th home run, but the Blue Jays still lost for the 10th time in 13 home games.

The Phillies have won Halladay's past nine starts, the longest streak of his brief Philadelphia career. He's 6-0 with a 2.81 ERA in that span.

Blue Jays manager John Farrell and reliever Jon Rauch were ejected in a wild top of the ninth. Frustrated with plate umpire Alfonso Marquez after Ryan Howard drew a walk on a close pitch, Rauch lost his temper when Shane Victorino followed with an RBI single, with Utley sliding home just ahead of leftfielder Corey Patterson's throw.

The 6-10, 290-pound Rauch had to be restrained by his manager as he argued with Marquez, with Rauch's jersey getting pulled off in the struggle. Rauch fired his cap away in disgust as he walked off.

"The first thing I told the umpire is it's a shame that he can't have an ERA, because those runs are his," Rauch said. "I think he directly affected the outcome of the game."

After calling Shawn Camp in from the bullpen, Farrell renewed the argument with Marquez and also was ejected, swiping the dirt around home plate with his hands and getting nose-to-nose with the umpire before the rest of the crew came in to separate the pair. Fans threw debris into centerfield and booed Marquez loudly for the remainder of the game.

Halladay spent the first 12 years of his career with Toronto before being traded to Philadelphia in December 2009.

"I was definitely anxious warming up and walking out on the field," Halladay said. "It was definitely different. Once the game started, I felt like it was a normal game. But the stuff beforehand, it's hard to anticipate that kind of stuff."