RYNE SANDBERG walked out of his office, through the tunnel to the dugout and failed to make a pitstop before taking the field about a half hour before the Phillies took regular pregame batting practice on Friday afternoon.
Ryan Howard was peppering the catchers with strikes from the mound, letting them practice throwing down to second base. Outfielders were working on their throws into the infield. Later, Larry Bowa peppered infielders with sharp ground balls with a fungo bat.
"Basic fundamentals of catching the ball, throwing the ball, routine plays, hitting the cutoff men," Sandberg said shortly afterward.