Skip to main content

Lidge Not Sure Thing For Opening Day

By
It is beginning to look like Brad Lidge may not be ready to be on the big league Phillies' opening day roster. Lidge is not expected to see his first Grapefruit League game action until this coming Monday, March 15th. Obviously, that places him behind the pace of the rest of the team. There's no certainty in Lidge's status at all, but all that does is stir speculation. The main concern of phans and media alike would be- if Lidge isn't ready to start the season, who will close games? The most like candidate is Danys Baez.

Baez has closed in the past and has 114 career saves in the Major Leagues. His save conversion rate is 76%. By comparison, Lidge's conversion rate in save situations is 83.7%. For those who feel Ryan Madson should be the first option to fill in for Lidge, consider that Madson has more career blown saves than he does actual saves. Granted, Madson's blown saves have mostly come in innings earlier than the 9th, but facts are facts. In 2009, Madson saved 10 games in 16 chances. That's a 62.5% conversion rate.

Lidge took his first big strides toward getting in game shape and proving he's healthy, on Wednesday, when he threw to live batters, two Phillies minor leaguers, Ozzie Chavez & Chris Duffy.

The Phillies are slated to compete in two games on Monday against the Pirates. The regularly scheduled game in Bradenton and a "B" game in the morning. There is no official word on which game Lidge will pitch in.

With the Phillies expecting JC Romero to not be ready for opening day, the team's relief corp might be a thinner, downgraded version of what the team is paying for, with the likes of Dave Herndon, Scott Mathieson, Mike Zagurski, Sergio Escalona and Antonio Bastardo striving to be on the bubble to earn a roster spot, should one become available.

A healthy Lidge should be leaps and bounds better than he was in 2009, when his mechanics were altered by multiple ailments. So phans, if Brad the closer isn't ready to go, on opening day, just remember that Lidge was also not on the opening day roster in 2008, when he was perfect in save opportunities and the Phillies won the World Series. If Lidge needs an extra week to get his velocity where he, and the team, want it to be, it won't be the end of the world...it could be the best thing possible.

-----------------------------

Follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE for unique trivia, stats and other updates!

Lidge picture- Getty Images




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What the hell else was I going to write about...?

By
It will be too late for many people's liking, but it's really about time to NEVER USE BRAD LIDGE IN A SAVE SITUATION ON THE ROAD AGAIN. Lidge in 2009 road games- 0-6, 8.10 ERA, 15 saves, 10 blown saves. One of my favorite statistics that I regularly update here on PhoulBallz is the percentage of games that Brad Lidge has allowed earned runs in this season, compared to the 18% he allowed in 2008. This year, Lidge has allowed earned runs in 43% of his outings. And, as a reminder, in 2007 Brett Myers allowed earned runs in just 21% of his relief appearances. Considering Lidge's season-long struggles, what is the solution when Brett Myers is ailing with a back muscle/shoulder injury, when Chan Ho Park has an injured hamstring, when Ryan Madson looks just as inept in the 9th inning as Brad Lidge seems and when JC Romero is still unavailable to pitch due to a forearm injury? Well, on Wednesday night, with Hanley Ramirez batting with two outs and the tying run on 3rd base, your an...
4 comments
Read more

Watch Out For the Bat Boy

By
Stop ice grillin' the Phillies players, bat boy. I am watching YOU. I don't know what is on your mind, bat boy, but don't even think about doing something slick. You might wear the Phillies' uniform, but it is clear that you are a Yankees fan. It's all over your pale little "I wanna grow up to be like the Robert De Niro character in The Fan " face. The World Champs should be cautious around this kid. He could be dangerous. ------------------------------------------- Follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE !
6 comments
Read more

Greatest Comeback I've Ever Witnessed

By
I was lucky enough to be in the building for the Phillies' game 4 NLCS walk off victory. I would like to write about it as though I'm reporting on it. I'd love to be able to jot down a story and go off to bed, like I did after game 3, but I don't think that is possible. I feel like I did last year following game 5.2 of the World Series. I was up all night, unable to come down off of that Phillies high. I have the same feeling right now. You all know what happened. I don't need to tell you all a story about the game. It's very likely you've got the image of Jimmy Rollins lacing that double off Jonathan Broxton burned in you brain, frame by frame already. I know I do. With two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning, my lady began to collect her things, strapping her purse on across herself. I shot her a quick look as though to convey, "What are you doing?" She shot back, "I'm getting ready to go." I replied, "I'm getting ready to...
4 comments
Read more