Posted by Scott Zlotnick on Mar. 27, 2011 at 1:38 PM
Phillies Should Sever Ties with Lidge
Yet again, Brad Lidge is on the DL. This time, it’s for soreness in his shoulder, something he has been feeling since the beginning of Spring Training. Despite his injury, Lidge felt he could pitch during spring training and in six outings was 0-1 with a 9.53 ERA with 6 SO and 4 BB. If those stats weren’t bad enough, Lidge’s fastball was topping out at 86 mph. With only one year left on his contract, it may not be the worst move for the Phillies to cut ties with Lidge, thereby opening up a spot in the bullpen for a young pitcher such as Michael Stutes.
Ever since his magical 2008 season where he went a perfect 48 for 48 in saves situations (including playoffs), Lidge hasn’t been a very effective pitcher. In 2009, Lidge’s ERA was 7.21, the highest among all relievers in baseball and was a liability for the Phillies all season, highlighted by Game 4 of the World Series when he allowed the go-ahead run in the 9th inning. Last year, Lidge was much better, with a 2.96 ERA, but was still shaky in many of his outings, allowing 56 runners in just 45.2 innings. With both he and Ryan Madson in contract years, the Phillies need to make the decision if Madson is finally ready to close since Lidge will almost certainly not be here next year.
Brad Lidge was once a great closer. There is no denying that if it weren’t for his efforts during the 2008 season, there is a good chance the Phillies would not have won the World Series. However, his slider is his only effective pitch and his fastball can’t get anyone out. If you’re a closer, you need two dominant pitches and Lidge no longer has those. Ruben Amaro needs to at least consider the possibility of releasing Lidge, even though he would be eating $11.5 million, for the betterment of the team and to allow younger pitchers the opportunity to prove themselves in the major leagues.
