More Brad Lidge Talk

Before we get started here, understand something. Nobody wants to talk about Brad Lidge less than I do. It's hard enough to watch him for a few tenuous minutes if he happens to be pitching the 9th inning of that particular evening's game. At this point, you'd think that whatever problem Lidge seems to be having this year would be solved by now, one way or another. And make no mistake, Brad Lidge is a big problem.

As it is right now, the one thing that stands between the Phillies and a second consecutive World Series is the guy taking the ball in the 9th inning of close games. It's a sad thing to see, mostly because the main reason the Phillies won last year's title was the consistent domination of Bradley Lidge. But for the 2009 version of the Phillies, Lidge is the biggest, and perhaps only liability. You can make the case that the team could stand to improve their bench and that they need to do a better job of hitting with runners in scoring position, but for a club with 8 solid everyday players that is build around the 3-run homer, those problems could very well take care of themselves.

Of course, the Lidge situation could take care of itself as well, but as August gives way to September with no resolution in sight, the Phillies are running out of time. The good news is that Philly holds a comfortable 7 game lead over the Braves and Marlins in the NL East, so they can afford to use the month of September to fix the most glaring hole on their roster. Let's take a look at some of the ways the Brad Lidge situation could sort itself out.

Lidge could magically figure things out. I mean, it's not outside the realm of possibility. What's crazier: That the best closer in baseball last year would put up a 7+ ERA the following year, or that he discovers whatever it is that is failing him and throws together a great September and October. We already know by virtue of his unwavering support thus far that Charlie Manuel will give him every opportunity to succeed.

A look at Lidge's very recent history may indicate that things are not as bad as we think. The last blow up against the Pirates was pretty bad, but he was pitching for the 4th consecutive day. It's not unheard of for relievers to pitch 4 days in a row, but it's sort of seen as the threshold. You don't see anybody pitching 5 days in a row. It was a good test for Lidge against a bad team, but he failed miserably. So hopefully Charlie can chalk that one up to a lesson learned. Don't trot Lidge out there after he's pitched 3 days in a row.

Of the 3 days he pitched before the blown save in Pittsburgh, he looked very good in two of those appearances. Said appearances were sandwiched around the game that ended on Eric Bruntlett's unassisted triple play, and all three of the base runners allowed in that outing were the result of poor defense. His most recent blown save before that, August 15th in Atlanta, was also the result of poor defense (though some of that was from Lidge himself). So while we are talking about a very small sample size here, it is possible that there is enough going right for Lidge that he could find his way out of the woods any day now...

The Phillies could look outside the organization. Reports have surface that Chad Qualls and Trevor Hoffman have been put on waivers by their respective clubs in recent days. However, it is highly unlikely that either of those players would go unclaimed or even make it far enough through the process to be claimed by the Phillies. While this could change if something interesting presented itself, Ruben Amaro has indicated that the Phillies with likely fill any needs internally. Qualls and Hoffman would be good alternatives for the Phillies, but the possibility of that happening is pretty close to zero.

Pedro Martinez could close. The possibility of Pedro pitching out of the bullpen has not been raised publicly in too many places, but it is worth a shot. As a starter, Martinez has not proven to be that much of an upgrade on Jamie Moyer, who's rotation spot he replaced. Pedro's stuff has looked very good, it's just that he has not shown an ability to maintain it for more than 4 innings. Martinez certainly has the moxie to close, and if he could dial up his best stuff for an inning or so at a time he could be very effective in that role. The Phillies have not given any indication that they are ready to try Pedro out of the bullpen, but if he is unable to go more than 5 innings in his next start or two, they may think about ways he can better help the team.

Brett Myers could close. Though he has been very good so far in his rehab outings, it is still unclear how much Myers will be able to help the team this season after having hip surgery in June. But we do know that if healthy, Myers has the stuff and the mentality to succeed in the role. In fact, after pitching so well as a closer in 2007, Myers indicated that he preferred the 9th inning role, and only the acquisition of Lidge that winter moved him back into the starting rotation. Time is of the essence with Myers, as he will only have about a month to show the Phillies what he can do this season. But if he can come back healthy and Lidge continues to falter, the Phillies owe it to themselves to give Myers a shot to close out game. He very well may be their best alternative.

The Phillies could opt for a closer-by-committee. Sure, this approach is really just another way of saying that you have no closer, but is that really that far from accurate? On a few occasions this year, Charlie Manuel has opted to allow Scott Eyre begin the 9th inning when a team has a few tough lefties due up. This has worked out well when it has happened and I think Charlie should take this idea and run with it. The Phillies bullpen is full of guys with back-of-the-pen stuff- Chan Ho Park, Ryan Madson, Eyre, and Lidge, with Myers and JC Romero on the way back from injury. In the absence of better alternatives, it might be best for Charlie to play the best matchups in the 9th inning rather than default to defined roles. The downside could be that bullpen roles are defined often because relievers prefer them to be, but if they know that the 9th inning is going to be a kitchen sink situation from now on it could be effective.

Obviously, the easiest solution to all of this is for Brad Lidge to become Brad Lidge again. If that doesn't work and Brett Myers is healthy, I'd like to see him get a shot. If he is not able to contribute in that role, I'd like to see the Phillies take the committee approach and play the matchups. But one way or another a solution must be found. This Phillies team is too good to have their shot at another World Series undermined by an inability to get three outs in the 9th inning.