Why Charlie Manuel shouldn't pull the plug on Brad Lidge
The kneejerk reaction after Brad Lidge blew his 10th save opportunity of the season Saturday night - that manager Charlie Manuel must immediately pull the plug - is wrong for a handful of reasons.
Why Charlie Manuel shouldn't pull the plug on Brad Lidge
Paul Hagen
HOUSTON – The Phillies have another month to figure out whether they can count on Brad Lidge to be their closer in the postseason. The kneejerk reaction after he blew his 10th save opportunity of the season Saturday night – that manager Charlie Manuel must immediately pull the plug – is wrong for a handful of reasons.
The most obvious is that they still have a comfortable lead in the division. That gives Manuel and pitching coach Rich Dubee the luxury of giving Lidge a little more rope.
And why would they want to do that? Well, one is that Brett Myers, who would presumably take over the role, has pitched once since June 4 hip surgery. And that was his first relief appearance since 2007. So it makes some sense to let him get his big league legs back under him before allowing him to try save situations.
There’s also the fact that when Lidge began having problems with the Astros they took him out of the closer’s role several times, hoping it would help him find himself. It didn’t. And the last thing the Phillies want to do is undermine his confidence further, especially since they owe him another $24.5 million over the next two years.
Having said all that. . .Lidge is clearly on probation. Manuel isn’t going to flush an opportunity to win back-to-back world championships out of simple loyalty to one player. He just won’t. Especially not when he appears to have an attractive option in Myers standing by.
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Let’s try to put Lidge’s lack of effectiveness into perspective.
Blown saves isn’t an official stat, but most research suggests that the record is 14 in a season sets by Rollie Fingers in 1976 and later matched by Bruce Sutter (1978), Bob Stanley (1983) and Ron Davis (1984).
The Phillies have just 28 games left to play, so it’s unlikely Lidge will challenge that. It’s also a little misleading.
Please notice that the last time a closer misfired that many times was 25 years ago. Back then, the job description was a lot different. The pitcher who came into to try to nail down the win would often appear in the eighth inning. Sometimes even the seventh.
Davis, for example, pitched in 64 games in 1984. Almost half – 28 games – were appearances of more than one inning.
Lidge, in nearly two full seasons with the Phillies, has never pitched more than one inning at a time.
In the last 10 years, according to numbers culled from espn.com and mlb.com, there have only been three relievers with more than 10 blown saves in a season. Ambiorix Burgos had 12 for the Royals in 2006; Francisco Cordero and Huston Street each had 11 in the same year.
And that gives a more accurate perspective on exactly how troubling Lidge’s season has been.
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No matter what happens with Lidge, the Phillies would make the trade that brought him from the Astros again in a heartbeat. Without him, they probably don’t win the World Series last year. Heck, they might not even make the playoffs. So anything that happens after that is almost irrelevant.
At the same time, Houston is pretty happy to have gotten speedy centerfielder Michael Bourn back in the deal. And their 4-3 win over the Phillies on Sunday is a good illustration why.
Bourn had two singles against Cole Hamels. Each time he broke for second. Hamels threw behind him but he beat the relay throw from first baseman Ryan Howard. After each stolen base, he scored a run.
“I’d say he won the game for them,” Hamels said. “I was definitely aware that he was going. I had him picked off twice and didn’t get an out.”
Added Charlie Manuel: “That’s what speed will do for you.”
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Speaking of speed, the Phillies added two more players from Triple-A Lehigh Valley before Sunday’s game, outfielder John Mayberry Jr. and righthander Kyle Kendrick.
What they haven’t added is a blazer who can give them the dimension that Bourn gives the Astros, despite speculation that somebody like Quintin Berry (48 stolen bases at Double-A Reading) might make sense.
It hasn’t been an issue yet. But it could have been Sunday.
Down by a run in the top of the ninth, pinch-hitter Matt Stairs walked with two outs. Eric Bruntlett came in to run for Stairs with Jimmy Rollins at the plate.
If Rollins had doubled and Bruntlett a) had to be held at third or b) was thrown out at the plate, the question might have been asked why they didn’t have a legitimate burner available to pinch-run.
Except that Rollins popped up, so it didn’t matter.
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The Phillies came into the Astros series with an 8 ½ game lead in the National League East. It would have been down to 5 ½ over the Marlins except that Washington scored three in the bottom of the ninth to beat Florida.
So the Phillies are still 6 ½ up on the Fish, 8 in the loss column.
Charlie Manuel wouldn’t say if he has a number in mind, if there’s a certain point where the lead would dwindle to the point that he might have to manage with less patience than he can with a big cushion.
But he made it clear he isn’t happy that they’ve lost four out of five. “It would be nice to finish strong and get the homefield advantage (throughout the National League playoffs) and all that. And we’re still in a position to do that,” he said.
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Congratulations to the Reading Phillies. Their 6-0 win over Connecticut put the Eastern League playoffs for the first time since 2001, ending the longest drought in the league.
They’ll open the best-of-five first round at Akron on Wednesday and Thursday and will be at First Energy Stadium Friday and, if needed, Saturday. A decisive Game 5 would be at Akron on Sunday.
If Reading advances to the championship round, also best-of-five, they’d open on the road on September 15. Games 3-4-5 would be at Reading starting two days later.
The problem is not starting Lidge in the ninth inning, its leaving him in after he starts walking the ballpark. This all or nothing approach is wrong. I would start the ninth with two relievers warming up in the bullpen. If Lidge allows two baserunners he comes out, period. (The Earl Weaver strategy: his pitchers hated him, but he won games.) The message Lidge has to get is: get them out or you come out and we give someone else a try. Getting three outs in the ninth is not special. Durbin, Condrey, Park and other relievers have closed out games this year. The game in Houston is a great example of Lidge walking batters and pitching behind in the count with runners on base. There is no reason the other players have to repeated watch this debacle. Either pitch strikes and get outs or come out of the game and give another guy a chance. This isn't rocket science. Just a point in reference, Charlie Manuel did the same the same thing in the 1997 World Series with Jose Mesa. The Indians were three outs from the Title, and 'Ole Charlie left Jose Mesa give the game to the Marlins. Look it up!!!— RunningTheBases
Comment removed.- Murph, shutdown of Lidge as closer would NOT automaticly place Brett in role. Walker or Park could be sensible option until Brett arm atrength reaches pinnacle. Walker has closed in past, and seems to get little respect from the PhilsPHaithful. Seoul Man has been great for past two + months. We have depth and need to use it.— mick314
- I stuck with Lidge until Saturday night. No longer. He simply cannot consistently locate his pitches. Whether it's still the knee, or whatever, I can no longer believe he is going to "find it" this season. Wouldn't be surprised to find, after the season is over, that he needs more knee surgery. Right now, with the possible exception of Durbin, he's the worst pitcher on the staff. Why would you put your worst pitcher into the most crucial situation? Might as well be running Wally Ritchie out there.— wooderice
- It's like a re-run of a really bad movie.... Phils up by 1-2 runs and things are looking good through the 8th. Suddenly, the Grim Reaper of Defeat looms large in the bullpen. And #54 doesn't fail to disappoint. Just like that the Phils are down 1-2 runs and ultimately lose the game. I'm with Cheesedog on this one. Since Plan A has been a failure all season, no time like the present to try something different. Is Cholly SO afraid of hurting Bradley's delicate, tender little feelings the reason we can leave in for the 9th a pitcher who is getting it done in the 8th?? I've said this before, there is no room for big egos in team sports.... One oversize ego can and will kill a ball club!— PhillyfaninFL
- If we're winning in the 9th during the post season, I'm betting on a verrry short leash if Myers doesn't already have the job. Forget Madson. I saw all I need during Lidge's DL stint.— Grazman
- If Lidge had blown the save on Saturday on a bloop hit - SB - sac - sac fly - I could see trying stick with him. Even if it had been a solo HR - that stuff happens. You have to look at the way he blew the save. He created the whole inning by walking 2 guys that can't hit and then going 3-1 to a guy with the bases loaded and being forced to throw a ball right down the middle. He completely melted down in that game. The bottom line is that Lidge is either mentally or physically unable to do the job right now. When you combine his terrible seasone with the completely inept performance on Saturday, you have to make a move. Did anyone notice the looks the players were giving to Charlie when they came off the field on Saturday? This situation is going to start impacting more than just the 9th inning if Charlie and co. continue to ignore it.— fmcvey
- As far as Lidge's injury goes, I would bet that he has arthritis in his knee. It is pretty common when you start cutting stuff out of there. If Lidge's knee problems could be fixed with surgery, they would have done surgery. They did surgery last year and he missed a couple of weeks and came back perfect for the season. The only reason to not do surgery is if he as a condition that surgery won't help = arthritis.— fmcvey
- I have told you folks time and time again that we deserve better than this hack. His lack of baseball acumen and his better than thou attitude, has played old since his first attempt at sport journalism for this newspaper. Murph I heard Mad Magazine is hiring.— rockinrob
- Lidge needs to prove he can get people out before he gets to close. How many chances does the guy get? I think I would have more confidence with Tyler Walker out there, and I'm sure the players feel the same way.— RichNC
- Folks: stop blaming Murphy, who admittedly is not a Pulitzer Prize winning author. Look at the bottom of the piece; Paul Hagen posted this mess, perhaps to embarrass Murphy.— chuckw
- Lidge has 1 blown save at home so I wonder if the adreniline from playing at home helps him. If so, playoff adreniline may get him over the hump. I'm not sure he is on the playoff roster if he blows another couple of saves.— joedadd
- I disagree with your reasoning. Brad Lidge's pay over the next two years is irrelevant. Last year winning a championship, while special, is last year. Neither have to do with Lidge's lack of success in 2009. There comes a point where a change needs to be made. That is what the manager is expected to do. Having faith in Brad Lidge has to be backed by his performance. Sorry, but if a change isn't made now, the cancer is going to severely affect the players into the playoffs. Think about it. Why would you fight to get a lead into the 9th inning with about a 1 in 3 chance that your closer is going to blow it?— realex
- Wonder if Murph knows that Paul Hagen has hacked into his blog— ben715
- Murphy/Hagen, whoever wrote this article, to say that we still have a comfortable lead in our division is reason to give Lidge a little more rope, is idiotic and the same logic behind the collapse of the 07/08 Mutts. You play to win the game ! 6 1/2 up with 8 remaining against the Marlins is not a comfortable lead. We have 3 closer options, Pedro, Chan Ho, and Brett, and a little over 3 weeks to determine who gets the job. If there IS a post season for the Phils, Lidge should spend it on the bench sitting between Murphy and Hagen. Is there a sportswriter in this town with kahunas big enough to echo these thoughts ?— rockinginthefreeworld
