Lidge won't be ready for Phils' opener

CLEARWATER, Fla. - It worked in 2008: Following knee surgery, Brad Lidge was unavailable for opening day but returned on April 6 to enjoy the finest season of his career. It appears that the Phillies' closer will miss the opener once again this year, a setback he hopes will lead to renewed success.

Lidge saw his first game action of the spring yesterday after off-season elbow and knee procedures, pitching the first inning of a minor-league game against the Toronto Blue Jays at the Carpenter Complex.

He allowed one run on three hits and said afterward that he felt healthy. Despite the progress, Lidge all but ruled out a return in time for the opener at Washington on April 5. His new goal is to pitch in a road series against the Houston Astros April 9-11; if that does not happen, Lidge said he would "definitely" be active for the Phils' home opener against Washington on April 12, barring any unforeseen setbacks.

"I guess I'm going to hope for the Houston series, because it doesn't look like I'm going to be ready for the opener," Lidge said.

The pitcher was mostly content with yesterday's appearance. He threw 16 pitches, about six of which were sliders, and explained that he was focused on building arm strength rather than getting outs with his breaking ball.

"For my first outing, I would say I was pretty pleased," Lidge said. "My knee felt real strong. Couple location problems, command is not really spectacular right now. My arm speed - I'm pleased with where my arm is. It's just going to take however many outings to get behind the ball and get through it to get the velocity going. But in terms of any problems, no. That was very encouraging that there were no problems.

"There are going to be times when I go to my good slider to get a swing and a miss on an 0-2 pitch, but I've got to throw fastballs right now. So I've got to force myself to do it, even it means they get a hit here or there. I'm not really concerned about that. I'm concerned about getting my arm speed to keep progressing."

Lidge endured a horrific 2009 season, blowing 11 save opportunities and finishing with a 7.21 earned run average. He later attributed many of his struggles to knee pain, which caused him to alter his mechanics and led to elbow problems. Now healthy, Lidge is ready to resume a normal spring routine, albeit several weeks late. He hopes to pitch in another game tomorrow, but that will depend on how he feels today.

Happ also pitches. Yesterday was a day off for most of the Phillies, but lefthander J.A. Happ started a separate minor-league game at the Carpenter Complex. Pitching to a different group of Toronto Blue Jays prospects than the ones Lidge faced, Happ allowed two runs on five hits in five innings, striking out three and walking two. He threw 77 pitches, 41 for strikes. Happ has not allowed an earned run in 61/3 Grapefruit League innings.

Kendrick contending. The Phillies play Baltimore tonight at 7:05 at Bright House Field. Righthander Kyle Kendrick hopes to continue an excellent spring and make a case to be named the fifth starter over lefthander Jamie Moyer. Moyer was the front-runner in that competition earlier in the month, but Kendrick's strong performance - coupled with Moyer's mixed results in B games - could be altering that equation.