Nothing but fastballs today... Lidge, for now, has seemed to have ditched the slider. Btw... his fastball his hovering around 91-92, after it started out this inning at 96... there could be something he's hiding (arm/shoulder-wise).
Looks like Garner will be quick to get Lidge out of this game if he gets in any more trouble. If Lidge gets taken out this may be it for Lidge as our closer for a while.
If so, it has to be an injury that they're trying not to address... some sort of arm fatigue that has been on a buildup for detonation over the last 3 years of extreme use.
Wow .. Vin Scully is comparing Lidge to Ankiel now ... That is not good for Lidge. Thanks for swinging at that! Come on Brad ... One more out!
Didn't Wheeler walk in the winning run the last time he was called on to replace Lidge..... 4-1 in the 9th should be a NAILS win..... But not when you walk 3 FRICKEN guys. Lidge's confidence is shot right now, he has the yips, big time. DD
It's pick your poison with our bullpen right now. I never thought I would say this but I would rather see Russ Springer.
Not much left to say... it wasn't fatigue (he'd been off since last Friday)... it wasn't rustiness (he was spotting his pitches well against Kent)... and it wasn't stuff (even though his fastball was only 91-93 after the first batter). If it wasn't mental before... it just might be after this game.
We need to let Lidge work this out in some setup roles ... we just can't have our closer walking 3 batters when we have a 3 run lead. Completely unacceptable.
