2009 Philadelphia Phillies - Season's Over, Time to Move On

[Munson]

Or, at the Phillies games.


Seriously, stop trying so damn hard to fit in on a message board kid. Death would be an upgrade for you.

[ice grillin you]

yeah every last person hating your guts whos ever come across you is the whole world trying to "fit in"

and my god how did you spend even 10 seconds much less five minutes copy and pasting a single one of thsoe stupid pics...unfunny photoshops are so 2002

[Seabiscuit36]

Munson, when every single person is saying its wrong to wear it to a phils game, maybe just maybe you can concede it wasnt a good idea since its a family event, unlike a birds game which is a gladiator event. 

[ice grillin you]

hell never admit it because he honestly believes its not trashy...trash is trash...always will be...and munson is trash to the core

[Eaglez]

Brad Lidge said this isn't a secret weapon.

It's another option. It's something to get hitters thinking a little bit.

He introduced a cut fastball in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Marlins at Citizens Bank Park, a pitch he said he will throw to left-handed hitters. He threw a couple to pinch-hitter Ross Gload, who struck out swinging on a 2-2 slider.

"It's not a pitch I'm expecting to be like my regular fastball and slider," Lidge told MLB.com. "But it is a pitch I am expecting to give them something else to think about. If I can throw it for a strike, OK, now they have to respect it. If they found a good pattern on me with fastballs and sliders, which maybe they have, maybe they haven't ... if they have, that takes them completely out of their rhythm. It's something I've seen a lot of guys throw very effectively to lefties."

Why a cut fastball, and why now with the playoffs beginning Wednesday? Lidge has had trouble this season with his fastball command, particularly throwing inside to left-handed hitters. Lidge said the cut fastball can do two things. First, he said it serves the purpose of having something hard he can throw inside. Second, he said it gives hitters a third pitch to consider.

Lidge tried throwing a cut fastball with Houston a couple of years ago, but ditched it because it wasn't working.

"I've actually thrown it in the bullpen for a year or two," Lidge said. "I've just never brought it into the game. But I have thrown it in the bullpen a lot, and all the catchers have told me it is a good pitch and I should throw it in a game. It looks like it's working good. I just thought, yeah, if I ever need to, I will. In Houston, I had no idea what I was doing with it. I was just throwing it as hard as I could. It was going everywhere. Since then I've been able to work on the craft of throwing it and figure out why you throw it. Back then I didn't even know why. I just thought it would look cool."

Asked if he felt comfortable throwing a new pitch in the postseason, he said he is.

"I'm not trying to experiment a lot right now," Lidge said. "I feel good with the command of my fastball and slider, but it's something to get lefties to think about."

"It was a good pitch for him," Carlos Ruiz said. "I liked it. Sometimes we've tried to go to lefties with fastballs inside and he doesn't have the control to lefties. So I like the cutter because it will protect the slider."

Ruiz said it was a good pitch for Lidge. But is it a good idea to start throwing a third pitch now? We could find out as early as Wednesday.

*

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Why the hell not...

If he is confident in throwing it then I concur.  It's not like he has been locating his fastball.  If he can't locate his cutter it will just be more of the same. 

Although I have a hard time imagining Lidge coming in the 9th for the post-season (at least for the entire 3 outs in the 9th).  I'm sure Charlie will say that he'll go match-up by match-up and maybe bring in Lidge to face a particular batter, but I have to think Charlie's default position is to go with Madson right now. 

[Sgt PSN]

hell never admit it because he honestly believes its not trashy...trash is trash...always will be...and munson is trash to the core

ftw

[PhillyPhreak54]

If he is confident in throwing it then I concur.  It's not like he has been locating his fastball.  If he can't locate his cutter it will just be more of the same.

Although I have a hard time imagining Lidge coming in the 9th for the post-season (at least for the entire 3 outs in the 9th).  I'm sure Charlie will say that he'll go match-up by match-up and maybe bring in Lidge to face a particular batter, but I have to think Charlie's default position is to go with Madson right now.

I think Charlie is going to use him. That was the whole idea behind giving him the gift out in the division clinching game against the Astros. Trying to give him any mental edge that he is behind him. Probably telling him that its a new season and all that stuff.

Because honestly, that is the way Lidge has to look at it. Forget the regular season and go out there confident. Can he do that? We don't know.

So if a new pitch helps him, cool. Hell, the cut fastball has helped a lot of guys in the league so maybe it works for Lidge too.

[Sgt PSN]

time to wipe the slate clean and throw lidge out there in the 9th.   but keep him on a short leash too.  give him a shot to close out a game but if he blows it, he's done. 

[Eaglez]

I've seen clips of Lidge saying "it's like a new season, etc." which is great for him mentally if he buys into it, but I don't think you can switch it on and all of a sudden be lights out like last year.  And even thinking back to last year, Lidge would give up a lot of base runners, difference now is that he gives up the base hit instead of getting the K or inducing a weak ground ball/pop fly when hitters stretch to make contact with the slider. 

But hey, playoffs are a strange thing.  The Rays got hot during the playoff run and knocked off some good teams with their bats.  Some players are good at trying to demarcate between the regular and post season, but I don't know if Lidge has to ability mentally to leave things in the past.  He seems to carry a lot of baggage and even when he says certain things don't bother him, his facial expressions and mannerisms suggest differently to me. 

[PhillyPhreak54]

Article on the guy who bought Cole Hamels' World Series MVP Camaro

"I agreed," says Cole, who can't drive a stick shift. He putters around in a Jeep, and has always shied away from muscle cars, regardless of their transmissions: "They scare me."

[MDS]

he is such a Hoyda

[ice grillin you]

he really is embarrassing....just shut up please win me another title and move to socal or better yet africa for the offseason...then repeat

[ice grillin you]

cliff lee to start

i like the move as i did not want hamels going on four days

[Rome]

Nothing says success! like a guy debuting a pitch in October.

[Seabiscuit36]

If thats the mental help he needs then so be it.