User:GhostRiver/brad
Early life
College career
Professional career
Draft and minor leagues (1998–2002)
The Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB) selected Lidge in the first round, 17th overall, of the 1998 MLB Draft. Houston had gained the draft pick that they used on Lidge as compensation for losing free agent Darryl Kile to the Colorado Rockies.[1] On July 1, he inked a deal with the team for a signing bonus of $1.07 million.[2] Lidge made his professional baseball debut on July 11, 1998, earning a no decision for the Class A Quad Cities River Bandits in a 6-5 Midwest League loss to the Fort Wayne Wizards. Lidge pitched only the first two innings of the game, as the Bandits wanted to limit his pitch count, but his velocity in those 43 pitches impressed his coaches.[3] His time in Quad Cities was limited by a recurring elbow injury that required Lidge to be shut down three separate times in a span of less than two months.[4] He made four starts for the River Bandits in 1998, posting a 0-1 record and a 3.27 ERA while striking out six batters in 11 innings.[5]
Lidge was assigned to the Class A-Advanced Kissimmee Cobras of the Florida State League for the 1999 season, but began the year on the disabled list with an elbow injury.[6]
- 1999
- 2000
- 2001
Houston Astros (2002-07)
2002
2003
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2004
2005
2006
2007
Philadelphia Phillies (2008-11)
2008
2008 World Series
2009
2010
2011
Washington Nationals (2012)
On January 26, 2012, the Washington Nationals signed Lidge to a one-year, $1 million contract, plus additional incentives.[7] He had not been signed as a closer for Washington, but after Drew Storen suffered from elbow inflammation during spring training, the team prepared to use Lidge and Henry Rodríguez in the ninth inning.[8] The pair officially took over for Storen when the latter underwent surgery for a bone chip in his elbow.[9] After allowing four earned runs in seven innings and blowing two saves, Lidge was placed on the disabled list with an abdominal wall strain. He was diagnosed with a sports hernia and underwent surgery on May 1, with an estimated recovery time of three weeks before he could begin throwing again.[10] After pitching a perfect inning in a rehab assignment for the Class A-Advanced Potomac Nationals, Lidge was able to rejoin the Washington active roster on June 7, a week earlier than expected; he effectively replaced Rodríguez, who was placed on the disabled list with a strained finger.[11] He was unable to perform with the Nationals, going 0-1 with two saves and a 9.64 ERA in 11 bullpen appearances, with opposing hitters batting .308 against him. The Nationals designated Lidge for assignment on June 17 after two poor outings against the New York Yankees, and Ryan Mattheus was activated in his place.[12]
Retirement
After being released from the Nationals, Lidge took the remainder of the summer to decide whether he wanted to continue his pitching career. On December 2, 2012, he announced his intentions to retire from baseball. At the time of his retirement, Lidge had 225 regular-season career saves, as well as 18 postseason saves. He also struck out 799 batters in 603+1⁄3 regular-season innings for a career 11.919 K/9, the second-best ratio of any pitcher with more than 500 innings.[13] Lidge signed a ceremonial one-day contract with the Phillies on August 1, 2013, enabling him to officially retire as a member of the organization.[14]
Pitching style
Personal life
Career highlights
Honors
Awards
| Award | Season(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| MLB | ||
| NL All-Star | 2005, 2008 | TK |
| World Series champion | 2008 | TK |
| NL Comeback Player of the Year | 2008 | TK |
| NL Rolaids Relief Man Award | 2008 | TK |
| Delivery Man of the Year | 2008 | TK |
| Philadelphia Phillies | ||
| Good Guy Award | 2009 | TK |
| Most Valuable Player | 2008 | TK |
| Houston Astros | ||
| Rookie of the Year | 2003 | TK |
Statistical highlights
References
- ^ Gagnon, Cappy (2004). Notre Dame Baseball Greats: From Anson to Yaz. Charleston SC, Chicago, Porstmouth NH, San Francisco: Arcadia Publishing. p. 122. ISBN 0-7385-3262-2. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- ^ Patterson, Spencer (July 2, 1998). "Nannini inks deal with Astros". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- ^ Batterson, Steve (July 11, 1998). "From the archives: Bandits' top pick shines in loss to Wizards". Quad-City Times. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- ^ Doxsie, Don (October 21, 2005). "In Lidge they trust". Quad-City Times. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- ^ "Brad Lidge Minor Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- ^ Carroll, Frank (April 11, 1999). "Cobras counting on pitching". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved August 11, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Nats sign Brad Lidge to 1-year deal". ESPN.com. January 26, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
- ^ Kilgore, Adam (March 24, 2012). "Drew Storen might miss opening day; Brad Lidge, Henry Rodriguez could fill in as Nationals' closer". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
- ^ Kilgore, Adam (April 27, 2012). "Brad Lidge on disabled list, Ryan Perry called up". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
- ^ Comak, Amanda (May 1, 2012). "Brad Lidge's surgery goes well, expected to begin throwing in three weeks". The Washington Times. Archived from the original on May 2, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
- ^ Kilgore, Adam (June 7, 2021). "Nationals place Henry Rodriguez on the disabled list, reinstate Brad Lidge". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
- ^ "Nationals DFA Brad Lidge". ESPN.com. Associated Press. June 17, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
- ^ Stark, Jayson (December 2, 2012). "Free agent Brad Lidge plans to retire". ESPN. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
- ^ Breen, Matt (August 2, 2013). "Lidge closes the deal and retires as a Phillie". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved August 11, 2021.