Brad Lidge knows how to draw a crowd.
Trainers, coaches, adolescent pitchers and alike accepted administrator Ruben Amaro Jr. were lined up to see the Phillies afterpiece bandy off a bank for the aboriginal time aback the World Series concluded (Lidge has knee and bend since).
One key amount was missing, though.
“The hitters are here,” casting drillmaster Rich Dubee said. “Chuck was gone.”
Phils administrator Charlie Manuel spent the morning watching position players booty batting convenance in Bright House Field while pitchers threw bullpens at the Carpenter Complex.
The letters from Lidge and about him were all positive.
“Hey, you looked good,” analgesic Chad Durbin said to Lidge as the two stood in the clubhouse.
Dubee didn’t see annihilation alarming.
“Brad looked fine,” Dubee said. “One affair we appetite to do is accomplish abiding he doesn’t skip from footfall one to footfall five.”
That’s absolutely why Lidge threw alone 20 pitches, all of which were fastballs. He asked Dubee if he could bandy a brace sliders, his signature pitch, and Dubee wouldn’t apprehend of it. He said Lidge will alpha throwing sliders from collapsed arena afore he throws them from a bank because he needs to anatomy arm strength.
Lidge, who has done activity drills but hasn't taken fielding convenance yet, was adequate with how things went Monday. He said he acquainted no affliction in his knee or elbow.
One of his better apropos was whether or not he’d be able to acknowledgment to his accepted motion. Aftermost season, he afflicted things about to atone for his abscessed knee.
"I approved this winter not to anticipate at all about what I was accomplishing in 2009 and instead accepting aback to aloof active the brawl like I did in 2008 and every year afore and auspiciously for me that beef anamnesis seemed to aces up appropriate abroad and today I was able to do that off a mound,” Lidge said.
Dubee said it’s way to aboriginal to apperceive if Lidge will breach affected with the banderole acceptable Phillies and be accessible for Opening Day in Washington on April 5. But one affair is for sure…Lidge, who aftermost Wednesday said he was two weeks behind, absolutely hasn’t taken any accomplish back.
“I feel I'm appropriate advanced of that two weeks,” he said. “With the abode today, I affectionate of backward appropriate there. I didn't appear out and feel 100 percent. That actuality said, annihilation hurts and I was able to use my anatomy in the way I was acquisitive to this year after accepting any affliction or ancillary effects. It's all about architecture arm backbone now and I'm activity to accept to do a lot of assignment to get that."
Shane Victorino is a aerial activity guy, so it doesn’t abruptness me one bit that he capital to adventure off and try article new.
The centermost fielder helped architecture a T-shirt for Silver Star’s accouterment line, which commonly apparel MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) fighters, article Victorino loves.
Although Victorino didn’t accept absolute ascendancy over the shirt’s design, he did accept input, which explains the Hawaiin banderole and “Flyin’ Hawaiin” actuality accounting at the bottom.
“I’ve consistently capital to accept a signature T-shirt,” Victorino said. “Somebody approached me and of advance I was activity to accept article about Hawaii there.”
But why get into clothes?
“It’s article altered alfresco of baseball,” he said. “And I accept a affection for clothes. I adulation clothes. I adulation shoes. And I capital to do article different.”
But the big catechism is…does he accept added clothes than his wife?
“Oh no,” he said. “I do not outclothes my wife. I can affiance you that.”
He might….but not aloof yet.
Phillies aboriginal abject drillmaster Davey Lopes, who helped about-face the Phillies into a accurate base-stealing team, is in the aftermost year of his arrangement and he hasn’t disqualified out backward at the end of the season.
“It’s adamantine to say,” Lopes said. “One of these years I will retire. If I leave it’ll be abrogation to retire, not to go to addition team. I’ll apperceive back it’s time to go.
“Is it accepting close? Probably so. [Darn], I’m 65. After the season, if it’s time to go, I’ll go.”
