Rejoice Again, Philadelphia! Ryan Madson Is Going To Be The Interim Closer!

All I'll say is that it's about damn time! Once again, from the Philadelphia Inquirer

Madson is the Phils' new closer. He inherited the job when Brad Lidge gave in to the obvious yesterday: Power pitchers who don't have full use of their push leg are no longer power pitchers. They're batting-practice pitchers.

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Benefiting from improved conditioning and dedication to his craft - not to mention many pep talks from Lidge - Madson went from a solid reliever to a spectacular reliever late last season and in the postseason. His fastball jumped 3 or 4 m.p.h. and hit 97 m.p.h. on occasion. That made his already excellent change-up that much more effective.

In short, Madson showed closer's stuff during his emergence as an eighth-inning shutdown man. He seemed to be lining up to be a very attractive closer possibility on the free-agent market after this season, but he opted instead for the financial security of a three-year, $12 million deal - good money, but not top closer money.

Now we get to see how much Madson left on the table.

Now we get to see if he really has closer's stuff.

Oh, the arm and the stuff are there. There's no question about that. But does Madson have the stomach to close for who knows how long? Can he close in big games against the Mets and the Red Sox (this weekend) and the Blue Jays after that? Can he close in a pennant race? The Phillies hope that question becomes irrelevant. They hope Lidge returns, in top form, by that time. But you never know, especially with a knee that's been operated on twice and continues to swell.

The Phils are fortunate that J.C. Romero is back from his suspension to help fortify the back end of the bullpen with Lidge out and Madson elevated. If Madson fails, Romero could close. He certainly has the stomach to do it.

But for now, the job belongs to Madson. He has earned the opportunity.

Like I said, it's about damn time! With the way that Lidge has been struggling and the way that Madson has just been lights out as an 8th inning set-up man, here's hoping that Madson can win the job permanently in the next 15-days. Madson had a chance to walk away last off-season and sign as a closer with another team, instead he stayed with Philadelphia and settled for a smaller amount of money than he could have gotten elsewhere. And as far as the pressure goes, Madson says that he is ready.

"This year, yeah, more than the previous years, just because in the playoffs and World Series, every inning was big," Madson said before the Phillies opened a three-game series against the New York Mets at Citi Field. "I'm more prepared this year than I have been in the past."

With a searing fastball that frequently reaches 96 m.p.h. and a paralyzing change-up, Madson leaves little doubt that he has a closer's arsenal. He has had three save opportunities this season, blowing one. Overall, though, he has been outstanding. Madson went into last night's game with 12 straight scoreless appearances covering 102/3 innings. He had inherited five runners and allowed none to score. He had not allowed a run since May 16 and had given up only seven in his 29 appearances. Madson was 2-1 with a 2.22 ERA.

"I could have just done my thing in the seventh and eighth innings for the next couple years and been happy with that, but now I have to get it done so [Lidge] doesn't feel the pressure to rush back because we'll need him," Madson said.

Madson said the main difference between being a setup man and a closer is that a closer knows he is definitely going to pitch in certain situations.

"I guess it's nice to know when you'll definitely be coming in for one inning," he said.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel sounded confident that Madson could do the job.

"He's definitely got the talent and I think he's earned a shot," Manuel said. "If Brad can't go, he's definitely the guy I want to put in there."

And Madson is definitley the guy I want in there, more so than Lidge. Whenever Lidge comes in anymore, I get tense and nervous, but when Madson pitches an inning, I feel relaxed, knowing that any damage done to the Phillies on the scoreboard will be minimal. This is Madson's chance to make it big. Go get 'em kid, the whole city is rooting for you.