• Lidge's grandfather, Dr. Ralph Lidge, Sr., is one of the pre-eminent orthopedic surgeons in the Chicago area and sports medicine pioneers in the world.

• In June 1995, he was picked by the Giants out of Cherry Creek High School in Englewood, Colorado in the 42nd round. But Brad didn't sign, preferring to go to Notre Dame.

  STACKED HIGH SCHOOL TEAM

• Interestingly, Brad didn't make the Cherry Creek High School varsity his junior year. The team was busting with talent. They had Josh Bard, who is starting for the Cleveland Indians, at catcher. Their shortstop was Jason Huth, who played minor-league ball for the Cincinnati Reds. And their outfield was stacked with Darnell McDonald, a first-round draft pick of the Baltimore Orioles; Kevin Rudden, who went on to play at the University of Illinois; and Ben Vestel.

  Lidge had always been an outfielder. But: "Our high school was so competitive, it forced me into pitching," said Lidge, who lives in Englewood with his wife, Lindsay. "I had no shot starting for that team in the outfield. Those guys were head and shoulders better than me."

• The day after Lidge joined the Astros in Houston (in 2002), the team left for a road trip to play the Marlins. He and P Brandon Puffer, who was called up just five days before, hung around together in Miami. Their goal was to earn their keep and stay out of the way of their veteran teammates. "Now we can keep quiet together," Lidge said. "I just walked around the hotel amazed by the size of the pool," Lidge said. "It's like going on a honeymoon. Only it's with Puffer."

• Lidge is a very good ping-pong player. And he sees a parallel between table tennis and pitching.

  "The thing about ping-pong is it's exactly like pitching. You keep them off balance. You put movement on the ball and then zip in a hard one every once in a while, and you've got them. I think that's why pitchers like it so much, is because it's so much like pitching," Brad said.

• Brad's mother was not able to attend his first Major League start (for the Astros, in Milwaukee) on September 18, 2002. His father, Ralph, flew in from Colorado. His grandparents Ralph Sr. and Jackie Lidge drove in from Chicago. And Brad's wife, Lindsay, flew in from Houston. But Brad's mother, Deborah, had been fighting vertigo for two months and could not ride on an airplane because of leakage in her brain.

• Lidge spent a lot of time early in the 2003 season watching TV coverage of the war in Iraq. His brother-in-law, Matthew Littrell, is a Marine involved in the conflict. An Brian Mack, the best man at his wedding and his best friend since he was two, was also in Kuwait as a member of the Air Force. To honor Littrell, Mack and the rest of the troops, Lidge had Rawlings stitch an American flag on the thumb side of his glove.

  "It's been very tough for my wife (Lindsay)," Brad said. "It's been very emotional. It's been tough to see all the updates."

• Brad has a black lab named Meg.
• Lidge is an excited, boisterous kind of guy. He is almost always smiling and usually laughing. He freely signs autographs for fans. In fact, he not only signs, he instigates conversations with them. He cannot walk through the clubhouse without talking or joking with many of his teammates.
• Brad became a father for the first time late in 2004. His wife, Lindsay, gave birth to daughter, Avery.
• Lidge is a bit of a baseball historian. He has a very good knowledge of the history of the game.
• When he was with the Astros, every time Brad was called on and trotted in from the Minute Maid Park bullpen, the scoreboard flashed LIGHTS OUT LIDGE and the crowd went absolutely nuts.

• During 2005 spring training, Brad and utilityman Chris Burke had a contest at an Orlando, Florida Japanese restaurant to see who could eat the most sushi.

  "We have different approaches," Lidge explained. "Chris just eats as fast as he can, but I like to sit back and taste it, drink some water in between pieces. (We ate) fifty-five pieces each."

  To which reliever Russ Springer, occupant of a nearby locker said, "That's not competitive eating. It's gluttony." (Daniel G. Habib-Sports Illustrated-10-24-05)

• When the Astros clinched the National League wild card on the last day of the 2005 season, Brad got caught up in the excitement and accidentally dropped an f-bomb on TV during the postgame celebration. His teammates then devised a fake press release from the commissioner's office, chiding him for cursing and fining him $25,000.

  Lidge felt real bad about blurting out the word, apologizing to Astros owner Drayton McLane and the fans, letting everybody know that is not like him. He almost never, ever swears; he just got caught up in the moment.

• October 17, 2005: The Astros were one out away from wrapping up the 2005 National League championship over the St. Louis Cardinals when Lidge allowed a hit to David Eckstein, walked Jim Edmonds and then gave up a very long home run to Albert Pujols. Houston G.M. Tim Purpura fully expected Brad to return.

  "I've been asked by a lot of people already, what will this do to Brad Lidge?" Purpura said, referring to the blown save that prevented the Astros from clinching a World Series berth in Game 5. "I don't think it will do much to Brad Lidge. I think he'll come right back and do what he's done through his whole career. He's a battler, he's a fighter.

  "He's a player who cares a thousand times more about his teammates than he does about himself. And I think because of that, that gives him that opportunity to kind of flush away games like this and say, 'Hey, I've got to do this for the team.' He's not worried about Brad Lidge. He's worried about what he can do to help the Houston Astros win."

• Early in Februrary, 2006, Brad spent four days on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia for his sister's wedding.

• When Lidge is on the road, he will check out the sights. For example, when the Astros were on the road for a series with the Nationals late in May, 2006, Brad, wife Lindsay, and their daughter, Avery, were out and about in the nation's capital, taking in as many landmarks as possible, including the Lincoln Memorial, the Smithsonian, the Natural History Museum and several war memorials. Brad is also an ancient civilizations buff.

  "You can stay in your hotel room, or you can get out and see what each city has to offer, and that's what I want to do," Lidge said. "Some cities don't have a whole lot to offer. In Washington, there's so much to see, that if you don't take advantage of it, you're just wasting your time."

  Brad's wife, Lindsay, gave birth to their second child, a son, Rowan, in November, 2008.

• In 2008, Brad was working toward a religious studies degree through an online progam at Regis University.

• Lidge was named National League Comeback Player of the Year for 2008.

• December 10, 2008: Brad and his wife celebrated the birth of their son, Rowan Thomas.

• August 1, 2013:  Brad Lidge said the final out of the 2008 World Series is something that is permanently on his mind.  He remembers gripping the baseball, striking out Tampa Bay's Eric Hinske and being stuck face to face with catcher Carlos Ruiz at the bottom of the Phillies' celebratory dogpile.

  The best moment in Lidge's career came on the Citizens Bank Park pitcher's mound in a Phillies uniform, and he officially retired there in red pinstripes on Thursday. The closer spent four seasons in Philadelphia after six in Houston, but chose to ceremonially call it quits as a Phillie.

  Lidge, for one final time, jogged out of the Phillies' bullpen on August 1, 2013. This time to deliver the first pitch, rather than the last. Lidge's entrance music, Drowning Pool's "Soldiers" played and he received a standing ovation before firing a strike to Ruiz, of course.  "This decision, for me, I thought a little bit about, but it became easier and easier the more I thought about my memories here," Lidge said.

  Lidge had a season for the ages in 2008, when he not only was a perfect 41-for-41 in save situations during the regular season, but saved seven postseason games without a hitch to help the Phillies win their first World Series since 1980.

  "That [World Series-clinching] game and that postseason will forever stand out for me," Lidge said at a Thursday afternoon press conference. "And occasionally if I see MLB Network is showing classic games, and they have that one on, sure I'll watch it. I do think about it, of course. That memory is still really vivid for me."

  Lidge said he did miss the competitive aspect of closing, but added he has been spending much more time with his family. In an 11-year career, Lidge recorded 225 saves -- 100 of which came in a Phillies uniform. Phillies fans got familiar with Lidge's entrance music in his four-season stint. But he joked he doesn't listen to that song too often these days.

  "We don't really play that one around the house too much," Lidge said, laughing. "We usually have Jack Johnson or something more low-key around the house. But that song certainly brings back memories."

  In addition to closing, Lidge was a good clubhouse presence for the Phillies, and also made himself available to the media -- win or lose. Manager Charlie Manuel called Lidge a "stand-up guy," while general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said Lidge is a class act.

  "He took a tremendous amount of responsibility for things if they didn't work out," Amaro said. "For us as an organization, with his teammates and for this city, he earned a great deal of respect, not just because he went perfect in '08, but dealing with some of the issues -- the injuries and the performance -- in subsequent years. And I think that is what sets him apart as a person."

  TRANSACTION REPORT

• June 1998: Lidge was the Astros first round choice, out of Notre Dame.

  Lidge became just the second Fighting Irish player ever selected in the first two rounds of the draft. (In 1965, Ken Plesha went in the first round to the White Sox.)

• January 16, 2007: Brad and the Astros avoided salary arbitration when they agreed to a one-year $5.35 million contract, plus incentives.

• November 8, 2007: The Phillies sent outfielder Michael Bourn, reliever Geoff Geary, and minor league third baseman Mike Costanzo to the Astros, acquiring Lidge and INF Eric Bruntlett.

• January 17, 2008: Lidge signed a one-year, $6.35 million contract with the Phillies.

• July 6, 2008: Brad signed a a three-year contract extension worth $37.5 million with the Phillies, through 2011, with a club option in 2012. The deal included a signing bonus, an awards package, assorted escalators, and a fourth-year club option that could bring the overall value of the contract to $49 million.

• October 24, 2011: The Phillies declined the $12.5 million option on Lidge for 2012, instead receiving a $1.5 million buyout.

• January 26, 2012: Lidge signed a one-year, $1 million contract, plus incentives, with the Nationals. Brad and Tyler Clippard were to set up for closer Drew Storen.

• June 17, 2012: The Nationals released Lidge, with his 9.64 ERA in 11 appearances.

• Lidge has a 93-97 mph FASTBALL and a very good 85-91 mph SLIDER, which has so much downward life that it gets mistaken for a splitter. It is one of the better, most devastating sliders in the game. He holds his slider with his index and middle finger across the narrow seams and varies the break with his release point and wrist snap.

When Lidge needs a big out, he increases the pressure with his fingers—they almost resemble a cobra's fangs coming down on the ball—and snaps his wrist violently. The result is a slider that comes in hard, like a fastball, then breaks straight downward as it reaches the plate.

Brad throws a traditional slider, one that comes in looking like a fastball before it breaks to the left with a slight downward tilt that hitters chase. He also uses a backdoor slider, one that he throws a little slower than the traditional one. He starts the pitch out of the strike zone and tries to bend it over the outside corner of the plate against a lefthanded hitter. And in 2008, Brad was better able to alter speeds with it, which helps him locate it better and makes it a less predictable pitch.

In 2005, he came up with a CHANGEUP, which gives him a different look to lefthanded batters. But he doesn't use it much.

"I used to throw it when I started in the minor leagues," Lidge says of his changeup. "It hasn't been that long since I've thrown it. I still feel like I have a good concept of what I need to do."

During 2010 spring training, Lidge worked on a two-seam sinking fastball and a CUTTER. But you may not see them in the regular season anytime soon.

• In 1999, his mechanics were changed back. Kissimmee Astros pitching coach Jack Billingham and Astros minor league pitching coordinator Dewey Robinson gave Brad a new lease on life. First, they extended his arm angle, lengthening his throwing motion. Then they taught him his late-breaking power SLIDER that runs in the 86-89 mph range.
  
  He also has a CURVEBALL, but it is just for show. He is really a fastball-slider guy.

• In 2007, after a horrible 2006 season, Lidge used "new-age" tools, visualizing a good pitch in a tough situation before delivering it, taking deep breaths. He slows himself down, stepping out of the accelerated tension of the moment in order to put things in perspective.

• Lidge displays excellent mechanics.

• Brad was a solid closer—one of the best in the game. And he was capable of two or three innings out of the bullpen.
  
  But Lidge lost his job as Astros' closer twice in 2006—early in the campaign, then in mid-August. It was a mystery. His pitches were still very good, but the results were very bad, with too many blown saves.

• One of Lidge's best qualitites is poise, which is evident even in the most dire of situations.

• In 2003, Lidge allowed a .230 batting average and three home runs in 37 innings against lefthanded pitchers. He held righthanded batters to a .179 average and three home runs in 48 innings.

• At the start of  2004, Lidge replaced Octavio Dotel as setup man. (Dotel replaced Billy Wagner as Astros' closer). Then in June Brad became the closer.

• "It's incredible what he's done," said Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley, a former AL saves leader and current NESN and TBS baseball analyst. "And he does it with just one pitch. He throws 95 sometimes, but it's with one pitch, that slider. They just don't stop swinging at it." (October 2008)
  
  STRIKEOUT RECORD

• In 2004, Lidge recorded 157 strikeouts—71 of which came after he took over the closer position. He surpassed the National League record for single-season strikeouts by a reliever by four. He had 14.93 strikeouts per nine innings—the highest strikeout ratio in history by anyone who pitched 90 or more innings in a season.
  

• Lidge had a career record of 26-32 with a 3.54 ERA. And he had only allowed 57 homers with 492 hits in 603 innings.

***  Brad Lidge has overcome more adversity than most athletes. He pitched in only 23 games during his first four seasons after signing a pro contract. At one point, he was ready to move back to Denver and finish up the degree he had started working on at Notre Dame. But Astros G.M. Tim Purpura had long talks with him. So did Dewey Robinson and Burt Hooton, pitching instructors in the Houston organization. So, he kept pitching. ***

• 1998: Elbow problems bothered Lidge shortly after he signed with the Astros.
• 1999 Spring Training: Elbow problems returned. Poor mechanics when throwing his curveball were blamed for the irritation. In August, he returned briefly before he damaged an elbow ligament (a right MCL sprain).
• April 2000: Brian went on the D.L. after he was hit by a line drive and suffered a fractured right forearm.
• November 2000: He had surgery because of sinivitis, the elbow equivalent of having a bursa sac prolem in your shoulder. The doctor also had to clean loose bone chips out of his elbow late in November.

• May 2001: Lidge went on the D.L. late in May with tendinitis in his shoulder. He missed almost the entire season.
• September 2002: Brad had to shut things down two weeks before the end of the season because of a strained intercostal (abdomen) muscle. However, he kept an aching left knee to himself, until a couple of months after the 2002 season was over.
• December 2002: An MRI disclosed surgery was required to repair damaged cartilage in his left knee.
• June 19–July 12, 2007: Lidge went on the D.L. with a strained oblique muscle. When the oblique healed up, the pain in Brad's right knee flared up again.
• August 2007: Brad pitched through knee pain, icing it down every day with an oversized ice wrap.
• October 1, 2007: Lidge had surgery to repair and remove torn cartilage in his right knee. Astros medical director Dr. David Lintner performed the surgery.

• February 23–April 5, 2008: Brad caught a spike in the mound on his first pitch of batting practice and reinjured the same knee he had surgery on in October.

  Lidge began the season on the D.L., effective March 21, 2008.

• Late in April, 2009, Brad had inflammation in his right knee. A cortisone shot didn't improve the area enough, and it affected his performance, especially when pitching from the stretch.

  Lidge said: "I don't know if bad mechanics caused [the inflammation], or if it caused bad mechanics."

• June 7-25, 2009: Lidge was on the D.L. with a sprained right knee.
• November 11, 2009: Brad had a "loose body" removed from his right elbow and also had a tendon evaluated.
• January 13, 2010: Lidge had more surgery to remove loose bodies in his right knee.
• March 26-April 30, 2010: Brad began the season on the D.L. while rcovering from the offseason surgery.
• May 10-31, 2010: Lidge was back on the D.L. with inflammation in his right elbow.

• March 14, 2011: Brad was sidelined because of a rotator cuff strain in his right shoulder.

  Soreness in the back of his shoulder caused Lidge to start the 2011 season on the D.L. But surgery was not required and he was expected back toward the end of May. But Lidge did not return until July 22.

• April 22-June 5, 2012: Lidge was on the D.L. because of an abdominal wall strain.