Fla. Which is why the respected talent evaluators of the Philadelphia Phillies discarded their own guys (Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge) and made Jonathan Papelbon the highest-paid reliever in baseball with a stunning four-year, $50 million deal in the...

There were no splashes on the free agent market, save the guy expected to get all the saves. The Phillies biggest acquisition may have simply been retaining Jimmy Rollins at shortstop. There were small tweaks. Gone are veterans like Roy Oswalt and Raul...

There were no splashes on the free-agent market, save the guy expected to get all the saves. The Phillies biggest acquisition may have simply been retaining Jimmy Rollins at shortstop. There were small tweaks. Gone are veterans like Roy Oswalt, Raul...

Washington Nationals players have rolled into Viera and Space Coast Stadium over the last two days to begin that greatest of primitive baseball traditions: Spring Training. According to the Nationals Journal some of these players include Drew Storen,...

By the count of the team’s p.r. staff, more than 20 players have shown up. Drew Storen and Tyler Clippard came today, joining, among others, Edwin Jackson, Jordan Zimmermann, Brad Lidge, Ian Desmond, Roger Bernadina, Chien-Ming Wang, Ross Detwiler and...

The players understand that this year is different than any other year in Nationals history. They are expected to win. It helps that they acquired left-handed pitcher Gio Gonzalez in a trade with the Athletics this offseason. Washington also went into...

Phillies' key offseason moves Oct. 12: Named Joe Jordan as director of player development. Oct. 24: Declined 2012 options on RHP Brad Lidge and Roy Oswalt. Nov. 5: Agreed to a 1-year contract with 1B Jim Thome. Nov. 15: Agreed to a 4-year contract with...

Addison Reed has not been tabbed to be the White Sox's closer in 2012. Reed has everything he needs to be a dominant closer in the majors. His stuff is absolutely filthy, as he throws a hard fastball and a wicked slider. He fits the mold of a Brad...

Lee hurled six shutouts on the season and posted earned run averages The Phillies also overcame injuries to many key players, including Carlos Ruiz, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Placido Polanco, Hamels, Oswalt, Joe Blanton, Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson, Jose...

WE KNOW: Charlie Manuel and Rich Dubee will have plenty more options than they did for most of last season, when young relievers Antonio Bastardo and Michael Stutes were forced into the fire after injuries struck Jose Contreras, Brad Lidge and, for a...

The Nationals' GM referenced Johnson's preference for two pens during an appearance on ESPN 980's The Sports Fix with Thom Loverro and Kevin Sheehan when he announced the signing of 35-year-old veteran right-hander Brad Lidge, who's saved 223 games in...

Davey Johnson will open a camp with Strasburg and Jordan Zimmermann having full rehabs behind them and Wilson Ramos having had a full year of handling a Major League staff. General manager Mike Rizzo traded for an All-Star left-hander in Gonzalez,...

This was not only a nice achievement for him, but it was also a remarkable achievement for his best team, the 1940 Reds. That team won the world championship, but until Lombardi entered Cooperstown, not a single member of that club had gained baseball...

RHP Qualls: Philadelphia signed Qualls for just $1.15 million in January, which is one of the low-risk, high-reward moves Pat Gillick loved to make when he was Phillies GM from 2006-08. Qualls is a veteran arm to help fill the void of Brad Lidge. PH/1B...

Some fun, huh? We never ran out of things to chew on, and that's not always the case. From Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder to Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge, there were players moving in, players moving out. The Angels, Marlins and Nationals got better,...

Fla. Park: Bright House Field. First Workout: Feb. 19/24. He’s Here: RHP Jonathan Papelbon, RHP Chad Qualls, LHP Dontrelle Willis, 1B Jim Thome, INF Ty Wigginton, OF Laynce Nix, OF Juan Pierre, OF Scott Podsednik, RHP Joel Pineiro, RHP Brian Sanches. ...

Training Town: Viera, Fla. Park: Space Coast Stadium. First Workout: Feb. 20/25. He's Here: RHP Edwin Jackson, LHP Gio Gonzalez, RHP Brad Lidge, OF Mike Cameron, INF Mark DeRosa, RHP Chad Durbin, INF-OF Mark Teahen. He's Outta Here: RHP Livan...

Storen told MLB Network Radio hosts Jim Memolo and Jeff Nelson in an interview this week that he was looking forward to learning from the veteran this Spring. "Having Brad Lidge down there with me," Storen said, "is going to be a big help and probably...

As mentioned before, do not expect this to be a two-team race again this season, as the Marlins and Nationals are ready for a fight. Here is my predicted order of the finish for the National League East in 2012. Philadelphia Phillies: Even with the...