The Phillies have placed closer Ryan Madson on the 15-day disabled list with a broken right big toe. He injured himself after kicking a metal chair last Wednesday after blowing a save. That was very mature of him. Madson has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) in which he is 1-0 with 4 saves, a 7.00 ERA and a 1.78 WHIP. The Phillies have activated Brad Lidge off the D.L. and they have also recalled 24-year old lefty reliever Antonio Bastardo. Lidge will likely take back over as the closer for the Phillies. He pitched in 8 games (3 starts) on his rehab assignment in A+AA+AAA-ball this year and he was 0-1 with a 5.19 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. The Phillies hope that Lidge will be better this season than he was in 2009. In 2009, Lidge pitched in 67 games (0 starts) in which he was 0-8 with 31 saves, a 7.21 ERA and a 1.81 WHIP. If he can’t handle the job while Madson is out of action the Phillies could be in big trouble with the bullpen. Antonio Bastardo has pitched in 7 games (0 starts) for the Phillies this season and he is 0-0 with a 1.69 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. He never deserved to be sent to the minors in the first place so the Phillies think he will pitch well for them.

UPDATE: (5/5/2010) - Madson had surgery to repair his broken toe which will keep him out of action for at least the next 8 weeks. This is a huge blow to the Phillies as they must now trust Brad Lidge again as the closer with very few alternatives.

38-year old righty reliever Jose Contreras has been downright nasty out of the pen for the Phillies so far this year. He has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Phillies this season and he is 1-1 with a 1.35 ERA and a 0.60 WHIP. Contreras has only given up 4 hits in 6 2/3 innings this season as he is missing a lot of bats. He also has a stunning 12 whiffs without walking a batters showing just how much control he has had over the hitters this year. If Contreras keeps pitching like he is right now he will start pitching later in games for the Phillies.

The Phillies aren’t sure that they will be able to re-sign starting RF Jayson Werth after the season as he is a impending free agent. But, they will definitely take his free agent walk numbers as he looks highly motivated so far this year. Werth has played in 19 games for the Phillies this season and he is 21 of 65 (.323 avg, 1.005 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 3 homers and 11 RBIs. Werth is also showing increased discipline at the plate as he has 11 walks this season which bodes well for his batting average. Werth is trying to build on his success of last season when he played in 159 games for the Phillies in which he was 153 of 571 (.268 avg, .879 OPS) with 98 runs scored, 36 homers, 99 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. I think that Werth is going to have a better year than he had in 2009 as long as he stays healthy.

Veteran backup infielder Juan Castro has filled in pretty well for the injured Jimmy Rollins. Castro has played in 12 games for the Phillies so far this season and he is 13 of 39 (.333 avg, .726 OPS) with 4 runs scored and 7 RBIs. The Phillies miss Rollins’ power and speed but they have to be ecstatic with the way that Castro has played so far. The Phillies still hope that Rollins returns soon because the scouting reports are going to catch up to Castro sooner or later as he has a lot of holes in his swing.

The Phillies have placed lefty starting pitcher J.A. Happ on the 15-day disabled list with a sore left forearm. Happ has started 2 games for the Phillies this year and he is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. Veteran righty Nelson Figueroa will take over in the starting rotation while Happ is out of action. Figueroa has pitched in 3 games (0 starts) for the Phillies so far this season and he is 1-1 with a 2.45 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. I think Figueroa will do a decent job for the Phillies but he isn’t near as good as Happ who they hope can return in a couple of weeks. The Phillies have activated lefty reliever J.C. Romero off the D.L. to replace Happ on the pitching staff. He pitched in 5 games (3 starts) in A+AAA-ball this year on a rehab assignment and he was 0-1 with a 1.69 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. The Phillies are glad to have Romero back giving them a dependable lefty in the pen.