But as the Phillies learned last October, when two of their four losses to the Giants came on go-ahead runs in the eighth inning or later, even a good start needs a solid end.
So when Dubee looks at the current performances of Madson, now a closer, and young setup man Antonio Bastardo, he sees a lot to like . . . and a lot to remind him of 2008.
"Very similar," the Phillies' pitching coach said. "You look at good teams, they've got solid eighth- and ninth-inning guys, setup men and closers. It's tough to lose games at the end of the day when you've got leads, and we've been very good about that."
According to the numbers - at least before Madson's blown save last night - they have been just as good, and perhaps even better, than Madson and Lidge were in 2008. That season, the Phillies went 86-10 when they entered the ninth inning with a lead or a tie. This year, they are 76-9 in those situations. An exact comparison between the setup/closer combinations is difficult, since Madson spent much of 2008 rotating with lefty J.C. Romero in the setup role. In fact, it was Romero who recorded the four outs before Lidge's clinching save in Game 5 of the World Series.
This year, Bastardo has been the lone constant in the Phillies' bullpen, filling a setup role ever since Jose Contreras landed on the disabled list in late April. Heading into yesterday, the 25-year-old ranked fifth among NL relievers with a 1.35 ERA in 46 2/3 innings. He also had allowed an average of only 3.47 hits per nine innings. Since baseball was integrated, no reliever with at least 40 innings has finished a season allowing fewer than 4.04 (Eric Gagne in 2003).
Madson, who opened the season setting up for Contreras, missed a month with a hand injury, but has recorded 23 of 25 save opportunities.
