Topic: Brad Lidge

Bradley Thomas "Brad" Lidge (born December 23, 1976 in Sacramento, California) is a closer for the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball. Nicknamed "Lights Out", he is the all-time leader in strikeouts per nine innings (12.2 K/9) among pitchers with at least 200 appearances in their career. Lidge throws a four-seam fastball that consistently reaches 91 or 92 miles per hour, as well as a hard, sharp breaking slider that ranges from 85 to 87 mph. He sealed the Phillies' 2008 World Series Championship with the final out, a strikeout of Eric Hinske in Game 5.

Brad Lidge was born in Sacramento, California on December 23, 1976. At a young age, the Lidge family moved to Englewood, Colorado. Growing up, Lidge was very active, playing football, basketball and baseball among other sports. Lidge attended Cherry Creek High School.

Lidge attended Notre Dame. He won the Big East player of the year award during his junior season under coach Paul Mainieri, leading the conference with an 8-2 record and 93 strikeouts in 80.1 innings.