We interrupt the Michael Vick saga to return you to the Phillies season.

No, baseball hasn’t gone away. It just got pushed off the sports pages – and the news pages as well – by our all-consuming rush to cover the Eagles dalliance with convicted dog ring runner Michael Vick.

But now that Vick is back at practice, and Donovan McNabb is talking about the possibility of both of them being on the field at the same time in a double-threat, we can now turn our sights once again to Citizens Bank Park.

That’s where the Phils will send Pedro Martinez to the mound tonight for his first home start as a Phil. No doubt Pedro will be warmly received by another packed house. That is not the problem.

This is. Pedro – even on a good night – will get you maybe five or six innings.

Eventually, this game is going to be decided by the bullpens, and very well could come down to the ninth inning.

And in case you haven’t noticed, that has become a problem for the Phils.

Brad Lidge, who as everyone remembers was simply perfect last season, never relinquishing a save opportunity, has been anything but so far this year. All Lidge did last year was save 48 games in 48 opportunities. Not so this year.

He was at it again in Atlanta over the weekend. He managed to nail down a game Friday night, even though he was hit hard, and then imploded again Saturday.

He bobbled a bunt try, then fired the ball into right field, leading to the tying run. A couple of batters later, the Braves won the game on a base hit with the bases loaded. Lidge faced six batters, and only got one of them out.

It was the eighth blown save of the season for Lidge, who continues to say he feels great and is throwing the ball just as well as he did last year, but is simply not getting the breaks.

He better turn that around, and fast. Tonight’s game is likely not going to be decided by Pedro Martinez. It will be decided by the Phillies’
bullpen, including Lidge coming on in the ninth.

Not exactly a comforting thought. What a difference a year makes.