Little common ground is to be found among this list of players: one reliever, one starter, one starter-turned-outfielder, and two second basemen. But certain baseball thinkers believe these five men to be sufferers of "The Steve Blass Disease," a condition ascribed to those baseball players who mysteriously become incapable of performing tasks which they used to succeed at, likely due to psychological effects.
How it all began...
Not even position players are safe!
Steve Sax, second baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, would be the next man diagnosed with Blass' disease, after suddenly becoming incapable of making throws to first base in 1983. He committed 30 errors in that year, up from 19 in 1982. He would be one of the few to be "cured," so to speak, when he rebounded and no longer frightened the fans behind first base.
The Virus returns to the mound
How to throw baseballs at people's heads and get away with it
Chuck Knoblauch, second baseman for the Minnesota Twins, the Yankees, and the Kansas City Royals, was Steve Sax redux. In his time in Minnesota, he gained a reputation as a sure-handed fielder, one of the best in the game at second. He came to the Bronx in 1998; a year later, he could not make a throw to first. Another year later, the Yankees would actually play Knoblauch as a DH just to keep him off of the field. He even went to psychiatrists and psychologists for help, but still fired many a throw into the crowd. Joe Torre threw him in left field, where an errant throw meant less hassle than a lawsuit from an angry fan with the imprint of a baseball on his forehead and lost outs.
What's this guy got against backstops?
His issues persisted in 2001, and he was returned to the minors. His control was completely gone at this point, and he walked 17 batters and threw 12 wild pitches in only 4.1 innings. Later that year, he would see time as a designated hitter, which would help him start his recovery - not as a starter, but now as an outfielder. Today, he is on the Triple-A Memphis disabled list, waiting for a call-up.
But in truth, this article is about none of the players mentioned above. While most fans find their stories depressing, none of them matter today. Even in Ankiel's case, he is clawing his way back to the majors, and most seem to have forgotten about his experiences. Brad Lidge, however, is still quite present to us, and he is who I want to put the focus on.
Victim Number Six?
While not viewed as a sufferer of Steve Blass disease, Lidge seems well on his way to that path. Most people reading this can remember the moment where Lidge's downfall began. It was the 2005 NLCS, game five, and the Houston Astros were one out away from going to their first ever World Series. David Eckstein and Jim Edmonds reached base, and then Albert Pujols stepped up and decimated a pitch, sending it on to the railroad tracks of Minute Maid Park. The Astros would win game six and head to the World Series, but Lidge has yet to rebound. Lidge was one of the best closers in the majors in 2004 and 2005, predicted to remain in the elite class for several years to come, but in 2006, he struggled mightily.
*as of 10:00 PM EST on May 15, 2007
He has been juggled in and out of the closer's role in 2006 and 2007, being demoted but then pitching well in middle relief and being given it back by Phil Garner. All it took to knock Lidge off-course from his expected multi-year career as a top closer was a single home run, one that did not even cost his team in the end. He still has a chance, but likely not one that involves closing games.
Is Lidge really a sufferer of the disease that has ruined careers? Is he just reaching the end of his (short) prime? Is this even a disease? No matter the answers to these questions, there is one undeniable point here. Witness what may be the strongest force in baseball: the mind.