May 8 -- RELIEF?

PHOENIX -- As you may already know, especially if you're a delawareonline.com visitor, the Phillies have, in fact, acquired lefty reliever Stephen Randolph from the Astros for a player to be named. Randolph, 34, has made 14 appearances in the majors since 2004 and is what GM Pat Gillick often calls "an inventory guy." It's unlikely he'll be the final solution to the Phillies' need for another lefty in their bullpen.

I did, however, ask Brad Lidge about Randolph this morning. Lidge, who teamed briefly with Randolph in Houston, offered this scouting report: "He's a big, tall lefty, and he actually has two strikeout pitches -- a slider and his changeup. I've watched him strike out a lot of good hitters with them. His whole thing is, when he's going right, his control is down. When that abandons him, that's when he struggles at times. That being said, even though he's a little older now, he has the potential to go through some good stretches."