As the Phillies near the playoffs, their collective angst over closer Brad Lidge intensifies.

He blew his 11th save of the season Wednesday, capitulating to the Marlins in a 7-6 loss in South Florida. He is now 0-8 with a 7.48 earned-run average.

“It’s incredibly frustrating,” Lidge told reporters afterward. “I’m disappointed. They hit the ball tonight. I’m a little bit at a loss. I’m sure there’s some things I can do better.”

Our suggestion: Quit serving meat. But that is just a thought.

Last season Lidge was nearly untouchable, finishing 2-0 with a 1.95 ERA and 41 saves in 41 opportunities. The Phillies have tried a variety of things with Lidge this season, including shutting him down on the disabled list and moving him to middle relief.

But with Brett Myers, Pedro Martinez and Chan Ho Park injured, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel has little choice but to leave Ryan Madson in the set-up role and Lidge in his familiar closing spot.

“He’s got to go do it,” Manuel told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “Between him and Madson, they’ve just got to get it done.”

Cole Hamels told the Inquirer that Lidge needs to reestablish his intimidating edge on the mound.

“When you do struggle, and you’re trying to come back in those struggles, you seem to put yourself away from being invincible,” Hamels said. “And when you’re invincible, teams don’t want to face you. And then when you come back to the norm, they feel like they can hit you. They have that confidence, and when a team has confidence . . . they’re going to get hits no matter what.

“You have to basically put the fear in them and make them uncomfortable. Once they start getting that confidence, it is not to your advantage.”

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE

Questions to ponder while wondering if the Cardinals will clinch the National League Central on their day off:

• Who is this Bud Norris fellow and why are Cards hitters so helpless against him?
• After voiding Wagner Mateo’s contract, will the Cards get shut out on other prospects in the Dominican Republic?
• If the richest man in Russia wanted to buy a U.S. sports franchise, why did he select the New Jersey Nets?
• Would you be surprised to read that BCS schools tend to get softer sanctions than non-BCS schools when they break rules? Are the folks at SEMO nodding in agreement at this premise?
• Can the hapless Mets ever relocate their “on” switch?
• Wouldn’t it be fun to make a really long basketball shot?
• Would you be shocked to read that Chad Ochocinco planted Bengals fans in Lambeau Field so he could leap into them? Is this man the greatest self-promoter ever?
• Is it too soon to get excited about the UFL TV schedule?

SETTING FIRE TO ROMO

It sounds like former Cowboys great Tony Dorsett took Tony Romo’s latest big-game implosion pretty hard.

“I don’t know why on God’s earth Tony Romo has been anointed a superstar in the National Football League,” Dorsett told Fox Sports Radio. “Tony is very young in his career. Not to say you can’t be young in your career and be a superstar because you’ve got one up there in Minnesota in Adrian Peterson.

“But the thing is this: You have a guy who hasn’t done much, and quarterbacks in the NFL, most of them go through this growing curve. He hasn’t gone through that growing curve, but he was anointed this great player all of a sudden. Now he’s having to live up to that. And obviously Tony has some deficiencies.”

QUIPS ‘R US

Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:

Mark Kriegel, FoxSports.com: “I don’t fault Sam Bradford for returning to Oklahoma. But going back after losing four starters on the offensive line makes me wonder whether the value of a college education has been completely wasted on this kid.”

Jay Mariotti, FanHouse: “The simplest approach would be to dismiss Milton Bradley as a worthless, miserable, psychotic, no-good jerk who somehow would sour the happy vibes at a Boy Scouts meeting, all of which is inarguably true. But the bigger problem in Cubdom, which is experiencing a more acute depression than usual in its 101st consecutive season without a World Series title, is the brainiac who signed him last winter. That would be Jim Hendry, the general manager. Once so driven by his job that he signed pitcher Ted Lilly to a $40 million contract while in his hospital bed following a heart procedure, Hendry overthought himself on Bradley to the point of wrecking a potentially historic team. He gambled that Bradley could be the offensive threat to push the Cubs past the first round of the postseason, ignoring the long, poisonous pattern of Bradley distracting or downright disrupting every team that has employed him. Rather than savor a healthy clubhouse chemistry mix, Hendry dumped the popular and versatile Mark DeRosa and replaced him with Bradley, the antithesis of good vibes, selflessness and 162-game peace.”

Jim Caple, ESPN.com: “Another year without a World Series, but as (the season) draws to a close, the Long Sufferers will focus on how many other Cubs should be suspended for ‘conduct detrimental to the team.’ How about Alfonso Soriano, with a .303 on-base percentage, a .726 OPS, just 64 runs, a $16 million salary and $90 million left on his contract (with a full no-trade clause)? Or Kevin Gregg, with a 4.72 ERA and seven blown saves? Or Carlos Marmol, with 62 walks in 70 innings? Or more to the point, how about the man most responsible for this mess, general manager Jim Hendry, who somehow thought giving Milton Bradley a $30 million contract could possibly work out and was surprised that Bradley wasn’t happy with his seventh team in nine seasons?”

Greg Cote, Miami Herald: “Dozens of former NFL players who have had repeated concussions have said they will donate their brains for research upon their deaths. However, most of those players forgot they agreed to that.”

MEGAPHONE

“Managers look to try to attain that level of status that he has. I think that’s unfortunate for the Braves — probably fortunate for everybody else in the division. He’s had a tremendous, tremendous run. He has really set the bar tremendously high over there. So anybody that steps in there will have some big, big shoes to fill as far as stability and strategy.”

Charlie Manuel, to the Associated Press, on Bobby Cox’s plans to retire after the 2010 season.