As critical to the WFCs run last year as Brad Lidge was, you gotta give Ryan Madson almost as much credit for being a reliable, lockdown setup guy, who along with Lidge, assured that all Philly had to do was be the better team for seven innings to emerge victorious. Madson's aim was not always quite so true, however--in 2006, while shuttling in between the pen and the rotation, Madson his share of bouts with wildness.
The definitive example would have to be on July 25th, 2006, when against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Mad Dog thew four wild pitches in the top of the third alone, also allowing a single and double, though amazingly, only one run actually ended up scoring. Madson would end up throwing 93 pitches by the end of the fourth, and getting yanked, despite only letting up two runs. The Phils would lose the game 6-5 in 11 innings, on a game-winning homer from then-unknown rookie Carlos Quentin, with Madson getting a No Decision.
Ryan became only the second pitcher in the history of the National League to get wild four times in one inning, the first being Phil Niekro for the Braves in 1979 (Three pitchers have done it in the AL--Hall of Famer Walter Johnson for the Washington Senators in 1914, reliever Kevin Gregg for the Angels in 2004, and knuckleballer R.A. Dickey for the Mariners just last year). "Madson didn't have his command," said Charlie Manuel in a mild understatement. Indeed, the experiment of Madson as a starter would just last one more start, a two-run, eight-hit, six-K performance in a 9-2 victory against the Marlins, before Madson was moved back to the bullpen to make room for emerging ace Cole Hamels.
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Madson has yet to start another game for the Phils since--and lord willing, he'll never have to.