It’s Dec. 20 and the bullpen situation is very questionable.

Brad Lidge is going to be the closer, as everyone in the Delaware Valley crosses their fingers for a bounce back season.

Chan Ho Park likely will play elsewhere in 2010

Chad Durbin, Ryan Madson and J.C. Romero, who expects to be healthy by spring training, are locks to go along with Lidge. Sergio Escalona and Antonio Bastardo, both left-handed hurlers, will compete for a spot.

What about the Phillies’ best relievers, Scott Eyre and Chan Ho Park? According to Todd Zolecki on Phillies.com, there’s still a possibility Eyre returns. However, Park brief tenure in Philly is all but over.

Oft-injured right-hander Clay Condrey was not offered arbitration and will not return, either.

“I would assume Park is going to go someplace else, because the price point between us and Park is just too far apart,” GM Rubern Amaro Jr. said. “Unless something were to change in the next couple of nights, I would say that it looks less probable that we would bring Chan Ho back.”

The Phillies are reportedly interested in free agent Fernando Rodney, who saved 37 games as a member of the Tigers last season. John Smoltz’s name has been thrown around, too.

Bob Howry (San Francisco) and Kiko Calero are also on the radar, according to Zolecki.

Howry posted a 2-6 record with a 3.69 ERA last season. Calero had a stellar campaign with the Marlins, finishing 2-2 with a minuscule 1.95 ERA in 60 appearances.

“We have to be careful and make sure we have somebody we think is going to be healthy and durable for us,” Amaro said.

• It appears the Phillies will not re-sign relief pitchers Chan Ho Park and Scott Eyre before the end of the winter meetings Thursday. Park remains the team’s No. 1 priority in terms of the bullpen, but according to multiple local reports, the Phillies seem willing to move on without Eyre because they believe Antonio Bastardo and Sergio Escalona have the potential to be effective left-handers out of the pen.
• Brandon Lyon’s asking price is too high, according to multiple reports. The Phillies were aggressively pursuing Lyon to be, perhaps, the closer if Brad Lidge falters next year.
• The Phillies have the pieces to obtain Roy Halladay in a trade. According to reports, the Phillies have had dialogue with the Blue Jays during the winter meetings.
• The Phillies have until Saturday to offer salary arbitration to right-handers Chad Durbin and Clay Condrey. Durbin, in all likelihood, will return.
• The addition of Ross Gload, signed late Tuesday, probably marks the “official” end of Matt Stairs’ tenure. Eric Bruntlett declined a minor-league contract last month and Juan Castro was signed to take his place.
• GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told Phillies.com that Kyle Kendrick will “fight” for a spot in the starting rotation come spring training. Oft-injured, hard-throwing right-hander Scott Mathieson will compete for one of the bullpen spots.

The Phillies lost to the Marlins, 4-3, Saturday afternoon. They cannot clinch home field advantage throughout the National League playoffs.

Good news, though, is that the Cardinals lost to the Brewers. Thus, the Phils have home field advantage in the first round ONLY.

Todd Zolecki of Phillies.com blogged Saturday that Charlie Manuel is leaning toward carrying 13 pitchers and 10 position player on the first-round playoff roster. Here’s the breakdown as far as position players are concerned:

C: Carlos Ruiz and Paul Bako

INF: Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Pedro Feliz, Jimmy Rollins, Greg Dobbs and Eric Bruntlett.

OF: Raul Ibanez, Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth, Matt Stairs and Ben Francisco.

The pitching is a whole lot blurrier. With season-ending injuries to J.C. Romero, Jamie Moyer and possibly Chan Ho Park… there are questions here. Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels will start Games 1 and 2 of the NLDS, respectively. Joe Blanton should pitch the third game. The No. 4 spot has not yet been determined.

J.A Happ and Pedro Martinez are the candidates. Happ could be moved to the bullpen because of the team’s shortage of left-handed relievers. As of now, Scott Eyre

Don't lie to us, Charlie. If Brad Lidge has another 1-2-3 outing in a meaningless game Sunday (like he did Saturday), you're gonna put him in a save situation the first chance you get, right?

is probably the Phillies’ only lefty specialist.

However, if Sergio Escalona and Antonio Bastardo pitch well over the weekend, either one could be included on the postseason roster. At this point, you’d have to think that both are long shots…

Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson, Tyler Walker, Brett Myers and Eyre are “locks”. I’m pretty sure Kyle Kendrick has earned the role of long reliever.

Either Happ or Martinez is guaranteed a spot in the pen. Clay Condrey is iffy because he hasn’t pitched a whole lot this season because of injuries…

The pitching roles are pretty much undefined at this point. With one day left to go in the regular season, Manuel has some crucial decisions to make.