I love baseball. Possibly more than life itself. We all know that. But it's been awhile since there's been anything to talk about OTHER than baseball. Football ended last February (in dramatic and awesome fashion, I might add), but then we went into a lockout and haven't had anything to talk about other than the NFL draft. Pro basketball is a subject that hasn't been touched for awhile and probably won't be touched for many months to come because of, yes, another lockout...only the Bucks' draft picks and trade have been discussed ever since they floundered their playoff chances away in March. College basketball will receive more attention as a result, but that doesn't begin until November, nor gain much relevance until January and February. As much as I have fallen in love with the NHL over the past few seasons, I don't have a team to discuss on this blog because Wisconsin doesn't have a pro hockey franchise. So I'm going to talk about baseball some more, but there's no need to worry. Remember when I started this thing up back on August 8th of last year? That time is drawing close, and I believe that my preview of the Wisconsin Badgers football team was done on August 10th. Which means...that's right. I'll be talking about football soon. Not only that, but once this NFL lockout comes to a close (which supposedly is very soon), the Packers can start looking at free agents, begin practicing and...holy s---...their first preseason game is on August 13. Can that be right? Like...three weeks from now? Nice.
So we've got some things to look forward to. College football. Pro football. The one-year anniversary of Balls, Brats and Beer. But that's not all. How about playoff baseball? The Brewers once again reclaimed first place from those pesky Pirates last night despite new acquisition Francisco Rodriguez doing his best Derrick Turnblow impersonation and won against the D-Backs 5-2 in ten innings. For those keeping track, the Brewers have now won back-to-back road games twice...and both have happened in the last five days. Milwaukee is 4-3 on the current road trip, which to be honest is better than I expected. Before I get to the big picture, I'd like to discuss a few things from last night's game that caught my eye that pertain to rookie manager Ron Roenicke.
Once the Brewers had grabbed a two-run lead after seven innings and had seen Stephen Drew break his ankle sliding into home and Carlos Gomez fracture his clavicle making a beautiful diving catch in center (both are likely out for the season), Roenicke made a decision that is easy to look back on and criticize. Starting pitcher Chris Narveson had been brilliant through seven innings and his pitch count was only in the mid-80s, but RR decided to go with what had worked on two separate occasions and bring out K-Rod for the 8th. A half-inning later, the game was tied due in part to Rodriguez getting behind in the count and Ryan Braun's calf preventing him from cutting off a ball that was heading for the left center field gap. So why didn't Roenicke leave in Narveson to see if he could keep on rolling? Good question, but it's already been answered. The K-Rod/Ax Factor 8th-9th inning combo had yet to fail, so RR turned to it again. However, this situation was different and Narveson should have been given the chance to finish what he started. In the other two games that K-Rod and Ax have finished it out (both against Colorado), K-Rod didn't relieve the starting pitcher - he relieved another reliever. Roenicke shouldn't have treated it like any other situation. The Narve-Dog was rolling along and even if he did get left in and ran into trouble in the 8th or 9th, then that's where you should step in and put in Ax or K-Rod. Simple as that. I'm sure Roenicke has learned a valuable lesson. Luckily it didn't cost us a victory.
But get this: Roenicke redeemed himself almost immediately. In the bottom of the ninth with a runner on third and no one out, Reliever Takashi "Tsunami" Saito was in a jam and a half. Just like he has done on previous occasions, RR brought in a fifth infielder from the outfield (Brauny) and put his faith in Saito to force the batter to hit a ground ball. The next two hitters grounded out to McGehee and the Brewers were able to put Braun back in left and return to their normal alignment. After a fly-out to Gomez' replacement, Tony Plush, the Crew had momentum back on their side. The very next half inning, none other than Nyjer Morgan had the game winning and go-ahead base hit and Axford put the Ax down for yet another save. Pirates lost. Cards lost. Brewers win. Brewers in first. Everyone's happy.
The Milwaukee Brewers now sit at 53-46 and 0.5 games ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates, who don't play the Crew again until August 12 (the first of nine remaining games against the Brewers, including the final three games of the season), a game which I will be attending in the Miller Lite Beer Pen thanks to Kyle's birthday. The August 13 game was moved to an afternoon start so that it could be nationally televised. Really? An August Brewers-Pirates game? And if that's not enough, to close out the season the Crew and the Bucs will play three games at Miller Park. Get your tickets now, folks. I have my doubts that the schedule makers put the Pirates-Brewers series at the end of the season because they knew it would have playoff implications, but that seems to be what it's shaping up to have. What the Brewers have going for them is that they have completely dominated the Bucs over the past couple seasons, especially at Miller Park. As a matter of fact, they are 5-0 against Pittsburgh this season. But as the season has progressed, the Pirates have morphed into a team with exciting young talent and a surprisingly good pitching staff. People are waiting for Pittsburgh to fade...and it's not happening. Not yet, at least.
Things have been promising lately for the Brewers. Ryan Braun appears to be getting closer and closer to 100%...the bullpen received a nice boost with the addition of Francisco Rodriguez (despite last night's effort)...another move to improve the bench and/or left side of the infield appears to be in the making...and the Brewers are holding their own on a very difficult road trip that will close out with a showdown against the fellow first place San Francisco Giants. Unfortunately, Go-Go's loss means no late-game insurance in the outfield or on the base paths for some time to come. To replace Gomez, outfielder Brett Carroll, 28, was called up from Triple-A Nashville. This season, Carroll was hitting .281 with 15 HR and 51 RBI, but has been struggling as of late and hasn't exactly proven himself at the big league level. I would've preferred to see someone like fellow outfielder Caleb Gindl (22 years old, .290 AVG, 12 HR, 35 RBI) or even another infielder like Taylor Green (24 years old, .316 AVG, 13 HR, 55 RBI), but perhaps the Brewers don't want to tinker with Gindl's progress or make the infield too crowded. Besides, Gindl is a left-handed hitter so he wouldn't be able to replace Gomez in the righty/lefty platoon in center field. Still...why not give this Green guy a shot? I talked about him earlier in the summer as a possible replacement for McGehee, who continues to do a whole lot of nothing for the Brewers this season. At the very latest, we should see Green as a September call-up (or late August call-up so that he's eligible for the postseason roster) perhaps get a few chances to start over Casey. Just another little something for us Brewer fans to look forward to.
That's all I've got for now. Don't worry. Football is on the horizon for those of you who are tired of me blabbing about baseball. For now, let's just sit back and enjoy...no...let's ride an emotional roller coaster...as we watch the Brewers duke it out for a spot in the playoffs.
Showing posts with label Roenicke. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Roenicke. Show all posts
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
First half (56.8%) Review for the Crew
The timing of the All-Star Game has really thrown me off. Usually when baseball reaches the Midsummer Classic, people assume that the season is halfway done. In reality, the Brewers were through 81 of their 162 games a few weeks ago and have technically now completed 56.8% of their season...so let's just call the following the 46/81 review for the Milwaukee Brewers.
Record: 49-43, T-1st in NL Central
Team MVP: 1B Prince Fielder, .415 OBP, 22 HR, 72 RBI
Team Cy Young: Yovani Gallardo, 10-5, 3.76 ERA, 104 K
I already did a mini-season review for The Sports Jury, but I'll be putting my blood, sweat and tears into this one so you've come to the right place. With baseball getting a little breather with the exception of the Home Run Derby (currently putting me to sleep) and the ASG, it's a good time to reflect on what the Brewers have accomplished so far this summer. If you wanted to take the short route in summing up the Brewers, it could be done with one word...inconsistent. There probably isn't a better team to root for than Milwaukee if you're looking for some health problems. The Brewers could easily be looking up to the division leader instead of the ones on top if they didn't manage several heart-stopping comebacks, although they have also let a few leads slip away late in ball games. Earlier in the season, I wrote about how there is something different about this team than in past years and I still believe that to this day. When the Crew hit their lowest point of the season and were 13-19, they picked themselves up and went 21-7 from May 7th to June 6th. Since that time, they have had their ups and downs, but here they are...in 1st place. And that's what really matters.
Before the 2011 season began, General Manager Doug Melvin realized the trend that was going around baseball. Teams were loading up on pitching...and it was working. The other trending topic, if you will, was teams loading up on defense. This hasn't been as much of a success (see: Seattle, Oakland, Chicago White Sox), and Melvin decided that he wasn't going to go the defensive route...we'll get to that later. The two pitchers that the Brewers gave up so much for were Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum, who have gone a combined 14-6 so far this season. Yeah, you can go ahead and complain about Greinke's struggles...and he certainly hasn't been right for the majority of the season...but the way he pitches to contact (99 Ks & only 16 walks), works fast and keeps the defense on its toes can't be overlooked. Hitters reward Greinke with lots and lots of runs, which explains his solid record despite his 5.45 ERA. Before the season, I thought that Greinke wouldn't perform as well as expected, but Gallardo would succeed due to some pressure being taken off his shoulders. And in my mind, Yo has been the rock of this team and that's what makes him the M-V-Pitcher for the Crew. Gallardo has been healthy all season (unlike Marcum and Greinke), has already reached double digits in victories and has gotten HUGE wins when the Brewers needed them the most (when they were 13-19, after losing 6 of 7, etc). I still have faith in Greinke coming around, but as long as he keeps getting Ws, I'm happy. As for Marcum, he might only have seven wins (thought he would get 15), but he should probably have ten or 11. He has either pitched in a lot of low scoring games or watched Kameron Loe take the opponent off the hook with his blown saves...I'll get to that and the rest of the 'pen later. It's okay. There's still time for Mr. Marcum to reach the 15 win plateau. To round out the starting rotation, Randy Wolf has been a pleasant surprise (3.65 ERA), but he's kind of a dick for not letting Johnny Lucroy catch him so I'm not going to give him any further praise. Last but not least, we have the Narve-dog, Chris Narveson. 6-5 with a 4.75 ERA for a number five starter? Yes, please. There's no question the performance of the starting rotation is why the Brewers are where they are right now. For those of us that are religious, let us pray for continued good health and more wins. Here are the grades:
Yovani Gallardo: A- ... An All-Star last year, he has become very reliable.
Shaun Marcum: A- ... A true pitcher, Marcum almost always keeps team in games.
Randy Wolf: B+ ... Always keeps hitters guessing but has struggled of late.
Zack Greinke: C ... Tends to miss too much with his spots and it kills him.
Chris Narveson: B- ... Like I said, I'll take his numbers for a #5.
Overall: B+
It's hard to argue with who the most valuable player for the Milwaukee Brewers has been so far. Perhaps Ryan Braun has an argument for this honor with his gaudy average and productive numbers hitting in front of Prince, but that's the thing. It's partly due to hitting in front of Prince. Fielder has embraced being in the final year of his contract and is making his case for not only a massive pay day, but also MVP of the National League. In my season preview, I noted that King would either collapse under the pressure of a contract year or have a career year. I think I'll give myself a correct prediction on that one up to this point. Speaking of correct predictions...Nyjer "Tony Plush" Morgan. Even before the season began, I felt like a giddy school girl every time I thought about what Plush could bring to the table once coach Ron Roenicke finally decided it was time to give the Carlos Gomez experiment a rest. The result has been spectacular defense, a .327 batting average, speed on the base paths and possibly the most entertaining interview in the history of sports. Alright. It's time to go through all the position players the Brewers currently have on the roster:
LF Ryan Braun: A ... A total stud in the 3-hole. Not much more can be said.
OF/1B Mark Kotsay: B- ... Surprisingly clutch, but a liability in the field.
OF/IF Josh Wilson: B ... Was he the key bench player pick-up the Crew needed?
CF Carlos Gomez: C ... Can become likable when accepting the role he plays.
OF Nyjer Morgan: A- ... This guy should get a job setting tables. Or in comedy.
RF Corey Hart: B ... His numbers are about where you'd expect, so can't complain.
3B Casey McGehee: D- ... Terrible at protecting Prince and at the hot corner.
SS Yuniesky Betancourt: D+ ... Hasn't really done much of anything for MIL.
IF Craig Counsell: C- ... Can't be too harsh. Solid with the glove, good teammate.
2B Rickie Weeks: B+ ... Definitely Weeks' best year to date, but still bad w/glove.
1B Prince Fielder: A ... It's a damn shame that he's leaving Milwaukee because...
1B Mat Gamel: INC ... Gamel still hasn't figured it out at the Big League level.
C Jonathan Lucroy: B+ ... Putting up league leading numbers among NL catchers.
C George Kottaras: C ... A nice power threat to have and handles Wolf well.
Overall: B ... Even though it appears on paper that this offense is fairly impressive, there doesn't seem to be enough help around Braun and Fielder. We all know about McGehee and the lack of production from Yuni B and I think there is a simple solution: take Weeks out of the lead-off spot. We've seen how well Plush gets on base to start rally after rally, and therefore I think he has the ability to assume this role from Rickie. Morgan has hit first before in his career and Weeks is better suited in the five hole because of his immense production as far as lead-off hitters are concerned. Perhaps it's too drastic of a move for Roenicke to make in his first year of managing, but this might be it for awhile for fans in Milwaukee. He needs to do whatever it takes to get as much out of this squad as possible. Just think about it...Morgan, Hart, Braun, Fielder, Weeks to start off a ball game? With Lucroy as the anchor to keep things respectable at the bottom of the order? I'm salivating. One last thing...I didn't think Gamel would be brought up this year (at least not until September) and I still wish he hadn't. Gamel needed as much time as possible in the minors to get used to first base for next season and it didn't happen. This was due in part to Roenicke wanting an extra bat for interleague play and the awful play of McGehee. There's no way he's back on the roster with his .115 average after the All-Star break.
Finally, the bullpen. I believe that this is one of the more difficult aspects of a big league club to manage. It's shown this year in Roenicke's first year as skipper as it took him about 85 games to realize that Loe simply couldn't handle the 8th inning role. I've harped on this enough, but ever since LaTroy Hawkins assumed this role, have the Brewers lost a lead? No, sir. Other than that, the Ax Factor John Axford has been very reliable as the Brewers' closer and many guys have come and went. As of now, the Brewers only have six relievers on their roster...the six mainstays that should remain at the major league level as the season continues. Here are the grades:
John Axford: A- ... Hasn't been quite as good as '10, but hasn't let many get away.
LaTroy Hawkins: A ... With a 1.08 ERA, he has earned the setup role behind Ax.
Kameron Loe: C ... Incredibly effective against righties, but has seven loses.
Marco Estrada: C+ ... Has faced some difficult tasks as the long-inning man.
Zach Braddock: C ... He is clearly still dealing with some issues after DL stints.
Takashi Saito: INC ... Has been solid since returning from injury; could be key.
Overall: B- ... When the Brewers have the lead late and the bullpen is called upon, it hasn't exactly been lights out. In fact, Estrada and Loe have combined for 30% of the Brewers' losses and the bullpen overall has lost about half of the games for the Crew, which is rather staggering. Braddock has battled with a sleeping disorder, which is especially disappointing to me because I'm a huge Braddock guy and I thought he would play a very important role for the Brewers this season. However, if the Brewers want to do things this year, they will need Braddock to figure it out. Hopefully, with Hawkins and Axford taking the last two innings of games in which the Brewers hold the lead, Milwaukee can shorten the ball game.
That's that for the players. How about first-year manager Ron Roenicke? Obviously, Roenicke has made his mistakes along the way, but I would be hard pressed to find anyone that totally dislikes the man...at least not at the level of Ned Yost or Ken Macha. I think this has a lot to do with Roenicke's aggressive style of managing. He likes to put runners in motion and has put on a few squeeze plays that have been very effective. Of course, sometimes this style doesn't work and players will turn aggressive base running into flat out stupid baserunning, but you can see the progression of Roenicke. He keeps things loose and it shows in the attitudes of the players. Over the course of the last home stand while not having the luxury of Ryan Braun in the lineup, Roenicke made some crucial decisions that probably helped the Brewers win an extra game or two. I really look forward to seeing how Roenicke manages down the stretch as this club (hopefully) remains in the thick of the playoff race.
Okay. So it turns out that the Prince Fielder contract situation isn't the only elephant in the room. The Brewers' defense appeared to start off strong, but now they find themselves 22nd in the MLB in fielding percentage. Just three more spots and they'll fulfill my prophecy and finish in the bottom five of the league. Like I talked about in my last post, the Brewers are basically willing to bite the bullet and try and win games behind their stellar starting five and the big boppers in their lineup. So far, so good. Milwaukee is in first, but they face a daunting road trip after the break where they have to travel to Colorado, Arizona and San Francisco. It isn't quite make-or-break, but it's pretty damn close. Considering how much the Brewers have faltered away from home and the level of competition they will be facing on this west coast swing, we have to set our expectations at a reasonable level. If Milwaukee can manage to stay within a game or two of the division leader after the trip, I'll be more than happy. But it would be nice if by some sort of miracle, the Brewers found out the secret to winning on the road during their three days off.
For those keeping track of my pre-season predictions at home, that's five correct, three wrong, and four pending (Roenicke manager of year (at this point, ATL and PIT beat him out), Marcum wins 15 games, Rogers makes a spot start or two (looking doubtful), and the Brewers will win the division and go 91-71 (need to go 42-28 rest of the way)) as of now. Remember to root on the National League tomorrow in the ASG because, you know, this time it counts or whatever.
Record: 49-43, T-1st in NL Central
Team MVP: 1B Prince Fielder, .415 OBP, 22 HR, 72 RBI
Team Cy Young: Yovani Gallardo, 10-5, 3.76 ERA, 104 K
I already did a mini-season review for The Sports Jury, but I'll be putting my blood, sweat and tears into this one so you've come to the right place. With baseball getting a little breather with the exception of the Home Run Derby (currently putting me to sleep) and the ASG, it's a good time to reflect on what the Brewers have accomplished so far this summer. If you wanted to take the short route in summing up the Brewers, it could be done with one word...inconsistent. There probably isn't a better team to root for than Milwaukee if you're looking for some health problems. The Brewers could easily be looking up to the division leader instead of the ones on top if they didn't manage several heart-stopping comebacks, although they have also let a few leads slip away late in ball games. Earlier in the season, I wrote about how there is something different about this team than in past years and I still believe that to this day. When the Crew hit their lowest point of the season and were 13-19, they picked themselves up and went 21-7 from May 7th to June 6th. Since that time, they have had their ups and downs, but here they are...in 1st place. And that's what really matters.
Before the 2011 season began, General Manager Doug Melvin realized the trend that was going around baseball. Teams were loading up on pitching...and it was working. The other trending topic, if you will, was teams loading up on defense. This hasn't been as much of a success (see: Seattle, Oakland, Chicago White Sox), and Melvin decided that he wasn't going to go the defensive route...we'll get to that later. The two pitchers that the Brewers gave up so much for were Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum, who have gone a combined 14-6 so far this season. Yeah, you can go ahead and complain about Greinke's struggles...and he certainly hasn't been right for the majority of the season...but the way he pitches to contact (99 Ks & only 16 walks), works fast and keeps the defense on its toes can't be overlooked. Hitters reward Greinke with lots and lots of runs, which explains his solid record despite his 5.45 ERA. Before the season, I thought that Greinke wouldn't perform as well as expected, but Gallardo would succeed due to some pressure being taken off his shoulders. And in my mind, Yo has been the rock of this team and that's what makes him the M-V-Pitcher for the Crew. Gallardo has been healthy all season (unlike Marcum and Greinke), has already reached double digits in victories and has gotten HUGE wins when the Brewers needed them the most (when they were 13-19, after losing 6 of 7, etc). I still have faith in Greinke coming around, but as long as he keeps getting Ws, I'm happy. As for Marcum, he might only have seven wins (thought he would get 15), but he should probably have ten or 11. He has either pitched in a lot of low scoring games or watched Kameron Loe take the opponent off the hook with his blown saves...I'll get to that and the rest of the 'pen later. It's okay. There's still time for Mr. Marcum to reach the 15 win plateau. To round out the starting rotation, Randy Wolf has been a pleasant surprise (3.65 ERA), but he's kind of a dick for not letting Johnny Lucroy catch him so I'm not going to give him any further praise. Last but not least, we have the Narve-dog, Chris Narveson. 6-5 with a 4.75 ERA for a number five starter? Yes, please. There's no question the performance of the starting rotation is why the Brewers are where they are right now. For those of us that are religious, let us pray for continued good health and more wins. Here are the grades:
Yovani Gallardo: A- ... An All-Star last year, he has become very reliable.
Shaun Marcum: A- ... A true pitcher, Marcum almost always keeps team in games.
Randy Wolf: B+ ... Always keeps hitters guessing but has struggled of late.
Zack Greinke: C ... Tends to miss too much with his spots and it kills him.
Chris Narveson: B- ... Like I said, I'll take his numbers for a #5.
Overall: B+
It's hard to argue with who the most valuable player for the Milwaukee Brewers has been so far. Perhaps Ryan Braun has an argument for this honor with his gaudy average and productive numbers hitting in front of Prince, but that's the thing. It's partly due to hitting in front of Prince. Fielder has embraced being in the final year of his contract and is making his case for not only a massive pay day, but also MVP of the National League. In my season preview, I noted that King would either collapse under the pressure of a contract year or have a career year. I think I'll give myself a correct prediction on that one up to this point. Speaking of correct predictions...Nyjer "Tony Plush" Morgan. Even before the season began, I felt like a giddy school girl every time I thought about what Plush could bring to the table once coach Ron Roenicke finally decided it was time to give the Carlos Gomez experiment a rest. The result has been spectacular defense, a .327 batting average, speed on the base paths and possibly the most entertaining interview in the history of sports. Alright. It's time to go through all the position players the Brewers currently have on the roster:
LF Ryan Braun: A ... A total stud in the 3-hole. Not much more can be said.
OF/1B Mark Kotsay: B- ... Surprisingly clutch, but a liability in the field.
OF/IF Josh Wilson: B ... Was he the key bench player pick-up the Crew needed?
CF Carlos Gomez: C ... Can become likable when accepting the role he plays.
OF Nyjer Morgan: A- ... This guy should get a job setting tables. Or in comedy.
RF Corey Hart: B ... His numbers are about where you'd expect, so can't complain.
3B Casey McGehee: D- ... Terrible at protecting Prince and at the hot corner.
SS Yuniesky Betancourt: D+ ... Hasn't really done much of anything for MIL.
IF Craig Counsell: C- ... Can't be too harsh. Solid with the glove, good teammate.
2B Rickie Weeks: B+ ... Definitely Weeks' best year to date, but still bad w/glove.
1B Prince Fielder: A ... It's a damn shame that he's leaving Milwaukee because...
1B Mat Gamel: INC ... Gamel still hasn't figured it out at the Big League level.
C Jonathan Lucroy: B+ ... Putting up league leading numbers among NL catchers.
C George Kottaras: C ... A nice power threat to have and handles Wolf well.
Overall: B ... Even though it appears on paper that this offense is fairly impressive, there doesn't seem to be enough help around Braun and Fielder. We all know about McGehee and the lack of production from Yuni B and I think there is a simple solution: take Weeks out of the lead-off spot. We've seen how well Plush gets on base to start rally after rally, and therefore I think he has the ability to assume this role from Rickie. Morgan has hit first before in his career and Weeks is better suited in the five hole because of his immense production as far as lead-off hitters are concerned. Perhaps it's too drastic of a move for Roenicke to make in his first year of managing, but this might be it for awhile for fans in Milwaukee. He needs to do whatever it takes to get as much out of this squad as possible. Just think about it...Morgan, Hart, Braun, Fielder, Weeks to start off a ball game? With Lucroy as the anchor to keep things respectable at the bottom of the order? I'm salivating. One last thing...I didn't think Gamel would be brought up this year (at least not until September) and I still wish he hadn't. Gamel needed as much time as possible in the minors to get used to first base for next season and it didn't happen. This was due in part to Roenicke wanting an extra bat for interleague play and the awful play of McGehee. There's no way he's back on the roster with his .115 average after the All-Star break.
Finally, the bullpen. I believe that this is one of the more difficult aspects of a big league club to manage. It's shown this year in Roenicke's first year as skipper as it took him about 85 games to realize that Loe simply couldn't handle the 8th inning role. I've harped on this enough, but ever since LaTroy Hawkins assumed this role, have the Brewers lost a lead? No, sir. Other than that, the Ax Factor John Axford has been very reliable as the Brewers' closer and many guys have come and went. As of now, the Brewers only have six relievers on their roster...the six mainstays that should remain at the major league level as the season continues. Here are the grades:
John Axford: A- ... Hasn't been quite as good as '10, but hasn't let many get away.
LaTroy Hawkins: A ... With a 1.08 ERA, he has earned the setup role behind Ax.
Kameron Loe: C ... Incredibly effective against righties, but has seven loses.
Marco Estrada: C+ ... Has faced some difficult tasks as the long-inning man.
Zach Braddock: C ... He is clearly still dealing with some issues after DL stints.
Takashi Saito: INC ... Has been solid since returning from injury; could be key.
Overall: B- ... When the Brewers have the lead late and the bullpen is called upon, it hasn't exactly been lights out. In fact, Estrada and Loe have combined for 30% of the Brewers' losses and the bullpen overall has lost about half of the games for the Crew, which is rather staggering. Braddock has battled with a sleeping disorder, which is especially disappointing to me because I'm a huge Braddock guy and I thought he would play a very important role for the Brewers this season. However, if the Brewers want to do things this year, they will need Braddock to figure it out. Hopefully, with Hawkins and Axford taking the last two innings of games in which the Brewers hold the lead, Milwaukee can shorten the ball game.
That's that for the players. How about first-year manager Ron Roenicke? Obviously, Roenicke has made his mistakes along the way, but I would be hard pressed to find anyone that totally dislikes the man...at least not at the level of Ned Yost or Ken Macha. I think this has a lot to do with Roenicke's aggressive style of managing. He likes to put runners in motion and has put on a few squeeze plays that have been very effective. Of course, sometimes this style doesn't work and players will turn aggressive base running into flat out stupid baserunning, but you can see the progression of Roenicke. He keeps things loose and it shows in the attitudes of the players. Over the course of the last home stand while not having the luxury of Ryan Braun in the lineup, Roenicke made some crucial decisions that probably helped the Brewers win an extra game or two. I really look forward to seeing how Roenicke manages down the stretch as this club (hopefully) remains in the thick of the playoff race.
Okay. So it turns out that the Prince Fielder contract situation isn't the only elephant in the room. The Brewers' defense appeared to start off strong, but now they find themselves 22nd in the MLB in fielding percentage. Just three more spots and they'll fulfill my prophecy and finish in the bottom five of the league. Like I talked about in my last post, the Brewers are basically willing to bite the bullet and try and win games behind their stellar starting five and the big boppers in their lineup. So far, so good. Milwaukee is in first, but they face a daunting road trip after the break where they have to travel to Colorado, Arizona and San Francisco. It isn't quite make-or-break, but it's pretty damn close. Considering how much the Brewers have faltered away from home and the level of competition they will be facing on this west coast swing, we have to set our expectations at a reasonable level. If Milwaukee can manage to stay within a game or two of the division leader after the trip, I'll be more than happy. But it would be nice if by some sort of miracle, the Brewers found out the secret to winning on the road during their three days off.
For those keeping track of my pre-season predictions at home, that's five correct, three wrong, and four pending (Roenicke manager of year (at this point, ATL and PIT beat him out), Marcum wins 15 games, Rogers makes a spot start or two (looking doubtful), and the Brewers will win the division and go 91-71 (need to go 42-28 rest of the way)) as of now. Remember to root on the National League tomorrow in the ASG because, you know, this time it counts or whatever.
Monday, July 4, 2011
A Star-Studded Crew
As I drove home from a relaxing weekend up north earlier today, I tuned into everyone’s favorite play-by-play man Bob Uecker to catch the majority of the Brewers game versus the Twins. Coming off such a thrilling victory from the night before courtesy of a four-run ninth sparked by a Tony Plush two-run double on his 31st birthday, the Crew arguably got its most important victory of the year. The Twins had built up a 7-0 lead through four innings on Saturday and the Brewers appeared poised to lose yet ANOTHER road series, but the comeback of all comebacks occurred thanks to Nyjer, the bullpen and the correct strings being pulled by Ron Roenicke. With the win, the Brewers pulled back into a tie for first place with the Cards and had old Uncle Mo back on their side…or so we thought.
Flash forward to my two-plus hour drive home. After a monster five-run fourth inning, Milwaukee was well on its way to another victory, sole possession of first place and returning home with a little swag. But there was a problem. Zack Greinke was on the mound for the Milwaukee Brewers. The man who the Brewers received in return for four of the best prospects in the Brewers’ system has been anything but dazzling. Today was yet another example. Greinke, who has had little success against the Minnesota Twins throughout his career, decided a five run lead wasn’t going to cut it and allowed the Twinkies to cut the Brewers lead to 6-5 before he left with a two-run lead after six innings. This is one thing…a big thing, mind you…but at least Zack “Heart” Attack had the lead when he left the ballgame. The other Zach…my boy Zach with an “h” Braddock let a few guys on to my dismay but probably should’ve been given the chance to get out of the inning even with the righty (and all-star) Michael Cuddyer strolling up to the plate. Even if he wasn’t given the chance (which he wasn’t), let’s ponder the situation for a moment. There’s a guy sitting in the ‘pen who can get out lefties and righties equally effective and has an ERA of…get this…f---ing 0.43 in 23 games. His name is LaTroy Hawkins. I’m starting to get the feeling that I’m one of the few people who knows this. Am I missing something? Is an ERA of 4.73 better than 0.43? Is the ability to ONLY get out righties better than having the ability to get out BOTH righties and lefties? According to Mr. Roenicke, it most certainly is! And you know what? That’s all that matters. Two hits, a walk, a costly error and four runs later, the Brewers are walking out of Minnesota with a disgusting taste in their mouths after what should have been a memorable holiday weekend.
My relaxing weekend up north had all of a sudden turned into a distressing car ride that forced me to reach deep inside myself to avoid taking the Chevy Cavalier off of a bridge. This game had several underlying stories that I would like to attack. The one that stood out to me the most was the Mat Gamel start at third base. Think RR might be sending a certain someone a message? I’ll give you a hint. He struck out to end Sunday’s game and snapped his bat over his thigh in frustration. I was flat out shocked by the decision to start Gamel at the 5...and to put McGehee in a spot at the end of the game that could easily result in failure with how low his confidence is right now. Throughout the season, the Brewers’ organization has been pretty strict with keeping Gamel at first because they want him to get accustomed to the position by the time King walks out of Milwaukee. McGehee has been struggling…badly…but I don’t think it was necessary to stick Gamel at third base. DH makes sense. I understand wanting to give Rickie some time off from second, but this was REALLY making a statement. I feel terrible for McGehee. He is someone who worked extremely hard to get where he is today and one of those guys that you want to root for. Having said that, I think the best thing for McGehee right now is a two week stint down in Nashville to get things figured out. Casey has options left and the Brewers could bring up another reliever to help give the bullpen some depth (the Brewers carried an extra position player with them last week). The next decision regards Gamel. Does he stick with the Brewers and play more third while McGehee finds his stroke? Does he also head back down to AAA since the Brewers no longer need a DH? So many questions and so many answers I don’t have. What I would like to see is for us to send down McGehee, keep Gamel up, start him every day at third and replace him in the seventh or eighth inning on defense. Let’s face it…the guy can hit. He’s struggled so far with the big league club, but with more consistent playing time comes more production with a guy like Gamel. We’ll see what Roenicke decides to do.
Another situation that made Brewers’ fans a little uneasy this weekend was the injury to Ryan Braun. It was reported that Brauny, who holds a current 22-game hitting streak, strained his left calf Saturday night and that’s why he was replaced late in the ballgame. Thankfully, he said he was feeling okay today but didn’t play, which was a wise choice. Even if Braun has to miss another game or two in order to feel right, it’s much better to be safe rather than sorry. Besides, we want to see Braun out there starting for the NL All-Star team come July 12th. Speaking of the All-Star game…
The Brewers have three starters in the All-Star Game for the first time in franchise history (if that’s not a possible foreshadowing to what this season has in store, I don’t know what is). Weeks gets the starting nod at 2nd base over Brandon Phillips while fellow teammates Prince Fielder and Braun also start alongside him. Of course, what comes with the unveiling of the all-star rosters is the controversy and snubbing of players more deserving than some who make the Midsummer Classic. And that’s what I’m here for. Believe it or not, as far as the National League is concerned, I thought the fans did a better job than the managers and players as far as selecting players. The American League…not so much. For those who don’t know, the fans select the position player starters, the players elect the bench players and the starting manager (the World Series’ coaches) pick the pitchers. Also, since there is a rule that pitchers who pitch next Sunday cannot pitch in the ASG, there will be a few other deserving guys invited to Phoenix (like Ax). Without further ado, here is MY AL and NL All-Star squads compared to what they really are (keep in mind that every MLB team has to have a representative in the ASG).
AMERICAN LEAGUE
STARTERS:
C – Alex Aliva (DET)
1B – Adrian Gonzalez (BOS)
2B – Robinson Cano (NYY)
SS – Derek Jeter (NYY) CABRERA
3B – Alex Rodriguez (NYY)
OF – Jose Bautista (TOR)
OF – Curtis Granderson (NYY)
OF – Josh Hamilton (TEX) ELLSBURY
DH – David Ortiz (BOS)
RESERVES:
C – Russell Martin (NYY) PAUL KONERKO (CHW)
C – Matt Weiters (BAL)*
1B – Miguel Cabrera (DET)
2B – Howie Kendrick (LAA)
3B – Adrian Beltre (TEX)
SS – Asdrubal Cabrera (CLE) JHONNY PERALTA (DET)
OF – Michael Cuddyer* (MIN)
OF – Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS) ADAM JONES (BAL)
OF – Matt Joyce (TB)
OF – Carlos Quentin* (CHW)
DH – Michael Young (TEX)
PITCHERS:
SP - Josh Beckett (BOS)
RP - Aaron Crow* (KC)
SP - Gio Gonzalez* (OAK)
SP - Felix Hernandez (SEA) C.C. SABATHIA (NYY)
RP - Brandon League (SEA)
RP - Chris Perez (CLE)
SP - David Price (TB) MICHAEL PINEDA (SEA)
RP – Mariano Rivera (NYY)
SP – James Shields (TB)
RP – Jose Valverde (DET)
SP – Justin Verlander (DET)
SP – Jered Weaver (LAA)
SP – C.J. Wilson (TEX)
* = Only representative from team
FIVE all-star snubs in the American League
TOUGH TO LEAVE OFF = Victor Martinez (DET), Adam Lind (TOR), Ben Zobrist (TB)
WHAT’S THE DEAL with the two backup catchers? Throw in another 1st baseman instead.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
STARTERS:
C – Brian McCann (ATL)
1B – Prince Fielder (MIL)
2B – Rickie Weeks (MIL)
SS – Jose Reyes (NYY)
3B – Placido Polanco ARAMIS RAMIREZ (CHC)
OF – Ryan Braun (MIL)
OF – Matt Kemp (LAD)
OF – Lance Berkman (STL)
RESERVES:
C – Yadier Molina (STL)
1B – Gaby Sanchez* (FLA)
1B – Joey Votto (CIN)
2B – Brandon Phillips (CIN)
3B – Chipper Jones (ATL) POLANCO
SS – Troy Tulowitzki* (COL)
SS – Starlin Castro* (CHC)
OF – Carlos Beltran (NYM) ANDRE EITHER (LAD)
OF – Jay Bruce (CIN)
OF – Matt Holliday (STL) ANDREW McCUTCHEN (PIT)
OF – Hunter Pence* (HOU)
OF – Justin Upton* (ARZ)
PITCHERS:
RP – Heath Bell (SD)
SP – Matt Cain (SF)
RP – Tyler Clippard* (WSH)
SP – Roy Halladay (PHI)
SP – Cole Hamels (PHI)
SP – Cliff Lee (PHI)
RP – Joel Hanrahan* (PIT)
SP – Jair Jurrgens (ATL)
SP – Clayton Kershaw (LAD)
SP – Tim Lincecum (SF)
RP – Jonny Venters (ATL) HUSTON STREET (COL)
SP – Ryan Vogelsong (SF) TOMMY HANSON (ATL)
RP – Brian Wilson (SF)
FIVE all-star snubs in the National League
TOUGH TO LEAVE OFF = Jonathan Lucroy (MIL), Ryan Howard (PHI), Carlos Gonzalez (COL)
WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH all of the Giants’ pitchers? Share the wealth, would ya?
So that’s that. If you have any comments on my selections/changes or the original selections, feel free to mention them in the comment section below and we can get a nice little discussion going. Either way, I’m right so you’ll just have to deal with it. I would like to go back to the Brewers for a moment. I think I’ve harped enough on the poor performances of Zack Greinke, Kameron Loe and Casey McGehee, the terrible play on the road, and the stubborn ways of coach Roenicke (although he does mix things up in other ways), but now that we’ve reached July it’s kind of just something us Brewer fans have to deal with the rest of the way. You can look at Greinke’s injury as an alibi for his struggles, but perhaps this is all we’re going to get out of him. Maybe now that he has essentially hit rock bottom, he will break out of it and take the inexistent pressure off of himself. Brewer fans never expected all that much from Greinke if they were realistic in the first place. He’s only had one really good year (the year he won the Cy Young). We thought that he would at least bring some quality starts to the table and he’s failed to do that on a consistent basis. We can only hope that Greinke finds what he found a few years ago with the Kansas City Royals…otherwise, he is what he is. McGehee? You know what I think should happen with Casey. Roenicke? He needs to keep learning as he continues on through his first year of being a manager. Loe? He can go take a hike. Or just face righties…and that’s it. Even though a victory on Sunday would’ve given the Brewers sole possession of first in the Central, they managed to get through this wretched road trip and maintain a division lead. Now that the Crew is back home, it’s time to pump some confidence back in Milwaukee.
Happy 4th!
Flash forward to my two-plus hour drive home. After a monster five-run fourth inning, Milwaukee was well on its way to another victory, sole possession of first place and returning home with a little swag. But there was a problem. Zack Greinke was on the mound for the Milwaukee Brewers. The man who the Brewers received in return for four of the best prospects in the Brewers’ system has been anything but dazzling. Today was yet another example. Greinke, who has had little success against the Minnesota Twins throughout his career, decided a five run lead wasn’t going to cut it and allowed the Twinkies to cut the Brewers lead to 6-5 before he left with a two-run lead after six innings. This is one thing…a big thing, mind you…but at least Zack “Heart” Attack had the lead when he left the ballgame. The other Zach…my boy Zach with an “h” Braddock let a few guys on to my dismay but probably should’ve been given the chance to get out of the inning even with the righty (and all-star) Michael Cuddyer strolling up to the plate. Even if he wasn’t given the chance (which he wasn’t), let’s ponder the situation for a moment. There’s a guy sitting in the ‘pen who can get out lefties and righties equally effective and has an ERA of…get this…f---ing 0.43 in 23 games. His name is LaTroy Hawkins. I’m starting to get the feeling that I’m one of the few people who knows this. Am I missing something? Is an ERA of 4.73 better than 0.43? Is the ability to ONLY get out righties better than having the ability to get out BOTH righties and lefties? According to Mr. Roenicke, it most certainly is! And you know what? That’s all that matters. Two hits, a walk, a costly error and four runs later, the Brewers are walking out of Minnesota with a disgusting taste in their mouths after what should have been a memorable holiday weekend.
My relaxing weekend up north had all of a sudden turned into a distressing car ride that forced me to reach deep inside myself to avoid taking the Chevy Cavalier off of a bridge. This game had several underlying stories that I would like to attack. The one that stood out to me the most was the Mat Gamel start at third base. Think RR might be sending a certain someone a message? I’ll give you a hint. He struck out to end Sunday’s game and snapped his bat over his thigh in frustration. I was flat out shocked by the decision to start Gamel at the 5...and to put McGehee in a spot at the end of the game that could easily result in failure with how low his confidence is right now. Throughout the season, the Brewers’ organization has been pretty strict with keeping Gamel at first because they want him to get accustomed to the position by the time King walks out of Milwaukee. McGehee has been struggling…badly…but I don’t think it was necessary to stick Gamel at third base. DH makes sense. I understand wanting to give Rickie some time off from second, but this was REALLY making a statement. I feel terrible for McGehee. He is someone who worked extremely hard to get where he is today and one of those guys that you want to root for. Having said that, I think the best thing for McGehee right now is a two week stint down in Nashville to get things figured out. Casey has options left and the Brewers could bring up another reliever to help give the bullpen some depth (the Brewers carried an extra position player with them last week). The next decision regards Gamel. Does he stick with the Brewers and play more third while McGehee finds his stroke? Does he also head back down to AAA since the Brewers no longer need a DH? So many questions and so many answers I don’t have. What I would like to see is for us to send down McGehee, keep Gamel up, start him every day at third and replace him in the seventh or eighth inning on defense. Let’s face it…the guy can hit. He’s struggled so far with the big league club, but with more consistent playing time comes more production with a guy like Gamel. We’ll see what Roenicke decides to do.
Another situation that made Brewers’ fans a little uneasy this weekend was the injury to Ryan Braun. It was reported that Brauny, who holds a current 22-game hitting streak, strained his left calf Saturday night and that’s why he was replaced late in the ballgame. Thankfully, he said he was feeling okay today but didn’t play, which was a wise choice. Even if Braun has to miss another game or two in order to feel right, it’s much better to be safe rather than sorry. Besides, we want to see Braun out there starting for the NL All-Star team come July 12th. Speaking of the All-Star game…
The Brewers have three starters in the All-Star Game for the first time in franchise history (if that’s not a possible foreshadowing to what this season has in store, I don’t know what is). Weeks gets the starting nod at 2nd base over Brandon Phillips while fellow teammates Prince Fielder and Braun also start alongside him. Of course, what comes with the unveiling of the all-star rosters is the controversy and snubbing of players more deserving than some who make the Midsummer Classic. And that’s what I’m here for. Believe it or not, as far as the National League is concerned, I thought the fans did a better job than the managers and players as far as selecting players. The American League…not so much. For those who don’t know, the fans select the position player starters, the players elect the bench players and the starting manager (the World Series’ coaches) pick the pitchers. Also, since there is a rule that pitchers who pitch next Sunday cannot pitch in the ASG, there will be a few other deserving guys invited to Phoenix (like Ax). Without further ado, here is MY AL and NL All-Star squads compared to what they really are (keep in mind that every MLB team has to have a representative in the ASG).
AMERICAN LEAGUE
STARTERS:
C – Alex Aliva (DET)
1B – Adrian Gonzalez (BOS)
2B – Robinson Cano (NYY)
SS – Derek Jeter (NYY) CABRERA
3B – Alex Rodriguez (NYY)
OF – Jose Bautista (TOR)
OF – Curtis Granderson (NYY)
OF – Josh Hamilton (TEX) ELLSBURY
DH – David Ortiz (BOS)
RESERVES:
C – Russell Martin (NYY) PAUL KONERKO (CHW)
C – Matt Weiters (BAL)*
1B – Miguel Cabrera (DET)
2B – Howie Kendrick (LAA)
3B – Adrian Beltre (TEX)
SS – Asdrubal Cabrera (CLE) JHONNY PERALTA (DET)
OF – Michael Cuddyer* (MIN)
OF – Jacoby Ellsbury (BOS) ADAM JONES (BAL)
OF – Matt Joyce (TB)
OF – Carlos Quentin* (CHW)
DH – Michael Young (TEX)
PITCHERS:
SP - Josh Beckett (BOS)
RP - Aaron Crow* (KC)
SP - Gio Gonzalez* (OAK)
SP - Felix Hernandez (SEA) C.C. SABATHIA (NYY)
RP - Brandon League (SEA)
RP - Chris Perez (CLE)
SP - David Price (TB) MICHAEL PINEDA (SEA)
RP – Mariano Rivera (NYY)
SP – James Shields (TB)
RP – Jose Valverde (DET)
SP – Justin Verlander (DET)
SP – Jered Weaver (LAA)
SP – C.J. Wilson (TEX)
* = Only representative from team
FIVE all-star snubs in the American League
TOUGH TO LEAVE OFF = Victor Martinez (DET), Adam Lind (TOR), Ben Zobrist (TB)
WHAT’S THE DEAL with the two backup catchers? Throw in another 1st baseman instead.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
STARTERS:
C – Brian McCann (ATL)
1B – Prince Fielder (MIL)
2B – Rickie Weeks (MIL)
SS – Jose Reyes (NYY)
3B – Placido Polanco ARAMIS RAMIREZ (CHC)
OF – Ryan Braun (MIL)
OF – Matt Kemp (LAD)
OF – Lance Berkman (STL)
RESERVES:
C – Yadier Molina (STL)
1B – Gaby Sanchez* (FLA)
1B – Joey Votto (CIN)
2B – Brandon Phillips (CIN)
3B – Chipper Jones (ATL) POLANCO
SS – Troy Tulowitzki* (COL)
SS – Starlin Castro* (CHC)
OF – Carlos Beltran (NYM) ANDRE EITHER (LAD)
OF – Jay Bruce (CIN)
OF – Matt Holliday (STL) ANDREW McCUTCHEN (PIT)
OF – Hunter Pence* (HOU)
OF – Justin Upton* (ARZ)
PITCHERS:
RP – Heath Bell (SD)
SP – Matt Cain (SF)
RP – Tyler Clippard* (WSH)
SP – Roy Halladay (PHI)
SP – Cole Hamels (PHI)
SP – Cliff Lee (PHI)
RP – Joel Hanrahan* (PIT)
SP – Jair Jurrgens (ATL)
SP – Clayton Kershaw (LAD)
SP – Tim Lincecum (SF)
RP – Jonny Venters (ATL) HUSTON STREET (COL)
SP – Ryan Vogelsong (SF) TOMMY HANSON (ATL)
RP – Brian Wilson (SF)
FIVE all-star snubs in the National League
TOUGH TO LEAVE OFF = Jonathan Lucroy (MIL), Ryan Howard (PHI), Carlos Gonzalez (COL)
WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH all of the Giants’ pitchers? Share the wealth, would ya?
So that’s that. If you have any comments on my selections/changes or the original selections, feel free to mention them in the comment section below and we can get a nice little discussion going. Either way, I’m right so you’ll just have to deal with it. I would like to go back to the Brewers for a moment. I think I’ve harped enough on the poor performances of Zack Greinke, Kameron Loe and Casey McGehee, the terrible play on the road, and the stubborn ways of coach Roenicke (although he does mix things up in other ways), but now that we’ve reached July it’s kind of just something us Brewer fans have to deal with the rest of the way. You can look at Greinke’s injury as an alibi for his struggles, but perhaps this is all we’re going to get out of him. Maybe now that he has essentially hit rock bottom, he will break out of it and take the inexistent pressure off of himself. Brewer fans never expected all that much from Greinke if they were realistic in the first place. He’s only had one really good year (the year he won the Cy Young). We thought that he would at least bring some quality starts to the table and he’s failed to do that on a consistent basis. We can only hope that Greinke finds what he found a few years ago with the Kansas City Royals…otherwise, he is what he is. McGehee? You know what I think should happen with Casey. Roenicke? He needs to keep learning as he continues on through his first year of being a manager. Loe? He can go take a hike. Or just face righties…and that’s it. Even though a victory on Sunday would’ve given the Brewers sole possession of first in the Central, they managed to get through this wretched road trip and maintain a division lead. Now that the Crew is back home, it’s time to pump some confidence back in Milwaukee.
Happy 4th!
Sunday, June 19, 2011
The Return of the Road Woes
At the close of the Chicago Cubs/Milwaukee Brewers' series, I was tempted to hack away at my keyboard in disgust after watching my favorite baseball team get out-dueled by their most hated rival. Instead, I decided to wait and see how the Brewers would respond to such a lackluster performance (on the field and from the manager) because of how often they have done just that...responded. To be real, taking one out of three from the best team in baseball in their home park can't be viewed as a failure. In fact, it's a good way to avoid getting your parachute tangled up while falling toward the ground. It's not the Red Sox series I'm concerned about, the beginning of the most brutal interleague schedule ever created by mankind...it's not Gallardo getting one of his few stinker performances out of the way against the best hitting team in baseball...it's not watching our ace, Shaun Marcum, have to leave the game with a hip injury and possibly miss his next start...it's not even Roenicke's insistence to continue using Kameron "Loe No" in the 8th inning time after time...it's the freaking Cubs' series that bothers me, and the potential return of the road woes for the Milwaukee Brewers.
An alarming stat was brought to my attention a few days ago by my roommate Kenne. The Brewers haven't won a season series against the Chicago Cubs since 2005. Can you believe that? Even with the recent struggles on the North Side, the Cubs have still managed to own Milwaukee, and what makes it even more frustrating is that it's always the same guys that beat us. Aramis Ramirez had the game winning RBI off of Loe in game one while Ryan Dempster continued his domination of the Brewers...Ramirez then promptly hit a game tying home run off of Marco Estrada, who, by the way has also not been of much help lately but was still thrown into a (sort-of) pressure situation in game two...and then in game four, after the Brewers outscored the Cubs to take game three, Greinke left far too many pitches over the plate while Rickie Weeks was gunned out twice at second by Fuku and the Brewers dropped three out of four to the Cubbies. Each starting pitcher had games they would rather forget during the road trip save for Randy Wolf, who had two stellar performances and a victory to show for his efforts. The struggles for the starting five on this trip was concerning considering they have been the key to this team's success over the course of the season. Just when we thought Greinke had finally turned the corner, he failed to step up in a game the Brewers really could've used. Gallardo did the same against the Red Sox earlier today.
The starting pitching wasn't the only aspect of the Brewers that saw a decline in performance while on the road this past week. Manager Ron Roenicke's coaching style cost the Brewers a chance at victories in both game one and game two of the series against the Cubs. Calling a suicide squeeze for Randy Wolf with Betancourt on third and one out in the fifth inning was pushing his luck a little too far for my liking. And to top it all off, Wolf crushed one to right for a double right after Betancourt was caught in a rundown when Wolf whiffed on the squeeze bunt. Later on in the same game, Loe trotted out for the eighth and that was that. In game two, RR decided it was best to insert his second worst reliever statistically into the eight inning slot instead of his worst and the result was even more catastrophic...a blown lead and eventual loss in the tenth following another questionable decision from Roenicke: not having Dillard intentionally walk Starlin Castro to set up a double play with a runner on third and one out. It's decisions like this that makes my head hurt, especially against THE FREAKING CUBS. Ugh. So frustrating. I like Roenicke. I really do. His crafty use of the shift. His aggressive style of managing. But playing the percentages like with the infield shift should be applied to other facets of the game...like walking a runner to set up a chance at a double play or a force out at home...or calling for a squeeze with your pitcher in a 0-0 game in the fifth instead of having some faith in his hitting ability. RR is learning the material as he goes, but don't fail an exam against the Cubs for God's sake.
That's about all the complaining I have for you and this is why: despite going 2-5 on the last road trip in which the Brewers visited the two oldest stadiums in baseball and proceeded to play like they were the oldest team in baseball, Milwaukee is still in a tie for first place with the St. Louis Cardinals thanks to the Cards also faltering over the last week. Every division in baseball is tight at the top with the exception of the NL East (Phillies = scary), so we Brewer fans have to accept the fact that this is going down to the wire and it won't be easy on the ole' ticker. But the biggest reason that I can remain optimistic is because the Brewers get to return home now, where they are 25-9!!!!! Decent. The two teams that will pay visit to Mil-town this week are the Tampa Bay Rays (39-33, 3 game winning streak) and the cross-state rival Minnesota Twins (31-39, 7 game winning streak). Because these teams play in the American League, I can't say I'm an expert on either the Rays and the Twins, but I am aware that the Twins have been on an absolute tear as of late. They looked so awful earlier in the year, but Minnesota isn't a team that can be kept down for long. The Twins always play the Brewers tough so it should be a good challenge for the Crew. You'll see me start to complain again if the Brewers fail to have a winning home stand before having to travel to New York and Minnesota, so for all our sakes....Go Brewers.
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It's time to take a step in a different direction and evaluate a few other sport-related activities around Wisconsin. Last Thursday, the Packers finally received their Super Bowl rings for winning Super Bowl 45 over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The rings, which are fully described in this article, are ridiculously amazing. But why get the rings now during the lockout instead of afterward? Coach Mike McCarthy gave a good explanation, saying that the team doesn't want to reflect on the past and get distracted by the Super Bowl victory while preparing for next season. Good call, Mike. The rings were handed out during a private ceremony, just as McCarthy would like it. This is the last time I'm talking about football until this damn lockout gets lifted.
Well, pro football at least. Over the last few weeks, there has been some speculation that former North Carolina State quarterback and current minor league baseball player Russell Wilson could come play for the Wisconsin Badgers. Wilson, who has another year of eligibility remaining, currently plays in the Colorado Rockies farm system and has strongly considered leaving baseball so he can pursue football. He has narrowed his options down to Wisconsin and Auburn. Wilson would be eligible to play this season since he wouldn't be transferring from a different school, but first Wilson has to make a decision between which sport he wants to play. According to the recent rumblings about Wilson, he his still very torn between playing baseball, where he hasn't exactly torn it up, and football, where a strong senior season could give him a legitimate chance to play in the NFL. Reports have said that Wilson is favoring Wisconsin, which I believe can be attributed to the genius ways of offensive coordinator Paul Chryst, a guy who could find himself at the helm of a college football program in the very near future. Hopefully Russell makes the right choice and becomes a Badger.
And last and also least, our beloved Milwaukee Bucks. In case you didn't notice, I rarely talk about the Bucks because, well, they aren't very good. Their franchise has been run extremely poorly ever since Ray Allen was traded away for a sack of s--- and all the death of Robert "Tractor" Traylor did a month or so ago was remind me of how Milwaukee thought it would be a good idea to trade Dirk "future hall-of-famer" Nowitzki and a 1st round pick for Tractor. Unreal. Of course, his death is very tragic but the horrible memories came flooding back. Arguably, the Bucks have the curse of the Dirk pinned on them for many years to come. But the Bucks are the NBA franchise I root for because they play 25 minutes away from where I grew up and I'm a homer. Because it's my job to write about sports in the Midwest for The Sports Jury, I decided to do a piece on the Bucks for the website. It includes a look at what went wrong last season, what the Bucks need to do to return to the playoffs and some of the prospects that Milwaukee should be targeting in the NBA draft coming up next Thursday. As far as other articles I've written for the site, feel free to take a look at my archive and see if anything interests you. Yes, the picture for my profile on the site is me with a mo-hawk and my 6th grade basketball jersey on.
Don't hate.
Go Brewers.
An alarming stat was brought to my attention a few days ago by my roommate Kenne. The Brewers haven't won a season series against the Chicago Cubs since 2005. Can you believe that? Even with the recent struggles on the North Side, the Cubs have still managed to own Milwaukee, and what makes it even more frustrating is that it's always the same guys that beat us. Aramis Ramirez had the game winning RBI off of Loe in game one while Ryan Dempster continued his domination of the Brewers...Ramirez then promptly hit a game tying home run off of Marco Estrada, who, by the way has also not been of much help lately but was still thrown into a (sort-of) pressure situation in game two...and then in game four, after the Brewers outscored the Cubs to take game three, Greinke left far too many pitches over the plate while Rickie Weeks was gunned out twice at second by Fuku and the Brewers dropped three out of four to the Cubbies. Each starting pitcher had games they would rather forget during the road trip save for Randy Wolf, who had two stellar performances and a victory to show for his efforts. The struggles for the starting five on this trip was concerning considering they have been the key to this team's success over the course of the season. Just when we thought Greinke had finally turned the corner, he failed to step up in a game the Brewers really could've used. Gallardo did the same against the Red Sox earlier today.
The starting pitching wasn't the only aspect of the Brewers that saw a decline in performance while on the road this past week. Manager Ron Roenicke's coaching style cost the Brewers a chance at victories in both game one and game two of the series against the Cubs. Calling a suicide squeeze for Randy Wolf with Betancourt on third and one out in the fifth inning was pushing his luck a little too far for my liking. And to top it all off, Wolf crushed one to right for a double right after Betancourt was caught in a rundown when Wolf whiffed on the squeeze bunt. Later on in the same game, Loe trotted out for the eighth and that was that. In game two, RR decided it was best to insert his second worst reliever statistically into the eight inning slot instead of his worst and the result was even more catastrophic...a blown lead and eventual loss in the tenth following another questionable decision from Roenicke: not having Dillard intentionally walk Starlin Castro to set up a double play with a runner on third and one out. It's decisions like this that makes my head hurt, especially against THE FREAKING CUBS. Ugh. So frustrating. I like Roenicke. I really do. His crafty use of the shift. His aggressive style of managing. But playing the percentages like with the infield shift should be applied to other facets of the game...like walking a runner to set up a chance at a double play or a force out at home...or calling for a squeeze with your pitcher in a 0-0 game in the fifth instead of having some faith in his hitting ability. RR is learning the material as he goes, but don't fail an exam against the Cubs for God's sake.
That's about all the complaining I have for you and this is why: despite going 2-5 on the last road trip in which the Brewers visited the two oldest stadiums in baseball and proceeded to play like they were the oldest team in baseball, Milwaukee is still in a tie for first place with the St. Louis Cardinals thanks to the Cards also faltering over the last week. Every division in baseball is tight at the top with the exception of the NL East (Phillies = scary), so we Brewer fans have to accept the fact that this is going down to the wire and it won't be easy on the ole' ticker. But the biggest reason that I can remain optimistic is because the Brewers get to return home now, where they are 25-9!!!!! Decent. The two teams that will pay visit to Mil-town this week are the Tampa Bay Rays (39-33, 3 game winning streak) and the cross-state rival Minnesota Twins (31-39, 7 game winning streak). Because these teams play in the American League, I can't say I'm an expert on either the Rays and the Twins, but I am aware that the Twins have been on an absolute tear as of late. They looked so awful earlier in the year, but Minnesota isn't a team that can be kept down for long. The Twins always play the Brewers tough so it should be a good challenge for the Crew. You'll see me start to complain again if the Brewers fail to have a winning home stand before having to travel to New York and Minnesota, so for all our sakes....Go Brewers.
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It's time to take a step in a different direction and evaluate a few other sport-related activities around Wisconsin. Last Thursday, the Packers finally received their Super Bowl rings for winning Super Bowl 45 over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The rings, which are fully described in this article, are ridiculously amazing. But why get the rings now during the lockout instead of afterward? Coach Mike McCarthy gave a good explanation, saying that the team doesn't want to reflect on the past and get distracted by the Super Bowl victory while preparing for next season. Good call, Mike. The rings were handed out during a private ceremony, just as McCarthy would like it. This is the last time I'm talking about football until this damn lockout gets lifted.
Well, pro football at least. Over the last few weeks, there has been some speculation that former North Carolina State quarterback and current minor league baseball player Russell Wilson could come play for the Wisconsin Badgers. Wilson, who has another year of eligibility remaining, currently plays in the Colorado Rockies farm system and has strongly considered leaving baseball so he can pursue football. He has narrowed his options down to Wisconsin and Auburn. Wilson would be eligible to play this season since he wouldn't be transferring from a different school, but first Wilson has to make a decision between which sport he wants to play. According to the recent rumblings about Wilson, he his still very torn between playing baseball, where he hasn't exactly torn it up, and football, where a strong senior season could give him a legitimate chance to play in the NFL. Reports have said that Wilson is favoring Wisconsin, which I believe can be attributed to the genius ways of offensive coordinator Paul Chryst, a guy who could find himself at the helm of a college football program in the very near future. Hopefully Russell makes the right choice and becomes a Badger.
And last and also least, our beloved Milwaukee Bucks. In case you didn't notice, I rarely talk about the Bucks because, well, they aren't very good. Their franchise has been run extremely poorly ever since Ray Allen was traded away for a sack of s--- and all the death of Robert "Tractor" Traylor did a month or so ago was remind me of how Milwaukee thought it would be a good idea to trade Dirk "future hall-of-famer" Nowitzki and a 1st round pick for Tractor. Unreal. Of course, his death is very tragic but the horrible memories came flooding back. Arguably, the Bucks have the curse of the Dirk pinned on them for many years to come. But the Bucks are the NBA franchise I root for because they play 25 minutes away from where I grew up and I'm a homer. Because it's my job to write about sports in the Midwest for The Sports Jury, I decided to do a piece on the Bucks for the website. It includes a look at what went wrong last season, what the Bucks need to do to return to the playoffs and some of the prospects that Milwaukee should be targeting in the NBA draft coming up next Thursday. As far as other articles I've written for the site, feel free to take a look at my archive and see if anything interests you. Yes, the picture for my profile on the site is me with a mo-hawk and my 6th grade basketball jersey on.
Don't hate.
Go Brewers.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Highs and Loes
I needed to do a shortened follow-up post after my last one now that we've seen "setup man" Kameron Loe choke for the second time in under a week and the Brewers fail to put up a run against their biggest rival. There are a few other things I'll get to, but first: Mr. Loe.
Have we seen enough, Coach Roenicke? There has to be a better way to go about getting the game to the Ax Factor in the 9th with the lead…or at least tied. Why in God's name is Loe in there when it's not even a hold situation? This is normally a time reserved for someone like LaTroy Hawkins (should-be setup man) or even Zach Braddock. Speaking of Hawkins and Braddock, how about these guys share the 8th inning based on who is at the plate? Call me crazy, but I believe that lefty-lefty and righty-righty match-ups favor the pitcher in each situation respectively nine times out of ten. In fact, keep Loe in there for the righties...why not. His sinker is almost unhittable when it's working, which has been occasional this season, but in no way should Loe pitch to a left-handed hitter. Loe has as good of a chance of getting a lefty out as Lebron James has of coming through in clutch situations. With how deep the Brewers' starting pitchers have been getting into games this season, Roenicke should have plenty of well-rested relievers to use for either the seventh or the eighth, and yet we continue to see him march out Loe's corpse and his 5+ ERA. Here's the ultimatum...either let Loe face only righties in the seventh or eighth and allow Braddock to take the lefties or just remove Loe from the setup role altogether and throw Hawkins in there. Clearly, there are other bullpen guys able and willing to take on a task that Loe simply cannot complete. Don't believe me?
LaTroy Hawkins: 16 G, 0.59 ERA
Tim Dillard: 7 G, 1.86 ERA
Sergio Mitre: 19 G, 2.00 ERA
Zach Braddock: 16 G, 2.31 ERA
KAMERON LOE: 36 GAMES, 5.23 ERA
I'd now like to back up to my previous post. I mentioned that I would like to see Mike Rivera to come up from AAA and fill the backup catcher role behind Jonathan Lucroy instead of current backup Wil Nieves. However, whatever Nieves has been doing behind the plate with Wolf, it's been working. Wolf lowered his ERA to 3.20, which is second-best among the Brewers' starting five...that’s saying something. Nieves is Wolf's designated-catcher for lack of a better term, but he is the only Brewers' hitter without an RBI and is hitting .140 in 50 AB. For those keeping track at home, Nieves leads the league in number of plate appearances without an RBI. Ouch. Here's why I can except having Nieves on the roster. He only takes up one spot in the batting order, and he calls a great game behind the plate for Wolfy, who refuses to throw to the youngster, Lucroy (which still bothers me). Still, I would much rather have a happy Wolf throwing to Nieves while having success instead of a frustrated Wolf throwing to Lucroy with the chance of maybe getting another run or two from the offense, but risking a bad outing from Wolf. For now, it's worth it to keep Nieves on the roster. Think of centerfielder Carlos Gomez; his role has basically transformed into pinch-running/defensive specialist...a guy who comes in late to relieve an outfielder or a slow runner on the base paths because of his blinding speed. Josh Wilson and Craig Counsell do this on the infield - Nieves, to a degree, does this behind the plate. I should have thought of this before throwing Nieves into the fire last weekend.
One final note...it seems as though that as of late, the Brewers have done a good job of getting up against clubs with winning records, such as the Cardinals, Marlins and Giants (I know...not the Reds). It can be argued that they have caught a break because these teams haven't had the likes of Buster Posey, Hanley Ramirez and Matt Holliday, but I'm hoping that this doesn't put a damper on the recent success of the Crew. Coming up, the Brewers face a treacherous interleague schedule, having to travel to Boston and New York, host the Tampa Bay Rays and play a home-and-away against the now surging Twins. This is arguably the most difficult interleague schedule out of any team in the MLB and will truly test the Brewers, but I believe their ability to hold their own against the NL's best will carry over to this tough stretch of games. Nevertheless, Roenicke should take a long, deep look at his bullpen and figure out how to utilize some his relievers correctly. RR should be familiar with using a designated hitter since he came from an American League squad in the L.A. Angels, so that shouldn't be a huge issue...it's just a matter of lighting a fire under whoever is suiting up on the left side of the infield.
As long as Milwaukee can avoid a total collapse and keep the ship afloat, they should emerge from interleague play near the top of the NL Central. June 17th to July 3th will show this team's true colors...that I can guarantee.
Have we seen enough, Coach Roenicke? There has to be a better way to go about getting the game to the Ax Factor in the 9th with the lead…or at least tied. Why in God's name is Loe in there when it's not even a hold situation? This is normally a time reserved for someone like LaTroy Hawkins (should-be setup man) or even Zach Braddock. Speaking of Hawkins and Braddock, how about these guys share the 8th inning based on who is at the plate? Call me crazy, but I believe that lefty-lefty and righty-righty match-ups favor the pitcher in each situation respectively nine times out of ten. In fact, keep Loe in there for the righties...why not. His sinker is almost unhittable when it's working, which has been occasional this season, but in no way should Loe pitch to a left-handed hitter. Loe has as good of a chance of getting a lefty out as Lebron James has of coming through in clutch situations. With how deep the Brewers' starting pitchers have been getting into games this season, Roenicke should have plenty of well-rested relievers to use for either the seventh or the eighth, and yet we continue to see him march out Loe's corpse and his 5+ ERA. Here's the ultimatum...either let Loe face only righties in the seventh or eighth and allow Braddock to take the lefties or just remove Loe from the setup role altogether and throw Hawkins in there. Clearly, there are other bullpen guys able and willing to take on a task that Loe simply cannot complete. Don't believe me?
LaTroy Hawkins: 16 G, 0.59 ERA
Tim Dillard: 7 G, 1.86 ERA
Sergio Mitre: 19 G, 2.00 ERA
Zach Braddock: 16 G, 2.31 ERA
KAMERON LOE: 36 GAMES, 5.23 ERA
I'd now like to back up to my previous post. I mentioned that I would like to see Mike Rivera to come up from AAA and fill the backup catcher role behind Jonathan Lucroy instead of current backup Wil Nieves. However, whatever Nieves has been doing behind the plate with Wolf, it's been working. Wolf lowered his ERA to 3.20, which is second-best among the Brewers' starting five...that’s saying something. Nieves is Wolf's designated-catcher for lack of a better term, but he is the only Brewers' hitter without an RBI and is hitting .140 in 50 AB. For those keeping track at home, Nieves leads the league in number of plate appearances without an RBI. Ouch. Here's why I can except having Nieves on the roster. He only takes up one spot in the batting order, and he calls a great game behind the plate for Wolfy, who refuses to throw to the youngster, Lucroy (which still bothers me). Still, I would much rather have a happy Wolf throwing to Nieves while having success instead of a frustrated Wolf throwing to Lucroy with the chance of maybe getting another run or two from the offense, but risking a bad outing from Wolf. For now, it's worth it to keep Nieves on the roster. Think of centerfielder Carlos Gomez; his role has basically transformed into pinch-running/defensive specialist...a guy who comes in late to relieve an outfielder or a slow runner on the base paths because of his blinding speed. Josh Wilson and Craig Counsell do this on the infield - Nieves, to a degree, does this behind the plate. I should have thought of this before throwing Nieves into the fire last weekend.
One final note...it seems as though that as of late, the Brewers have done a good job of getting up against clubs with winning records, such as the Cardinals, Marlins and Giants (I know...not the Reds). It can be argued that they have caught a break because these teams haven't had the likes of Buster Posey, Hanley Ramirez and Matt Holliday, but I'm hoping that this doesn't put a damper on the recent success of the Crew. Coming up, the Brewers face a treacherous interleague schedule, having to travel to Boston and New York, host the Tampa Bay Rays and play a home-and-away against the now surging Twins. This is arguably the most difficult interleague schedule out of any team in the MLB and will truly test the Brewers, but I believe their ability to hold their own against the NL's best will carry over to this tough stretch of games. Nevertheless, Roenicke should take a long, deep look at his bullpen and figure out how to utilize some his relievers correctly. RR should be familiar with using a designated hitter since he came from an American League squad in the L.A. Angels, so that shouldn't be a huge issue...it's just a matter of lighting a fire under whoever is suiting up on the left side of the infield.
As long as Milwaukee can avoid a total collapse and keep the ship afloat, they should emerge from interleague play near the top of the NL Central. June 17th to July 3th will show this team's true colors...that I can guarantee.
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