The Brewers

Yeah, at first I thought that the Sexson trade was a tough pill to swallow - but they did get pretty nice quality AND quantity for him - 4 everyday starters and a starting pitcher.

I figure the Brewers have a good chance at being the class of the Central's "Second Division" (Mil, Philly, Pitt), which isn't something to put on the front page of the media guide but it beats a 6th place finish.

I'm SHOCKED at their offensive production lately - that's gotta fall off, I just don't see them living by the long ball like that all year. But hopefully, they can have a better rotation than last year - their 4 and 5 spots were fucking black holes - and maybe flirt with .500. I like the foundation they are building.

Remember you got Weaks and Fielder in your system, right? Things are looking up for your organization, but what they need the most is a young kid to dominate in the rotation. If they find the #1 starter (not a free agent because it will cost too much), they will be TOUGH.

Heh, every team needs a young kid to dominate the rotation. It's too bad most are locked up until they're in their thirties.

Why I say its different for the Brewers is because they will probably not spend 13 million to pick up a good veteran #1. They are in the same boat as the A's, Pirates, and Marlins. But, at least the Brewers have shown some promise.

As I mentioned in another thread, The Sporting News ranked Weeks, Fielder, and I think JJ Hardy among the top 25 minor-league prospects.

One thing the Brewers DO have going for them is that while their pitchers may struggle, most of them are young - they aren't trying to tread water with washed-up/average veterans, they are giving young (or at least inexperienced) arms a chance to prove themselves. Plus they have 2-3 young guys at AAA Indianapolis waiting for the call-up.

I've always been reasonably comfortable with Sheets as the #1 - he's been pitching DAMN good this year, hopefully it continues...and his back quits acting up. But ideally, there'd be another pitcher on the roster as good/better than Sheets, and that doesn't look likely for a few years, at least.

Oh, as for the CURRENT team - they stand at 6-6; I looked over the schedule, and considering they started the season on the road vs "contenders" (at least in everyone's preseason opinion) in Houston, St Louis, and San Fran, if they can finish their 23 games in April anywhere near .500 (10-13 or better), I'd say that's a damn good month.

If Sheets could ever show the form he showed pitching for Team USA two or three years ago, then the Brewers will be in good shape.

As I sit here, the Brewers are ranked 27th in ESPN's Power Poll (with 2 last place votes yet), despite playing a tough road schedule, owning the 20th ranked Cards and being competitive in just about every game. Oh, and, at 10-9, having a WINNING RECORD.

I'm not saying their going to win the World Series or what have you, but a little credit for scrapping to above .500 despite predictions of being the worst team in the league should get a little pat on the back. The writer says they have no everyday player hitting over .300 - well, so what? Their team BA and slugging pct are OK - not eye-popping, but middle of the pack; same for their team ERA.

Definitely not in the worst 5 teams in the league as of right now.

The ESPN Power Rankings don't really matter.

Yeah, I know - but when you have x number of guys voting and 2 of them are putting a .500 team as "the worst in the league" as of this moment, you have two reactions:

- a realization that at least two of these guys are fucking idiots

- a wish that they'd at least check the standings and stats real quick before voting.

One heck of a coupla days...

Damn, what more could a casual baseball fan want? A player hitting for the cycle, a walk-off game winning homer, a 3 run comeback, a 9 run comeback, a game-winning suicide squeeze, 36 runs scored, a series sweep....

...and it was only 2 freakin' games! About the only thing missing was decent pitching of ANY sort, but what can you do?

A winning record?

This season looks like it is going to be a fun one in Milwaukee. They are in most of the games when they lose.

And Richie Weeks isn't even on the roster yet... though 9 errors is kinda scary.

Brewers were 19th this week, no last place votes. Much better, even though they will most likely drop after being swept by the Pirates in a tough series (a 4-2 loss on Friday, and one-run losses in extra innings on Sat and Sun).

And I still agree with flyarz that therankings don't matter.

Try this one on for size - through 5 innings on Saturday, the Brewers' starting pitcher (name escapes me - they're going with spare parts in a couple rotation spots right now) had a no-no going with the Mets. Yost sat him down, though, mainly due to his 7 walks. At one point, Uke said that with 8 walks and an error, the Brewers were trying to help the Mets, but NY was just too inept to take advantage of it so far.

Anyway, they got rid of the ill will from the disheartening home sweep by the Pirates with a solid 3-3 on their road trip. Hopefully they can take advantage of a horrid Expos team at Miller Park before the beatable-by-everyone-but-Milwaukee Pirates come back.

Sheets has been in the bigs for four years, and that 18 K masterpiece he threw Sunday should bring some attention to how well he's been pitching this year.

I'm super pissed at Sheets right now. I've had him on my fantasy team for the past two years hoping I'd have him for his breakout.

I passed on him this year, and look what he does! Honestly, I like the guy, and I want to see it continue.

Brewers actually made it to 3 games above .500. Hey, it ain't much, but given the last decade, it's rarified air for this franchise.

With a quarter of the season over, here are some observations:

- the Richie Sexson trade is HUGE in the Brewers' favor right now

- the shaky bullpen has gelled and has been carrying the team lately; we need the bats to wake up.

- Sheets' 18 SO effort was probably an aberration, but he has cranked it up and should start being mentioned as a top-notch pitcher

- Yost and Melvin are the baseball guys the Brewers' front office has been missing for about 20 years. The team plays hard for Yost, and has won several games because of the way he has them play - plate discipline and creating pressure on the defense with their running game

So far, attendance is up about 1000 per game and we're just starting to hit the meat of "baseball season" in Milwaukee. For once, I'm not completely disgusted and cynical by this point in the season.

Pitching still solid, bats still comatose. The lack of offense is beginning to catch up to the Brewers; hopefully the Pads tagging them for 8 runs was an aberration, not the trend. Damn, we need some OFFENSE. The Journal posted a listing, and the Brewers have scored as many as 4 runs TWICE since May 13th. If they could generate anything they'd be sitting pretty with the yeoman's work their bullpen (and most of their starters) have been doing.

SHEETS. The man deserved the win today, but the offense couldn't come through - in the past few weeks, he's struck out 18 batters in a game, pitched nine innings with only one baserunner vs the Angels, and today mowed down the Astros' side with 9 straight strikes.

The offense seems to be breaking out of it's month-long slump as well.

Talk about beating your head against the wall...

The Brewers have taken 3 straight series 2-1 (Angels, Stros, Mariners) and just topped the Twins last night, are playing .531 ball, which would be good for 2nd in any other NL division, and are a game and a half out of the wild card.

So where are they in the Central? FUCKING FOURTH. You figure after years of futility they could be good in a down year for the division (heck, given their recent past, any year the Brewers were out of last would by definition be a down year for the Central), but they actually become competitive when the Central appears to be the dominant division in the NL - maybe even in both leagues.

Yeah, it'd be nice if they could string together a nice 8-1 or 10-2 streak, but I find it hard to complain about the current streak of 4 straight series won.

LOSE the series to the Rockies, mustering a measly 2 runs in the last 2 games. Another Sheets effort wasted - 10 k, 2 runs, 1 BOB in 7 innings.

Maybe the humility will serve Brewer fans well - the local rag had an article last week concerned about why the Brewers couldn't seem to finish off a series.

Downed the Twins in Minny, with a coupla nice 7 run games from the offense.

Next up, the sCrubs and their legion of goatfuck fans.

Thank you Brew Crew!! You took care of business against the Twinkies. Now go kick some Scrubbie ass!

Oh, their goatfuck fans are pusses. They had nothing to say after losing Saturday when I was at the game.

Man, I don't care that they're pussies - they're STILL the most annoying crowd I've ever run into.

Color me over-excited - I got my weeks mixed up and move the sCrub series ahead a week. D'oh.

Anyway, the Brewers swept the pitiful Rockies and went into Pittsburgh 7 games over .500 - rarified air for the franchise these many dark years in the wilderness - and I'm thinking "the Pirates are weak, we should at least get a split". But no - the wheels fall off in the doubleheader, with the offense returning to dormant and the recently-solid pitching falling apart. Pitching recovered a smidge in the latter two games, but nonetheless BITTERLY fucking disappointing, as the Crew were hanging with top teams like the Angels, Twins, Giants, Dodgers, etc over the past month, and they get swept by the weak-ass Pirates. I don't know what the problem is, but they just can't beat them.

On the plus side, Kolb and Sheets make the All-Star roster. Overbay and Podsednik are at least getting mention as "snubs", which is fine - their absences are more than understandable.

You got anything to say after the sweep? Just like a Sox fan to care about what the Cubs are doing when they aren't playing them.

The Pirates are an impossible team to figure. They have taken 3/4 from the Cubs and swept the Cards and Brewers. And they still are 7 games under .500 after winning 9 in a row.

Haven't seen the Brewers play at all this year. Know they have been getting pretty good pitching. Looking at the stats they aren't much of a HR hitting team and the strike out more than the Cubs-yikes.

I'm just glad Richie Sexson is gone. Hope the Cubs do as well at Miller Park as they did last year. Be nice to all the FIBS traveling north. And shame on Selig for having all the games during the week so he can get near sellouts on a tuesday night.

Sheets vs Clement-have had trouble w/ Big Ben
Santos vs Prior
Davis vs Zambrano

No clue on the other 2. Too bad you guys will miss ARAM. He likes hitting at Miller Park.

EVERYONE has had issues with Sheets this year - he finally stepped up to the elite level we've been waiting for hereabouts (not that we thought he was a disappointment before, but he was just solid, now he's a stud); unfortunately, the club just doesn't hit when he's on the mound.

Davis is just a rock, the local wags have been calling him Houdini, because he tends to give up hits and walks but not runs. A typical Davis inning starts with a couple hits and/or a walk so you end up with runners on the corners and no outs and next thing you know he mows down the next 3 batters. He also gets much better run support than Sheets - ~5.5 to ~3.5.

Santos got moved up to start when Kinney was stinking it up and has been great, all things considered. ERA is under 4, and he eats his share of innings.

Our other two pitchers - Capuano was a part of the Sexson trade, and has been good; the only reason he's not really on the radar is he missed some time early on, but he's 4-3 with a 3.5 or better ERA. Obermueller is trouble - high ERA, might be replaced by AAA prospect Ben Hendrickson sooner rather than later. But he's in a tough spot - he's Yosts "swingman", so he's had stretches of up to 2 weeks without pitching.

Yost also jiggered the rotation a smidge so that the Cubs were facing his 3 top guys. Certainly didn't do any fucking good vs the Pirates.

I'm just hoping that the Crew get back on their feet and take this series. I've got ten bucks riding on it with my cousin.

Way to piss away chances, Brewers.

Yost should have instituted the midnight rule after the thoroughly satisfying sweep of the Cubs - because following that, a game out of the wild card, it was time to savor the win for a bit and get ready to put the fucking foot on the Reds' throats and knock them down. Instead, they'll be fortunate to not get swept. Last night they wasted a terrific outing by Capuano (7.1 IP, 9k, 6 h, 3 ER).

In probably the most crucial stretch of the season - a month of division games - the Brewers have managed to start out 3-6, with the 6 losses to the VERY beatable Bucs and Reds. Disappointing to put yourself in a position to make some headway and then crap your pants right out of it.

Mid-season report card:

Offense - C-. I debated giving them a D, but aside from a poor BA, they do have a few guys with decent OBPs and do the little things in baserunning and bunting and such well enough to keep pressure on pitchers and push runs across the plate. They have been atrocious with RISP, though.

Pitching - B+. Sheets is the only stud, but Davis, Santos, and Capuano have given more than their share of solid starts - not to mention Davis and Santos both have 9 wins. Kolb, despite last night's debacle, is fully deserving of his all-star berth, and the 'pen has generally held onto leads, especially lately.

Defense - A. Spivey has been a bit of a butcher at 2B, but Jenkins deserves a gold glove, if he keeps this up.

Managing - A. Yost should get Manager of the Year consideration; the Brewers have been competitive in just about every game and are performing FAR above expectations, even with a struggling offense. They play hard for all 9 innings and don't make stupid mistakes, a well-prepared team.

Overall - Hard to judge; compared to most ML teams, it's probably a B- or a C+ - slightly above .500, in the postseason chase, not exceptional but you have to bring your A game to beat them - but when compared to the expectations most had coming into the season, it's easily an A - if they continue their pace from the first half, they have legitimate shots at a Cy Young winner, an MVP candidate, and a Manager of the Year (not to mention the playoffs). I'll dovetail the two and call it a B - but the scale will be more severe for the 2nd half.

Split with the Cubs in Wrigley to avoid falling back further in the WC race; right now, St Louis looks like a 300 pound gorilla and has put me in the rotten position of rooting for the Cubs, Pirates, whomever to beat the Cards and bring them back near the pack - which is moot unless the Brewers take care of their own business.

The REAL news is that Ben Hendrickson is up in the majors (hopefully) for good and starting tonight at Cincy; this is the first guy to get the call from the Brewers' much-vaunted farm system. He made a spot start earlier this year against the Dodgers and gave up 4 runs in 5 innings, but all things considered, looked OK doing it, and has been tearing up AAA since he went back down. Getting a decent #5 would immensely help the Brewers, as their top 4 guys all have been pitching fairly well for the bulk of the season *and in Sheets case, just sick for the entire season).

Hendrickson's night - 3 IP, 6 ER, 2 hit batters, 3 Ks.

Yuck. Hopefully the kid will get better, but he took a beating tonight.

What's with your catches putting the glove around the head on(usually) 0-2 pitches? Annoying to me. Do they ever fool anyone? Don't say Corey Patterson because he'll swing at anything.

So is anyone on the Brewers gonna be traded? Team is a year or 2 away from contending and this year is toast. What's the word in the land of cheese?

The word is that if Melvin can rook anyone for Counsell or Spivey, they're gone due to the talent in the minors. Other than that, I most of their guys who might be tradebait would be considered untouchable as of right now (i.e., Overbay, Podsednik, and Sheets, maybe Jenkins).

And don't think I've deserted the Brewers, I think I've gotten a virus, so by the time I get my PC back up and running, this thread will most likely be useless.

Spivey's likely done for the year.

Craig Counsell and Luis Vizcaino are definitely on the block. I think Vizcaino could really help a team with a suspect bullpen, but he's not a "closer" so he might get overlooked by the media.

The Brewers probably would like to deal other veteran filler like Ben Grieve, but I don't think there's much market for those types of players. Podsednik is a long-shot to get traded, but he's scuffling and someone might overpay.

The good news for the team is that they're not going to lose any of their starting pitching and can pick and choose who they think is important in the bullpen. The bad news, as anyone who's watched the team lately can attest, is that the offense is lacking difference makers other than Overbay.

The Fair-Weather Fan returns

Well, not really, but after probably one of the most DREADFUL stretches of baseball I've seen (that's saying a lot, considering how the Brewers have played since I began following them in '92), they appear to have finally found an offense to go with the pitching that's been decent for most of the year. Hopefully they can get it together to make my prediction of 75 wins, and finish ahead of the Reds and Pirates.