The Series:
Houston Astros (46-55) @ Milwaukee Brewers (59-43)
Who's on Tap?:
July 25th: Wandy Rodriguez (5-3, 3.31 ERA) vs. Manny Parra (9-2, 3.68 ERA)
July 26th: Brandon Backe (6-10, 4.79 ERA) vs. Dave Bush (5-8, 4.39 ERA)
July 27th: Randy Wolf (6-10, 4.74 ERA) vs. Jeff Suppan (5-6, 4.65 ERA)
Who Should You Watch?:
The Astros come in last place in the NL Central and a game and half back behind Pittsburgh on top of that, which makes you wonder why they even considered trading for Randy Wolf. Nevertheless, the Astros aren't a team that can simply be over-looked, considering they are 4-5 against Milwaukee this season, including a series sweep in May. Those three victories had a lot to do with one of the best hitters in the NL this year, Lance Berkman. Lance is hitting .400/.447/.829 against the Crew this season with three homeruns and 12 RBIs in just nine games. Thankfully the Brewers aren't throwing out Ben Sheets this weekend, who Lance just destroys, but Bush, Parra and Soup are going to have to contain the big fella to continue their streak. On the mound you should keep your eye on Wandy Rodriguez. Wandy has had a very interesting career where he shows flashes of brilliance and then just turns falls apart. That is to be expected from an inexperienced pitcher. But he has yet to fall apart this year, mostly because he has limited his walks, and is coming off a solid start against the Cubs going 6.2 and only giving up one run.
The Brewers are undoubtedly the hottest team in baseball right now, riding an undefeated road trip and the hot bats of Ryan Braun and JJ Hardy. And while you should watch those guys too, play close attention the wiry fellow, Corey Hart. Corey is a career .342/.395/.664 hitter against the Astros in 165 PAs, which is a pretty reasonable sample size. He's 6/15 against Brandon Backe with three doubles and a homerun and 8/17 against Wandy. Corey had a rough rough series against the Cardinals, but he should hop back on the wagon after some home cooking gets in his stomach. On the mound, keep your eyes on Dave Bush and the bullpen. No one is quite sure how Ned Yost is going to run the platoon situation as Seth McClung turns in his long reliever for the next three days or so. As for the bullpen, it's fresh and ready to go as Carlos Villanueva, Dave Riske and Brian Shouse are all fresher than ever. Villa has only tossed 12 pitches since the ASB, and is due for a couple of innings with the back end of the rotation taking its turn. Shouse has only seen an inning and two thirds of work since the ASB and will need some work to get sharp again, though seven of his eight pitches were strikes on Tuesday was enough to get through three Cardinal batters.
Keys to Victory:
If you've looked at the box scores for the Astros lately, you'll notice that they have absolutely no problems scoring runs in bunches. But sometimes they just can't put it together all at once. And recently they're pitching hasn't been anything to call home about either, as they've lost a number games 8-7 or 7-6. After some thought, it's going to come down to patience. It's hard to believe that when you have a guy with a .437 OBP like Lance Berkman, it doesn't somewhat rub off on the rest of the team. Houston's team OBP is .321, which is absolutely atrocious especially considering they're only slugging .404 in the right handed hitter friendly Minute Maid Park. Patience should garner them some extra base runners with Soup and Parra on the mound. That should get them to the bullpen sooner rather than later and give them the best chance to take this series.
The Astros don't strike out a lot, and are second to last in SOs in the NL, just one above the St. Louis Cardinals. This means the Brewers defense has to show up. No more indecision. If you're going to go for the ball, go for it damnit. If there is any series where the Brewers difficulties in the infield could haunt them, it's this one. Their confidence is so high right now, they may overlook the little things that got them to this point. The biggest culprits are Rickie, Prince and the pitcher. Yes Hall has struggled too, but the right side of the infield is covered in the soot of mental errors. Provided these guys play well and we get the usual play from the outfield, the Brewers should be just fine.
Predictions and Notes:
- It's never easy to say the Brewers will sweep because baseball is such a funny game, but it's hard to argue against Manny Parra tonight with the Astros rolling out a lefty. The Brewers are 22-9 against lefties this year, while the Astros are 14-15. Brandon Backe is just downright awful, even if the Brewers are trying out the platoon experiment this week. And then Suppan rolls out at Miller Park looking just as good as he did early in the season. If the Brewers do lose a game, though, it will be Sunday, as the Brewers have had a hard time with Wolf and the Astros have had significant success against Suppan.
- If you haven't noticed yet, the arrival of Rickie Weeks and Bill Hall has put the Brewers well over the top in the last week. Weeks is batting .348/.467/.609 since the break with five walks, eight RBIs and only three Ks. Hall is batting a measly .190/.292/.476 in his five game, has two huge homeruns and has walked three times. Not bad for two guys who were getting hunted by Brewers fans all over the internet. I'm proud to say that I've always stuck behind Weeks and his talents. He's a top notch second baseman if he puts his talents to use, and is a big reason for this run by the Crew. Hall, on the other hand, isn't out of my doghouse just yet. The strike out rate is still way up and the defense is a still a worry, but he's showing flashes of the guy we'll need down the stretch if Yost opts out of the third base platoon for the rest of the season.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Brewers Cardinals Series Recap
The Scores:
Milwaukee Brewers 6 St. Louis Cardinals 3
Milwaukee Brewers 4 St. Louis Cardinals 3
Milwaukee Brewers 3 St. Louis Cardinals 0
Milwaukee Brewers 4 St. Louis Cardinals 3
MVPs of the Series:
JJ Hardy: 11/20; 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 4 Rs
Brewers Starting Pitching: 23 IP, 6 ER, 19 Ks, 8 BB (2.35 ERA)
I want to give something to the Cardinals, but nobody and I mean nobody had a really solid series. They never hit the 10 hit plateau and in games 3 and 4 they had three and five hits respectively. These guys don't need a pitcher to get over the hump, they need another bat. Guys like Miles, Izturis and Adam Kennedy will not produce at such a high level on consistent basis. The unfortunate thing for the Cardinals is their pitching is actually going pretty good right now. With the exception of a little blow up in the top of the tenth on Monday, the St. Louis pitching staff should be pretty pleased. But the bat have just been off since the returning from the break, as shown by the fact that the Cardinal offense only walked twice a game, which is not what they usually do.
As for the Brewers, it the MVP could have gone to any of three players, JJ Hardy, Ryan Braun or Rickie Weeks. Braun ended the series 9/19 with two bombs and three RBIs. Weeks got the offense going with a 6/13 appearance with two doubles and a big three run bomb in game one. But JJ gets the nod for the simple reason that without him the Brewers offense would have fallen down, way down. Hardy had a mutli-hit showing every game this series and knocked in a big tying run on Tuesday. As a result, JJ's average has jumped all of the way up to .300 even, which is befuddling considering .242 in the middle of June. If JJ keeps this up and continues to play a solid shortstop, he could see a contract extension sent his way before teams notice he's in the top tier of shortstops.
What was the Difference?:
The ability to finish. The Cards kept taking out their nails and hammer, but could never drive that nail into the coffin. The Brewers were fueled by three late inning homeruns, a solo shot in the top of the tenth in game one by Bill Hall, another shot by Hall in the top of the ninth to break a tie in game two and then a go-ahead two run blast by Ryan Braun yesterday to finish the sweep. So perhaps it was the long ball, but one thing is for certain, the Brewers have gained an immense amount of swagger and finished the road trip 7-0.
Causes for Concern:
The Cardinals are a good team. There's no doubt about it. But they need an extra bat, either off the bench or in the starting lineup. There's nothing threatening about Brendan Ryan, Joe Mather or Adam Kennedy coming out there. They're not bad players, but they're inconsistent ones and when they falter, the team has little chance to score a ton of runs. The holes are clearly second and short where Aaron Miles is reverting to the mean, Cesar Izturis is as bad as advertised and Adam Kennedy doesn't even put the fear into me. If the Cardinals want to continue their Cinderella Story, they'll need to clean up that big big hole. Though they did play some pretty solid defense this weekend.
Speaking of defense, if there's anything that can tear the Brewers down it's their lack of concentration in the field. There was only one error in this series, but a trend of infield hits is starting to really hurt these guys. It's just like a walk when Prince Fielder makes an indecisive play at first or Rickie Weeks bobbles a ball or the pitcher deflects balls that are routine plays. Teams like a Minnesota or Arizona will be able to pick on the Brewers forever with their speed. A bunt is almost always a hit if you have reasonable speed against the Brewers. They'll have to work on this a lot over the next weeks before some one really takes advantage of it.
Causes for Excitement:
If anything, the Cardinals can take the fact that their rotation is pretty darn good or maybe it's just their pitching coach. I harp on them a lot because you never put names like Wellenmeyer or Lohse in an above average group, but they've managed to really impress me this year, Lohse especially. The Cards signed this guy to a damn cheap free agent contract and are reaping the benefits of the stupidity of the rest of the league. On top of that, the Cardinals play a very very solid defense. There were a couple of blunders this weekend, but I can't count how many extra base hits and extra bases were taken away from Brewers hitters this week. From Miles making back to the ball catches, to Ludwick snagging bloops in no man's land, the Cardinals made this a more respectable series for a four game sweep.
Come on, what isn't there to be excited about? The starting pitching has been fantastic, the bullpen just as well and finally, FINALLY, the Brewers started taking walks. The Crew managed 12 walks in this series, and it could have been more, but Kyle Lohse was dealing strikes all over the place and I can't blame the Brewers for being forced to swing at tough pitches. Nevertheless, last night's seven walk performance loomed huge because it allowed Ryan Braun to get that extra AB at the end of the game. That's the one thing I often overlook when we talk about walks, which is it has the potential of turning your lineup around one more time. And who wouldn't want their three best hitters to get an extra AB in a close game? This team has the pedal to the floor, and if they can take at least two out of three this weekend against the Astros, they may find themselves tied for the Central lead at the start of the big four game home series against the Chicago Cubs.
Milwaukee Brewers 6 St. Louis Cardinals 3
Milwaukee Brewers 4 St. Louis Cardinals 3
Milwaukee Brewers 3 St. Louis Cardinals 0
Milwaukee Brewers 4 St. Louis Cardinals 3
MVPs of the Series:
JJ Hardy: 11/20; 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 4 Rs
Brewers Starting Pitching: 23 IP, 6 ER, 19 Ks, 8 BB (2.35 ERA)
I want to give something to the Cardinals, but nobody and I mean nobody had a really solid series. They never hit the 10 hit plateau and in games 3 and 4 they had three and five hits respectively. These guys don't need a pitcher to get over the hump, they need another bat. Guys like Miles, Izturis and Adam Kennedy will not produce at such a high level on consistent basis. The unfortunate thing for the Cardinals is their pitching is actually going pretty good right now. With the exception of a little blow up in the top of the tenth on Monday, the St. Louis pitching staff should be pretty pleased. But the bat have just been off since the returning from the break, as shown by the fact that the Cardinal offense only walked twice a game, which is not what they usually do.
As for the Brewers, it the MVP could have gone to any of three players, JJ Hardy, Ryan Braun or Rickie Weeks. Braun ended the series 9/19 with two bombs and three RBIs. Weeks got the offense going with a 6/13 appearance with two doubles and a big three run bomb in game one. But JJ gets the nod for the simple reason that without him the Brewers offense would have fallen down, way down. Hardy had a mutli-hit showing every game this series and knocked in a big tying run on Tuesday. As a result, JJ's average has jumped all of the way up to .300 even, which is befuddling considering .242 in the middle of June. If JJ keeps this up and continues to play a solid shortstop, he could see a contract extension sent his way before teams notice he's in the top tier of shortstops.
What was the Difference?:
The ability to finish. The Cards kept taking out their nails and hammer, but could never drive that nail into the coffin. The Brewers were fueled by three late inning homeruns, a solo shot in the top of the tenth in game one by Bill Hall, another shot by Hall in the top of the ninth to break a tie in game two and then a go-ahead two run blast by Ryan Braun yesterday to finish the sweep. So perhaps it was the long ball, but one thing is for certain, the Brewers have gained an immense amount of swagger and finished the road trip 7-0.
Causes for Concern:
The Cardinals are a good team. There's no doubt about it. But they need an extra bat, either off the bench or in the starting lineup. There's nothing threatening about Brendan Ryan, Joe Mather or Adam Kennedy coming out there. They're not bad players, but they're inconsistent ones and when they falter, the team has little chance to score a ton of runs. The holes are clearly second and short where Aaron Miles is reverting to the mean, Cesar Izturis is as bad as advertised and Adam Kennedy doesn't even put the fear into me. If the Cardinals want to continue their Cinderella Story, they'll need to clean up that big big hole. Though they did play some pretty solid defense this weekend.
Speaking of defense, if there's anything that can tear the Brewers down it's their lack of concentration in the field. There was only one error in this series, but a trend of infield hits is starting to really hurt these guys. It's just like a walk when Prince Fielder makes an indecisive play at first or Rickie Weeks bobbles a ball or the pitcher deflects balls that are routine plays. Teams like a Minnesota or Arizona will be able to pick on the Brewers forever with their speed. A bunt is almost always a hit if you have reasonable speed against the Brewers. They'll have to work on this a lot over the next weeks before some one really takes advantage of it.
Causes for Excitement:
If anything, the Cardinals can take the fact that their rotation is pretty darn good or maybe it's just their pitching coach. I harp on them a lot because you never put names like Wellenmeyer or Lohse in an above average group, but they've managed to really impress me this year, Lohse especially. The Cards signed this guy to a damn cheap free agent contract and are reaping the benefits of the stupidity of the rest of the league. On top of that, the Cardinals play a very very solid defense. There were a couple of blunders this weekend, but I can't count how many extra base hits and extra bases were taken away from Brewers hitters this week. From Miles making back to the ball catches, to Ludwick snagging bloops in no man's land, the Cardinals made this a more respectable series for a four game sweep.
Come on, what isn't there to be excited about? The starting pitching has been fantastic, the bullpen just as well and finally, FINALLY, the Brewers started taking walks. The Crew managed 12 walks in this series, and it could have been more, but Kyle Lohse was dealing strikes all over the place and I can't blame the Brewers for being forced to swing at tough pitches. Nevertheless, last night's seven walk performance loomed huge because it allowed Ryan Braun to get that extra AB at the end of the game. That's the one thing I often overlook when we talk about walks, which is it has the potential of turning your lineup around one more time. And who wouldn't want their three best hitters to get an extra AB in a close game? This team has the pedal to the floor, and if they can take at least two out of three this weekend against the Astros, they may find themselves tied for the Central lead at the start of the big four game home series against the Chicago Cubs.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Brewers 2009 Salaries
Can we really afford to sign CC Sabathia to a long term deal? It's all the Milwaukee Sports Radio station can talk about. It's possible if you give away some of your talent. Here's the numbers:
This season:
Ben Sheets: 12.125 million
Eric Gagne: 10.000 million
Craig Counsell: 2.800 million
Guillermo Mota: 3.2 - 4.2 million
Mike Cameron: about 5 million after incentives
33.125 million relieved off the salary cap with 700k in buy outs on Cameron and Counsell if you decide not to pick up their options.
Salary increases next season:
Jason Kendall: 2008 4.25M to 2009 4.6M
Jeff Suppan: 8M to 12.5M
David Riske: 4M to 4.25M
Chris Capuano: 3.75M should not receive a raise
Salmon Torres: 3.2M to 3.75M if he doesn't retire
JJ Hardy: 2.65M to about $4.5M (second year of arbitration J Reyes made $4M this season)
Dave Bush: 2.55M to about $4M (second year of arb)
Brian Shouse: 2M to about 2.5M (May retire)
Rickie Weeks: 1.057M to about 2.3M (first year arb)
Gabe Kapler: 800k to FA (probably will go elsewhere)
Seth McClung: 750k to 1.2M (2nd year arb)
Ryan Braun: .455M + 2.3M to .745M (signing bonus)
Prince Fielder: .67M to 7M (Shot in the dark)
Russell Branyan: 300k to FA
Corey Hart: 444k to 2.4M (First year arb)
Carlos Villanueva: 413k to 500k (last year before arb)
Yovani Gallardo: 404k to about 450k
Mike Rivera: 395k to 450k (last year before arb)
Manny Parra: 392k to 500k (still one more year after before arb)
Turns out to be about 15 million in raises
So the salary of the team should drop about $15 million from it's opening day salary which started at $80M based on raises and free agency. And remember, the Brewers can buy out Suppan's contract after next season for $2M saving $10.5M after next season.
One thing to note is the Brewers potential revenue gained during a post season run. If two series were played here, you're looking at serious cash flow and Attanasio's 'losses' won't be losses any more. Here's the thing though, the Brewers farm AA-Huntsville team has more than it's fair share of major league ready stars. While I love this team's roster a trade of JJ Hardy or Prince Fielder is not out of the question. Fielder leaving would give the Brewers an additional 7M to work with and his spot could be filled by Brad Nelson or Mat Gamel as a stop gap. This would leave your rotation with Sabathia/Parra/Gallardo/XX. Let's be honest, we can find someone to fill those gaps.
Now you give CC a 4-6 year deal, but you try and leave open the opportunity to trade him in the last two years of his contract for savings sake. Parra and Gallardo will both make very little money for the next two seasons because of their service time. Jeremy Jeffress should be ready in 3-4 years which could potentially fill a CC hole, not to mention the return on Sabathia in the form of prospects. Gallardo should pan out to be an ace in the hole as well.
We worry about long term effects of investing some $100 million Sabathia as far as the salary goes, but Alcides Escobar, Michael Brantley, Cole Gillespie, Tony Gwynn Jr, Angel Salome, Mat Gamel, Jonathon Lucroy, Tim Dillard, Mitch Stetter, Mark DiFelice and Brad Nelson come cheap for four years if at any time the Brewers decide to send off a Corey Hart, Jason Kendall, or JJ Hardy. It's the problem of a small market team. But for the Brewers it's not as difficult as others because of how Jack has put together the system. Hart, Fielder, Hardy and Weeks will all bring in solid prospects and will replenish the system as we use it in the bigs.
The conclusion: It is possible to sign CC Sabathia for the big bucks, and it should be done if you feel he can continue to perform at an extremely high level. Johan Santana proves that it's possible and I think that CC's big frame actually will help him in the long run because most of his power derives from his legs and his mechanics are quite clean. It doesn't hurt that he relies on a cutter and changeup. What do you think Brewers' fans?
This season:
Ben Sheets: 12.125 million
Eric Gagne: 10.000 million
Craig Counsell: 2.800 million
Guillermo Mota: 3.2 - 4.2 million
Mike Cameron: about 5 million after incentives
33.125 million relieved off the salary cap with 700k in buy outs on Cameron and Counsell if you decide not to pick up their options.
Salary increases next season:
Jason Kendall: 2008 4.25M to 2009 4.6M
Jeff Suppan: 8M to 12.5M
David Riske: 4M to 4.25M
Chris Capuano: 3.75M should not receive a raise
Salmon Torres: 3.2M to 3.75M if he doesn't retire
JJ Hardy: 2.65M to about $4.5M (second year of arbitration J Reyes made $4M this season)
Dave Bush: 2.55M to about $4M (second year of arb)
Brian Shouse: 2M to about 2.5M (May retire)
Rickie Weeks: 1.057M to about 2.3M (first year arb)
Gabe Kapler: 800k to FA (probably will go elsewhere)
Seth McClung: 750k to 1.2M (2nd year arb)
Ryan Braun: .455M + 2.3M to .745M (signing bonus)
Prince Fielder: .67M to 7M (Shot in the dark)
Russell Branyan: 300k to FA
Corey Hart: 444k to 2.4M (First year arb)
Carlos Villanueva: 413k to 500k (last year before arb)
Yovani Gallardo: 404k to about 450k
Mike Rivera: 395k to 450k (last year before arb)
Manny Parra: 392k to 500k (still one more year after before arb)
Turns out to be about 15 million in raises
So the salary of the team should drop about $15 million from it's opening day salary which started at $80M based on raises and free agency. And remember, the Brewers can buy out Suppan's contract after next season for $2M saving $10.5M after next season.
One thing to note is the Brewers potential revenue gained during a post season run. If two series were played here, you're looking at serious cash flow and Attanasio's 'losses' won't be losses any more. Here's the thing though, the Brewers farm AA-Huntsville team has more than it's fair share of major league ready stars. While I love this team's roster a trade of JJ Hardy or Prince Fielder is not out of the question. Fielder leaving would give the Brewers an additional 7M to work with and his spot could be filled by Brad Nelson or Mat Gamel as a stop gap. This would leave your rotation with Sabathia/Parra/Gallardo/XX. Let's be honest, we can find someone to fill those gaps.
Now you give CC a 4-6 year deal, but you try and leave open the opportunity to trade him in the last two years of his contract for savings sake. Parra and Gallardo will both make very little money for the next two seasons because of their service time. Jeremy Jeffress should be ready in 3-4 years which could potentially fill a CC hole, not to mention the return on Sabathia in the form of prospects. Gallardo should pan out to be an ace in the hole as well.
We worry about long term effects of investing some $100 million Sabathia as far as the salary goes, but Alcides Escobar, Michael Brantley, Cole Gillespie, Tony Gwynn Jr, Angel Salome, Mat Gamel, Jonathon Lucroy, Tim Dillard, Mitch Stetter, Mark DiFelice and Brad Nelson come cheap for four years if at any time the Brewers decide to send off a Corey Hart, Jason Kendall, or JJ Hardy. It's the problem of a small market team. But for the Brewers it's not as difficult as others because of how Jack has put together the system. Hart, Fielder, Hardy and Weeks will all bring in solid prospects and will replenish the system as we use it in the bigs.
The conclusion: It is possible to sign CC Sabathia for the big bucks, and it should be done if you feel he can continue to perform at an extremely high level. Johan Santana proves that it's possible and I think that CC's big frame actually will help him in the long run because most of his power derives from his legs and his mechanics are quite clean. It doesn't hurt that he relies on a cutter and changeup. What do you think Brewers' fans?
Brewers Cardinals Game Three Recap
The Score:
Brewers 3 Cardinals 0
MVPs of the Game:
CC Sabathia: CG, 3 H, 2 BB, 7 K (W)
No one stands out for the Cards.
Game Recap:
CC Sabathia showed up in a beastly fashion yet again last night, tossing his third consecutive complete game, this one in the form of a shut out in only 106 pitches. The Cardinals looked flustered and overpowered at the plate, likely a domino effect from the previous two evenings combined with the overall nasty stuff of the big guy. While the Brewers offense struggled a bit, the top of the lineup performed more than enough to send CC to his fourth victory since 'the trade'. Weeks, Hardy and Braun combined for nine of the Brewers eleven hits including Hardy and Braun's solo homeruns.
Wednesday night's game looked like it was finally going to start with momentum in the Brewers favor as Rickie Weeks was able to lead off with a bloop double down the right field line. It should have been a triple, but veteran Caesar Izturis played the phantom ball game and pretended to catch the ball from the outfield. That loomed huge for me as the game progressed, but JJ could not advance him and Looper was able to work around it without any damage done.
And then the CC show started. After walking the lead off man, LaRussa decided to waste an out in the first inning using one of his best hitters against left handed pitching, Ryan Ludwick, to bunt him into scoring position. That was a big concession to CC and he took off, getting Pujols to ground out in front of the mound and Glaus to fly out to left. Fast forward to the sixth and Cardinals hadn't had a baserunner, amounting to 17 batters mowed down in a row. Back to back two-out singles made CC look human, but back to the beast he went, getting Pujols to fly out.
An inning earlier JJ blasted his 14th homerun of the year and in the top half of the inning, Rickie knocked in Mike Cameron on a sacrifice fly to make the game 2-0. And that's all Sabathia would need. CC walked the lead off man in the 7th, but got some defensive help after inducing a double play ball to JJ Hardy. He put the finishing touches on the Cardinals by getting Albert Pujols to flail at strike three in the ninth, losing his bat down the third base line. It was basically a metaphor for the whole game. You don't see Pujols get off balance very often. It appears the Cardinals are teetering on coming back down to Earth.
Game Changing Play:
There wasn't one particular game changing play as CC pretty much dominated from the very start. If something had to be chosen, I would say it was the JJ Hardy's homerun or CC getting Pujols to fly out in the sixth with two outs and two on.
Notes:
- What most excited me about yesterday's game was not CC Sabathia. It was the fact that Brewers had a lot of very solid at bats. It may not show up in the box score, but Looper was forced to throw over 100 pitches in just five innings of work and the Brewers only had two walks and seven hits over that time frame. The result was getting into that St. Louis bullpen which is so fragile. It's a sign of good things to come.
- As for CC, it's hard not to be pumped about the guy. The battery of he and Jason Kendall is something to behold. To have a guy come in and adapt so well with his mate at the plate is astounding. CC said that he only had to shake off three pitches in his time with the Brewers. Combine the veteran game calling of Kendall and the nasty stuff of CC, you might find Sabathia fighting for at least a glimpse of Cy Young contention. So far he's 4-0 with a 1.36 ERA in 33.0 innings of work.
- The Cardinals are in dire need of some offense. A very aggravated Tony LaRussa could be seen going off on reporters after Tuesday night's game because they had only scored six runs in the first two games. And he has every right to after the media for not paying attention. Yes their bullpen has struggled, but giving up around three or four runs a game is what's expected from most major league teams. If your offense can't muster more than that, your offense is terrible. I'm not sure how the return of Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright can solve that problem.
- With the win on Wednesday, the Brewers take a two game lead in the NL Wild Card, but remain a game behind Cubs who beat up on Micah Owings in a relief last night. Next week's four game series against the Cubs at Miller Park looms big. The Brewers will have the benefit of tossing their two aces to start the series, but Sheets will have to face Zambrano on Tuesday. Should be a great game.
What's on Tap?:
The Brewers go for the rare four game sweep this afternoon, as Ben Sheets toes the rubber against Todd Wellenmeyer. Wellenmeyer pounded the Brewers for six innings the last time he faced them, giving up two unearned runs. But he's fallen off quite a bit in recent weeks and is carrying a 7+ ERA in his last four games. Sheets has struggled some in his last couple of outings, but it's hard to go against him with the Brewers carrying this much momentum.
Brewers 3 Cardinals 0
MVPs of the Game:
CC Sabathia: CG, 3 H, 2 BB, 7 K (W)
No one stands out for the Cards.
Game Recap:
CC Sabathia showed up in a beastly fashion yet again last night, tossing his third consecutive complete game, this one in the form of a shut out in only 106 pitches. The Cardinals looked flustered and overpowered at the plate, likely a domino effect from the previous two evenings combined with the overall nasty stuff of the big guy. While the Brewers offense struggled a bit, the top of the lineup performed more than enough to send CC to his fourth victory since 'the trade'. Weeks, Hardy and Braun combined for nine of the Brewers eleven hits including Hardy and Braun's solo homeruns.
Wednesday night's game looked like it was finally going to start with momentum in the Brewers favor as Rickie Weeks was able to lead off with a bloop double down the right field line. It should have been a triple, but veteran Caesar Izturis played the phantom ball game and pretended to catch the ball from the outfield. That loomed huge for me as the game progressed, but JJ could not advance him and Looper was able to work around it without any damage done.
And then the CC show started. After walking the lead off man, LaRussa decided to waste an out in the first inning using one of his best hitters against left handed pitching, Ryan Ludwick, to bunt him into scoring position. That was a big concession to CC and he took off, getting Pujols to ground out in front of the mound and Glaus to fly out to left. Fast forward to the sixth and Cardinals hadn't had a baserunner, amounting to 17 batters mowed down in a row. Back to back two-out singles made CC look human, but back to the beast he went, getting Pujols to fly out.
An inning earlier JJ blasted his 14th homerun of the year and in the top half of the inning, Rickie knocked in Mike Cameron on a sacrifice fly to make the game 2-0. And that's all Sabathia would need. CC walked the lead off man in the 7th, but got some defensive help after inducing a double play ball to JJ Hardy. He put the finishing touches on the Cardinals by getting Albert Pujols to flail at strike three in the ninth, losing his bat down the third base line. It was basically a metaphor for the whole game. You don't see Pujols get off balance very often. It appears the Cardinals are teetering on coming back down to Earth.
Game Changing Play:
There wasn't one particular game changing play as CC pretty much dominated from the very start. If something had to be chosen, I would say it was the JJ Hardy's homerun or CC getting Pujols to fly out in the sixth with two outs and two on.
Notes:
- What most excited me about yesterday's game was not CC Sabathia. It was the fact that Brewers had a lot of very solid at bats. It may not show up in the box score, but Looper was forced to throw over 100 pitches in just five innings of work and the Brewers only had two walks and seven hits over that time frame. The result was getting into that St. Louis bullpen which is so fragile. It's a sign of good things to come.
- As for CC, it's hard not to be pumped about the guy. The battery of he and Jason Kendall is something to behold. To have a guy come in and adapt so well with his mate at the plate is astounding. CC said that he only had to shake off three pitches in his time with the Brewers. Combine the veteran game calling of Kendall and the nasty stuff of CC, you might find Sabathia fighting for at least a glimpse of Cy Young contention. So far he's 4-0 with a 1.36 ERA in 33.0 innings of work.
- The Cardinals are in dire need of some offense. A very aggravated Tony LaRussa could be seen going off on reporters after Tuesday night's game because they had only scored six runs in the first two games. And he has every right to after the media for not paying attention. Yes their bullpen has struggled, but giving up around three or four runs a game is what's expected from most major league teams. If your offense can't muster more than that, your offense is terrible. I'm not sure how the return of Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright can solve that problem.
- With the win on Wednesday, the Brewers take a two game lead in the NL Wild Card, but remain a game behind Cubs who beat up on Micah Owings in a relief last night. Next week's four game series against the Cubs at Miller Park looms big. The Brewers will have the benefit of tossing their two aces to start the series, but Sheets will have to face Zambrano on Tuesday. Should be a great game.
What's on Tap?:
The Brewers go for the rare four game sweep this afternoon, as Ben Sheets toes the rubber against Todd Wellenmeyer. Wellenmeyer pounded the Brewers for six innings the last time he faced them, giving up two unearned runs. But he's fallen off quite a bit in recent weeks and is carrying a 7+ ERA in his last four games. Sheets has struggled some in his last couple of outings, but it's hard to go against him with the Brewers carrying this much momentum.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Brewers Cardinals Game Two Recap
The Score:
Brewers 4 Cardinals 3
MVPs of the Game:
JJ Hardy: 2/4; 2B, RBI, R
Kyle Lohse: 8 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 7 K (ND)
Game Recap:
I'm a bit befuddled. The pitching matchup for this game was clearly in the Cardinals favor and it showed from the start as Lohse started off with four perfect innings of baseball, while Suppan gave up three quick runs. But LaRussa stuck with his right handed savior for one inning two long and the Brewers chalked up their second come from behind victory at new Busch Stadium following a Bill Hall go ahead solo home run in the top of the ninth inning.
The game started out extremely brutal for the Brewers, despite Rickie Weeks' loud out to lead off the game. The Cardinals led the game early with a one out bomb by Ryan Ludwick, who took a first pitch BP fastball deep to left-center field. Pujols took took the next pitch to the gap for a double and all I could think to myself was, "Oh man, they brought Suppan back far too early." I was looking right as Rick Ankiel's infield single scored Pujols from first after a terrible indecisive play by Prince Fielder to go after the ball and then block the line to first base for Rickie to throw out Ankiel. Suppan would get out of the jam 2-0 despite another base hit from Yadier Molina.
But then things settled down a bit, Lohse even needed time to settle down. Lohse benefited from a huge strike zone from home plate umpire Joe West. But don't think I'm making excuses. Lohse recognized what he was getting and took advantage of it... well. His two seamer had life and I thought for sure there was no way the Brewers were going to get to him inning after inning. Before you could blink, Lohse had gone through six innings of baseball and given up only a single to Prince Fielder on a groundball up the middle. And in that time, the Cardinals tacked on an insurance run from a walk and a double by Troy Glaus and Yadier Molina, respectively, giving the Cards a 3-0 lead going into the seventh.
JJ Hardy stopped the bleeding in the top of the seventh by proving someone could find a gap, and promptly doubled to lead off the inning. A swinging bunt single by Ryan Braun moved Hardy to third with no one out, bringing up Prince Fielder, who got ahead in the count and poked a ball to the opposite field for a run-scoring single. Fortunately for the Cardinals, Gabe Kapler was protecting Fielder. Kapler responded with two strikeouts on pitches out of the zone and a GIDP in the 7th inning to destroy the momentum... for that inning.
After Suppan was able to work around a Pujols single in the bottom half, the Brewers went right back to hitting. Jason Kendall hit a solid one out single to left center and came around to score on a yanked outside pitch double from Rickie Weeks. JJ Hardy then got him around on a ground ball single to left to the tie the game. And all of a sudden the momentum had swung all the way to the Brewers. Brian Shouse pitched an excellent eighth inning to get the Brewers to the ninth against the struggling Cardinals bullpen.
And struggled they did, well at least for one pitch. After Ron Villone got Prince to look at strike three right down the middle of the plate, Kyle McClellan got Gabe Kapler to ground out to short. But McClellan's 0-1 fastball looked oddly like Ryan Franklin's slider from Monday night and Bill Hall repeated his home run stroke, giving the Brewers the lead and the victory after Salomon Torres pitched a perfect ninth to give him his 18th save of the year.
Game Changing Play:
You want to say Bill Hall's homerun, but I'm going to say JJ Hardy's RBI single to the tie the game in the eighth. Tony LaRussa was trying to hard to avoid using his bullpen, and even though Lohse had a gem going with just over 100 pitches, he wasn't locating as well and his pitches were flattening out quite a bit. The Brewers took advantage, which they'll have to do every chance they get as this run continues.
What's on Tap?:
The Brewers are winners of six straight and continue their series against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium behind the arms of their two aces. CC Sabathia takes the mound for the Brewers after back to back complete games and will be taking on the Cardinals often overlooked, Braden Looper. Looper is 4-6 with a 4.76 ERA against the Brewers in 31 games and five starts, so he's had mixed success to say the least. He'll need to have some more success to prevent the Brewers from taking a two game lead in the Wild Card.
Brewers 4 Cardinals 3
MVPs of the Game:
JJ Hardy: 2/4; 2B, RBI, R
Kyle Lohse: 8 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 7 K (ND)
Game Recap:
I'm a bit befuddled. The pitching matchup for this game was clearly in the Cardinals favor and it showed from the start as Lohse started off with four perfect innings of baseball, while Suppan gave up three quick runs. But LaRussa stuck with his right handed savior for one inning two long and the Brewers chalked up their second come from behind victory at new Busch Stadium following a Bill Hall go ahead solo home run in the top of the ninth inning.
The game started out extremely brutal for the Brewers, despite Rickie Weeks' loud out to lead off the game. The Cardinals led the game early with a one out bomb by Ryan Ludwick, who took a first pitch BP fastball deep to left-center field. Pujols took took the next pitch to the gap for a double and all I could think to myself was, "Oh man, they brought Suppan back far too early." I was looking right as Rick Ankiel's infield single scored Pujols from first after a terrible indecisive play by Prince Fielder to go after the ball and then block the line to first base for Rickie to throw out Ankiel. Suppan would get out of the jam 2-0 despite another base hit from Yadier Molina.
But then things settled down a bit, Lohse even needed time to settle down. Lohse benefited from a huge strike zone from home plate umpire Joe West. But don't think I'm making excuses. Lohse recognized what he was getting and took advantage of it... well. His two seamer had life and I thought for sure there was no way the Brewers were going to get to him inning after inning. Before you could blink, Lohse had gone through six innings of baseball and given up only a single to Prince Fielder on a groundball up the middle. And in that time, the Cardinals tacked on an insurance run from a walk and a double by Troy Glaus and Yadier Molina, respectively, giving the Cards a 3-0 lead going into the seventh.
JJ Hardy stopped the bleeding in the top of the seventh by proving someone could find a gap, and promptly doubled to lead off the inning. A swinging bunt single by Ryan Braun moved Hardy to third with no one out, bringing up Prince Fielder, who got ahead in the count and poked a ball to the opposite field for a run-scoring single. Fortunately for the Cardinals, Gabe Kapler was protecting Fielder. Kapler responded with two strikeouts on pitches out of the zone and a GIDP in the 7th inning to destroy the momentum... for that inning.
After Suppan was able to work around a Pujols single in the bottom half, the Brewers went right back to hitting. Jason Kendall hit a solid one out single to left center and came around to score on a yanked outside pitch double from Rickie Weeks. JJ Hardy then got him around on a ground ball single to left to the tie the game. And all of a sudden the momentum had swung all the way to the Brewers. Brian Shouse pitched an excellent eighth inning to get the Brewers to the ninth against the struggling Cardinals bullpen.
And struggled they did, well at least for one pitch. After Ron Villone got Prince to look at strike three right down the middle of the plate, Kyle McClellan got Gabe Kapler to ground out to short. But McClellan's 0-1 fastball looked oddly like Ryan Franklin's slider from Monday night and Bill Hall repeated his home run stroke, giving the Brewers the lead and the victory after Salomon Torres pitched a perfect ninth to give him his 18th save of the year.
Game Changing Play:
You want to say Bill Hall's homerun, but I'm going to say JJ Hardy's RBI single to the tie the game in the eighth. Tony LaRussa was trying to hard to avoid using his bullpen, and even though Lohse had a gem going with just over 100 pitches, he wasn't locating as well and his pitches were flattening out quite a bit. The Brewers took advantage, which they'll have to do every chance they get as this run continues.
What's on Tap?:
The Brewers are winners of six straight and continue their series against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium behind the arms of their two aces. CC Sabathia takes the mound for the Brewers after back to back complete games and will be taking on the Cardinals often overlooked, Braden Looper. Looper is 4-6 with a 4.76 ERA against the Brewers in 31 games and five starts, so he's had mixed success to say the least. He'll need to have some more success to prevent the Brewers from taking a two game lead in the Wild Card.
Rickie Weeks Numbers
In case you were wondering why Ned Yost won't move Rickie from the leadoff spot, consider the numbers going back to the Colorado series. Not including yesterday's game where he got on three times, had three RBIs and two runs...
9 G .286/.405/.400 4 RBIs 5 BB 13 K 2 HBP 3 SB 11 R in 42 PA
Ahem. Everybody get off the guy's back. He has talent and is the one guy on this team that will undoubtedly put the Brewers over the top if he performs reasonably well. Ray Durham is not the solution, he's a band aid to motivate Weeks and give the Brewers some reasonable options off the bench. Dillon performed very well, but Yost stacks his lineups with all the lefties or all the righties, leaving the matchup game pretty easy to figure out. Durham saves that. Rickie Weeks has not been traded and will not be replaced because he has talent. What he needs to figure out is how to use it more consistently, as he has in the last ten games.
Side note: Brewers are 8-2 in their last ten. A victory tonight could mean big things, but with Jeff Suppan on the mound, I am a bit nervous.
9 G .286/.405/.400 4 RBIs 5 BB 13 K 2 HBP 3 SB 11 R in 42 PA
Ahem. Everybody get off the guy's back. He has talent and is the one guy on this team that will undoubtedly put the Brewers over the top if he performs reasonably well. Ray Durham is not the solution, he's a band aid to motivate Weeks and give the Brewers some reasonable options off the bench. Dillon performed very well, but Yost stacks his lineups with all the lefties or all the righties, leaving the matchup game pretty easy to figure out. Durham saves that. Rickie Weeks has not been traded and will not be replaced because he has talent. What he needs to figure out is how to use it more consistently, as he has in the last ten games.
Side note: Brewers are 8-2 in their last ten. A victory tonight could mean big things, but with Jeff Suppan on the mound, I am a bit nervous.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Brewers Giants Series Recap
It's getting tougher and tougher to keep this thing going as work gets busier and busier. However, I promise I will keep knocking out series previews, recaps and different types of analysis.
Scores Recap:
Milwaukee Brewers 9 San Francisco Giants 1
Milwaukee Brewers 8 San Francisco Giants 5
Milwaukee Brewers 7 San Francisco Giants 4
MVPs of the Series:
Ryan Braun: 6/13; 2 2Bs, 2 3Bs, HR, 5 RBIs, SB, BB, 3 Rs
Jose Castillo: 4/12; 2B, 2 Rs, 3 RBIs, SB
Ryan Braun did a whole lot of everything this weekend. He hit for power, he stole a base, he took a walk and even played a pretty good left field. The beautiful thing is he didn't do it alone. Prince Fielder pretty much matched Ryan with a 5/13 line, two HRs, 5 RBIs and two runs of his own. This is what Brewers fans like to see: their two big bats showing their ability to single handedly carry this team. However, their performances have been a little over-shadowed by the big three. That's right THREE. Manny Parra has actually outpitched Ben Sheets over the last month or so and you that's not very disputable. Nevertheless, the NL Central has a lot to be afraid of if both Braun and Fielder are on over the next few weeks.
The Giants were marred by the flu-bug this weekend, and it clearly showed, but you have to wonder how much of a difference it really made. Surprisingly, Jose Castillo was the only real bright spot for the Giants in this three game set, as Aaron Rowand and Randy Winn were pretty much kept silent. You would have fully expected someone like Matt Cain or Tim Lincecum to pick up the nod, but while both were impressive at times, they were a bit vulnerable. Castillo was easily the most productive, though, as he seemed to be the only Giant trying to keep them in the game.
What Was the Difference?:
Defense. Let's be honest here, neither team impressed with their leather, combining for nine errors. But San Francisco committed six of those errors and gave the Brewers far too many opportunities. These mishaps only led to one extra run, but also at least 15-20 extra pitches for Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum. Both of these guys were dealing, but were forced into far too many precarious positions as a result of some really awful misplays. In the end, the pitch count and number opportunities caught up to them. I'm not really sure why they pushed Lincecum so hard considering his health issues, but his last pitch put the game out of reach and gave the Brewers the sweep.
Causes for Concern:
The Giants are clearly out of it as far as the playoffs go, but you have to wonder if the team is playing like it. There were quite a few careless mistakes this weekend, and unfortunately they all came in front of some sell out crowds. First of all, props to the San Fran market for putting fans in the stands when your team is 18 games under .500. But shame on the Giants for not showing up, and for the most part embarrassing themselves in the field, especially with their three best pitchers on the mound. The biggest culprit, though, was Kellchi Yabu, who up until this series was pretty solid out of the pen. This time around he threw a wild pitch that scored two runs, hit two batters, walked one an gave up two runs of his own in just one third of an inning.
The Brewers blunders on the defensive end of things conjure up memories of a year ago. Until about two weeks ago, the defense had been somewhat of a strength of this squad, but the past ten games have been an adventure. It's a bit difficult to swallow because the starting pitching of this team has been going deep and saving this bullpen for the home stretch. We cannot afford to continue to give free outs and hurt the starters' chances of going deep. The fewer the innings for the bullpen, the less likely they'll be to blow up, and the more confidence they'll gain.
Causes for Excitement:
Despite their struggles this weekend, Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum are clearly the mainstays of this organization and they have not disappointed. Cain looked phenomenal, but errors and a mistake or two really hurt him in the long run. Lincecum's line isn't impressive, but he struck out eight in his six innings of work, which is pretty damn good. You may even be able to throw Jonathon Sanchez into that group, who has nasty stuff and was able to strike out just as many in 5.1 innings. If somehow the Giants could find some offense, they could be a force to be reckoned with.
When Doug Melvin made the big move to bring CC Sabathia to the Brewers, I'm sure he imagined this weekend was going to happen over and over and over again. With their three aces on the mound, the Brewers found themselves ahead to start every game, got spectacular performances from two of them, and saved the other with an offensive storm. This could be a preview of what teams will have to see in the playoffs.
Scores Recap:
Milwaukee Brewers 9 San Francisco Giants 1
Milwaukee Brewers 8 San Francisco Giants 5
Milwaukee Brewers 7 San Francisco Giants 4
MVPs of the Series:
Ryan Braun: 6/13; 2 2Bs, 2 3Bs, HR, 5 RBIs, SB, BB, 3 Rs
Jose Castillo: 4/12; 2B, 2 Rs, 3 RBIs, SB
Ryan Braun did a whole lot of everything this weekend. He hit for power, he stole a base, he took a walk and even played a pretty good left field. The beautiful thing is he didn't do it alone. Prince Fielder pretty much matched Ryan with a 5/13 line, two HRs, 5 RBIs and two runs of his own. This is what Brewers fans like to see: their two big bats showing their ability to single handedly carry this team. However, their performances have been a little over-shadowed by the big three. That's right THREE. Manny Parra has actually outpitched Ben Sheets over the last month or so and you that's not very disputable. Nevertheless, the NL Central has a lot to be afraid of if both Braun and Fielder are on over the next few weeks.
The Giants were marred by the flu-bug this weekend, and it clearly showed, but you have to wonder how much of a difference it really made. Surprisingly, Jose Castillo was the only real bright spot for the Giants in this three game set, as Aaron Rowand and Randy Winn were pretty much kept silent. You would have fully expected someone like Matt Cain or Tim Lincecum to pick up the nod, but while both were impressive at times, they were a bit vulnerable. Castillo was easily the most productive, though, as he seemed to be the only Giant trying to keep them in the game.
What Was the Difference?:
Defense. Let's be honest here, neither team impressed with their leather, combining for nine errors. But San Francisco committed six of those errors and gave the Brewers far too many opportunities. These mishaps only led to one extra run, but also at least 15-20 extra pitches for Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum. Both of these guys were dealing, but were forced into far too many precarious positions as a result of some really awful misplays. In the end, the pitch count and number opportunities caught up to them. I'm not really sure why they pushed Lincecum so hard considering his health issues, but his last pitch put the game out of reach and gave the Brewers the sweep.
Causes for Concern:
The Giants are clearly out of it as far as the playoffs go, but you have to wonder if the team is playing like it. There were quite a few careless mistakes this weekend, and unfortunately they all came in front of some sell out crowds. First of all, props to the San Fran market for putting fans in the stands when your team is 18 games under .500. But shame on the Giants for not showing up, and for the most part embarrassing themselves in the field, especially with their three best pitchers on the mound. The biggest culprit, though, was Kellchi Yabu, who up until this series was pretty solid out of the pen. This time around he threw a wild pitch that scored two runs, hit two batters, walked one an gave up two runs of his own in just one third of an inning.
The Brewers blunders on the defensive end of things conjure up memories of a year ago. Until about two weeks ago, the defense had been somewhat of a strength of this squad, but the past ten games have been an adventure. It's a bit difficult to swallow because the starting pitching of this team has been going deep and saving this bullpen for the home stretch. We cannot afford to continue to give free outs and hurt the starters' chances of going deep. The fewer the innings for the bullpen, the less likely they'll be to blow up, and the more confidence they'll gain.
Causes for Excitement:
Despite their struggles this weekend, Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum are clearly the mainstays of this organization and they have not disappointed. Cain looked phenomenal, but errors and a mistake or two really hurt him in the long run. Lincecum's line isn't impressive, but he struck out eight in his six innings of work, which is pretty damn good. You may even be able to throw Jonathon Sanchez into that group, who has nasty stuff and was able to strike out just as many in 5.1 innings. If somehow the Giants could find some offense, they could be a force to be reckoned with.
When Doug Melvin made the big move to bring CC Sabathia to the Brewers, I'm sure he imagined this weekend was going to happen over and over and over again. With their three aces on the mound, the Brewers found themselves ahead to start every game, got spectacular performances from two of them, and saved the other with an offensive storm. This could be a preview of what teams will have to see in the playoffs.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Brewers Giants Series Preview
The Series:
Milwaukee Brewers (52-43) @ San Francisco Giants (40-55)
Who's on Tap?:
July 18th: CC Sabathia (8-8, 3.67 ERA) vs. Matt Cain (5-7, 4.06 ERA)
July 19th: Ben Sheets (10-3, 2.85 ERA) vs. Jonathon Sanchez (8-5, 3.97 ERA)
July 20th: Manny Parra (8-2, 3.78 ERA) vs. Tim Lincecum (11-2, 2.57 ERA)
Who Should You Watch?:
If you didn't know already, the Giants aren't that good of team. As a result, guys like Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum get more than overlooked as absolute studs. Throw in Jonathon Sanchez, who is quietly becoming a pretty good number three, and the Giants seem to have a nice core in their starting rotation. At the plate, the Brewers need to keep an eye on Fred Lewis, the Giants speedy left handed lead off hitter. If there's something that the Brewers have trouble with, it's their ability to defend the bunt. With Sheets and Sabathia toeing the rubber in the first two games, we may see a healthy bit of bunts this series. The same can be said for Randy Winn.
The Brewers need to counter with some offense, and I suspect the break is going to help out the 'struggling' Prince Fielder. There are a lot of teams out there that would love to have a guy hitting .270/.350 with 18 home runs, but that just isn't enough for Prince. In four games at AT&T Park, Prince is .500/.529/.571. On top of that, he's hitting .284/.395/.418 against the Giants in 19 games. On the mound, keep your eye on Manny Parra. As the Brewers move into the second half, they're going to need Parra, Sabathia and Sheets to all be lights out and make up for any offensive blunders that may come their way down the stretch. Parra does carry a 3.38 ERA against Giants in his 10.2 innings of work. We'll see if he continue that success.
Keys to Victory:
There are far too many holes in the Giants lineup for any one to expect them to score a lot of runs against quality pitching, as shown by the fact that the Giants rank 14th in the NL in runs scored. With the Brewers walking in with their three top pitchers, the Giants are going to have to rely on their starting pitching to keep them in the game and knock out the Brewers starters early to go after the vulnerable bullpen. But if they get down early, they'll find themselves in a real tight spot.
The Brewers are going to have to do exactly what I just said SF has to try and avoid. They'll need to jump on the Giants' starters early. I'm not talking about scoring runs in bunches, but manufacturing a few runs to put the pressure on their offense. This puts the manager in a position to consider pulling their starter, and San Fran's bullpen can't be relied on for too many innings. Rickie Weeks will be important in this regard. He needs to get on and advance without wasting outs.
Predictions and Notes:
- It's a bit nerve wracking to see Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum face the Brewers to start the second half, considering they combined for 15 innings of two run baseball against the Cubs last week. Nevertheless, I have a good feeling the second half slump Brewers' fans are so accustomed to won't be there this season; not with Sabathia and Sheets in the rotation. Here's some wishful thinking, the Brewers win Friday and Sunday, but struggle against the hard throwing, rejuvenated Jonathon Sanchez.
- With all the BS talk about the HR Derby screwing up your swing, maybe it'll turn Ryan Braun into a patient hitter. Not likely, but it's always fun to see how All-Stars respond to playing in the middle of the week when others do not. Guys like Braun and Hamilton always deserve a little more attention as far as looking to see if anything changes in their game.
Milwaukee Brewers (52-43) @ San Francisco Giants (40-55)
Who's on Tap?:
July 18th: CC Sabathia (8-8, 3.67 ERA) vs. Matt Cain (5-7, 4.06 ERA)
July 19th: Ben Sheets (10-3, 2.85 ERA) vs. Jonathon Sanchez (8-5, 3.97 ERA)
July 20th: Manny Parra (8-2, 3.78 ERA) vs. Tim Lincecum (11-2, 2.57 ERA)
Who Should You Watch?:
If you didn't know already, the Giants aren't that good of team. As a result, guys like Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum get more than overlooked as absolute studs. Throw in Jonathon Sanchez, who is quietly becoming a pretty good number three, and the Giants seem to have a nice core in their starting rotation. At the plate, the Brewers need to keep an eye on Fred Lewis, the Giants speedy left handed lead off hitter. If there's something that the Brewers have trouble with, it's their ability to defend the bunt. With Sheets and Sabathia toeing the rubber in the first two games, we may see a healthy bit of bunts this series. The same can be said for Randy Winn.
The Brewers need to counter with some offense, and I suspect the break is going to help out the 'struggling' Prince Fielder. There are a lot of teams out there that would love to have a guy hitting .270/.350 with 18 home runs, but that just isn't enough for Prince. In four games at AT&T Park, Prince is .500/.529/.571. On top of that, he's hitting .284/.395/.418 against the Giants in 19 games. On the mound, keep your eye on Manny Parra. As the Brewers move into the second half, they're going to need Parra, Sabathia and Sheets to all be lights out and make up for any offensive blunders that may come their way down the stretch. Parra does carry a 3.38 ERA against Giants in his 10.2 innings of work. We'll see if he continue that success.
Keys to Victory:
There are far too many holes in the Giants lineup for any one to expect them to score a lot of runs against quality pitching, as shown by the fact that the Giants rank 14th in the NL in runs scored. With the Brewers walking in with their three top pitchers, the Giants are going to have to rely on their starting pitching to keep them in the game and knock out the Brewers starters early to go after the vulnerable bullpen. But if they get down early, they'll find themselves in a real tight spot.
The Brewers are going to have to do exactly what I just said SF has to try and avoid. They'll need to jump on the Giants' starters early. I'm not talking about scoring runs in bunches, but manufacturing a few runs to put the pressure on their offense. This puts the manager in a position to consider pulling their starter, and San Fran's bullpen can't be relied on for too many innings. Rickie Weeks will be important in this regard. He needs to get on and advance without wasting outs.
Predictions and Notes:
- It's a bit nerve wracking to see Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum face the Brewers to start the second half, considering they combined for 15 innings of two run baseball against the Cubs last week. Nevertheless, I have a good feeling the second half slump Brewers' fans are so accustomed to won't be there this season; not with Sabathia and Sheets in the rotation. Here's some wishful thinking, the Brewers win Friday and Sunday, but struggle against the hard throwing, rejuvenated Jonathon Sanchez.
- With all the BS talk about the HR Derby screwing up your swing, maybe it'll turn Ryan Braun into a patient hitter. Not likely, but it's always fun to see how All-Stars respond to playing in the middle of the week when others do not. Guys like Braun and Hamilton always deserve a little more attention as far as looking to see if anything changes in their game.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
What is this team's strength?
I'm really sick of reading that the Brewers are an offensive team. Let's be honest here, while the Brewers have a ton of power in nearly every spot in the lineup, that does not necessarily mean a lot of runs. This team's strength is pitching. Here's the numbers:
The Brewers rank:
22nd in Batting Average (.254 Leader Rangers .283) out of 30 teams in the Major Leagues
21st in OBP (.323 Leader Cubs .360)
7th in SLG (.436 Leader Rangers .461)
12th in Runs Scored (440 Leader Rangers 538 Cubs 507)
13th in ERA (4.09 Leader A's 3.39 WOW)
13th in SO (645 Leader Giants 741)
12th in BB (332 Leader Rangers 395)
So basically these guys hit for power and that's about it. No average, no OBP, leading to an average amount of runs. They've played 95 games this year meaning they score 4.6 runs per game. That's not exactly above or below the league average. Because of this team's slugging, it has the ability to score runs in bunches, but the runs scored stat indicates their inconsistency. Until inconsistency turns to consistency, I believe this team is a pitching team that has a lot of work to do on the offensive end. Pitchers aren't that scared of the Brewers ::insert Nelson Figueroa::
The Brewers rank:
22nd in Batting Average (.254 Leader Rangers .283) out of 30 teams in the Major Leagues
21st in OBP (.323 Leader Cubs .360)
7th in SLG (.436 Leader Rangers .461)
12th in Runs Scored (440 Leader Rangers 538 Cubs 507)
13th in ERA (4.09 Leader A's 3.39 WOW)
13th in SO (645 Leader Giants 741)
12th in BB (332 Leader Rangers 395)
So basically these guys hit for power and that's about it. No average, no OBP, leading to an average amount of runs. They've played 95 games this year meaning they score 4.6 runs per game. That's not exactly above or below the league average. Because of this team's slugging, it has the ability to score runs in bunches, but the runs scored stat indicates their inconsistency. Until inconsistency turns to consistency, I believe this team is a pitching team that has a lot of work to do on the offensive end. Pitchers aren't that scared of the Brewers ::insert Nelson Figueroa::
Monday, July 14, 2008
Brewers Report Cards: Fielders Edition
Man, I rarely watch the Home Run Derby, but I wanted to see if Braun would show up. Instead Josh Hamilton did and put every one in his shadow. Absolutely ridiculous. On with today's report cards.
Prince Fielder:
Last Year: .284/.376/.620 29 HR 70 RBI 72 K 41 BB
This Year: .270/.357/.488 18 HR 52 RBI 71 K 44 BB
Prince has actually been more consistent this year than years past, but not with his power. As a result, his average has dropped a bit because balls that went out last year are staying in the ball park. That, unfortunately, has Prince more frustrated than he should be. I'm pleased with his production though, even if he has the ability to be considerably better at the plate. Why am I pleased? If you haven't watch Brewers baseball before, you'll know that not many Brewers take walks and that when Prince Fielder is hot, he hits in bunches and can singlehandedly win games for you. Prince has yet to really get hot, so we'll see if that means anything.
The biggest knock against Prince though is his shoddy defense. Despite going vegan and perhaps cutting a few pounds, Prince's range seems to have decrease. So has his ability to scoop balls in the dirt or field bunts to the right side. It suddenly has become a huge liability at first. Just ask Yovani Gallardo or Brian Shouse. Shouse was lucky enough to come out unscathed. Gallardo tore his ACL. Those things don't show up on the box score, but weigh heavy on my grade for him.
Grade: B-
Rickie Weeks:
Last Year: .221/.328/.392 5 HR 19 RBI 58 K 31 BB 9 SB
This Year: .217/.320/.367 8 HR 24 RBI 70 K 36 BB 13 SB
Rickie is having essentially the same year he had last year. Low average, low power low and low on base. Unfortunately for Rickie his K-rate is up a bit, but he managed to get a few more games in, 17 more than he got in last year before the All-Star Break. But Rickie has scored quite a few more runs (58) than he did last year (39) even with the difference in playing time. Even so, Rickie's offense leaves much to be desired, obviously. He ended up with a .374 OBP at the end of last season, so if he can manage to anything similarly, the middle of the order will be very grateful.
The biggest bright spot for Rickie this year has been his defense. A lot of people don't really agree with me on this one, but his range and arm are big pluses and he's utilized both this season. He has seven errors this season, which is a slight improvement from last season (.980 to a .976 FPct). There's still a lot of people going after Rickie's defense, but by the end of the year, they'll be pleasantly surprised by what he's done. With this improved skill, Rickie has the physical talents to be the best second baseman in the league. Whether or not he can utilize that talent is up to him, but if he doesn't get moving fast, you might see Alcides Escobar or JJ Hardy move to second very quickly.
Grade: C-
JJ Hardy:
Last Year: .280/.338/.495 18 HR 54 RBI 48 K 28 BB
This Year: .283/.352/.476 13 HR 40 RBI 48 K 33 BB
About three weeks ago JJ was hitting .242/.319/.343, but he he erupted all of a sudden after a few weeks of batting second in the lineup. And to be totally honest, I'm happier with his numbers this year than last year. The power is still there as is the average, but JJ is taking more walks and turning into a solid number two hitter. JJ struggled a bit a month into the season as a result of strained rotator cuff in his non throwing arm. That basically meant he was fine in the field and hurt at the plate, considering his left arm is his lead arm. But Ned Yost did an excellent job finding days here and there to get JJ out of the lineup, and at one point pulled him for a whole week.
JJ also has displayed a slick glove as well this year, leading most shortstops in FPct for most of the season. But he has had trouble in the field at times and his range, though not terrible, still leaves something to be desired. Even with these so-called 'down-sides' JJ and Hart have shown that they are more deserving of long-term contracts than a Prince Fielder because they are more capable of sustaining the defense for more years to come.
Grade: B+
Bill Hall:
Last Year: .271/.336/.448 9 HR 38 RBI 75 K 29 BB
This Year: .234/.294/.431 12 HR 39 RBI 74 K 20 BB
Billy has been a big disappointment this season to say the very least. His KRate is bit up while is BBRate is down. Most of these problems, however, revolve around right handed pitching where Billy is hitting a dismal .167/.223/.311 in 180 ABs. That's rough, but another move by the Brewers may have saved Billy from a completely miserable season as his numbers have climbed considerably as a right of only seeing left-handed pitching. As a result, the Brewers third base position may be one of the most productive in the league.
On the field Billy reverting back to third has been a bit of an adventure. He's carrying the second worst fielding percentage of any one in the league, and has made far too many ninth innings nail biters. What the problem is, is beyond me. Hall was never particularly sure-handed at any time during his career. He's always made the web gems and struggled with the routine plays, and today is no different making me think it's a mental thing, but I can't be sure. Nevertheless, every part of Billy's game needs to be improved, but if they manage to stick strictly to left-handed pitching, Hall will be serviceable the remainder of the season.
Grade: F
Russell Branyan:
Last Year: .206/.344/.449 7 HR 18 RBI 42 K 21 BB
This Year: .245/.331/.604 11 HR 19 RBI 37 K 14 BB
Branyan signed a minor league contract with the Brewers because his family lived in Nashville, but he absolutely raked down there and was brought up at the end of May. Surprisingly he's been very productive, though nobody expected it to continue for very long. Though that has been the case, Branyan provided just enough spark in the lineup to get the Brewers through a tough stretch and help out the guys around him. The big improvement from Branyan has been the change in his swing. He now sets up in a more ready situation and can keep his bat in the zone longer. With his strength, almost everything he hits in the air has the chance to go out and this year it has.
Russell has had some problems the past few weeks though. With a handful of lefties starting the for Arizona and Colorado, Branyan hasn't receive regular playing time and his swing looks out of sync. Not to mention his defense has floundered as well. How much longer he spends with the team is solely dependent upon his success at the plate If he somehow finds a way to get back his hot bat, he'll be around, but Brad Nelson may get his first call up if he falls apart.
Grade: C
Jason Kendall:
Last Year: .227/.263/.280 2 HR 21 RBI 26 K 12 BB
This Year: .258/.339/.333 1 HR 26 RBI 25 K 28 BB
Jason hasn't been that fun to watch at the plate this year. I'm more impressed that he has one homerun more than anything. But his OBP is healthy enough, healthier than Johnny Estrada's ever will be, and carried the Brewers for the first month of baseball. The important thing is that Jason has finally got back to taking walks. At one point in his career he was a .400 OBP guy, but those days are long gone.
Jason really isn't here to hit though. He's here to catch and run this pithing staff, which he's done magnificently. After every game Brewers starters win, their first words are Jason Kendall. It's the first time I've ever seen a guy have this much of an effect on a pitching staff. On top of this Jason has played 86 of the Brewers 95 games behind the plate. That is unheard of these days, especially from a 33 year old man. Apparently he has bionic knees. Did I mention he's been tossing guys out at a record pace as well? Something like 42%. It's been ridiculous. Jason's offensive production warrants him a below average grade, but the whole package earns him a...
Grade: B+ (Get that OBP up over .350 and it's an easy A)
Ryan Braun:
Last Year: .350/.391/.663 11 HR 32 RBI 37 K 11 BB
This Year: .286/.324/.549 23 HR 66 RBI 78 K 20 BB
At this point last year, Braun was only into his 40th game as a big leaguer, but somehow his walk rate has dropped quite a bit (11/179 vs 20/401). However, Braun's power has jumped considerably, his KRate has dropped some and his willingness to go up the middle has improved as well. All this and he's changed positions. Take that Bill Hall! It's considerably hard to improve upon what Braun did last year, and Braun has proven that. You can't bat .330 forever without making adjustments, and Braun hasn't made too many just yet. He still strikes out far too often on pitches off the plate and has taken his fair share of backwards K's. He'll need to make more and more adjustments as the season goes if he wants to earn his contract.
Braun's move to the outfield is proving to be the right one. It's clear that a considerable amount of improvement has been made there, but Braun's routes are off nearly every time. As a result he rarely puts himself in a throwing position coming out of the catch. Yes, he has six outfield assists, but there was room for at least three more if he carried some momentum into the ball. Corey Hart has this same problem. Another problem Braun has had is his 'aggressiveness,' perhaps 'selfishness' when these assist opportunities show up. We all know Braun has a cannon for an arm, but he never throws the ball to home in a way where it can be cut off. Though it's on led to a few baserunners advancing thus far, this needs to be remedied immediately because the run expectancy shoots up a ton when a runner is at third versus a player at second.
Grade: B+ (Borderline A-)
Mike Cameron:
Last Year: .262/.325/.446 11 HR 43 RBI 84 K 28 BB
This Year: .231/.320/.481 14 HR 35 RBI 71 K 28 BB
Cameron missed the first 25 games of the season this year because he was busted on a drug test last season for a banned stimulant. But that hasn't stopped him from having the highest KRate on the team. He'll be the leader in strikeouts within a month or so which is frustrating, but he does have eight more walks than Braun in 150 fewer plate appearances. But that's just my frustrations with Braun's high strikeout total and low OBP. Not that Cameron has been any better. Mike has been coming around though, batting .306/.432/.583 in June. It has pretty much gone unnoticed though because fans were too caught up in the Sabthia trade and the All-Star vote for Hart, Braun and Sheets.
In the field Cameron has been what he has been for years. He has top notch range and takes some of the best routes in baseball. I can't count how many extra base hits he's saved our pitching staff from. Yes, he's made a few mistakes, but those come with the territory of being a professional baseball player. For Brewers' fans it's like poker. You always remember the bad beats, but never the big wins, which Cameron has been this year in the field.
Grade: C
Corey Hart:
Last Year: .298/.368/.508 11 HR 33 RBI 46 K 23 BB
This Year: .289/.327/.504 15 HR 58 RBI 66 K 17 BB
Last year Corey wasn't given the starting job right off the bat. It was a bit frustrating as a fan at first because we knew Corey could hit, but because he wasn't proving it, Ned went to his veterans. That didn't last for long though as Corey exploded on to the seen. This season Hart has finally received the recognition he deserves earning him a spot on this year's All-Star Final Vote. Leave it to Brewers fans to be a little obsessed and get him in there. But they didn't do it just because he was from Milwaukee (well at least not all of them). A lot of them simply understood that Corey has been the only really consistent hitter in this lineup. He has never really slumped this year, unless you count a power deficiency to start the year a slump. While Corey's power numbers jumped this year in the homerun department, his walk numbers have dropped considerably, which is a cause for concern.
In the field, Hart brings pretty good range and reasonable routes to the ball, but he often finds his footwork a little off when he needs to get a throw off. There are far far too many times where he simply sits under the ball and waits for it instead of gathering some momentum and using his wiry frame to throw the ball in. On top of that he often hesitates and watches the runner before throwing. Corey was moved to the outfield only four years ago, so he obviously still has a lot to learn there, but this is an obvious problem that should have been worked on right away.
Grade: A-
Gabe Kapler:
Last Year: Was Coaching
This Year: .315/.352/.517 5 HR 27 RBI 23 K 8 BB
It was the Gabe Kapler and Jason Kendall show in April, and there's not a Brewer fan out there who expected it. While Kendall turned down the noise a little, Kapler has kept chugging along, stealing starts from Mike Cameron every now and then. This is easily the best comeback story of the year (OK second, Josh Hamilton), as Gabe has turned himself into the Brewers best bench player in quite some time. Kapler surprised a lot of people in the first half by hitting a ton of homeruns and coming up big in the clutch and in the pinch hitting role. This is just another pick up by Melvin that has gone under-rated because of guys like Mota and Gagne.
Grade: A
Craig Counsell:
Last Year: .239/.346/.330 2 HR 15 RBI 27 K 28 BB
This Year: .248/.348/.338 1 HR 9 RBI 21 K 19 BB
I still can't stand Counsell, but he's been very important this year for the Brewers with Hardy and Weeks being hurt this year. Craig was rocking a .220 average for much of the year and was hitting nearly every ball on the ground to the first baseman. But from June 11th to June 21st, Craig found himself on in nearly every game and saving the Brewers from a very rough start to the interleague homestand. In the end Cousell has been serviceable, but far from great. It's just unfortunate he doesn't have anything else to offer.
Grade: B-
Alright, I'm tapping. This thing is getting far too agonizing to continue to write with only Joe Dillon and Mike Rivera left. Both have fewer than 70 ABs (65 for Joe, 47 for Mike), so it's hard to offer any analysis, but both deserve A's in my book for their contribution off the bench. Mike only plays every seven days and is batting .319, while Joe is carrying a .359 OBP despite a .209 average. These guys have been big to say the very least and are important to the team.
That's it. Maybe I'll go over the coaches tomorrow, but I doubt it. I want an All-Star Break too! Cheers!
Prince Fielder:
Last Year: .284/.376/.620 29 HR 70 RBI 72 K 41 BB
This Year: .270/.357/.488 18 HR 52 RBI 71 K 44 BB
Prince has actually been more consistent this year than years past, but not with his power. As a result, his average has dropped a bit because balls that went out last year are staying in the ball park. That, unfortunately, has Prince more frustrated than he should be. I'm pleased with his production though, even if he has the ability to be considerably better at the plate. Why am I pleased? If you haven't watch Brewers baseball before, you'll know that not many Brewers take walks and that when Prince Fielder is hot, he hits in bunches and can singlehandedly win games for you. Prince has yet to really get hot, so we'll see if that means anything.
The biggest knock against Prince though is his shoddy defense. Despite going vegan and perhaps cutting a few pounds, Prince's range seems to have decrease. So has his ability to scoop balls in the dirt or field bunts to the right side. It suddenly has become a huge liability at first. Just ask Yovani Gallardo or Brian Shouse. Shouse was lucky enough to come out unscathed. Gallardo tore his ACL. Those things don't show up on the box score, but weigh heavy on my grade for him.
Grade: B-
Rickie Weeks:
Last Year: .221/.328/.392 5 HR 19 RBI 58 K 31 BB 9 SB
This Year: .217/.320/.367 8 HR 24 RBI 70 K 36 BB 13 SB
Rickie is having essentially the same year he had last year. Low average, low power low and low on base. Unfortunately for Rickie his K-rate is up a bit, but he managed to get a few more games in, 17 more than he got in last year before the All-Star Break. But Rickie has scored quite a few more runs (58) than he did last year (39) even with the difference in playing time. Even so, Rickie's offense leaves much to be desired, obviously. He ended up with a .374 OBP at the end of last season, so if he can manage to anything similarly, the middle of the order will be very grateful.
The biggest bright spot for Rickie this year has been his defense. A lot of people don't really agree with me on this one, but his range and arm are big pluses and he's utilized both this season. He has seven errors this season, which is a slight improvement from last season (.980 to a .976 FPct). There's still a lot of people going after Rickie's defense, but by the end of the year, they'll be pleasantly surprised by what he's done. With this improved skill, Rickie has the physical talents to be the best second baseman in the league. Whether or not he can utilize that talent is up to him, but if he doesn't get moving fast, you might see Alcides Escobar or JJ Hardy move to second very quickly.
Grade: C-
JJ Hardy:
Last Year: .280/.338/.495 18 HR 54 RBI 48 K 28 BB
This Year: .283/.352/.476 13 HR 40 RBI 48 K 33 BB
About three weeks ago JJ was hitting .242/.319/.343, but he he erupted all of a sudden after a few weeks of batting second in the lineup. And to be totally honest, I'm happier with his numbers this year than last year. The power is still there as is the average, but JJ is taking more walks and turning into a solid number two hitter. JJ struggled a bit a month into the season as a result of strained rotator cuff in his non throwing arm. That basically meant he was fine in the field and hurt at the plate, considering his left arm is his lead arm. But Ned Yost did an excellent job finding days here and there to get JJ out of the lineup, and at one point pulled him for a whole week.
JJ also has displayed a slick glove as well this year, leading most shortstops in FPct for most of the season. But he has had trouble in the field at times and his range, though not terrible, still leaves something to be desired. Even with these so-called 'down-sides' JJ and Hart have shown that they are more deserving of long-term contracts than a Prince Fielder because they are more capable of sustaining the defense for more years to come.
Grade: B+
Bill Hall:
Last Year: .271/.336/.448 9 HR 38 RBI 75 K 29 BB
This Year: .234/.294/.431 12 HR 39 RBI 74 K 20 BB
Billy has been a big disappointment this season to say the very least. His KRate is bit up while is BBRate is down. Most of these problems, however, revolve around right handed pitching where Billy is hitting a dismal .167/.223/.311 in 180 ABs. That's rough, but another move by the Brewers may have saved Billy from a completely miserable season as his numbers have climbed considerably as a right of only seeing left-handed pitching. As a result, the Brewers third base position may be one of the most productive in the league.
On the field Billy reverting back to third has been a bit of an adventure. He's carrying the second worst fielding percentage of any one in the league, and has made far too many ninth innings nail biters. What the problem is, is beyond me. Hall was never particularly sure-handed at any time during his career. He's always made the web gems and struggled with the routine plays, and today is no different making me think it's a mental thing, but I can't be sure. Nevertheless, every part of Billy's game needs to be improved, but if they manage to stick strictly to left-handed pitching, Hall will be serviceable the remainder of the season.
Grade: F
Russell Branyan:
Last Year: .206/.344/.449 7 HR 18 RBI 42 K 21 BB
This Year: .245/.331/.604 11 HR 19 RBI 37 K 14 BB
Branyan signed a minor league contract with the Brewers because his family lived in Nashville, but he absolutely raked down there and was brought up at the end of May. Surprisingly he's been very productive, though nobody expected it to continue for very long. Though that has been the case, Branyan provided just enough spark in the lineup to get the Brewers through a tough stretch and help out the guys around him. The big improvement from Branyan has been the change in his swing. He now sets up in a more ready situation and can keep his bat in the zone longer. With his strength, almost everything he hits in the air has the chance to go out and this year it has.
Russell has had some problems the past few weeks though. With a handful of lefties starting the for Arizona and Colorado, Branyan hasn't receive regular playing time and his swing looks out of sync. Not to mention his defense has floundered as well. How much longer he spends with the team is solely dependent upon his success at the plate If he somehow finds a way to get back his hot bat, he'll be around, but Brad Nelson may get his first call up if he falls apart.
Grade: C
Jason Kendall:
Last Year: .227/.263/.280 2 HR 21 RBI 26 K 12 BB
This Year: .258/.339/.333 1 HR 26 RBI 25 K 28 BB
Jason hasn't been that fun to watch at the plate this year. I'm more impressed that he has one homerun more than anything. But his OBP is healthy enough, healthier than Johnny Estrada's ever will be, and carried the Brewers for the first month of baseball. The important thing is that Jason has finally got back to taking walks. At one point in his career he was a .400 OBP guy, but those days are long gone.
Jason really isn't here to hit though. He's here to catch and run this pithing staff, which he's done magnificently. After every game Brewers starters win, their first words are Jason Kendall. It's the first time I've ever seen a guy have this much of an effect on a pitching staff. On top of this Jason has played 86 of the Brewers 95 games behind the plate. That is unheard of these days, especially from a 33 year old man. Apparently he has bionic knees. Did I mention he's been tossing guys out at a record pace as well? Something like 42%. It's been ridiculous. Jason's offensive production warrants him a below average grade, but the whole package earns him a...
Grade: B+ (Get that OBP up over .350 and it's an easy A)
Ryan Braun:
Last Year: .350/.391/.663 11 HR 32 RBI 37 K 11 BB
This Year: .286/.324/.549 23 HR 66 RBI 78 K 20 BB
At this point last year, Braun was only into his 40th game as a big leaguer, but somehow his walk rate has dropped quite a bit (11/179 vs 20/401). However, Braun's power has jumped considerably, his KRate has dropped some and his willingness to go up the middle has improved as well. All this and he's changed positions. Take that Bill Hall! It's considerably hard to improve upon what Braun did last year, and Braun has proven that. You can't bat .330 forever without making adjustments, and Braun hasn't made too many just yet. He still strikes out far too often on pitches off the plate and has taken his fair share of backwards K's. He'll need to make more and more adjustments as the season goes if he wants to earn his contract.
Braun's move to the outfield is proving to be the right one. It's clear that a considerable amount of improvement has been made there, but Braun's routes are off nearly every time. As a result he rarely puts himself in a throwing position coming out of the catch. Yes, he has six outfield assists, but there was room for at least three more if he carried some momentum into the ball. Corey Hart has this same problem. Another problem Braun has had is his 'aggressiveness,' perhaps 'selfishness' when these assist opportunities show up. We all know Braun has a cannon for an arm, but he never throws the ball to home in a way where it can be cut off. Though it's on led to a few baserunners advancing thus far, this needs to be remedied immediately because the run expectancy shoots up a ton when a runner is at third versus a player at second.
Grade: B+ (Borderline A-)
Mike Cameron:
Last Year: .262/.325/.446 11 HR 43 RBI 84 K 28 BB
This Year: .231/.320/.481 14 HR 35 RBI 71 K 28 BB
Cameron missed the first 25 games of the season this year because he was busted on a drug test last season for a banned stimulant. But that hasn't stopped him from having the highest KRate on the team. He'll be the leader in strikeouts within a month or so which is frustrating, but he does have eight more walks than Braun in 150 fewer plate appearances. But that's just my frustrations with Braun's high strikeout total and low OBP. Not that Cameron has been any better. Mike has been coming around though, batting .306/.432/.583 in June. It has pretty much gone unnoticed though because fans were too caught up in the Sabthia trade and the All-Star vote for Hart, Braun and Sheets.
In the field Cameron has been what he has been for years. He has top notch range and takes some of the best routes in baseball. I can't count how many extra base hits he's saved our pitching staff from. Yes, he's made a few mistakes, but those come with the territory of being a professional baseball player. For Brewers' fans it's like poker. You always remember the bad beats, but never the big wins, which Cameron has been this year in the field.
Grade: C
Corey Hart:
Last Year: .298/.368/.508 11 HR 33 RBI 46 K 23 BB
This Year: .289/.327/.504 15 HR 58 RBI 66 K 17 BB
Last year Corey wasn't given the starting job right off the bat. It was a bit frustrating as a fan at first because we knew Corey could hit, but because he wasn't proving it, Ned went to his veterans. That didn't last for long though as Corey exploded on to the seen. This season Hart has finally received the recognition he deserves earning him a spot on this year's All-Star Final Vote. Leave it to Brewers fans to be a little obsessed and get him in there. But they didn't do it just because he was from Milwaukee (well at least not all of them). A lot of them simply understood that Corey has been the only really consistent hitter in this lineup. He has never really slumped this year, unless you count a power deficiency to start the year a slump. While Corey's power numbers jumped this year in the homerun department, his walk numbers have dropped considerably, which is a cause for concern.
In the field, Hart brings pretty good range and reasonable routes to the ball, but he often finds his footwork a little off when he needs to get a throw off. There are far far too many times where he simply sits under the ball and waits for it instead of gathering some momentum and using his wiry frame to throw the ball in. On top of that he often hesitates and watches the runner before throwing. Corey was moved to the outfield only four years ago, so he obviously still has a lot to learn there, but this is an obvious problem that should have been worked on right away.
Grade: A-
Gabe Kapler:
Last Year: Was Coaching
This Year: .315/.352/.517 5 HR 27 RBI 23 K 8 BB
It was the Gabe Kapler and Jason Kendall show in April, and there's not a Brewer fan out there who expected it. While Kendall turned down the noise a little, Kapler has kept chugging along, stealing starts from Mike Cameron every now and then. This is easily the best comeback story of the year (OK second, Josh Hamilton), as Gabe has turned himself into the Brewers best bench player in quite some time. Kapler surprised a lot of people in the first half by hitting a ton of homeruns and coming up big in the clutch and in the pinch hitting role. This is just another pick up by Melvin that has gone under-rated because of guys like Mota and Gagne.
Grade: A
Craig Counsell:
Last Year: .239/.346/.330 2 HR 15 RBI 27 K 28 BB
This Year: .248/.348/.338 1 HR 9 RBI 21 K 19 BB
I still can't stand Counsell, but he's been very important this year for the Brewers with Hardy and Weeks being hurt this year. Craig was rocking a .220 average for much of the year and was hitting nearly every ball on the ground to the first baseman. But from June 11th to June 21st, Craig found himself on in nearly every game and saving the Brewers from a very rough start to the interleague homestand. In the end Cousell has been serviceable, but far from great. It's just unfortunate he doesn't have anything else to offer.
Grade: B-
Alright, I'm tapping. This thing is getting far too agonizing to continue to write with only Joe Dillon and Mike Rivera left. Both have fewer than 70 ABs (65 for Joe, 47 for Mike), so it's hard to offer any analysis, but both deserve A's in my book for their contribution off the bench. Mike only plays every seven days and is batting .319, while Joe is carrying a .359 OBP despite a .209 average. These guys have been big to say the very least and are important to the team.
That's it. Maybe I'll go over the coaches tomorrow, but I doubt it. I want an All-Star Break too! Cheers!
Brewers Report Cards: Pitchers Edition
I didn't want to do this to be honest, but after listening to the radio this morning, and hearing every one say that Ryan Braun deserves an A for his contribution to the team and Prince Fielder deserves a C+, I've gotten a little riled up. But I don't want my emotions to get a hold of me, so after a bit of thought, I want to go over each individual player, show you what they did last year up tot his point, what they've done this year and then explain what they've improved or wavered on. But I have a to offer you all a bit of a disclaimer. I'm a notoriously tough grader. My standard and expectations are those of a top playoff caliber team, and if I think any one is pulling the team away from that goal, I'm going to go for the throat. On with the show.
We'll start with the rotation:
Ben Sheets:
Last Year: 87 IP 7-3 Record 3.31 ERA 61 Ks 19 BB
This Year: 123 IP 10-3 Record 2.85 ERA 108 Ks 28 BB
It's amazing what a contract year and a new catcher can do for you. Sheets has been phenomenal this year, tossing gem after gem. And interestingly, he's given a lot of that credit to Jason Kendall, who perhaps is the reason that Sheets K/Rate is back up to 0.87 K's per inning. This could be a selling point at the end of the year should the Brewers make a big pitch for the rightie. Last year Sheets didn't see himself on the DL to start the season either, though he did skip a couple of starts, which would account for the fewer innings pitched in the first half last season. But a lot of those starts only went six innings, while this year he is going through the seventh on a much more consistent basis.
A lot of the success he's having reall appears to be a result of comfort and health. If you remember, in years past, Sheets would often do that back bend before each pitch, even after he had surgery to repair the problem. Then there was the torn muscle in his upper back that altered his mechanics for much of the 2006 and 2007 seasons. But now, nothing seems to be holding Sheets back, and a healthy summer not dedicated to rehab, but strength seems to have paid off considerably, allowing him to exceed some expectations. Look for Sheets' ERA to climb just a bit, but the success will be there, as it always is when he pitches.
Grade: A
Jeff Suppan:
Last Year: 117 IP 8-8 Record 5.00 ERA 61 K 41 BB
This Year: 101.1 IP 5-6 Record 4.71 ERA 55 K 44 BB
Soup has had a rough year and is notoriously known for coming on strong in the second half. That really didn't appear to be the case this season and Soup carried a 3.93 ERA heading into June this year, but an injured elbow perhaps causes his downslide. Or perhaps its just his walks. Nevertheless, Jeff has done what the Brewers have needed and expected him to do. Stabilize the rotation with a .500 record and a carry a 4.50 ERA. Last year, Soup was doing exactly that and was probably the only successful pitcher the Brewers in August and September, where he lowered his ERA in nearly every outing.
I'm not really sure what this savvy vet will end up doing the rest of the season. I'm sure he'll get his innings in, but he's never had an elbow injury before. Even though it isn't a pitching related injury, it could do a lot to screw up Jeff's mechanics. Time will only tell on this one. Nevertheless, the Brewers will need Jeff to be a solid contributer in the second half.
Grade: B-
Manny Parra:
Last Year: Minors, 106.2 IP 10-4 Record 2.45 ER 106 K 33 BB
This Year: 100 IP 8-2 Record 3.78 ERA 78 K 50 BB
Last years numbers are pretty close to the All-Star break. I don't have a game log so I can't be totally accurate here, but his late July call-up tells me those numbers are pretty close to what he did in 13 starts for Huntsville and just four for Nashville. As for this year Manny has been inconsistent for much of the year, at least as far as command goes. The success hasn't been all that inconsistent though, especially recently. Since really struggling in Washington at the end of May, Manny has turned the corner significantly as far as limiting the long balls and working around his walks. At this point in the season, he is the sole reason the Brewers haven't been terribly hurt by the loss of Yovani Gallardo. The walk numbers are extremely scary though, and you have to ask your self how much longer he can get away with walking 4-6 batters every outing.
But Manny has shown considerable composure and is being molded into a solid number two or three starter. It's really fun to watch. Toss in a pretty good bat to boot and Manny might be another one of those guys you try to lock up long term for cheap. But there's still a few concerns, but not as far as his talent goes. Manny only pitched 132 innings last year and is on pace for well over 200 to finish this year. Yes, Manny missed a considerable amount of time by breaking his finger last year and probably would have hit the 180 inning plateau, but there's always fear regarding shoulder health and pitchers. I hope he can handle the strain, or at the very least Ned can skip a few of his starts down the road if the team gets any sort of healthy lead. If the Brewers make the playoffs, it's hard not to start Manny, but you have be a little concerned about the youngster's future.
Grade: B+
Dave Bush:
Last Year: 107.1 IP 7-7 Record 4.86 ERA 80 Ks 24 BB
This Year: 106.2 IP 5-8 Record 4.39 ERA 66 K 26 BB
Bush is a tale of two halves this season, or perhaps of just home and away. Bush was particularly difficult to watch to start, giving up 15 HRs in his first 11 starts, but has flourished since. He has yet to give up a homerun in his last six starts and has avoided walks like the plague, saving his season and my grumblings for another post. As you can see by looking at the numbers, Dave was essentially the same pitcher this year, but found himself getting lit up a lot more to start this season because of a dramatically lowered K/Rate. Interestingly that K/Rate is astonishingly lower if you take out the 20 strikeouts he's had in his last 16 innings of work. It goes from 0.51 to 0.62. But the splits are pretty scary for Dave, who carries a 2.49 ERA at home and a 6.95 ERA on the road, largely due to the change in his pitch movement, which Brew Crew Ball showed a week ago or so.
What will Bush do in the second half? I haven't a freaking clue. Yost continues to talk about a platoon for he and McClung, but it doesn't make much sense to do considering the numbers Dave has put up in his last six starts. That sickens me to say, but it's true. McClung has earned his right to pitch as well though, so I'm not too sure how this going to work out. He won't be happy about not being in the rotation, but it might be in the Brewers interest no to platoon them, but simply have them pitch on the five days no matter what happens and flip flop who starts the game based on where they are pitching. Bush may be better suited for a few innings of relief on the road and another gem at home.
Grade: B-
Seth McClung:
Last Year: (AAA) 77.2 IP 3-5 Record 1.85 ERA 93 K 48 BB
This Year: 75.2 IP 5-5 Record 4.16 ERA 64 Ks 36 BB
Seth has been the biggest surprise for the Brewers this year. Since altering his mechanics slightly, McClung has gone from a 97-100 MPH pitcher to a 92-95 MPH pitcher with significantly better command. He started off in the bullpen and looked particularly good in his long relief role. This success allowed him to take over the starting role for the then struggling Carlos Villanueva. The results have been mixed, but mostly good. In nine starts Seth has a 4-3 record with a 4.41 ERA, mostly due to his rough outing against Atlanta. But the problem for Seth has been control. When he doesn't give up charity baserunners, he's lights out, giving up only 48 hits in his 49 innings of work.
But Seth looks like he's going to be the odd man out when Suppan returns from the DL. I imagine Melvin and Attanassio may put the kabash on the platoon idea, but you never know. I would have no problem saying that every fifth game is a tag team between Seth and Bush. Nevertheless, look for Seth to continue his inconsistencies until next season. The off season and Spring Training will give him time to really get used to his new mechanics and work out his command issues.
Grade: B+
Overall Rotation Grade: B
The bullpen has been pretty interesting all year. It's had it's huge huge highs and it's lowest lows, but all in all, they've been reliable when the game has been on the line. We always remember the lows though, never the highs. Let's look at the numbers.
Carlos Villanueva:
Last Year: 60.1 IP 6-0 Record 2.83 ERA 55 Ks 24 BB
This Year: 76 IP 3-5 Record 4.97 ERA 60K 21 BB
Carlos, my favorite Brewer, struggled pretty badly this season in the starting rotation, going 2-5 with a 6.43 ERA in his 49 innings of work. But since then, he's been a picture of consistency, going 1-0 with a 2.33 ERA in his last 16 appearances and 27 innings. Not bad for a second year player. The big difference has been the strike outss and similarly to Bush, avoiding the long ball. Carlos has given up only three homeruns in relief and 12 when he was starting. He's struck out 29 in relief and 31 as starter. Pretty drastic splits if you ask me, considering he started almost double the innings. A lot of it has to do with Carlos keeping the ball down, which he wasn't doing at all to start the season. Whether or not that had to do with large pitch counts or his mental state, he's obviously changed something and it's worked.
The Brewers really to figure something out for this guy. Last year he was effective for all but a month and a half of the year. That's damn good. Unfortunately for him, that time may have been the time he was in the rotation, which killed his numbers. This year, though he's been sort of relegated to the long relief role regardless of the situation. That means if we're down five in the fifth, Carlos comes in and saves the bullpen. That's not where he belongs, but the Brewers have no choice because they wanted to keep Mitch Stetter around. As a result, Carlos is the only pitcher who can go more than two innings at a time. That needs to change and fast because Carlos is more than capable of being a 7th and 8th inning set up man every other day. That may actually more beneficial to this bullpen than eating innings on a rough night. Until then, his talents are being wasted a bit.
Grade: C+
Brian Shouse:
Last Year: 21.1 IP 1-1 Record 2.95 ERA 9 K 8 BB
This Year: 33.0 IP 3-1 Record 1.91 ERA 21 Ks 8 BB
At this time last year, Shouse was pretty much relegated to left handed hitters, as shown by the fact that he only pitched 21 innings in 35 appearances. But as the year grew on, Yost realized his slightly altered approach was effective against both sides of the plate. This year Shouse has seen considerably more time, like 40 more appearances and 26 more innings in less time. So that worries me a bit, but Shouse has been a savior for the Brewers the last two years. Though people need to stop talking about his inherited runners streaks. Every time he gets one, somebody opens their mouth and it gets busted wide open. But for good measure, since I already ruined JJ Hardy's streak by mentioning him last year, only 16 of his 42 inherited runners have cored. That's not bad.
It's hard to say what Shouse will do this year because his workload has been pretty heavy. But the thing is that Yost isn't using him on back to back days nearly as he did last season, so it could pay off in the long run. As the most under-rated member of this staff, Shouse is the glue that keeps this bullpen together and he is just as important to the Brewers run than anyone else.
Grade: A+
David Riske:
Last Year: 40.2 IP 1-2 Record 2.21 ERA 32 K 16 BB
This Year: 29 IP 1-1 Record 4.66 ERA 18 K 14 BB
Riske was a solid Brewers free agent pick up in the offseason that has yet to pan out. I still believe Riske has a lot of talent and will get to see some of it in the second half, but he disappointed in the first half. As you can see by the numbers, David's biggest problem to start the season has been command, a common trend among Brewers pitchers. As a result, he's found himself not getting out of jams that he normally would have last year for KC. To top it off, he found himself on the disabled list for more than a month with an elbow problem. Since then, he's been quite successful giving up only two runs in his last eight innings.
If Mota continues to struggle, David is going to be the go to guy down the stretch in the seventh alongside Carlos Villanueva, leaving the eighth for Eric Gagne and Brian Shouse. As long as he continues to get sustained work, the Brewers will get a lot better numbers from him down the stretch. How good is up to David's work ethic on improving his walk rate, which is pitiful.
Grade: C-
Guillermo Mota:
Last Year: 21.2 IP 0-0 Record 6.65 ERA 19 Ks 6 BBs
This Year: 34.1 IP 2-5 Record 5.77 ERA 31 Ks 17 BB
Mota's recent struggles have been command related, but not really on the walk side of things, but rather hangers. As a result, he's carrying a 10.80 ERA over his last 11 .1 innings, which is awful. As a result, nobody seems to remember the first two months of the season, when he carried a 3.18 ERA and was carrying more than his share of the load with Turnbow gone. Nevertheless, the lack of movement on his pitches recently is a huge cause for concern, which Ned thinks he can fix. Unfortunately, Mota's psyche appears to be more than just fragile and it's going to take quite a few successful mop up innings for him and every one else to gain some confidence in him.
I doubt Mota will ever get back to his three ERA over the last few months of baseball, nor will he even pitch near it, but he'll have to be at least respectable and keep that ERA around five or so and take all of those nasty innings eater outings. If it's a blowout, he can keep it that way.
Grade: D
Eric Gagne:
Last Year: 27.1 IP 2-0 Record 12 SV 1.32 ERA 23 Ks 11 BB
This Year: 23.1 IP 2-2 Record 10 SV 7.33 ERA 21 Ks 16 BB
It's amazing what a year can do. Thus far the Brewers have all but wasted their $10 million investment on a washed up closer, who perhaps won't play for any one next year. Gagne has shown flashes of good stuff, but the command (I'm sick of writing that) has absolutely destroyed him. He has yet to learn how to pitch without trying to over power hitters, and it appears that's what he constantly relied in when he was a beast back in the day. As a result, even Jason Kendall behind the plate can't help him, considering he only has three pitches.
Eric has looked good recently though, Saturday's game excluded. He had the ball down, the changeup was biting and he was working ahead in the count constantly. Saturday's performance shows what happens when he doesn't get ahead. Look for Eric to be a little more reliable down the stretch. No one expects him to be utterly dominant, but he's our eighth inning guy with Villanueva pushed to more of a long relief role. A four ERA the rest of the way wouldn't help his numbers much, but it would be a breath of fresh, and would be worth at least a fifth of the money we gave him.
Grade: F
Salomon Torres:
Last Year: 28 IP 0-3 Record 12 SV 5.14 ERA 25 K 10 BB
This Year: 49.1 IP 4-2 Record 15 SV 2.74 ERA 33 Ks 20 BB
Torres has garnered tons of fan support since arriving this spring. Milwaukee fans were initially very skeptical about the veteran ball player after his retirement threat, but Torres has been as professional as you can be. Much of this success he attributes to the Brewers strength and conditioning coaches, who have him on an altered throwing plan. For those who don't know, they basically just didn't throw him in Spring Training. Torres must have been thrilled and has rewarded the Brewers by taking over the closer role from Eric Gagne. Torres has struggled at times this year, but things should have been a lot better since the defense has been his biggest pain. Nevertheless, when he has struggled, he's fought back and prevented the worst from happening.
Salomon's numbers are significantly different because of his mental health though. He has a lot of camaraderie with Jason Kendally and enjoys the organization a lot more than Pittsburgh, who burned him in the end. I think this has made him considerably more consistent this season, and will continue to push him forward this season. He's over achieved quite a bit this year, but I doubt that will change and he will have continued success for the remainder of the season, hopefully garnering him his first playoff appearance.
Grade: A
No comments on Stetter, DiFelice, Dillard or Jackson, but the replacements have been solid and deserve an A for their solid appearances. Stetter and DiFelice get huge nods for the success. Dillard will be here in the near future.
Position players tomorrow. This is a lot more work than I thought it would be.
We'll start with the rotation:
Ben Sheets:
Last Year: 87 IP 7-3 Record 3.31 ERA 61 Ks 19 BB
This Year: 123 IP 10-3 Record 2.85 ERA 108 Ks 28 BB
It's amazing what a contract year and a new catcher can do for you. Sheets has been phenomenal this year, tossing gem after gem. And interestingly, he's given a lot of that credit to Jason Kendall, who perhaps is the reason that Sheets K/Rate is back up to 0.87 K's per inning. This could be a selling point at the end of the year should the Brewers make a big pitch for the rightie. Last year Sheets didn't see himself on the DL to start the season either, though he did skip a couple of starts, which would account for the fewer innings pitched in the first half last season. But a lot of those starts only went six innings, while this year he is going through the seventh on a much more consistent basis.
A lot of the success he's having reall appears to be a result of comfort and health. If you remember, in years past, Sheets would often do that back bend before each pitch, even after he had surgery to repair the problem. Then there was the torn muscle in his upper back that altered his mechanics for much of the 2006 and 2007 seasons. But now, nothing seems to be holding Sheets back, and a healthy summer not dedicated to rehab, but strength seems to have paid off considerably, allowing him to exceed some expectations. Look for Sheets' ERA to climb just a bit, but the success will be there, as it always is when he pitches.
Grade: A
Jeff Suppan:
Last Year: 117 IP 8-8 Record 5.00 ERA 61 K 41 BB
This Year: 101.1 IP 5-6 Record 4.71 ERA 55 K 44 BB
Soup has had a rough year and is notoriously known for coming on strong in the second half. That really didn't appear to be the case this season and Soup carried a 3.93 ERA heading into June this year, but an injured elbow perhaps causes his downslide. Or perhaps its just his walks. Nevertheless, Jeff has done what the Brewers have needed and expected him to do. Stabilize the rotation with a .500 record and a carry a 4.50 ERA. Last year, Soup was doing exactly that and was probably the only successful pitcher the Brewers in August and September, where he lowered his ERA in nearly every outing.
I'm not really sure what this savvy vet will end up doing the rest of the season. I'm sure he'll get his innings in, but he's never had an elbow injury before. Even though it isn't a pitching related injury, it could do a lot to screw up Jeff's mechanics. Time will only tell on this one. Nevertheless, the Brewers will need Jeff to be a solid contributer in the second half.
Grade: B-
Manny Parra:
Last Year: Minors, 106.2 IP 10-4 Record 2.45 ER 106 K 33 BB
This Year: 100 IP 8-2 Record 3.78 ERA 78 K 50 BB
Last years numbers are pretty close to the All-Star break. I don't have a game log so I can't be totally accurate here, but his late July call-up tells me those numbers are pretty close to what he did in 13 starts for Huntsville and just four for Nashville. As for this year Manny has been inconsistent for much of the year, at least as far as command goes. The success hasn't been all that inconsistent though, especially recently. Since really struggling in Washington at the end of May, Manny has turned the corner significantly as far as limiting the long balls and working around his walks. At this point in the season, he is the sole reason the Brewers haven't been terribly hurt by the loss of Yovani Gallardo. The walk numbers are extremely scary though, and you have to ask your self how much longer he can get away with walking 4-6 batters every outing.
But Manny has shown considerable composure and is being molded into a solid number two or three starter. It's really fun to watch. Toss in a pretty good bat to boot and Manny might be another one of those guys you try to lock up long term for cheap. But there's still a few concerns, but not as far as his talent goes. Manny only pitched 132 innings last year and is on pace for well over 200 to finish this year. Yes, Manny missed a considerable amount of time by breaking his finger last year and probably would have hit the 180 inning plateau, but there's always fear regarding shoulder health and pitchers. I hope he can handle the strain, or at the very least Ned can skip a few of his starts down the road if the team gets any sort of healthy lead. If the Brewers make the playoffs, it's hard not to start Manny, but you have be a little concerned about the youngster's future.
Grade: B+
Dave Bush:
Last Year: 107.1 IP 7-7 Record 4.86 ERA 80 Ks 24 BB
This Year: 106.2 IP 5-8 Record 4.39 ERA 66 K 26 BB
Bush is a tale of two halves this season, or perhaps of just home and away. Bush was particularly difficult to watch to start, giving up 15 HRs in his first 11 starts, but has flourished since. He has yet to give up a homerun in his last six starts and has avoided walks like the plague, saving his season and my grumblings for another post. As you can see by looking at the numbers, Dave was essentially the same pitcher this year, but found himself getting lit up a lot more to start this season because of a dramatically lowered K/Rate. Interestingly that K/Rate is astonishingly lower if you take out the 20 strikeouts he's had in his last 16 innings of work. It goes from 0.51 to 0.62. But the splits are pretty scary for Dave, who carries a 2.49 ERA at home and a 6.95 ERA on the road, largely due to the change in his pitch movement, which Brew Crew Ball showed a week ago or so.
What will Bush do in the second half? I haven't a freaking clue. Yost continues to talk about a platoon for he and McClung, but it doesn't make much sense to do considering the numbers Dave has put up in his last six starts. That sickens me to say, but it's true. McClung has earned his right to pitch as well though, so I'm not too sure how this going to work out. He won't be happy about not being in the rotation, but it might be in the Brewers interest no to platoon them, but simply have them pitch on the five days no matter what happens and flip flop who starts the game based on where they are pitching. Bush may be better suited for a few innings of relief on the road and another gem at home.
Grade: B-
Seth McClung:
Last Year: (AAA) 77.2 IP 3-5 Record 1.85 ERA 93 K 48 BB
This Year: 75.2 IP 5-5 Record 4.16 ERA 64 Ks 36 BB
Seth has been the biggest surprise for the Brewers this year. Since altering his mechanics slightly, McClung has gone from a 97-100 MPH pitcher to a 92-95 MPH pitcher with significantly better command. He started off in the bullpen and looked particularly good in his long relief role. This success allowed him to take over the starting role for the then struggling Carlos Villanueva. The results have been mixed, but mostly good. In nine starts Seth has a 4-3 record with a 4.41 ERA, mostly due to his rough outing against Atlanta. But the problem for Seth has been control. When he doesn't give up charity baserunners, he's lights out, giving up only 48 hits in his 49 innings of work.
But Seth looks like he's going to be the odd man out when Suppan returns from the DL. I imagine Melvin and Attanassio may put the kabash on the platoon idea, but you never know. I would have no problem saying that every fifth game is a tag team between Seth and Bush. Nevertheless, look for Seth to continue his inconsistencies until next season. The off season and Spring Training will give him time to really get used to his new mechanics and work out his command issues.
Grade: B+
Overall Rotation Grade: B
The bullpen has been pretty interesting all year. It's had it's huge huge highs and it's lowest lows, but all in all, they've been reliable when the game has been on the line. We always remember the lows though, never the highs. Let's look at the numbers.
Carlos Villanueva:
Last Year: 60.1 IP 6-0 Record 2.83 ERA 55 Ks 24 BB
This Year: 76 IP 3-5 Record 4.97 ERA 60K 21 BB
Carlos, my favorite Brewer, struggled pretty badly this season in the starting rotation, going 2-5 with a 6.43 ERA in his 49 innings of work. But since then, he's been a picture of consistency, going 1-0 with a 2.33 ERA in his last 16 appearances and 27 innings. Not bad for a second year player. The big difference has been the strike outss and similarly to Bush, avoiding the long ball. Carlos has given up only three homeruns in relief and 12 when he was starting. He's struck out 29 in relief and 31 as starter. Pretty drastic splits if you ask me, considering he started almost double the innings. A lot of it has to do with Carlos keeping the ball down, which he wasn't doing at all to start the season. Whether or not that had to do with large pitch counts or his mental state, he's obviously changed something and it's worked.
The Brewers really to figure something out for this guy. Last year he was effective for all but a month and a half of the year. That's damn good. Unfortunately for him, that time may have been the time he was in the rotation, which killed his numbers. This year, though he's been sort of relegated to the long relief role regardless of the situation. That means if we're down five in the fifth, Carlos comes in and saves the bullpen. That's not where he belongs, but the Brewers have no choice because they wanted to keep Mitch Stetter around. As a result, Carlos is the only pitcher who can go more than two innings at a time. That needs to change and fast because Carlos is more than capable of being a 7th and 8th inning set up man every other day. That may actually more beneficial to this bullpen than eating innings on a rough night. Until then, his talents are being wasted a bit.
Grade: C+
Brian Shouse:
Last Year: 21.1 IP 1-1 Record 2.95 ERA 9 K 8 BB
This Year: 33.0 IP 3-1 Record 1.91 ERA 21 Ks 8 BB
At this time last year, Shouse was pretty much relegated to left handed hitters, as shown by the fact that he only pitched 21 innings in 35 appearances. But as the year grew on, Yost realized his slightly altered approach was effective against both sides of the plate. This year Shouse has seen considerably more time, like 40 more appearances and 26 more innings in less time. So that worries me a bit, but Shouse has been a savior for the Brewers the last two years. Though people need to stop talking about his inherited runners streaks. Every time he gets one, somebody opens their mouth and it gets busted wide open. But for good measure, since I already ruined JJ Hardy's streak by mentioning him last year, only 16 of his 42 inherited runners have cored. That's not bad.
It's hard to say what Shouse will do this year because his workload has been pretty heavy. But the thing is that Yost isn't using him on back to back days nearly as he did last season, so it could pay off in the long run. As the most under-rated member of this staff, Shouse is the glue that keeps this bullpen together and he is just as important to the Brewers run than anyone else.
Grade: A+
David Riske:
Last Year: 40.2 IP 1-2 Record 2.21 ERA 32 K 16 BB
This Year: 29 IP 1-1 Record 4.66 ERA 18 K 14 BB
Riske was a solid Brewers free agent pick up in the offseason that has yet to pan out. I still believe Riske has a lot of talent and will get to see some of it in the second half, but he disappointed in the first half. As you can see by the numbers, David's biggest problem to start the season has been command, a common trend among Brewers pitchers. As a result, he's found himself not getting out of jams that he normally would have last year for KC. To top it off, he found himself on the disabled list for more than a month with an elbow problem. Since then, he's been quite successful giving up only two runs in his last eight innings.
If Mota continues to struggle, David is going to be the go to guy down the stretch in the seventh alongside Carlos Villanueva, leaving the eighth for Eric Gagne and Brian Shouse. As long as he continues to get sustained work, the Brewers will get a lot better numbers from him down the stretch. How good is up to David's work ethic on improving his walk rate, which is pitiful.
Grade: C-
Guillermo Mota:
Last Year: 21.2 IP 0-0 Record 6.65 ERA 19 Ks 6 BBs
This Year: 34.1 IP 2-5 Record 5.77 ERA 31 Ks 17 BB
Mota's recent struggles have been command related, but not really on the walk side of things, but rather hangers. As a result, he's carrying a 10.80 ERA over his last 11 .1 innings, which is awful. As a result, nobody seems to remember the first two months of the season, when he carried a 3.18 ERA and was carrying more than his share of the load with Turnbow gone. Nevertheless, the lack of movement on his pitches recently is a huge cause for concern, which Ned thinks he can fix. Unfortunately, Mota's psyche appears to be more than just fragile and it's going to take quite a few successful mop up innings for him and every one else to gain some confidence in him.
I doubt Mota will ever get back to his three ERA over the last few months of baseball, nor will he even pitch near it, but he'll have to be at least respectable and keep that ERA around five or so and take all of those nasty innings eater outings. If it's a blowout, he can keep it that way.
Grade: D
Eric Gagne:
Last Year: 27.1 IP 2-0 Record 12 SV 1.32 ERA 23 Ks 11 BB
This Year: 23.1 IP 2-2 Record 10 SV 7.33 ERA 21 Ks 16 BB
It's amazing what a year can do. Thus far the Brewers have all but wasted their $10 million investment on a washed up closer, who perhaps won't play for any one next year. Gagne has shown flashes of good stuff, but the command (I'm sick of writing that) has absolutely destroyed him. He has yet to learn how to pitch without trying to over power hitters, and it appears that's what he constantly relied in when he was a beast back in the day. As a result, even Jason Kendall behind the plate can't help him, considering he only has three pitches.
Eric has looked good recently though, Saturday's game excluded. He had the ball down, the changeup was biting and he was working ahead in the count constantly. Saturday's performance shows what happens when he doesn't get ahead. Look for Eric to be a little more reliable down the stretch. No one expects him to be utterly dominant, but he's our eighth inning guy with Villanueva pushed to more of a long relief role. A four ERA the rest of the way wouldn't help his numbers much, but it would be a breath of fresh, and would be worth at least a fifth of the money we gave him.
Grade: F
Salomon Torres:
Last Year: 28 IP 0-3 Record 12 SV 5.14 ERA 25 K 10 BB
This Year: 49.1 IP 4-2 Record 15 SV 2.74 ERA 33 Ks 20 BB
Torres has garnered tons of fan support since arriving this spring. Milwaukee fans were initially very skeptical about the veteran ball player after his retirement threat, but Torres has been as professional as you can be. Much of this success he attributes to the Brewers strength and conditioning coaches, who have him on an altered throwing plan. For those who don't know, they basically just didn't throw him in Spring Training. Torres must have been thrilled and has rewarded the Brewers by taking over the closer role from Eric Gagne. Torres has struggled at times this year, but things should have been a lot better since the defense has been his biggest pain. Nevertheless, when he has struggled, he's fought back and prevented the worst from happening.
Salomon's numbers are significantly different because of his mental health though. He has a lot of camaraderie with Jason Kendally and enjoys the organization a lot more than Pittsburgh, who burned him in the end. I think this has made him considerably more consistent this season, and will continue to push him forward this season. He's over achieved quite a bit this year, but I doubt that will change and he will have continued success for the remainder of the season, hopefully garnering him his first playoff appearance.
Grade: A
No comments on Stetter, DiFelice, Dillard or Jackson, but the replacements have been solid and deserve an A for their solid appearances. Stetter and DiFelice get huge nods for the success. Dillard will be here in the near future.
Position players tomorrow. This is a lot more work than I thought it would be.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Brewers Reds Series Preview
First and foremost, congratulations go to newly crowned All-Star rightfielder, Corey Hart. I did my fair share of voting and I'm happy to see that it paid off. David Wright may have been more deserving, but Corey has been just so solid all year, and it's always fun to see the little markets do some damage. On to the preview!
The Series:
Cincinnati Reds (44-49) @ Milwaukee Brewers (51-41)
Who's on Tap?:
July 11th: Josh Fogg (1-2, 8.39 ERA) vs. Manny Parra (8-2, 3.65 ERA)
July 12th: Edinson Volquez (11-3, 2.36 ERA) vs. Seth McClung (5-4, 4.15 ERA)
July 13th: Homer Bailey (0-3, 8.76 ERA) vs. CC Sabathia (7-8, 3.79 ERA)
Who Should You Watch?:
Remember when Homer Bailey was the one of the most tauted pitching prospects in baseball? That's kind of dissipated... completely. Instead the surprise of the year is Edinson Volquez, who has the Cy Young lead at the half way point this season, at least in my book. Prior to this season, Volquez had only pitched in 20 games as a big leaguer and the results weren't all that impressive. As a result, he was shipped from the Rangers to the Reds for Josh Hamilton. After further review, a change of scenery does work for a player. Just ask Brad Lidge. As for Volquez, he's been tearing up opposing teams, and is the one true bright spot on this Reds squad. Unfortunately, he's pitching the one game I will not be at, but that's what television is for. In the box, the Reds are filled with tons of pop, but I marred with the same inconsistencies as the Brewers, carrying a team OBP Of .325 as well and striking out 60 more times than the Crew. The two big trouble bats for the Brewers are going to be Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips. Phillips has been a Brewer killer for years, batting .348/.390/.512 against them in 40 games. Joey Votto, on the other hand, hasn't received a lot of playing time over the years because of his Dusty Baker infection. But Baker finally gave the youngster a shot after a couple of weeks and it's paid off. Votto is hitting .284/.354/.475 for the Reds with 13 bombs and a 40 RBIs. Not bad for only 300 ABs.
The Brewers offense is heating up, and with Harang going on to the DL last night, they have the opportunity to keep it up. Unfortunately, the Brewers take on another soft tossing location pitcher. Look for Russell Branyan to pick up some of that slack. He hasn't gotten a lot of playing time recently as a result of an overwhelmingly amount of lefty pitchers. As a result, he hasn't look that sharp, but three games of starts at third should help him get back into the swing of things. Keep your eye on Ryan Braun as well, who is slowly heating up after chilling out at home for a while. It's almost like these guys are partying too hard on the road and just get bored at home and focus on baseball. Who knows? Toeing the rubber tonight is Manny Parra, who is pitching basically on eight days rest, though he did pitch an inning of relief as a way to stay sharp. Manny is on his way to pitching more innings than the Brewers ever expected him to, so a few days may help him. But the question is did that bullpen keep him sharp or will he fall off a bit? I have feeling with the lefty heavy Reds in town, he'll be just two. Speaking of lefty and heavy, the CC excitement has calmed down a bit, especially after the Cubs trade for Harden. But with 43,000 people showing up to see Dave Bush pitch yesterday's game, there's obviously still a lot of buzz. CC will have to calm his emotions and pitch his game if he wants to be successful, so monitor that closely.
Keys to Victory:
If the Reds plan on stealing a win this series, they're going to have to stay patient and pound out some offense. Volquez gives them the best shot for winning a game, but he's been tailing off a bit as of late, and may be vulnerable. Nevertheless, the Brewers are making a big move to try and catch the Cubs and Fogg and Bailey will likely give up their fair share of runs. It's not like the Reds are a harmless bunch at the plate. They carry five regulars with double digit home runs and Dunn has a whopping 24. The lefty lefty match up won't be an easy one for the Reds, but they'll have to work it out somehow.
The Brewers are going to need to rely on something other than the long ball to score some runs this weekend. Volquez has given up only four homeruns in 111 innings this year. Fogg won't give up many either unless he leaves a ball up. I really think the most important thing this weekend will be the defense, but to win this series and perhaps sweep it, the Brewers will need to think like Gabe Kapler did yesterday: Gap to Gap. Kapler had three doubles yesterday, one to straight left, one to left center and one to right center. He was willing to go with the pitch, which will be important with Bailey and Fogg on the mound. When Volquez gets up their, they'll need to keep that mentality and be willing to take a few pitches. Volquez will walk you (54 in 110 innings), so don't be afraid to get caught looking at strike three. That may not seem conventional, but they'll need to get him out of the game as quickly as possible.
Predictions and Notes:
- After the Gledon Rusch game, I think the Brewers may have been a little disheartened and then insulted. They showed they're very very vulnerable against breaking ball pitchers and then came back and destroyed Jorge De La Rosa. The Brewers are going to break that trend tonight, at least for now, and really put Fogg on the ropes. Look for Parra to have a lot of success against the lefty heavy Reds (Dunn, Votto, Bruce, Griffey) and finally get his ninth win. Game two should be very interesting. McClung has struggled mightily and the Brewers have yet to see Volquez pitch. I want to say the Brewers will win, but if they do they'll have to do it against the bullpen. McClung is going to struggle again with his command, but this time it'll bite him harder, and the Reds won't need many runs to take the victory. And finally, look for CC to be dominant on Sunday and get standing O after standing O. I'll be there field level and will be the first one to stand up every time. Should be a blast.
- If you didn't hear about it, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel went off his rocker at Ned Yost yesterday. I don't know what Tom was trying to do, but he went for the throat yesterday and printed the reactionary quotes rather than what he said to instigate Yost's tirade. In the end Ned said, "Look Tom, I'm not going to argue with you about this." It was unprofessional and pretty disappointing. I was proud of Ned for standing his ground and even prouder to find out that Mota and Maddux were watching tape together for two hours yesterday before warm-ups. Ned was right to defend Mota in this one because Tom went after him and said, "He's lost us three game." The fact of the matter is that Mota gave up two infield singles and a walk in the loss in Arizona. The 4-1 blow up against the Rockies in Colorado was the only really awful one. And then Wednesday's struggles can be attributed to more than just Mota, and you can't blame a loss on a guy when he came in with a one run deficit in the eighth. Sure he took away the opportunity to win, but the Brewers should have never been in the position anyways. Ned's quotes are often pretty hideous and clearly baited by McCalvey and Haudricourt. I'm happy to hear him take the bait and put it in their ear for once.
- With the Cubs and Cardinals losing yesterday, the Brewers have taken a half game lead in the NL Wild Card race and are back to four games behind the NL Central leading Cubs. But before you get too excited, don't forget about the New York Mets and Florida Marlins. They're only three games back of the Brewers in the Wild Card. This isn't a two team race like we all thought. There's plenty of folks nipping at their heels, making every win more and more important.
The Series:
Cincinnati Reds (44-49) @ Milwaukee Brewers (51-41)
Who's on Tap?:
July 11th: Josh Fogg (1-2, 8.39 ERA) vs. Manny Parra (8-2, 3.65 ERA)
July 12th: Edinson Volquez (11-3, 2.36 ERA) vs. Seth McClung (5-4, 4.15 ERA)
July 13th: Homer Bailey (0-3, 8.76 ERA) vs. CC Sabathia (7-8, 3.79 ERA)
Who Should You Watch?:
Remember when Homer Bailey was the one of the most tauted pitching prospects in baseball? That's kind of dissipated... completely. Instead the surprise of the year is Edinson Volquez, who has the Cy Young lead at the half way point this season, at least in my book. Prior to this season, Volquez had only pitched in 20 games as a big leaguer and the results weren't all that impressive. As a result, he was shipped from the Rangers to the Reds for Josh Hamilton. After further review, a change of scenery does work for a player. Just ask Brad Lidge. As for Volquez, he's been tearing up opposing teams, and is the one true bright spot on this Reds squad. Unfortunately, he's pitching the one game I will not be at, but that's what television is for. In the box, the Reds are filled with tons of pop, but I marred with the same inconsistencies as the Brewers, carrying a team OBP Of .325 as well and striking out 60 more times than the Crew. The two big trouble bats for the Brewers are going to be Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips. Phillips has been a Brewer killer for years, batting .348/.390/.512 against them in 40 games. Joey Votto, on the other hand, hasn't received a lot of playing time over the years because of his Dusty Baker infection. But Baker finally gave the youngster a shot after a couple of weeks and it's paid off. Votto is hitting .284/.354/.475 for the Reds with 13 bombs and a 40 RBIs. Not bad for only 300 ABs.
The Brewers offense is heating up, and with Harang going on to the DL last night, they have the opportunity to keep it up. Unfortunately, the Brewers take on another soft tossing location pitcher. Look for Russell Branyan to pick up some of that slack. He hasn't gotten a lot of playing time recently as a result of an overwhelmingly amount of lefty pitchers. As a result, he hasn't look that sharp, but three games of starts at third should help him get back into the swing of things. Keep your eye on Ryan Braun as well, who is slowly heating up after chilling out at home for a while. It's almost like these guys are partying too hard on the road and just get bored at home and focus on baseball. Who knows? Toeing the rubber tonight is Manny Parra, who is pitching basically on eight days rest, though he did pitch an inning of relief as a way to stay sharp. Manny is on his way to pitching more innings than the Brewers ever expected him to, so a few days may help him. But the question is did that bullpen keep him sharp or will he fall off a bit? I have feeling with the lefty heavy Reds in town, he'll be just two. Speaking of lefty and heavy, the CC excitement has calmed down a bit, especially after the Cubs trade for Harden. But with 43,000 people showing up to see Dave Bush pitch yesterday's game, there's obviously still a lot of buzz. CC will have to calm his emotions and pitch his game if he wants to be successful, so monitor that closely.
Keys to Victory:
If the Reds plan on stealing a win this series, they're going to have to stay patient and pound out some offense. Volquez gives them the best shot for winning a game, but he's been tailing off a bit as of late, and may be vulnerable. Nevertheless, the Brewers are making a big move to try and catch the Cubs and Fogg and Bailey will likely give up their fair share of runs. It's not like the Reds are a harmless bunch at the plate. They carry five regulars with double digit home runs and Dunn has a whopping 24. The lefty lefty match up won't be an easy one for the Reds, but they'll have to work it out somehow.
The Brewers are going to need to rely on something other than the long ball to score some runs this weekend. Volquez has given up only four homeruns in 111 innings this year. Fogg won't give up many either unless he leaves a ball up. I really think the most important thing this weekend will be the defense, but to win this series and perhaps sweep it, the Brewers will need to think like Gabe Kapler did yesterday: Gap to Gap. Kapler had three doubles yesterday, one to straight left, one to left center and one to right center. He was willing to go with the pitch, which will be important with Bailey and Fogg on the mound. When Volquez gets up their, they'll need to keep that mentality and be willing to take a few pitches. Volquez will walk you (54 in 110 innings), so don't be afraid to get caught looking at strike three. That may not seem conventional, but they'll need to get him out of the game as quickly as possible.
Predictions and Notes:
- After the Gledon Rusch game, I think the Brewers may have been a little disheartened and then insulted. They showed they're very very vulnerable against breaking ball pitchers and then came back and destroyed Jorge De La Rosa. The Brewers are going to break that trend tonight, at least for now, and really put Fogg on the ropes. Look for Parra to have a lot of success against the lefty heavy Reds (Dunn, Votto, Bruce, Griffey) and finally get his ninth win. Game two should be very interesting. McClung has struggled mightily and the Brewers have yet to see Volquez pitch. I want to say the Brewers will win, but if they do they'll have to do it against the bullpen. McClung is going to struggle again with his command, but this time it'll bite him harder, and the Reds won't need many runs to take the victory. And finally, look for CC to be dominant on Sunday and get standing O after standing O. I'll be there field level and will be the first one to stand up every time. Should be a blast.
- If you didn't hear about it, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel went off his rocker at Ned Yost yesterday. I don't know what Tom was trying to do, but he went for the throat yesterday and printed the reactionary quotes rather than what he said to instigate Yost's tirade. In the end Ned said, "Look Tom, I'm not going to argue with you about this." It was unprofessional and pretty disappointing. I was proud of Ned for standing his ground and even prouder to find out that Mota and Maddux were watching tape together for two hours yesterday before warm-ups. Ned was right to defend Mota in this one because Tom went after him and said, "He's lost us three game." The fact of the matter is that Mota gave up two infield singles and a walk in the loss in Arizona. The 4-1 blow up against the Rockies in Colorado was the only really awful one. And then Wednesday's struggles can be attributed to more than just Mota, and you can't blame a loss on a guy when he came in with a one run deficit in the eighth. Sure he took away the opportunity to win, but the Brewers should have never been in the position anyways. Ned's quotes are often pretty hideous and clearly baited by McCalvey and Haudricourt. I'm happy to hear him take the bait and put it in their ear for once.
- With the Cubs and Cardinals losing yesterday, the Brewers have taken a half game lead in the NL Wild Card race and are back to four games behind the NL Central leading Cubs. But before you get too excited, don't forget about the New York Mets and Florida Marlins. They're only three games back of the Brewers in the Wild Card. This isn't a two team race like we all thought. There's plenty of folks nipping at their heels, making every win more and more important.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Brewers Rockies Series Recap
The Scores:
Milwaukee Brewers 3 Colorado Rockies 4
Milwaukee Brewers 7 Colorado Rockies 3
Milwaukee Brewers 3 Colorado Rockies 8
Milwaukee Brewers 11 Colorado Rockies 1
MVPs of the Series:
Ryan Braun: 6/16; 2B, HR, BB, 6 RBIs, 2 Rs
Garrett Atkins: 5/12; 2 HRs, 2 BBs, 4 RBIs, 4 Rs
Braun played pretty solid baseball all series, but he will most be remembered this series for starting the CC era off right with a three run blast in the first inning. Bill Hall also played remarkably well, but Braun was the most consistent of the bunch.
Garrett Atkins and Matt Holiday are the only reason the Rockies split this series. The two combined to score or knock in nine of the Rockies 16 runs this series. Atkins single handedly won game three for the Rox, hitting both of his bombs in that game, all while playing a solid third base.
What was the Difference?:
Defense. Every game seemed to have a very pivotal and important play. In game one it was Braun's two double plays. In game two it was CC's catch on the mound with no one out and runners on the corners. Game three was riddled with Jason Kendall catching baserunners to keep the Brewers in it. And then Brad Hawpe's bad throw in the third on Thursday got Rickie to second and started the Brewers' offensive barrage. Neither team played great defense though, as this series was marred by a number of errors.
Causes for Concern:
I'm not really sure how Clint Hurdle can keep trotting Jorge De La Rosa and Mark Redman out there week after week. Anything is better than letting those two guys ruin your team's momentum every few days. I understand Jason Hirsch and Kip Wells are on the DL, but there has to be a better option. Neither of those guys deserve a job. While the NL West is super awful, the Rockies don't stand a chance if they don't do something quick. A lot of people think that the Rox are about two seconds from shipping out Brian Fuentes, but don't be so quick to think he'll be wearing a different uniform by the trade deadline. Teams won't be willing to give up a lot for a mid-level reliever and the Rockies may be better off with him.
The Brewers should be a little concerned about one thing, and nervous as hell about another. The little concern is Guillermo Mota. Yes, he's struggled and Tom Haudricourt wants his head on a platter, but the fact of the matter is that his pitches just don't look the same. In his first 19 outings, Mota carried a 3.08 ERA, and was a solid contributor to this bullpen. But Brewers fans smell blood. Funny, they smelled blood with Gagne a month ago, but that's changing as well. It's not time for Mota to go yet, but he'll need to fix the flaw in his delivery if he thinks the Brewers fans won't let him have it. The big concern is the struggles at the plate. It was feast or famine this week, and when you famine against Glendon Rusch, a red flag pops up. These gimme games have to be won, but until they do that, they'll always be vulnerable and never way ahead.
Causes for Excitement:
Ubaldo Jimenez started the year off with high expectations. He has a live arm, throwing a nasty slider combined with a 95-98 MPH fastball. But Jimenez just couldn't deliver. His starts were inconsistent at best. In his first 11 starts, Jimenez was carring a 1-5 record and a 5.37 ERA. However, things are turning around, and fast. Jimenez's start on Monday was impressive, as was his last start against San Diego, allowing the hard throwing right hander to win three of his last four decisions. His strikeout numbers have turned him into a very serviceable pitcher for the injury prone Rockies.
The easy route for the Brewers is CC Sabathia, but I'm going to say Eric Gagne. Yes, CC is the news of the week, but hidden in all of it is Eric Gagne's three outings since returning from the DL. Eric has been as efficient as ever, needing only nine pitches in his first outing, 15 in his second and 14 in Tuesday's affair. His change-up has been downright nasty and the fastball has been down and on the corners. With the blow up of Mota, the Brewers should be thankful this $10 million set up man, may actually come through for us in a big spot. I don't think the Brewers need another reliever. I'm okay with who we have, except for Mota as of now. Nothing a Tim Dillard can't fix. Nevertheless, pitching is the strong suit of this team, and I'm going to stick to it.
Milwaukee Brewers 3 Colorado Rockies 4
Milwaukee Brewers 7 Colorado Rockies 3
Milwaukee Brewers 3 Colorado Rockies 8
Milwaukee Brewers 11 Colorado Rockies 1
MVPs of the Series:
Ryan Braun: 6/16; 2B, HR, BB, 6 RBIs, 2 Rs
Garrett Atkins: 5/12; 2 HRs, 2 BBs, 4 RBIs, 4 Rs
Braun played pretty solid baseball all series, but he will most be remembered this series for starting the CC era off right with a three run blast in the first inning. Bill Hall also played remarkably well, but Braun was the most consistent of the bunch.
Garrett Atkins and Matt Holiday are the only reason the Rockies split this series. The two combined to score or knock in nine of the Rockies 16 runs this series. Atkins single handedly won game three for the Rox, hitting both of his bombs in that game, all while playing a solid third base.
What was the Difference?:
Defense. Every game seemed to have a very pivotal and important play. In game one it was Braun's two double plays. In game two it was CC's catch on the mound with no one out and runners on the corners. Game three was riddled with Jason Kendall catching baserunners to keep the Brewers in it. And then Brad Hawpe's bad throw in the third on Thursday got Rickie to second and started the Brewers' offensive barrage. Neither team played great defense though, as this series was marred by a number of errors.
Causes for Concern:
I'm not really sure how Clint Hurdle can keep trotting Jorge De La Rosa and Mark Redman out there week after week. Anything is better than letting those two guys ruin your team's momentum every few days. I understand Jason Hirsch and Kip Wells are on the DL, but there has to be a better option. Neither of those guys deserve a job. While the NL West is super awful, the Rockies don't stand a chance if they don't do something quick. A lot of people think that the Rox are about two seconds from shipping out Brian Fuentes, but don't be so quick to think he'll be wearing a different uniform by the trade deadline. Teams won't be willing to give up a lot for a mid-level reliever and the Rockies may be better off with him.
The Brewers should be a little concerned about one thing, and nervous as hell about another. The little concern is Guillermo Mota. Yes, he's struggled and Tom Haudricourt wants his head on a platter, but the fact of the matter is that his pitches just don't look the same. In his first 19 outings, Mota carried a 3.08 ERA, and was a solid contributor to this bullpen. But Brewers fans smell blood. Funny, they smelled blood with Gagne a month ago, but that's changing as well. It's not time for Mota to go yet, but he'll need to fix the flaw in his delivery if he thinks the Brewers fans won't let him have it. The big concern is the struggles at the plate. It was feast or famine this week, and when you famine against Glendon Rusch, a red flag pops up. These gimme games have to be won, but until they do that, they'll always be vulnerable and never way ahead.
Causes for Excitement:
Ubaldo Jimenez started the year off with high expectations. He has a live arm, throwing a nasty slider combined with a 95-98 MPH fastball. But Jimenez just couldn't deliver. His starts were inconsistent at best. In his first 11 starts, Jimenez was carring a 1-5 record and a 5.37 ERA. However, things are turning around, and fast. Jimenez's start on Monday was impressive, as was his last start against San Diego, allowing the hard throwing right hander to win three of his last four decisions. His strikeout numbers have turned him into a very serviceable pitcher for the injury prone Rockies.
The easy route for the Brewers is CC Sabathia, but I'm going to say Eric Gagne. Yes, CC is the news of the week, but hidden in all of it is Eric Gagne's three outings since returning from the DL. Eric has been as efficient as ever, needing only nine pitches in his first outing, 15 in his second and 14 in Tuesday's affair. His change-up has been downright nasty and the fastball has been down and on the corners. With the blow up of Mota, the Brewers should be thankful this $10 million set up man, may actually come through for us in a big spot. I don't think the Brewers need another reliever. I'm okay with who we have, except for Mota as of now. Nothing a Tim Dillard can't fix. Nevertheless, pitching is the strong suit of this team, and I'm going to stick to it.
Something's Missing
I wasn't going to do a recap today because I was so frustrated with last night's game, and I really didn't want to whine for an hour today while sitting at work. But 'the believer' commented this morning on the game and I've kind of changed my mind. I still won't be doing a recap, and least not the usual anyways, but I want to delve into the big problems the Brewers have, and why there's not guarantees in the second half.
CC Sabathia is a stud and there's few rotations that can rival the punch of Sheets, Sabathia and Parra. But Brewers fans need to remember the average age of our starters on this team is about 26. Furthermore, with the exception of Kendall and Cameron, not one of these guys has more than three full seasons of ABs under their belt.
Last night, they showed their age. Glendon Rusch is a career 5.04 ERA pitcher with a WHIP of 1.48. He has an 88 MPH fastball, throws junkballs and makes a lot of mistakes. He pitches to a lot of contact and really relies on his defense to get him through. He's basically a band aid pitcher. But the Brewers made him look like an ace last night. And it's not the first time they've done that. Remember Jorge Campillo? Josh Fogg? Nelson Figueroa? Greg Reynolds? Not one of these guys is very good. In fact, they're all number four, number five or spot starters, but they each pitched at least six innings and gave up two runs or fewer. The Brewers made them look like aces.
We've all heard the phrase, 'These are the games you're supposed to win.' These are the games when the opposing team throws their innings eater on to the mound and are basically conceding they're going to give up three to five runs, guaranteed. They just hope that they can score more and have the bullpen do the rest. The problem for the Brewers is if you throw that band aid out there, especially if they haven't seen that band aid before, the offense gets super amped up and goes for the long ball. Guys who don't throw very hard like Rusch and Campillo don't give up a lot of homeruns. The teams that have success against them are teams that are willing to take walks, go opposite field and stay patient.
The Brewers are NOT patient. There's nothing that's more unsexy than a walk to this team. We are 90 games through the season and the Brewers have 289 walks. Sounds reasonable I guess, but for a good comparison, the Cubs have 365. That's 76 more baserunners this season that were freebies. These guys just had to walk up there, look at 4-7 pitches and start trotting. And it's not surprising to find out that the Cubs also have 108 more hits than the Brewers. The reason? They see more pitches.
So great, the Brewers have one of the best rotations in baseball, perhaps THE best. But if they can only offer eight runs one night and two the next, they will never be able to make an overly tremendous run. It will simply be what it is now, a hot month or two. The pitchers have picked up the offense far too often this year. We rarely see this team win games if the other team gets five or more. CC Sabathia can't be perfect. He adds confidence, swagger and great pitching, but great pitching needs some help.
This team needs another asset. Someone who understands this obvious theory and is going to convince every one else of the same thing. Kenny Lofton is known as one of the best club house guys in the business and is a career .299/.372 hitter. Not to mention he's 41 years old and has had a very solid career. If he came in here and produced at about 80% of what he did last year for the Indians in the second half, his presence alone could improve this team. It's another lefty bat, but one that is willing to teach a bunch of young guy, who clearly aren't learning much from below average hitters like Jim Skaalen or Butch Wynegar. Kenny Lofton will have the immediate respect of this team and may be able to push them over the top.
Until then, the Brewers are riding the seesaw. They'll be up and down all year until they find some sort of consistency at the plate. Melvin wants to get over the top, and a move is definitely necessary. If you're going to go for it, go for it.
I'll leave you with one question. If Alcides Escobar can play second base, would you try and trade Rickie Weeks? Weeks is a solid trade chip this off season or right now if the Brewers can find a high OBP guy somewhere. Just a thought I haven't given too much consideration.
CC Sabathia is a stud and there's few rotations that can rival the punch of Sheets, Sabathia and Parra. But Brewers fans need to remember the average age of our starters on this team is about 26. Furthermore, with the exception of Kendall and Cameron, not one of these guys has more than three full seasons of ABs under their belt.
Last night, they showed their age. Glendon Rusch is a career 5.04 ERA pitcher with a WHIP of 1.48. He has an 88 MPH fastball, throws junkballs and makes a lot of mistakes. He pitches to a lot of contact and really relies on his defense to get him through. He's basically a band aid pitcher. But the Brewers made him look like an ace last night. And it's not the first time they've done that. Remember Jorge Campillo? Josh Fogg? Nelson Figueroa? Greg Reynolds? Not one of these guys is very good. In fact, they're all number four, number five or spot starters, but they each pitched at least six innings and gave up two runs or fewer. The Brewers made them look like aces.
We've all heard the phrase, 'These are the games you're supposed to win.' These are the games when the opposing team throws their innings eater on to the mound and are basically conceding they're going to give up three to five runs, guaranteed. They just hope that they can score more and have the bullpen do the rest. The problem for the Brewers is if you throw that band aid out there, especially if they haven't seen that band aid before, the offense gets super amped up and goes for the long ball. Guys who don't throw very hard like Rusch and Campillo don't give up a lot of homeruns. The teams that have success against them are teams that are willing to take walks, go opposite field and stay patient.
The Brewers are NOT patient. There's nothing that's more unsexy than a walk to this team. We are 90 games through the season and the Brewers have 289 walks. Sounds reasonable I guess, but for a good comparison, the Cubs have 365. That's 76 more baserunners this season that were freebies. These guys just had to walk up there, look at 4-7 pitches and start trotting. And it's not surprising to find out that the Cubs also have 108 more hits than the Brewers. The reason? They see more pitches.
So great, the Brewers have one of the best rotations in baseball, perhaps THE best. But if they can only offer eight runs one night and two the next, they will never be able to make an overly tremendous run. It will simply be what it is now, a hot month or two. The pitchers have picked up the offense far too often this year. We rarely see this team win games if the other team gets five or more. CC Sabathia can't be perfect. He adds confidence, swagger and great pitching, but great pitching needs some help.
This team needs another asset. Someone who understands this obvious theory and is going to convince every one else of the same thing. Kenny Lofton is known as one of the best club house guys in the business and is a career .299/.372 hitter. Not to mention he's 41 years old and has had a very solid career. If he came in here and produced at about 80% of what he did last year for the Indians in the second half, his presence alone could improve this team. It's another lefty bat, but one that is willing to teach a bunch of young guy, who clearly aren't learning much from below average hitters like Jim Skaalen or Butch Wynegar. Kenny Lofton will have the immediate respect of this team and may be able to push them over the top.
Until then, the Brewers are riding the seesaw. They'll be up and down all year until they find some sort of consistency at the plate. Melvin wants to get over the top, and a move is definitely necessary. If you're going to go for it, go for it.
I'll leave you with one question. If Alcides Escobar can play second base, would you try and trade Rickie Weeks? Weeks is a solid trade chip this off season or right now if the Brewers can find a high OBP guy somewhere. Just a thought I haven't given too much consideration.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Brewers Rockies Game Two Recap
The Score:
Milwaukee Brewers 7 Colorado Rockies 3
MVPs of the Game:
Rickie Weeks: 3/5; 2B, 3 Rs
Garrett Atkins: 2/2; 2 BBs, 2 Rs
Game Recap:
Miller Park sold out for the 16th time this year, all in response to the trade for reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, CC Sabathia. Sabathia was not sharp at all and was clearly trying to over throw, but the Brewers offense took advantage of four walks and a very good night from Rickie Weeks to take an early three run lead that they would never relinquish. The thunder and lightning still surrounds CC, though. He received his fair share of standing ovations, from the announcement of the starting lineups to his final strike out in the sixth.
The excitement in the ball park was palpable to say the very least. When Sabathia came out of the dugout, the crowd erupted and as they rose tho their feet, you couldn't find a section that wasn't littered with CC signs or the newly printed CC t-shirt jersey (Which I will not buy to have for three months. If he signs, I'll buy it in a heartbeat). Unfortunately, when CC started pitching, the results weren't very pretty, but they weren't ugly either. Taveras led the game off with a seven pitch walk, which was followed by a Clint Barmes sacrifice bunt. I was immediately confused here. Clint Hurdle, the Rockies manager, was scared of CC in the FIRST inning. After eight pitches, CC as clearly not going to be that overwhelming. There's situations to bunt and there ones where you don't, but I digress. After a soft ground out to second CC walked another batter before getting Spilborghs to strike out.
And then the real question about whether or not this team can be successful came up. Is this offense good enough to get the job done even if the pitching is elite. Last night it was. The inning started it off with two solid back to back singles by Weeks and JJ Hardy to bring up Ryan Braun. Did I ever say that Mark Redman is bad? Well he's bad and after battling Braun for a few pitches, he challenged Braun with a slider low and in. It didn't move much and Braun destroyed it for a three run bomb, giving CC his first lead as a Brewer.
Sabathia would calm down for a few innings, giving up only one hit over the next two innings, and the Brewers tacked on an insurance run after a Rickie Weeks double. Weeks was moved to third by a Hardy groundout and Braun was intentionally walked to bring up Fielder, who delivered again. Fielder hit a soft chopper to the hole at third. Barmes picked it up and tried to go for two, but his flip was off the bag. The turn to get Prince wasn't in time either, meaning no outs and another run scored.
The Rockies would get to the newly acquired ace in the fourth though, reaching on two solid singles and a tough error by JJ Hardy, who couldn't get the ball out of his glove. With the bases loaded, rookie Jayson Nix came to the plate an smoked a ball. Unfortunately for the Rockies, he smoked it on the ground to JJ Hardy flipped to Rickie and turned the double play, limiting the damage to just one run.
They would challenge Sabathia again in the sixth, loading the bases with no one out. This time, though, Torrealba would hit a double down the line that plated two. It could have plated three, but Spilborghs strained his oblique rounding second and couldn't turn to home. That turned out to hurt a lot as the next pitch was lined right back at Sabathia, who caught it and tossed to third for an easy double play. After another walk, Sabathia struck out Brad Hawpe to end his first outing as a Brewer (6 IP, 5 H, 5 BB, 5 K: W)
The Brewers' bullpen would hang on the rest of the way, and the Brewers offense added three insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh with an RBI walk from Corey Hart and a 2-RBI double from Bill Hall. It was a fun game to be at, and if the fans continue to show this much excitement, they may be able to pick up this team when they start to go flat.
Game Changing Play:
With nobody out and runners at first and third in the sixth, the Brewers one run lead looked like it was in real trouble. But Jayson Nix's tough night struck again as he lined to Sabathia, which turned into double play a third. There was nothing the runner could do, and that's baseball.
Notes:
- Both Riske and Gagne looked very very solid last night. Riske came in a one run game and didn't allow a base runner. Gagne gave up a soft line drive hit that Weeks almost came up with, but induced a cake job double to get out of his inning unscathed as well. If the Brewers can get these guys to live up to their potential, their bullpen gets really really scary. Any and all trade rumors would be shifted to getting a high OBP centerfielder.
- Who could that CFer be? How about Kenny Lofton? Look, I love Tony Gwynn Jr. Love him! But the thing is, Lofton in a Brewers uniform could be a phenomenal platoon. I'm not saying we should do it just yet, but it's something to consider down the line. Last year he batting .313/.386/.452 against righties. Yes, he's 41, but he stole 23 bases when he was 40. Cameron is a career .265/.364/.480 hitter against lefties. Wowsa... fans keep calling for Rickie to get moved back in the lineup. Well the arrival of a Kenny Lofton could do that against righties. Just a thought folks.
- My apologies for not getting an analysis out yet on the CC trade. No excuses this time. I've just been lazy. I might be upset with the trade if they lost Brantley as well. The Cubs practically gave up nothing to get Harden and Gaudin. Murton, Patterson and Gallagher were not even considered thoughts in their plans for the next four seasons. LaPorta and Brantley would have been.
- Jeff Suppan was placed on the DL yesterday with elbow irritation that happened on a swing almost a month ago. A lot of people keep saying he's just faking it, but think about it folks. If Suppan were to go on the DL, Shapiro and the Indians would have had a lot more leverage as far as the CC trade went because the Brewers would have went from interested to desperate.
- I failed to mention yesterday that Manny Parra's spot was skipped in the rotation this week to make room for Sabathia, so he will pitch Friday and Bush will pitch tomorrow afternoon. The thought is that the Brewers will get two aces in each series. This is why Parra pitched an inning of relief in Monday night's game. It was essentially an in between bullpen session to keep Parra sharp. Look for the rotation to be Sabathia, Sheets, Parra, McClung Bush when the All-Star break is over. This will split the lefties. Not to mention Sheets will be pitching in the All-Star game an should get an extra day of rest.
What's on Tap?:
With the series tied, Ben Sheets will take the mound to face off against Greg Reynolds. In in his last outing against the Rox, Reynolds pitched very well, giving up only two runs on four hits in six innings. But he did not strike out a batter, which means thing to get interesting if the Crew stays patient.
Milwaukee Brewers 7 Colorado Rockies 3
MVPs of the Game:
Rickie Weeks: 3/5; 2B, 3 Rs
Garrett Atkins: 2/2; 2 BBs, 2 Rs
Game Recap:
Miller Park sold out for the 16th time this year, all in response to the trade for reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, CC Sabathia. Sabathia was not sharp at all and was clearly trying to over throw, but the Brewers offense took advantage of four walks and a very good night from Rickie Weeks to take an early three run lead that they would never relinquish. The thunder and lightning still surrounds CC, though. He received his fair share of standing ovations, from the announcement of the starting lineups to his final strike out in the sixth.
The excitement in the ball park was palpable to say the very least. When Sabathia came out of the dugout, the crowd erupted and as they rose tho their feet, you couldn't find a section that wasn't littered with CC signs or the newly printed CC t-shirt jersey (Which I will not buy to have for three months. If he signs, I'll buy it in a heartbeat). Unfortunately, when CC started pitching, the results weren't very pretty, but they weren't ugly either. Taveras led the game off with a seven pitch walk, which was followed by a Clint Barmes sacrifice bunt. I was immediately confused here. Clint Hurdle, the Rockies manager, was scared of CC in the FIRST inning. After eight pitches, CC as clearly not going to be that overwhelming. There's situations to bunt and there ones where you don't, but I digress. After a soft ground out to second CC walked another batter before getting Spilborghs to strike out.
And then the real question about whether or not this team can be successful came up. Is this offense good enough to get the job done even if the pitching is elite. Last night it was. The inning started it off with two solid back to back singles by Weeks and JJ Hardy to bring up Ryan Braun. Did I ever say that Mark Redman is bad? Well he's bad and after battling Braun for a few pitches, he challenged Braun with a slider low and in. It didn't move much and Braun destroyed it for a three run bomb, giving CC his first lead as a Brewer.
Sabathia would calm down for a few innings, giving up only one hit over the next two innings, and the Brewers tacked on an insurance run after a Rickie Weeks double. Weeks was moved to third by a Hardy groundout and Braun was intentionally walked to bring up Fielder, who delivered again. Fielder hit a soft chopper to the hole at third. Barmes picked it up and tried to go for two, but his flip was off the bag. The turn to get Prince wasn't in time either, meaning no outs and another run scored.
The Rockies would get to the newly acquired ace in the fourth though, reaching on two solid singles and a tough error by JJ Hardy, who couldn't get the ball out of his glove. With the bases loaded, rookie Jayson Nix came to the plate an smoked a ball. Unfortunately for the Rockies, he smoked it on the ground to JJ Hardy flipped to Rickie and turned the double play, limiting the damage to just one run.
They would challenge Sabathia again in the sixth, loading the bases with no one out. This time, though, Torrealba would hit a double down the line that plated two. It could have plated three, but Spilborghs strained his oblique rounding second and couldn't turn to home. That turned out to hurt a lot as the next pitch was lined right back at Sabathia, who caught it and tossed to third for an easy double play. After another walk, Sabathia struck out Brad Hawpe to end his first outing as a Brewer (6 IP, 5 H, 5 BB, 5 K: W)
The Brewers' bullpen would hang on the rest of the way, and the Brewers offense added three insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh with an RBI walk from Corey Hart and a 2-RBI double from Bill Hall. It was a fun game to be at, and if the fans continue to show this much excitement, they may be able to pick up this team when they start to go flat.
Game Changing Play:
With nobody out and runners at first and third in the sixth, the Brewers one run lead looked like it was in real trouble. But Jayson Nix's tough night struck again as he lined to Sabathia, which turned into double play a third. There was nothing the runner could do, and that's baseball.
Notes:
- Both Riske and Gagne looked very very solid last night. Riske came in a one run game and didn't allow a base runner. Gagne gave up a soft line drive hit that Weeks almost came up with, but induced a cake job double to get out of his inning unscathed as well. If the Brewers can get these guys to live up to their potential, their bullpen gets really really scary. Any and all trade rumors would be shifted to getting a high OBP centerfielder.
- Who could that CFer be? How about Kenny Lofton? Look, I love Tony Gwynn Jr. Love him! But the thing is, Lofton in a Brewers uniform could be a phenomenal platoon. I'm not saying we should do it just yet, but it's something to consider down the line. Last year he batting .313/.386/.452 against righties. Yes, he's 41, but he stole 23 bases when he was 40. Cameron is a career .265/.364/.480 hitter against lefties. Wowsa... fans keep calling for Rickie to get moved back in the lineup. Well the arrival of a Kenny Lofton could do that against righties. Just a thought folks.
- My apologies for not getting an analysis out yet on the CC trade. No excuses this time. I've just been lazy. I might be upset with the trade if they lost Brantley as well. The Cubs practically gave up nothing to get Harden and Gaudin. Murton, Patterson and Gallagher were not even considered thoughts in their plans for the next four seasons. LaPorta and Brantley would have been.
- Jeff Suppan was placed on the DL yesterday with elbow irritation that happened on a swing almost a month ago. A lot of people keep saying he's just faking it, but think about it folks. If Suppan were to go on the DL, Shapiro and the Indians would have had a lot more leverage as far as the CC trade went because the Brewers would have went from interested to desperate.
- I failed to mention yesterday that Manny Parra's spot was skipped in the rotation this week to make room for Sabathia, so he will pitch Friday and Bush will pitch tomorrow afternoon. The thought is that the Brewers will get two aces in each series. This is why Parra pitched an inning of relief in Monday night's game. It was essentially an in between bullpen session to keep Parra sharp. Look for the rotation to be Sabathia, Sheets, Parra, McClung Bush when the All-Star break is over. This will split the lefties. Not to mention Sheets will be pitching in the All-Star game an should get an extra day of rest.
What's on Tap?:
With the series tied, Ben Sheets will take the mound to face off against Greg Reynolds. In in his last outing against the Rox, Reynolds pitched very well, giving up only two runs on four hits in six innings. But he did not strike out a batter, which means thing to get interesting if the Crew stays patient.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Brewers Rockies Game One Recap
The Score:
Milwaukee Brewers 3 Colorado Rockies 4
MVPs of the Game:
Prince Fielder: 1/3; HR, 2 RBIs, BB
Ubaldo Jimenez: 7 IP, 3 H, 5 BB, 7 Ks, 0 R (W)
Game Recap:
Perhaps the Brewers thought the acquisition of CC Sabathia yesterday meant they were just going to be handed baseball games as they come. Or perhaps they simply used up all of their hits on Sunday. Or maybe, just maybe, they got outplayed. Last night's game was a bit of a debauchery for both teams, as both teams struggled in the field and at the plate. Together they combined for only thirteen hits and two errors (well, three, but that's baseball). In the end, the Brewers couldn't would be hit by some hard luck, despite given every opportunity by the Rockies.
Seth McClung toed the rubber Monday night and was lights out for the first three innings, but then a spurt of wildness hit him in the fourth. It didn't help that he was being squeezed big time by home plate umpire, Tim McClelland. But it's your job to pitch around those problems, and for the most part McClung did. In the fourth he loaded the bases on a double and two walks, but induced a sac fly from Garrett Atkins, struck out Joe Koshansky and got Jeff Baker to fly out to limit the damage. He would walk two more to lead off the fifth, one of which was the pitcher. This time, however, he lost some composure. After a sac bunt and a pop out, Matt Holliday singled in Chris Ianetta. Ned Yost couldn't take any more after he walked Brad Hawpe for his third of the inning and fifth in less than six outs.
Carlos Villanueva would take the ball and pitch extremely well even if his defense didn't show up. After giving up a one out single to Jeff Baker, Baker took off to second and was called safe on a bang bang play that could have went either way. This could be said about a number of calls all night, but maybe I'll get into that later. After Chris Iannetta struck out, Ubaldo Jimenez grounded to third softly, but Russell Branyan gave it the old ole, allowing Baker to score making it 3-0.
A mistake pitch to Matt Holliday moved that lead to four, which seemed pretty insurmountable considering the Brewers weren't hitting the ball hard at all. Even worse, they had two base running blunders, in which Corey Hart and Ryan Braun were picked off at first base with fewer than two out. But the Rockies would do their best to try and hand the Brewers the game in eighth. Kapler would start the rally by hitting a cue blooper just shy of the first base bag. First baseman Joe Koshansky's only play was to tag Kapler, but when he went to grab the ball with his glove it caromed a bit off the line of the grass and slipped by him. Craig Counsell was the next batter and he popped right up the elevator in front of the plate, but neither Chris Iannetta or Garrett Atkins could decide who deserved it more and the ball fell, putting two on with nobody out. A walk by JJ Hardy loaded the bases for Ryan Braun, who up to that point was the only person who was hitting the ball hard. Unfortunately, it had been on the ground all night.
Braun promptly drilled a ball right up the middle that looked like a for sure base hit, but it clipped the mound and the loose dirt angled it about two to three feet to the left side of the infield, turning it into a routine double play. This proved to be huge as Prince Fielder hit his 17th homerun right after to bring the game within one. Brian Fuentes would keep the Brewers quiet in the ninth, and ended the Brewers CC high.
Game Changing Play:
The error by Branyan was huge. At the time the game was only a 2-0 game, and was easily within reach considering Jimenez wasn't very spot on. He did walk five Brewers after all. Instead the lead was extended to three and the Villanueva's momentum was destroyed.
Notes:
- McClelland's strike zone was a joke yesterday, and for the most part favored Jimenez when calls did waver. McClung had great stuff, but this ump was just completely fooled by his outside corner curveball, and would NEVER give him the benefit of the doubt on close calls with two strikes. The same could be said for Jimenez most of the night, but as he got further into the game, the more he was given, hence Braun saying a few things when he struck out looking in the sixth.
- Don't get too down on McClung. He has the stuff and he's proved it to me every time he's been out there. I think his biggest problem is the mental aspect of the game. He gets too emotional and you can see it. After every walk he's talking to himself and he gets angry after every hit. I like that and all. You should be upset when these things happen, but you can't let it spiral out of control. Walking the pitcher in the fifth was an example where it did.
- Prince finally looked good at the plate and didn't try to over swing every time at the plate. The same can be said for Braun, even if he did GIDP twice. Both of them were bullets and are base hits if no one is on base, or if the mound wasn't there.
- Two more pickoffs makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with Ed Sedar and his coaching. This has been happening all year. With a low OBP team, you cannot sacrifice outs or base runners. Perhaps they'll have a little clinic the day before the second half because something needs to be done immediately.
What's on Tap?:
The Brewers put their new acquisition, CC Sabathia, on the mound against veteran Mark Redman. If the Brewers don't give CC a ton of run support, I will be severely disappointed. Redman has never been good. If Sabathia is simply average tonight, I will be pleased. All we need out of him is six to seven innings of two to three run baseball and he should get his victory and the Brewers fans more behind him than they already are.
Milwaukee Brewers 3 Colorado Rockies 4
MVPs of the Game:
Prince Fielder: 1/3; HR, 2 RBIs, BB
Ubaldo Jimenez: 7 IP, 3 H, 5 BB, 7 Ks, 0 R (W)
Game Recap:
Perhaps the Brewers thought the acquisition of CC Sabathia yesterday meant they were just going to be handed baseball games as they come. Or perhaps they simply used up all of their hits on Sunday. Or maybe, just maybe, they got outplayed. Last night's game was a bit of a debauchery for both teams, as both teams struggled in the field and at the plate. Together they combined for only thirteen hits and two errors (well, three, but that's baseball). In the end, the Brewers couldn't would be hit by some hard luck, despite given every opportunity by the Rockies.
Seth McClung toed the rubber Monday night and was lights out for the first three innings, but then a spurt of wildness hit him in the fourth. It didn't help that he was being squeezed big time by home plate umpire, Tim McClelland. But it's your job to pitch around those problems, and for the most part McClung did. In the fourth he loaded the bases on a double and two walks, but induced a sac fly from Garrett Atkins, struck out Joe Koshansky and got Jeff Baker to fly out to limit the damage. He would walk two more to lead off the fifth, one of which was the pitcher. This time, however, he lost some composure. After a sac bunt and a pop out, Matt Holliday singled in Chris Ianetta. Ned Yost couldn't take any more after he walked Brad Hawpe for his third of the inning and fifth in less than six outs.
Carlos Villanueva would take the ball and pitch extremely well even if his defense didn't show up. After giving up a one out single to Jeff Baker, Baker took off to second and was called safe on a bang bang play that could have went either way. This could be said about a number of calls all night, but maybe I'll get into that later. After Chris Iannetta struck out, Ubaldo Jimenez grounded to third softly, but Russell Branyan gave it the old ole, allowing Baker to score making it 3-0.
A mistake pitch to Matt Holliday moved that lead to four, which seemed pretty insurmountable considering the Brewers weren't hitting the ball hard at all. Even worse, they had two base running blunders, in which Corey Hart and Ryan Braun were picked off at first base with fewer than two out. But the Rockies would do their best to try and hand the Brewers the game in eighth. Kapler would start the rally by hitting a cue blooper just shy of the first base bag. First baseman Joe Koshansky's only play was to tag Kapler, but when he went to grab the ball with his glove it caromed a bit off the line of the grass and slipped by him. Craig Counsell was the next batter and he popped right up the elevator in front of the plate, but neither Chris Iannetta or Garrett Atkins could decide who deserved it more and the ball fell, putting two on with nobody out. A walk by JJ Hardy loaded the bases for Ryan Braun, who up to that point was the only person who was hitting the ball hard. Unfortunately, it had been on the ground all night.
Braun promptly drilled a ball right up the middle that looked like a for sure base hit, but it clipped the mound and the loose dirt angled it about two to three feet to the left side of the infield, turning it into a routine double play. This proved to be huge as Prince Fielder hit his 17th homerun right after to bring the game within one. Brian Fuentes would keep the Brewers quiet in the ninth, and ended the Brewers CC high.
Game Changing Play:
The error by Branyan was huge. At the time the game was only a 2-0 game, and was easily within reach considering Jimenez wasn't very spot on. He did walk five Brewers after all. Instead the lead was extended to three and the Villanueva's momentum was destroyed.
Notes:
- McClelland's strike zone was a joke yesterday, and for the most part favored Jimenez when calls did waver. McClung had great stuff, but this ump was just completely fooled by his outside corner curveball, and would NEVER give him the benefit of the doubt on close calls with two strikes. The same could be said for Jimenez most of the night, but as he got further into the game, the more he was given, hence Braun saying a few things when he struck out looking in the sixth.
- Don't get too down on McClung. He has the stuff and he's proved it to me every time he's been out there. I think his biggest problem is the mental aspect of the game. He gets too emotional and you can see it. After every walk he's talking to himself and he gets angry after every hit. I like that and all. You should be upset when these things happen, but you can't let it spiral out of control. Walking the pitcher in the fifth was an example where it did.
- Prince finally looked good at the plate and didn't try to over swing every time at the plate. The same can be said for Braun, even if he did GIDP twice. Both of them were bullets and are base hits if no one is on base, or if the mound wasn't there.
- Two more pickoffs makes me wonder what the hell is wrong with Ed Sedar and his coaching. This has been happening all year. With a low OBP team, you cannot sacrifice outs or base runners. Perhaps they'll have a little clinic the day before the second half because something needs to be done immediately.
What's on Tap?:
The Brewers put their new acquisition, CC Sabathia, on the mound against veteran Mark Redman. If the Brewers don't give CC a ton of run support, I will be severely disappointed. Redman has never been good. If Sabathia is simply average tonight, I will be pleased. All we need out of him is six to seven innings of two to three run baseball and he should get his victory and the Brewers fans more behind him than they already are.
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