So I did the disappointing Brewers, now it's time for the division rival Cubs' off-season review.
Players lost : Henry Blanco, Mark DeRosa, Jim Edmonds, Bob Howry, John Lieber, Jason Marquis, Kerry Wood.
Players Gained : Milton Bradley, Joey Gathright, Kevin Gregg, Mark Johnson, Aaron Miles, Luis Vizcaino.
The Cubs lost one of their center fielders last year, but they replaced the loss of one outfielder with the addition of two. Milton Bradley had an exceptional season last year with Texas and now he is trying to find a new home and hopefully for the cubs, trying to not be a distraction. And Joey Gathright, not the best offensive player, is a very speedy fielder and will provide another good glove in the grass.
Kevin Gregg was an interesting addition, because they could've resigned their own feel good story, Kerry Wood, but instead decided to get a stuggling closer from the Marlins. In his last month as a closer, he gave up 11 earned runs in 9 innings, and then was removed from his closer role. So unless the Cubs are looking to move Marmol to closer and Gregg as set-up, I don't really see the point in this move.
Mark Johnson was just a move to sign a backup for Soto, Miles was picked up to make up for the infielder shortage because of the DeRosa deal and Vizcaino was picked up to "help" the bullpen. In his career, he has only had 4 years with an ERA of less than 4; however, it will make up for the "loss" of Bob Howry, who wasn't very good when he needed to be last year.
It's sad to say, for me as a Brewers fan, but the Cubs will probably win the division again. Their most valuable player that they lost was Mark DeRosa, and they have plenty of offense to make up for that loss.
Next: I don't really know! lol. I'll make that decision when I right the article.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
The Best NL Cental Offseason Moves
With the craziness of free agency, for the most part, behind us, I will go ahead and analyze the NL Central. Who improved, who got worse, and what I think the division will look like at the end of the year.
I will start with all of our favorite small market team --
The Brewers:
Players Lost : CC Sabathia, Ben Sheets, Brian Shouse, Solomon Torres, Eric Gagne, Guilermo Mota, Joe Dillon, Craig Counsell, Gabe Cappler, Russell Branyan, Ray Durham,
Players Added : Trevor Hoffman, Jorge Julio, Jason Bourgeois, Trot Nixon
Obviously, the Brewers didn't make any huge moves to help solve the starting pitching shortage, but now we do have a closer -- and a great one at that. Travor Hoffman was the best pick-up the brewers got (if not the only good one). He is without a doubt the closer all year and he also helps the starting rotation a little by solving the bulpen problem -- now that the closer role is solved, we can tab Seth McClung for a spot in the starting five.
Jorge Julio is a pitcher with a lot of potential; however, he has some growing to do to get to his peek. He shows flashes of brilliance, but more often than not will lose more games for you than he will win. In his most recent winter league game he allowed 6 runs in .2 innings. Who knows what will happen with this one.
Arguably the best offseason move for the Brew Crew was for the Cubs to get rid of Mark DeRosa and not get Peavy from it.
The Brewers will definitely have some ground to make up, and they won't be the preseason pick to win the division, but the offseason isn't over and you never know what is going to happen next.
Tomorrow: the Chicago Cubs
I will start with all of our favorite small market team --
The Brewers:
Players Lost : CC Sabathia, Ben Sheets, Brian Shouse, Solomon Torres, Eric Gagne, Guilermo Mota, Joe Dillon, Craig Counsell, Gabe Cappler, Russell Branyan, Ray Durham,
Players Added : Trevor Hoffman, Jorge Julio, Jason Bourgeois, Trot Nixon
Obviously, the Brewers didn't make any huge moves to help solve the starting pitching shortage, but now we do have a closer -- and a great one at that. Travor Hoffman was the best pick-up the brewers got (if not the only good one). He is without a doubt the closer all year and he also helps the starting rotation a little by solving the bulpen problem -- now that the closer role is solved, we can tab Seth McClung for a spot in the starting five.
Jorge Julio is a pitcher with a lot of potential; however, he has some growing to do to get to his peek. He shows flashes of brilliance, but more often than not will lose more games for you than he will win. In his most recent winter league game he allowed 6 runs in .2 innings. Who knows what will happen with this one.
Arguably the best offseason move for the Brew Crew was for the Cubs to get rid of Mark DeRosa and not get Peavy from it.
The Brewers will definitely have some ground to make up, and they won't be the preseason pick to win the division, but the offseason isn't over and you never know what is going to happen next.
Tomorrow: the Chicago Cubs
Monday, January 12, 2009
Sorry Sorry Sorry!!!
Well Everyone,
I am so sorry (as previously stated three times in the title) that I haven't made a post since August. I went back to school and had one rough semester. But that's over, it's after the holidays and there's been so much news in Brewers nation, I don't know where to start. But really, that's a no-brainer.
So who else wants a salary cap? Everyone reading this post should - that's assuming that the only traffic my blog gets is from Brewers fans. How many times will the Yankees try to buy a good season by overspending on free agents? I, personally, think it's a crock of sh#% that one team is allowed to spend more than $400 million on three players! Some might argue "The luxury tax evens that out" but the thing about that is, the luxury tax doesn't really make anything even and here's why:
1: The small market teams can't afford to spend a ton of money anyway, so they don't have to worry about the luxury tax.
2: The medium market teams are the ones who get hurt the most, because if they could've maybe found a way to spend enough for the luxury tax to matter, then they just got stopped because of the luxury tax.
3: The large market teams, the reason why the luxury tax was put in place, who have the money to spend on the "Type A" free agents, will pay through their noses for the players, and then the luxury tax is still chump change!
I, for one, am appalled at the player whom we all grew to love. The player who got us to the post season. The player who claims that he went to new york because he wouldn't have been surrounded with enough talent to win in Milwaukee. Yeah right CC! We all know why you really left you money grubbing f*#%! I hope you never get back to Milwaukee and I hope you never get another post-season win (Post season stats: 1-3 7.92 ERA, 22 walks 24 strikeouts in 25 innings pitched). Good Riddance.
Trevor Hoffman -- I have to admit, I didn't see that coming. After not even coming close to getting Fuentes to consider Milwaukee, I thought that next year's closer was already on the roster. I never thought Melvin would go out and spend any decent amount of money on another closer after the Gagne debacle. And, to be completely honest, I wasn't even all that excited when I heard that the Brewers signed him, I mean, his ERA was almost 4 last year, and for a closer who just signed for $6 million, that's huge! He pitched a career low in innings (except for one year when he was injured) and had his third highest ERA. However, I have been looking at his game log for last year and he really only had two bad months. He ended the season pitching very well and it seems that the reason for his high era was really due to about 2 bad games in which he gave up 3 and 4 runs (He had an ERA of 7 in those games and a 2.45 ERA the rest of the year). He had 10 games in which he only gave up 1 run, and he still recorded a save in 3 of them. So after looking at the stats and doing a little bit of analyzing I am happy with the signing, and if you're not, listen to this:
Out of the top 50 pitchers according to saves last year, if you take out those two bad games and use the era from his 44.1 innings(2.45) Trevor Hoffman lands at number 10 according to ERA (reordering the top 50 saves according to ERA).
JJ Hardy avoiding arbitration. Why the hell are you still messing around with this? Ask JJ if he will move to third base to make room for Alvides Escobar to better the team. I have never heard anything about JJ that would make me believe that he would not move to make the team better, but if he doesn't want to move, ask Escobar the same question. If Escobar says no, then even though I hate to say it, you need to start shopping Hardy. Let's stop, for lack of a better saying, pussy-footing around this and see what we can do with a good problem like too many shortstops. This is a problem that should definitely be solved while shortstops are still in high demand and while the brewers are lacking pitching(which will probably be a while, lol). Escobar is almost major league ready, let's get this out of the way.
If anyone would like me to answer a question, talk about something, or contact me for any reason, feel free!
mwebster@bradley.edu
I am so sorry (as previously stated three times in the title) that I haven't made a post since August. I went back to school and had one rough semester. But that's over, it's after the holidays and there's been so much news in Brewers nation, I don't know where to start. But really, that's a no-brainer.
So who else wants a salary cap? Everyone reading this post should - that's assuming that the only traffic my blog gets is from Brewers fans. How many times will the Yankees try to buy a good season by overspending on free agents? I, personally, think it's a crock of sh#% that one team is allowed to spend more than $400 million on three players! Some might argue "The luxury tax evens that out" but the thing about that is, the luxury tax doesn't really make anything even and here's why:
1: The small market teams can't afford to spend a ton of money anyway, so they don't have to worry about the luxury tax.
2: The medium market teams are the ones who get hurt the most, because if they could've maybe found a way to spend enough for the luxury tax to matter, then they just got stopped because of the luxury tax.
3: The large market teams, the reason why the luxury tax was put in place, who have the money to spend on the "Type A" free agents, will pay through their noses for the players, and then the luxury tax is still chump change!
I, for one, am appalled at the player whom we all grew to love. The player who got us to the post season. The player who claims that he went to new york because he wouldn't have been surrounded with enough talent to win in Milwaukee. Yeah right CC! We all know why you really left you money grubbing f*#%! I hope you never get back to Milwaukee and I hope you never get another post-season win (Post season stats: 1-3 7.92 ERA, 22 walks 24 strikeouts in 25 innings pitched). Good Riddance.
Trevor Hoffman -- I have to admit, I didn't see that coming. After not even coming close to getting Fuentes to consider Milwaukee, I thought that next year's closer was already on the roster. I never thought Melvin would go out and spend any decent amount of money on another closer after the Gagne debacle. And, to be completely honest, I wasn't even all that excited when I heard that the Brewers signed him, I mean, his ERA was almost 4 last year, and for a closer who just signed for $6 million, that's huge! He pitched a career low in innings (except for one year when he was injured) and had his third highest ERA. However, I have been looking at his game log for last year and he really only had two bad months. He ended the season pitching very well and it seems that the reason for his high era was really due to about 2 bad games in which he gave up 3 and 4 runs (He had an ERA of 7 in those games and a 2.45 ERA the rest of the year). He had 10 games in which he only gave up 1 run, and he still recorded a save in 3 of them. So after looking at the stats and doing a little bit of analyzing I am happy with the signing, and if you're not, listen to this:
Out of the top 50 pitchers according to saves last year, if you take out those two bad games and use the era from his 44.1 innings(2.45) Trevor Hoffman lands at number 10 according to ERA (reordering the top 50 saves according to ERA).
JJ Hardy avoiding arbitration. Why the hell are you still messing around with this? Ask JJ if he will move to third base to make room for Alvides Escobar to better the team. I have never heard anything about JJ that would make me believe that he would not move to make the team better, but if he doesn't want to move, ask Escobar the same question. If Escobar says no, then even though I hate to say it, you need to start shopping Hardy. Let's stop, for lack of a better saying, pussy-footing around this and see what we can do with a good problem like too many shortstops. This is a problem that should definitely be solved while shortstops are still in high demand and while the brewers are lacking pitching(which will probably be a while, lol). Escobar is almost major league ready, let's get this out of the way.
If anyone would like me to answer a question, talk about something, or contact me for any reason, feel free!
mwebster@bradley.edu
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Couple Quick Things
Hey guys and gals,
Brett Lawrie, the Brewers' first round pick this year, Finally signed! That means despite the couple good catchers in the Brewers' system now (Angel Salome, Mike Rivera, etc), the catcher of the future is on the way!
Another thing about the scuffle yesterday between Parra and Fielder.
--For those of you who don't know, after Parra was taken out of the game (he took a no-hitter into the 5th and left the game after giving up 6 runs), he was in the dugout and wanted to go back into the club house. Fielder voiced his opinion that Parra should stay and watch the team hit (that story unconfirmed). After that, some more words were exchanged and the situation ended with Parra being pushed twice and Fielder being restrained by what looked like the entire team.
Now all of the following is just my opinion, if it offends you, well, welcome to America, you're not gonna agree with everything. Just leave a comment and we can discuss it. If you actually have good points, I may post an article about the discussion.
Fielder has a bad temper. I have never had the "pleasure" of meeting Manny Parra, but I have been to a bunch of Brewers' games (home and away) where he has flat out refused to sign autographs. That being said, a friend of mine has told me that Parra is very cocky and a border-line a-hole. When you look at these two players, with the attitudes that they reportedly have, it's just an accident waiting to happen. The team is in a slump, which means Fielder is gonna be mad (good for him). Parra just gave up 6 runs (which in my opinion questions Ned Yost, but that is for a post at the end of the season ;) ) which means his ego just got checked in to the wall and then stepped on (hockey reference). So of course, these two are going to clash. Fielder, being one of the team's leaders, shouldn't have acted in front of everyone, regardless of the cameras. He should've talked to Parra behind closed doors, no one else should've even known about it. How Fielder reacted, whether or not he apologizes for it, calls into question whether or not he is a good leader.
Thanks for listening
Mike
P.S. The rest of the minor league report is coming! don't worry!
Brett Lawrie, the Brewers' first round pick this year, Finally signed! That means despite the couple good catchers in the Brewers' system now (Angel Salome, Mike Rivera, etc), the catcher of the future is on the way!
Another thing about the scuffle yesterday between Parra and Fielder.
--For those of you who don't know, after Parra was taken out of the game (he took a no-hitter into the 5th and left the game after giving up 6 runs), he was in the dugout and wanted to go back into the club house. Fielder voiced his opinion that Parra should stay and watch the team hit (that story unconfirmed). After that, some more words were exchanged and the situation ended with Parra being pushed twice and Fielder being restrained by what looked like the entire team.
Now all of the following is just my opinion, if it offends you, well, welcome to America, you're not gonna agree with everything. Just leave a comment and we can discuss it. If you actually have good points, I may post an article about the discussion.
Fielder has a bad temper. I have never had the "pleasure" of meeting Manny Parra, but I have been to a bunch of Brewers' games (home and away) where he has flat out refused to sign autographs. That being said, a friend of mine has told me that Parra is very cocky and a border-line a-hole. When you look at these two players, with the attitudes that they reportedly have, it's just an accident waiting to happen. The team is in a slump, which means Fielder is gonna be mad (good for him). Parra just gave up 6 runs (which in my opinion questions Ned Yost, but that is for a post at the end of the season ;) ) which means his ego just got checked in to the wall and then stepped on (hockey reference). So of course, these two are going to clash. Fielder, being one of the team's leaders, shouldn't have acted in front of everyone, regardless of the cameras. He should've talked to Parra behind closed doors, no one else should've even known about it. How Fielder reacted, whether or not he apologizes for it, calls into question whether or not he is a good leader.
Thanks for listening
Mike
P.S. The rest of the minor league report is coming! don't worry!
Friday, August 1, 2008
The minor leagues, part I
In this blog's description it says that the minor leagues are discussed, and they are! This is part I of a VI (that's 6 ;) ) part report on the Brewers Farm System.
Webster on Brewers -- Minor Leagues
AAA Nashville Sounds
AAA Nashville Sounds
Well, the Brewers have a very talented minor league system; Unfortunately, it’s concentrated in the lower to middle levels of the farm system. This team doesn’t have much to brag about, especially when it comes to pitching. The Brewers won’t improve much from within next year if they are expecting to bring some of these guys up.
Standouts:
Brad Nelson - 1st Base
Not a bad prospect at 1st base. He is batting .293 this year, which is leading the team’s everyday players. He can also swing for decent power -- he is tied for 2nd with 14 home runs this year. He also leads the team with 59 RBI’s so far. Probably the most impressive stat on this player is his walk-to-strikeout ratio. Despite his power swinging ability, he has walked 66 times opposed to 64 strikeouts. If he played 2nd base, he may have gotten called up this year before the trade for Ray Durham happened, but since he is playing 1st, he seems to be in line for the wrong position. However, think about this one. Prince Fielder’s agent is Scott Boras, and Boras’ clients have a tendency on getting top dollar, and are sometimes considered to be seeking unreasonable contracts. The Brewers’ have already signed Ryan Braun to an extension, with Nelson in the minors, they have the option of letting fielder enter free-agency eventually, or even to trade him, and they would have a back-up, but I only see this happening if Fielder is being unreasonable during contract talks. We’ll just have to wait and see how the situation plays out.
Tony Gwynn Jr. - Outfield
This son of a Hall-of-Famer has been up and down between the majors and minors for almost a full year now. He is playing well enough to be in the Majors, but the Brewers’ have a plethora of outfielder’s, so all he can do is continue to play well in Nashville and wait for his name to be called (which looks like it will be next year (not counting the September call-ups of course)). He is 2nd on the team with a .285 batting average and 4th in on-base percentage with .341. He has also swiped 15 bases in the minors while only being caught 4 times. Tony has some excellent talent and I, for one, can’t wait until he is back in the majors.
Hernan Iribarren - Outfield
Another player who has bounced back between here and the Brewer’s, and another of the Sound’s best players. He is third on the team in batting average, hitting at a .279 clip and his on base is .337. He is leading the team in both base stealing categories with 18 bases stolen and 7 times caught. Hernan is a solid player, not built for greatness, but he can bring solid numbers to any team. I don’t see Iribarren with the Brewers' organization in the future. The Brewers are very deep in the outfield position and relatively week in the pitching department, and with his speed, I see Iribarren being a trade piece eventually.
Mel Stocker - Outfield
5th in batting average with .276 and 5th in on-base percentage with .338 Sticker is another solid outfielder in Nashville. His standout statistic is one that showcases just how fast he is. He has 18 stolen bases while only being caught once which obviously makes him the team’s best threat on the bases, if not the organization’s best. He has only been with Nashville for 64 games (145 at-bats), which obviously skew his stats a little. Before Nashville, he was all the way down in Brevard County (single A) where he was hitting .320 in 7 games with 2 thefts and was also caught twice.
Laynce Nix - Outfield
Acquired in 2006 in the same trade that brought Kevin Mench and Francisco Cordero to Milwaukee in exchange for Carlos Lee and Nelson Cruz. In 2007, he was an average outfielder, batting a combined (between Huntsville and Nashville) .271 with 25 home runs and 5 stolen bases. So far this year, he is batting .278 with 19 home runs and 4 stolen bases(3 CS). One of the things that nix has been known for is his reckless defense that causes him to make frequent visits to the Disabled List. His 19 home runs lead the team which is the only thing that got him included as a standout.
Brendan Katin - Right Field
The only comparison that I can think of to help everyone understand what kind of a player Brendan is, would be he is like a less powerful Adam Dunn. He strikes out a LOT and I mean a lot, but he also hit’s his fair share of home runs. He is 2nd on the team in homers with 14, but he also has 100 strikeouts with only 12 walks, no that’s not a typo. The funniest thing about it is that he missed around 100 at-bats so far this season, and he still leads the team in strikeouts by a large margin (Laynce Nix has 79). He has some definite talent, but he needs to learn more patience at the plate. He also leads the team in triples (4) and is 2nd in slugging (.510). His power gives him a chance to be a backup outfielder in the majors next year (The way I see it, Hart plays center field, Braun in left, and Tony Gwynn in Right to start. Kappler’s contract expires at the end of the year and I would say that the Brewers' definitely should NOT pick up his option for next year.)
Tim Dillard - Relief Pitcher
Tim has been bounced around in between the majors and minors this year and has done considerably better in the minors. In 48 innings pitched, he has only allowed 9 earned runs, struck out 39, and walked 22, not to mention he has racked up 5 wins. In the majors, he has pitched 8.1 innings allowed 5 runs to score and has a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3-5. It’s my guess that if he can use the rest of this year to mature in the minors that this guy could be a key part of a (hopefully) reworked bullpen next year.
Mark DiFelice - Relief Pitcher
Mark has also been to the Brewers' for a small stint this year; however, he, like Tim Dillard, has been considerably better in the minors. In 48 innings, he has started in all nine games he has played and he has a remarkable 47-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He also has a meager 2.62 ERA with a 4 - 0 record and is holding batters under a .200 batting average. In the majors he has served 13.2 innings with a 3.95 era; however, he did strikeout 16 without issuing a walk. Mark DiFelice will be an integral part of the Brewers' pitching staff eventually, whether it’s starting (what he does in the minors) or in the ‘pen (what he has done in the majors) he has potential to be great.
Luis Pena - Relief Pitcher
Pena is one of the hardest players for me to evaluate on this team. Historically, as he progresses through the minors, his stats get worse. This year is no different, he is having his worst year yet, and he is at the highest level in the minors that he has ever been. In 44 appearances, he has a 5.91 ERA (28 earned runs). His strikeout-to-walk ratio is also worse than it was last year at 43-33 (last year 69-21). I can’t find a game-log of pena this year, so I am left with guessing at why the numbers aren’t as good. One reason might be because the amount of work he is getting. Last year he pitched in just 51 games, and this year he has already appeared in 44. The one stat that is better than last year is his total number of saves. He has 15 already this year (with only 2 losses) and he had 18 all year last year. It seems like this guy has some talent (he is leading the team in saves) but I wish I had a little more info to go on.
Chris Narveson - Starting Pitcher
This guy, like Pena, is a little hard to evaluate due to my lack of game logs for certain players; however, I think I can do a pretty good job with this guy. Career minor leaguer? I think that’s where he’s best suited at least. He is 3-12 this year with a 5.22 ERA and an 85-39 strikeout-to-walk ratio. I think this guy just flat out lost his stuff this year. He was better last year in double-a ball. He has a 2.7 ERA in 3 games, but when he got promoted he went 3-2 with a 5.17, which leads me to believe that he just isn’t up to the challenge of playing in the higher levels of major league baseball. Oh yeah, the reason why he is in the standouts is that he leads the team with innings pitched (101.2).
Sam Narron - Starting Pitcher
Sam Narron, well that kinda sounds like Dan Harren doesn’t it? Well Brewers fans, lets hope he pitches like Dan Harren! He was promoted from Huntsville this year where he went 6-1 with a 2.77 ERA in 8 games. He had 2 complete games and had a 20-12 strikeout-walk ratio. Since he’s been moved up, he hasn’t been quite as effective. He has a 4.57 ERA in 14 games with a 39-29 strikeout-to-walk ratio. I think that he just need to make some adjustments to the way he’s been pitching. It doesn’t seem like his command has been suffering because his kk-bb ratio is about the same. This guy was one of the best pitchers on the Star’s team before he got moved up, so I wouldn’t count him out yet.
Team MVP:
Brad Nelson leads the team in almost every category and doesn’t show any signs of slowing.
All stats are current as of 7/31/08
All stats based on minorleaguebaseball.com and mlb.com
Standouts:
Brad Nelson - 1st Base
Not a bad prospect at 1st base. He is batting .293 this year, which is leading the team’s everyday players. He can also swing for decent power -- he is tied for 2nd with 14 home runs this year. He also leads the team with 59 RBI’s so far. Probably the most impressive stat on this player is his walk-to-strikeout ratio. Despite his power swinging ability, he has walked 66 times opposed to 64 strikeouts. If he played 2nd base, he may have gotten called up this year before the trade for Ray Durham happened, but since he is playing 1st, he seems to be in line for the wrong position. However, think about this one. Prince Fielder’s agent is Scott Boras, and Boras’ clients have a tendency on getting top dollar, and are sometimes considered to be seeking unreasonable contracts. The Brewers’ have already signed Ryan Braun to an extension, with Nelson in the minors, they have the option of letting fielder enter free-agency eventually, or even to trade him, and they would have a back-up, but I only see this happening if Fielder is being unreasonable during contract talks. We’ll just have to wait and see how the situation plays out.
Tony Gwynn Jr. - Outfield
This son of a Hall-of-Famer has been up and down between the majors and minors for almost a full year now. He is playing well enough to be in the Majors, but the Brewers’ have a plethora of outfielder’s, so all he can do is continue to play well in Nashville and wait for his name to be called (which looks like it will be next year (not counting the September call-ups of course)). He is 2nd on the team with a .285 batting average and 4th in on-base percentage with .341. He has also swiped 15 bases in the minors while only being caught 4 times. Tony has some excellent talent and I, for one, can’t wait until he is back in the majors.
Hernan Iribarren - Outfield
Another player who has bounced back between here and the Brewer’s, and another of the Sound’s best players. He is third on the team in batting average, hitting at a .279 clip and his on base is .337. He is leading the team in both base stealing categories with 18 bases stolen and 7 times caught. Hernan is a solid player, not built for greatness, but he can bring solid numbers to any team. I don’t see Iribarren with the Brewers' organization in the future. The Brewers are very deep in the outfield position and relatively week in the pitching department, and with his speed, I see Iribarren being a trade piece eventually.
Mel Stocker - Outfield
5th in batting average with .276 and 5th in on-base percentage with .338 Sticker is another solid outfielder in Nashville. His standout statistic is one that showcases just how fast he is. He has 18 stolen bases while only being caught once which obviously makes him the team’s best threat on the bases, if not the organization’s best. He has only been with Nashville for 64 games (145 at-bats), which obviously skew his stats a little. Before Nashville, he was all the way down in Brevard County (single A) where he was hitting .320 in 7 games with 2 thefts and was also caught twice.
Laynce Nix - Outfield
Acquired in 2006 in the same trade that brought Kevin Mench and Francisco Cordero to Milwaukee in exchange for Carlos Lee and Nelson Cruz. In 2007, he was an average outfielder, batting a combined (between Huntsville and Nashville) .271 with 25 home runs and 5 stolen bases. So far this year, he is batting .278 with 19 home runs and 4 stolen bases(3 CS). One of the things that nix has been known for is his reckless defense that causes him to make frequent visits to the Disabled List. His 19 home runs lead the team which is the only thing that got him included as a standout.
Brendan Katin - Right Field
The only comparison that I can think of to help everyone understand what kind of a player Brendan is, would be he is like a less powerful Adam Dunn. He strikes out a LOT and I mean a lot, but he also hit’s his fair share of home runs. He is 2nd on the team in homers with 14, but he also has 100 strikeouts with only 12 walks, no that’s not a typo. The funniest thing about it is that he missed around 100 at-bats so far this season, and he still leads the team in strikeouts by a large margin (Laynce Nix has 79). He has some definite talent, but he needs to learn more patience at the plate. He also leads the team in triples (4) and is 2nd in slugging (.510). His power gives him a chance to be a backup outfielder in the majors next year (The way I see it, Hart plays center field, Braun in left, and Tony Gwynn in Right to start. Kappler’s contract expires at the end of the year and I would say that the Brewers' definitely should NOT pick up his option for next year.)
Tim Dillard - Relief Pitcher
Tim has been bounced around in between the majors and minors this year and has done considerably better in the minors. In 48 innings pitched, he has only allowed 9 earned runs, struck out 39, and walked 22, not to mention he has racked up 5 wins. In the majors, he has pitched 8.1 innings allowed 5 runs to score and has a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 3-5. It’s my guess that if he can use the rest of this year to mature in the minors that this guy could be a key part of a (hopefully) reworked bullpen next year.
Mark DiFelice - Relief Pitcher
Mark has also been to the Brewers' for a small stint this year; however, he, like Tim Dillard, has been considerably better in the minors. In 48 innings, he has started in all nine games he has played and he has a remarkable 47-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He also has a meager 2.62 ERA with a 4 - 0 record and is holding batters under a .200 batting average. In the majors he has served 13.2 innings with a 3.95 era; however, he did strikeout 16 without issuing a walk. Mark DiFelice will be an integral part of the Brewers' pitching staff eventually, whether it’s starting (what he does in the minors) or in the ‘pen (what he has done in the majors) he has potential to be great.
Luis Pena - Relief Pitcher
Pena is one of the hardest players for me to evaluate on this team. Historically, as he progresses through the minors, his stats get worse. This year is no different, he is having his worst year yet, and he is at the highest level in the minors that he has ever been. In 44 appearances, he has a 5.91 ERA (28 earned runs). His strikeout-to-walk ratio is also worse than it was last year at 43-33 (last year 69-21). I can’t find a game-log of pena this year, so I am left with guessing at why the numbers aren’t as good. One reason might be because the amount of work he is getting. Last year he pitched in just 51 games, and this year he has already appeared in 44. The one stat that is better than last year is his total number of saves. He has 15 already this year (with only 2 losses) and he had 18 all year last year. It seems like this guy has some talent (he is leading the team in saves) but I wish I had a little more info to go on.
Chris Narveson - Starting Pitcher
This guy, like Pena, is a little hard to evaluate due to my lack of game logs for certain players; however, I think I can do a pretty good job with this guy. Career minor leaguer? I think that’s where he’s best suited at least. He is 3-12 this year with a 5.22 ERA and an 85-39 strikeout-to-walk ratio. I think this guy just flat out lost his stuff this year. He was better last year in double-a ball. He has a 2.7 ERA in 3 games, but when he got promoted he went 3-2 with a 5.17, which leads me to believe that he just isn’t up to the challenge of playing in the higher levels of major league baseball. Oh yeah, the reason why he is in the standouts is that he leads the team with innings pitched (101.2).
Sam Narron - Starting Pitcher
Sam Narron, well that kinda sounds like Dan Harren doesn’t it? Well Brewers fans, lets hope he pitches like Dan Harren! He was promoted from Huntsville this year where he went 6-1 with a 2.77 ERA in 8 games. He had 2 complete games and had a 20-12 strikeout-walk ratio. Since he’s been moved up, he hasn’t been quite as effective. He has a 4.57 ERA in 14 games with a 39-29 strikeout-to-walk ratio. I think that he just need to make some adjustments to the way he’s been pitching. It doesn’t seem like his command has been suffering because his kk-bb ratio is about the same. This guy was one of the best pitchers on the Star’s team before he got moved up, so I wouldn’t count him out yet.
Team MVP:
Brad Nelson leads the team in almost every category and doesn’t show any signs of slowing.
All stats are current as of 7/31/08
All stats based on minorleaguebaseball.com and mlb.com
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Seriously Pissed
Ok, I never thought I would say this:
I am seriously getting tired of watching the Brewers at home.
They are playing shit baseball for the fans that actually care about them. Tonight (the game isn't even over!!) Kendall has let numerous balls get passed him which actually allowed the cubs to score in the 1st inning in the first place, Hart took a bad line on a ball to give Theoriot a triple instead of a single and also let two runners score (should be 0 - 1 Brewers at this point in the game) and then Kendall let ANOTHER ball passed him to give the runners an extra basein the 7th(?I'm guessing I'm too pissed to go back to the tv to see what inning it is).
I am done blogging about these guys until they care enough about us to play hard for us. This is horse s$*# and I, as a hardcore Brewers fan, can't watch without wincing.
PLEASE GUYS, TURN IT AROUND!!!! I CAN'T STAND TO SEE THE FU$#*%G CUBS BEAT YOU!!!
I'M GONNA GO TRY TO STOMACH WATCHING THE REST OF THE GAME. PLEASE GOD, LET THEM COME BACK AND BEAT THESE BASTARDS!
-one pissed off fan
I am seriously getting tired of watching the Brewers at home.
They are playing shit baseball for the fans that actually care about them. Tonight (the game isn't even over!!) Kendall has let numerous balls get passed him which actually allowed the cubs to score in the 1st inning in the first place, Hart took a bad line on a ball to give Theoriot a triple instead of a single and also let two runners score (should be 0 - 1 Brewers at this point in the game) and then Kendall let ANOTHER ball passed him to give the runners an extra basein the 7th(?I'm guessing I'm too pissed to go back to the tv to see what inning it is).
I am done blogging about these guys until they care enough about us to play hard for us. This is horse s$*# and I, as a hardcore Brewers fan, can't watch without wincing.
PLEASE GUYS, TURN IT AROUND!!!! I CAN'T STAND TO SEE THE FU$#*%G CUBS BEAT YOU!!!
I'M GONNA GO TRY TO STOMACH WATCHING THE REST OF THE GAME. PLEASE GOD, LET THEM COME BACK AND BEAT THESE BASTARDS!
-one pissed off fan
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