Game 31 Open Thread: Philadelphia (14-18) at Milwaukee (15-15)

by Jeff Sackmann on May 9, 2005 1:52 PM CDT in Milwaukee Brewers News

Has J.J. Hardy pinch-hit his way back into the lineup?

Will Ryan Howard live up to expectations at the expense of the Crew's pitching staff?

Can the Milwaukee bullpen remain one of the best (and cheapest!) in baseball?

Will the Phillies cry Wolf?

We'll find out the answers to these questions and more as the Brewers, behind Victor "Cy" Santos (1-1, 2.88), open a three-game set with the Philadelphia "Ph*&@$!" Phillies and Randy "Steppen" Wolf (1-4, 6.88).

Stay tuned for more, including several dozen additional puns on Randy "Big Bad" Wolf's name.

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So

Was the beginning of Randy Wolf's career something like...talent crying Wolf? Or not...I hope Russ takes him deep twice

I've made myself a member of the Russ Branyan fan club

by Marc Normandin @ Brew Crew Ball on May 9, 2005 3:55 PM CDT reply actions

Dracula vs the Wolfman

an epic B movie

by AJ on May 9, 2005 4:35 PM CDT reply actions

Very good one.

I would've been proud to come up with that one myself.

by Jeff Sackmann on May 9, 2005 4:50 PM CDT up reply actions

Looks like Santos wants to make it interesting

Maybe he'll settle in with a couple of 3-up, 3-down innings.

by Marty McSuperFly on May 9, 2005 7:27 PM CDT reply actions

2nd inning checks out...

...and with alacrity!

by Jeff Sackmann on May 9, 2005 7:32 PM CDT up reply actions

2 innings

20 pitches

14 strikes

Mike Maddux is a happy man right now...

by Jeff Sackmann on May 9, 2005 7:32 PM CDT up reply actions

I know Wolf is a lefty and all

but Helms at first and Cirillo at third?

I wonder if the nickname "self-immolator" could catch on for Yost...

by Jeff Sackmann on May 9, 2005 7:39 PM CDT reply actions

Insurance

He has the reliable bat at short, though, since he would certainly start Hall in this situation...er, oh. Perhaps not.

by Marty McSuperFly on May 9, 2005 7:50 PM CDT up reply actions

reliable bat

the Hardy bashing's a little old already marty. :)

Let's do the small sample size thing and look at pinch hitting over, hmmm, the last two games.

Hall 0-1 Zero Game Winning RBIs.
Hardy 1-1 One Game Winning RBI.

Seems pretty clear to me Hardy should be in the lineup everyday. :)

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on May 10, 2005 10:06 AM CDT up reply actions

Low Expectations

Seems like any time Hardy puts the ball in play, you're touting him as an All-Star, jacob. I won't even consider him over Hall until he manages to break .200.

by Marty McSuperFly on May 10, 2005 12:37 PM CDT up reply actions

Too harsh

That's actually more harsh than I intend. I don't want to dislike JJ Hardy. It's just very hard to be patient with him, when there is someone I do like sitting on the bench. If he's not putting up those Rookie of the Year numbers by the All-Star break, though, I think the dislike will come much more easily.

by Marty McSuperFly on May 10, 2005 2:05 PM CDT up reply actions

dude, marty, woah, dude, woah

If he's not putting up those Rookie of the Year numbers by the All-Star break, then dislike?

Dude, that's harsh. You just said if he's not the best 22 year old in baseball you don't want him playing? Ouch.

Clearly, I don't think he's going to be an all-star this year. I never said that. What I said was this year he gets a free pass. He could bat .180 all year, I don't care. The experience is far too valuable. What you are proposing is tantamount to derailing the future of a six time all-star and gold glover. Because if he gets the ABs now, he will be an all star. No doubt.

Is no one else here with me on this?

:)
What do you see in Billy Hall anyway? Did his 2003 numbers impress you [.238/.276/.374]? He's a great utility infielder, pinch hitter, and that might be it.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on May 10, 2005 6:05 PM CDT up reply actions

Check your posts

Remember this gem?

And as far as the stats go, they are on my side on this one. You don't bench your #1 shortstop prospect and potential rookie of the year because of a slow offensive start.

My understanding from your posts is that we're tolerating this dry spell because Hardy's talent refuses to be contained for long. If that's not the case, then why does he get all this slack?

I like Hall because he's a solid player on both sides of the ball, and because he can be better than solid on offense. I think it's a shame that he's not starting, and I didn't understand the imperative to start Hardy from the beginning of the season.

Currently, I think Spivey is the bigger problem than Hardy, and so maybe Hall should be at second.

Your faith in Hardy is admirable, and also unshakable. It hardly seems worthwhile to continue this conversation.

by Marty McSuperFly on May 10, 2005 7:29 PM CDT up reply actions

yes

just like last thread, we'll have to agree to disagree.

Please note, however, the difference between an all-star and a rookie of the year. And I'm not anywhere suggesting that Hardy is going to have a good year. He was/is a potential rookie of the year, but he could also have a terrible year. I'm telling you, straight out, that this year's experience is far too valuable to waste on a couple of extra points of BA out of your 8 hitter.

Hall is a below average fielder and has never shown any consistency at the plate. So i think you are wrong on both accounts. However, I see more potential from Hall than Spivey (. And i really like the way Hall plays. So i have no problem with him playing. I do have a problem with benching Hardy.

Here, and then I'll stop. You know how the prospect thing works right?

Baseball America All-Time Top 100 Prospects

See Billy Hall on there? Nope. Think it's junk? It's not. Look at previous year's lists. Look who's on the 1997 list. That's no coincidence. That's decades of experience put into those lists. There's a reason Yount didn't get benched in '74. It's the same reason Chavez didn't get benched in '99. It's the exact same reason Hardy won't get benched this year.

Your faith in Billy Hall is admirable. He had a handful of clutch hits last year. And he is quite an athlete with a great team and work ethic. But let's not let our faith in players blind us to the future of this franchise.

Also, i just noticed that upthread i don't think you caught the sarcasm in my pinch hitting analysis. That was a joke. Obviously, you don't make lineup decisions based on one AB.

As for the worthiness of this conversation, I'm convinced I can show you the light. So I'm gonna keep trying. Hardy, Weeks, Fielder, Nelson, Hart, Capellan, Rodgers. The future's bright. Get on this train Marty. :)

Oh, Hardy's up, gotta go.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on May 10, 2005 9:18 PM CDT up reply actions

Ryan Howard

Last night Bill Schroeder noticed something with Howard, that I thought was spot on.

He has a pretty open and wide stance, and that makes it really difficult for him to reach the outside pitches. Santos, worked him outside for two easy strike outs in his first AB.

I think he's going to need to learn to cover more of the plate, and learn to go opposite field, then pitchers will be force to used both sides of the place.

I heard throughout the year last year he hit 48 HRs. Let me go look it up...

Here ya go:

Year Team Lvl G AB H 2B 3B HR BB SO AVG OBP SLG 2004 Reading AA 102 374 111 18 1 37 46 129 .297 .386 .647 2004 Scranton/WB AAA 29 111 30 10 0 9 14 37 .270 .362 .604 2004 Phillies MLB 19 39 11 5 0 2 2 13 .282 .333 .564

That's some mashability there.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on May 10, 2005 12:19 PM CDT reply actions

good call, jacob

I didn't get to watch the game, but that's interesting, and would certainly explain why he's not been mashing so far in the bigs.

Those major league pitchers...smart dudes.

And wow...Bill Schroeder was right about something!

by Jeff Sackmann on May 10, 2005 2:43 PM CDT up reply actions

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