Wednesday's Frosty Mug

by KLSnow on Jul 9, 2008 9:11 AM CDT

So a few weeks ago I moved into a new place. This is the first place I've ever lived where my garbage goes out to the curb and not into a dumpster. I think a key part of growing up is remembering to take the garbage out on time. I'm 1-for-3 in the new place, and forgot it again this morning. Just FYI - when my fiancee comes home and asks why the garbage didn't go out, I'm blaming you.

Win Expectancy Graph
BR Box Score

I probably don't need to tell you about the excitement of yesterday, which was certainly better than a normal Tuesday. Reviews of the Sabathia deal continue to pour in, including the long awaited BTF Transaction Oracle, which projects CC for 101 innings over 14 starts the rest of the way, with a 3.48 ERA.

Dayn Perry says the trade makes the Brewers the odds-on favorite to win the wild card, but still leaves the Cubs as favorites to win the division.

Regardless of what it will mean for the standings, Adam Charles of Bugs and Cranks would like to share a George Webb cheeseburger with CC.

Ryan Braun will participate in Monday's Home Run Derby. In-Between Hops took a look at the numbers and debunked the myth that being in the Derby "screws up your swing."

On injuries:

Erik Bedard won't pitch again until after the All-Star break.
Eric Byrnes' hamstrings aren't recovering and may need surgery which would mean the end of his season.
Ryan Church has returned to the DL for the third time with symptoms related to concussions.
Rangers RP Eric Hurley has been placed on the DL with a sore hamstring.
White Sox closer Bobby Jenks still has pain when he throws off a mound, and is headed to the DL.
Rangers SP Vicente Padilla will miss his start today with a neck strain and sore thumb.
Marlins C Matt Treanor aggravated an abdominal injury and may be headed for the DL.

Of course the biggest non-Brewer story of the day, as noted in the Fanshots, is the Cubs' acquisition of Rich Harden. Drawing much less attention: the Braves signed Julian Tavarez.

Have I used this joke before? I don't remember. Even if I have, having the Rockies in town gives me an excuse to ring-rang-a-dong for Matt Holliday.

Even 3 months later, Ben Sheets' performance on April 6 against the Giants is tied for the fifth best game score of the season. A more surprising fact, though: Hiroki Kuroda has outperformed him twice in 2008.

The Reds are delaying radio broadcasts of their games so the audio matches up with the video on their TV broadcasts. I haven't done it in years, but I grew up listening to the radio broadcast while watching the Brewers on TV, and don't ever recall having a lag problem. Is it a problem now?

Oh, and it's pretty much never a good idea to intentionally walk home the tying run in the bottom of the 9th.

Drink up.

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Great Move By The Reds

To bad we can’t do the same here, I always get my radio faster then TV. Wish I could delay my audio by a few seconds to sync up.

by SgtClueLs on Jul 9, 2008 10:00 AM CDT 0 recs

Sometimes

I turn on the radio in the early innings and it’s way off, and then try again later and it’s lined up perfectly. I wonder if that’s a station-by-station thing or if it comes from the flagship station.

And neck size to baby eating ratio.

by jihad on Jul 9, 2008 10:08 AM CDT up 0 recs

Yes

Same thing happens to me. I wonder if they delay it sometimes, i.e. if they need to finish a commercial and Sheets has already started pitching!

by oconnobe on Jul 9, 2008 10:29 AM CDT up 0 recs

Also, I'm sick of hearing about Rich Harden.

Anyone seen any good Disney movies lately?

And neck size to baby eating ratio.

by jihad on Jul 9, 2008 10:08 AM CDT 1 recs

Cars

I heard Disney decided to have Yost do the voiceovers for Lightning McQueen in “Cars 2, the Grit years”.

The Wallbangers won because they played the game like kids! Let's do that again!!!

by 80badger on Jul 9, 2008 10:23 AM CDT up 0 recs

well played

recommended.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 10:38 AM CDT up 0 recs

Interesting from a couple days ago

The Indians’ Cliff Lee apparently doesn’t like guys bunting for hits off him.

Gomez said bunting is a big part of his game and he’s not going to stop doing it.

“I know he won’t be mad when he throws me four sliders in a row,’’ Gomez said. “It’s your job to do whatever, throw me 10 sliders in a row. If I strike out, OK. I get you next time. But don’t be mad when I bunt.’‘

When Lee was asked about his conversations with Gomez, he replied, “It was nothing.’‘

Obscure baseball records and more at my blog, Recondite Baseball.

by TheJay on Jul 9, 2008 10:28 AM CDT 0 recs

I heard that

It seemed odd that he would be upset … it’s not like he was working on a no-hitter at the time.

by oconnobe on Jul 9, 2008 10:30 AM CDT up 0 recs

There's a reason we don't see Rickie Weeks bunt

It’s not an easy thing to do for a hit. So a pitcher shouldn’t get mad if another player does it.

However, 2 nights ago, I watched Gregor Blanco try for a bunt in the seventh inning when Hiroki Kuroda tried for a perfect game. That made me cringe a little bit, but Blake Dewitt made an awesome play to throw him out so it didn’t even matter.

by brewfan2 on Jul 9, 2008 10:33 AM CDT up 0 recs

That's pretty ridiculous

That would be one of the only situations I would fully condone throwing at a player.

And neck size to baby eating ratio.

by jihad on Jul 9, 2008 10:35 AM CDT up 0 recs

i've always disagreed with this

it’s a completely legitimite tactic, so why should a bunt hit be thought of any differently than any other hit? It’s like not wanting a pitcher to throw a breaking pitch, or a runner to steal a base. Throwing high and inside is the one play people could take issue with, since there is real risk of injury. If your team can’t be ready and field a bunt, than you don’t deserve a no-hitter.

by keephopealive on Jul 9, 2008 12:42 PM CDT up 0 recs

It depends if the bunt is appropriate to the game situation

If the team being no-hit is only losing by a run or two and the value of a baserunner is high, then I have no problem with it. But if they’re being blown out and bunt in a situation where a player wouldn’t normally, just to break up the no-hitter, then that’s pretty lame.

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on Jul 9, 2008 1:19 PM CDT up 0 recs

I agree with what you said.

Which is why, when Kuroda was up 2-0 working on a perfect game, I had no problem with Gregor Blanco trying to get on base via any means necessary. If he’d reached first, the tying run comes to the plate.

Derek Jeter is day to day after being hit by a pitch and being gorilla press slammed by a Bizarro Ray.

by KLSnow on Jul 9, 2008 1:35 PM CDT up 0 recs

It was 3-0 at the time

It really makes no difference, but that’s why I cringed just a little bit :)

by brewfan2 on Jul 9, 2008 2:09 PM CDT up 0 recs

Now we have a slippery slope problem.

If it’s ok when the score is 2-0, why not 3-0? 7-0? 14-0? In all of those cases, a comeback depends on baserunners.

I’m reconsidering my position on this. Make no mistake, if a Brewer lost a no-hitter on a bunt I’d be ten kinds of livid, but how can you ever draw the line to determine when it’s not ok?

Derek Jeter is day to day after being hit by a pitch and being gorilla press slammed by a Bizarro Ray.

by KLSnow on Jul 9, 2008 2:15 PM CDT up 0 recs

Everyone draws their own line

12-run comebacks are possible, but sports fandom is not a rational business.

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on Jul 9, 2008 2:16 PM CDT up 0 recs

right now

I’m drawing a chicken!

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Jul 9, 2008 2:23 PM CDT up 0 recs

Jeff Sackmann Presents: Linear Chicken

That’s a great title for your next acid jazz album.

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on Jul 9, 2008 2:27 PM CDT up 1 recs

Yeah, Linear Chicken is a great album/band/song name

I wish I were writing music these days so I could call something that.

Though if I do start a band anytime soon, it’s going to be called Mission From G-d. Dash and all.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Jul 9, 2008 2:57 PM CDT up 0 recs

I always liked

K.Y. and the Backsliders

"Brett Favre looks like a man in a parking lot playing with boys." - John Madden
"Pujols just unloaded." - Bob Uecker

by kirbir on Jul 9, 2008 3:34 PM CDT up 0 recs

Here's another question to ponder

Does it matter what inning it happens? In other words, if its 4-0 in the seventh is it ok, or if its 3-0 in the 8th or even 2-0 in the ninth.

Bottom line is that it is an unwritten rule for a reason.

by brewfan2 on Jul 9, 2008 2:24 PM CDT up 0 recs

it's important that we check win expectancy tables

hell, ty cobb could’ve told you that it’s bad form to bunt for a base hit when the baserunner would provide less than a 5.8% increase in win probability.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Jul 9, 2008 3:01 PM CDT up 0 recs

It isn’t a secret that the guy is a great bunter and does it a lot, so the onus is on the defense to prepare and defend. He and the 2nd baseman had some beautiful bunts against the Brewers. I wish Rickie would do it more.

by ol Pete on Jul 9, 2008 2:46 PM CDT up 0 recs

I think maybe we could still take the Central Crown.

Harden hopefully will have his arm fall off. Sabathia is much more reliable, and I believe will help us win more than Harden would of. That said, the Cubs got a steal, as they didn’t give up anything, and we gave up LaPorta.

One thing’s for sure, the Cardinals are out.

by BrewMaster on Jul 9, 2008 10:30 AM CDT 0 recs

I've heard the Cards were interested in Matt Holliday

That would put them right back in.

by brewfan2 on Jul 9, 2008 10:34 AM CDT up 0 recs

Let's let the Rockies win

so they think they’re still in the race. Just kidding.

by oconnobe on Jul 9, 2008 10:36 AM CDT up 0 recs

I wouldn't say that the Cards are out

But they are clearly in much worse position than they were two days ago. Still they just beat the Phillies on the road against Cole Hamels yesterday.

Visit my baseball blog ...or else!

by dixieflatline on Jul 9, 2008 10:37 AM CDT up 0 recs

I'd rather be ahead of the Cardinals

Before saying they’re out.

Obscure baseball records and more at my blog, Recondite Baseball.

by TheJay on Jul 9, 2008 10:41 AM CDT up 0 recs

i agree, the trade was good for the cubs

but they did lose 3 guys off their 40 man roster, and one guy right from their rotation. so though it’s an average haul talent wise, the cubs gave up some quantity. speaks more to the sad state of their farm than anything i suppose.

but when you are a behemoth corporation like the cubs, you don’t need to use cheap, average talent to compete, so the relative value of gallagher, murton and patterson is pretty low.

they definitely gave up something, just not something that the cubs as an organization place any value in.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 10:46 AM CDT up 0 recs

Would we have placed any value on those players either?

Maybe Gallagher would be a 5th starter for us but the rest of the players are either last man on the bench or in AAA. The guys the Cubs gave up have no business being on a playoff team’s roster no matter what the team is.

Visit my baseball blog ...or else!

by dixieflatline on Jul 9, 2008 10:51 AM CDT up 0 recs

yeah, i have to believe the brewers do and or would place value on matt murton, eric patterson and sean gallagher.

matt murton = gabe gross
eric patterson = hernan irribarren
sean gallagher = carlos villanueva

when the price of the core goes up, are we going to pay craig counsell or irribarren to be the utility infielder? are we going to pay mike cameron or a gabe gross type to be the 4th or 5th OF.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 11:15 AM CDT up 0 recs

who cares about the corporation?

I think its a dumb argument, and gives us brewer fans a bad name, when we whine about the Cubs having a lot of money. They’re a successful franchise, so they have money to spend. It’s not like they have the highest payroll in baseball.

by BrewMaster on Jul 9, 2008 10:54 AM CDT up 0 recs

who is whining about the cubs having a lot of money? i made a perfectly logical argument that cheap utility players don’t carry much value to franchises with top payrolls. also, when you call the cubs a successful franchise you are just talking about their ability to bilk the fanbase into paying year in and year out for mediocre teams, despite an elite revenue, right? cause i’d agree with that, very successful. as a fan though, not a model i’d root for. do you mind rooting for it?

quiz for you “brewmaster” which player is more valuable? prince fielder or derrek lee?

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 11:10 AM CDT up 0 recs

I'd hardly call it "bilking the fanbase"

When the fan’s are perfectly eager to go to games. I think that can be attributed to the fact that 80% of the fans at any given game at Wrigley really don’t care about the game, and just want to drink and talk. As a result, they go to the games regardless of how the team is playing.

As far as your question goes, I’d say Prince Fielder is pretty clearly a more valuable player, assuming his weight doesn’t hold him back. I think Lee is a better hitter and a much better defender, but is simply too old to have the same value as Prince.

by BrewMaster on Jul 9, 2008 11:14 AM CDT up 0 recs

what would you call it then?

if you constantly sell-out a mediocre product?

do you know how many native wisconites are cub fans because of the tribune company? a lot. the corporation has done a tremendous job marketing their product.

how much are you paying these days for a seat in the bleachers at wrigley? isn’t it about 50$?

i don’t mean any offense by it, all i’m doing is pointing out that the cubs are a different ballclub than most, they can afford to “give away” cheap talent because they can purchase replacement parts.

and clearly prince is the better hitter over lee, right? lee is only a little bit above average as a hitter.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 11:22 AM CDT up 0 recs

Don't think Prince is "clearly" a better hitter.

Take a look at their numbers. And Lee’s defense is far superior.

by BrewMaster on Jul 9, 2008 11:32 AM CDT up 0 recs

Don't Forget

Chat with Corey today @ 2:30 CT

Lordz Of Vengeance....If I'm not drunk, I'm at work.

by Dikembe Meiztombo on Jul 9, 2008 2:10 PM CDT 0 recs

chat transcript

Some highlights:

heycorey: What do you think about naming the right field bleachers “The Hartland”, kind of like the “Jenkins Jungle”?
Corey Hart: That would definitely something I would like! We might have to look into that.
shacrew4: Corey why did you change your song?
Corey Hart: The Kid Rock song was one of those songs that I listened to a lot and I just wanted to change it up a bit. I love Country, but Southern Rock is always good too.
da_pontiff: What’s up Corey? Your new ink (on your forearm) looks nice…real nice. Does it have any special meaning or significance or did you get it because it just looks so icy hot?
Corey Hart: No meaning, I like tattoos and sometimes the guys get together and we get tattoos. It does look icy hot, doesn’t it?

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on Jul 9, 2008 6:19 PM CDT up 0 recs

how to troll other blogs

Totally off topic, but i thought this might be useful for all the cub fans trolling as brewer fans. Consider this a little primer in trolling.

ok, let’s for the sake of example, pretend you are a cub fan, and you want to troll brewcrewball.com and you have your heart set on doing it by pretending to be a brewer fan. this is going to take a lot of time, and patience to do it right.

1) sign up for bcb (the real one)

2) don’t pick a lame generic brewer centric username.

3) don’t immediately sign up for bleed cubbie bleed and post there more often then here

4) try to build some credibility as a brewer fan. this really is the hardest part. and the part nobody is willing to do, and why this trolling method is bad plan.

5) don’t constantly talk about “us” and “them” and don’t use sentences like “as a cub fan” or “as a brewer fan” to try to make clear distinctions between “me” and “you.” it’s too obvious, it’s too defensive, if you are a real brewer fan, what do you gain by proclaiming it all the time?

6) find the leaders of the discussion and tell them how smart they are, like real cub fan ACB did recently. “you’re a smart guy battlekow.” the people with banning power don’t want to believe that someone so astute could be so evil… ;)

7) avoid ‘concern trolling,’ especially when it comes to what other teams fans might think. dead give away. remember, you’re a cubs fan, do you really care what brewers fans think of you? it goes both ways.

8) if you’ve skipped step 4, you really shouldn’t touch the prince fielder is fat topic, that’s another dead give away. yes, being heavy and getting heavier limit flexibility and speed, and accelerate knee injuries. brewer fans understand this, you don’t add anything by pointing it out, and honestly it is not a concern for a player who is 24 years old and only 3 years from free agency.

ok. happy trolling.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 2:57 PM CDT 6 recs

gosh

I don’t know what or who might have prompted this post!

Just one clarification: It’s obvious that Prince is a lardass. Probably going to be out of the league by the ASB next year.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Jul 9, 2008 3:03 PM CDT up 0 recs

yeah

i couldn’t decide if i was more irritated by the trolling, or the fact that it was done so poorly. i figure if i help a couple of trolls be more entertaining at least, it’s worth bringing in a few more trolls.

here’s an analogy, if your house has to be infested with bugs, better they be butterflys than mosquitos.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 3:40 PM CDT up 0 recs

Fantastic

Well done, jacob. Rec’d for sure.

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on Jul 9, 2008 3:48 PM CDT up 0 recs

ok jacob

i dont think i mislead anyone around here with “acb” its the letters for a freakin cubs blog. and i told battlekow that he is smart because i read this place and he usually has smart things to say. I am not a brewer fan although i do like the way you develop young talent and if people like you werent so hard to tolerate it would be fun to talk about things. but you only seem interested in being a dick so feel free. I fully expect Sackman to pull a Yellon and ban me anyways.

Oh and by the way we are all pretty sure you just gaius marius posting here so if thats the case, awesome buddy, you were a huge troll at BCB and a huge dickhead.

by ACB on Jul 9, 2008 4:14 PM CDT up 0 recs

wow.

jacob isn’t talking about you.

i had no intention of banning you, but if you keep calling other members dickheads, that’ll change really fast.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Jul 9, 2008 4:24 PM CDT up 0 recs

that part

about calling people smart is most def about me becacuse i told battlekow that yesterday in the rich harden thread

by ACB on Jul 9, 2008 4:27 PM CDT up 0 recs

yes, he referred to you by name

in what appears to me to be a non-offensive manner.

otherwise, he is talking about someone else.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Jul 9, 2008 4:29 PM CDT up 0 recs

I think battlekow is smart too. i thought it was nice of you to say that.

and trolls should use that example of how to acclimate themselves to the blog. to get in the good graces. i thought you had set a nice example of how to be a fan of another team.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jul 9, 2008 4:30 PM CDT up 0 recs