Thursday's Frosty Mug
by Kyle Lobner on May 21, 2009 8:07 AM CDT
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PrintSome things to read when enough is enough.
We're only a few hours removed from Bill Hall's three pitch strikeout, his fourth of the night, that ended the Brewers' ninth inning rally in Houston last night. With the K, Hall's batting average against righties in 2009 fell below .200, but Ken Macha says he let Hall stay in last night and will start him against a righty today because he promised Hall an opportunity in Houston. With Mat Gamel waiting in the wings, this could be Hall's last chance to prove he belongs in the lineup everyday, and it comes against Roy Oswalt.
Meanwhile, after Hall was allowed to bat in the ninth last night, Brewed Sports is ready to throw Ken Macha under the bus.
Earlier in last night's game, Astros manager Cecil Cooper made a mistake on his lineup card that cost him the first out of the game. Jose de Jesus Ortiz, not Cooper's biggest fan in the first place, took another opportunity to blast Cooper's managerial style and communication with his team.
Rickie Weeks had successful surgery to anchor the tendons in his wrist yesterday, and will be in a splint or long cast for the next two months. The recovery time from surgery would suggest Weeks could be healthy enough to play in September, but the Brewers have more or less ruled it out.
Meanwhile, we continue to discuss options at second base. The Indians are looking to deal Mark DeRosa, but want big-league ready pitching in return, and the Brewers don't have a lot of that hanging around, unless the Indians would accept someone like Tim Dillard or Seth McClung. As of this writing, 62% of voters in this poll would prefer the Brewers stick with internal options. Casey McGehee started at second and went 2-for-3 with a double and a walk last night.
Alcides Escobar is learning to play second as well. Right Field Bleachers has a look at what it would take for Alcides to be a league average second baseman.
Frank Catalanotto is one step closer to the big leagues today, as he's reporting to Huntsville to get some work in the outfield. He's expected to be evaluated and could join the Brewers in a week to ten days.
On rankings and whatnot:
- The Sporting News ranked Ryan Braun 32nd in their list of baseball's top 50 players. Braun was the only Brewer on the list.
- MLB FanHouse moved the Brewers up from 8th to 4th in their power rankings.
Is having a stranger stick their fingers in a rather sensitive place your idea of a fun pregame activity? If so, the Brewers would like to invite you to get a prostate exam at Miller Park.
Around the league:
A's: Claimed pitcher Craig Breslow off waivers from the Twins.
Braves: Infielder Omar Infante broke a bone in his left hand when he was hit by a pitch, and could miss up to 2 months.
Phillies: Claimed pitcher Steven Register off waivers from the Rockies.
There's a new Jake Peavy rumor out there this morning, and for once it has nothing to do with the Cubs: Buster Olney is reporting a "strong possibility" that Peavy could be traded to the White Sox for a package including middle infielder Gordon Beckham.
Of course, now that I'm leaving Iowa they'll fix it: MLB owners are meeting this week and are scheduled to discuss the blackout policy.
That's all I have for today, unless you wanted to read about John Smoltz's wedding, Keith Foulke in Newark or a Met fan getting stuck in a toilet.
Drink up.
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So, you're saying that the Mets' Toilet CHOKED on that lady's arm?
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
Sad news
The wife of Scott Schoenweis was found dead this morning
4 kids and had just celebrated 10 year anniversary.
I’m ok with the Hall thing, because again Macha is holding people accountable. The typical Yostian response would be how Bill E is battling, he likes what Bill’s doing and Yost will ‘play his gut’ on when Bill E plays against righties. Macha will risk a couple games for Hall to show he is a viable option. Then its Gameltime and everyone knows it.
Agreed
I didn’t get the sense that Macha was blindly putting faith in Hall. More that Macha is giving him one more chance to figure it out before he become a permanent platoon guy.
I’m sure no one is more frustrated than Hall, but at some point Macha is going to conclude that 2006 was probably the aberration and that 2007-2009 is the reality.
Macha giving Hall chances
Until he finally goes 0-for-5 with 5 K instead of just 4 K.
Ryan Braun: He loves it.
Macha gave Hall the Houston series
during a sit-down in St Louis to get everything together and show he can handle RHP. So Bill E is getting the Houston series. It doesn’t do you any good to give a guy a chance then freak out and break your commitment. Players stop trusting you after that, even the ones you haven’t lied to yet.
by Getting Yosted on May 21, 2009 10:38 AM CDT up reply actions
Macha is calling out another ineffective vetran
It seems to me that Macha expects Hall to fail. I just wish this exhibition could occur at the bottom of the batting order, not 2nd
agreed.
But Billy won’t be able to complain he didn’t have protection behind him when he got his one last shot. I like Billy’s passion, but enough has become enough. Billy’s last K last night was brutal. I’m willing to put up with Gamel’s adventures at 3rd just to see the kid swing the bat. Stick Counsel out there for him as a defensive replacement in the late innings. I think there are several other acceptable options at 2B other than Counsel.
Yeah
He’s giving him every chance to succeed.
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
So, what happens if Hall goes 2-4 with two singles tonight?
Does that earn him an additional start.?
1-4 with a home run and three strikeouts?
I wo
I think it is good people management
Obviously Hall thinks he should have a bigger role. Macha has laid out the groundwork by which Hall can earn that roll.
There won’t be any “Platoon/Not Platoon” drama built around mysterious criteria like gut feeling. It might meen that we have a bad situation like last night’s K…but it is a long season and I think you got to sort this stuff out now.
by Bernie's Mustache Wax on May 21, 2009 11:54 AM CDT up reply actions
And a .150 difference between Counsel and Hall
So about 1 in 8 times, Counsel gets a hit where Hall doesn’t. Counsel wasn’t going to hit a homerun, so the Brewers would’ve needed a solid hit from Braun to tie the game. The probability of them winning regardless of whether it was Hall or counsel up there was extremely slim.
There might even be an argument that Hall’s HR power might’ve actually made him a bit better in that situation than a Counsel PH.
Need to look at Counsell's PH splits as well
There is an argument to be made for going with the guy who has played the entire game rather than someone off the bench.
Counsell’s 2009 BA as a starter is .345 vs. .231 as a sub (OBP is closer at .422 vs. .379) and career BA as a starter is .260 vs. .200 as a sub (OBP is closer at ..347 to .313). This likely part of why Kendall is never pinch hit for either. We just don’t have a great pinch hitter on our bench and that factors into Macha’s decision to stick with the starter.
by Brew Believer on May 21, 2009 2:12 PM CDT up reply actions
Would it be Gameltime or Platoontime?
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
Please Platoon, don’t hurt em isn’t as much fun to say
by Getting Yosted on May 21, 2009 9:10 AM CDT up reply actions
Peavy going to the White Sox pending his OK
"This one means 'Kill Kirk!!!!'... And also, 'hallelujah'... Depending on the context."
Can Adrian Gonzalez pitch?
I guess he’s going to have to do everything on that team now.
by Capt Science on May 21, 2009 9:37 AM CDT up reply actions
Beckham?
How can he be included if he was just drafted last June?
Can he be a PTBNL in this situation or is that illegal?
Do they still have the 1 year rule?
If so, i imagine he’d be a PTBNL, as you suggested.
Here’s Sports Illustrated’s coverage (they broke the story).
Here’s MLB Trade Rumors updates.
I’d be a little surprised if he accepted. Ozzie Guillen is a handful, the Sox are under .500 (but only 4.5 out, I think), and the Cell isn’t as pitcher friendly as Petco. But His contract’s in place and I’m sure they can throw more money at him to incent him to make up his mind.
Btw, Beckham and Poreda are the top two prospects in the system, according to Baseball America.
by Capt Science on May 21, 2009 10:08 AM CDT up reply actions
yes, the rule is still in place
at this point, we’re talking three weeks, so including him as a PTBNL is no big deal.
Also, cheese.
by Jeff Sackmann on May 21, 2009 10:33 AM CDT up reply actions
Agreed on the Hall thing
But Macha’s been a really good manager so far so I’m not going to be upset about it. I’m always up for more Craig Counsell at bats as he is my favorite Brewer, but I think everyone could agree that a guy with a OBP that’s over 400 should go to bat for a guy who struck out 3 times already. Bill Hall does run hot sometimes but the man is just a strikeout machine and he was really off his game.
Either way, props to Gamel for even giving us the chance, and it was nice to see McGehee come through……who is he again??
captainbok: What do you like the most about milwaukee
Jeff Suppan: Captain Bok, that is a great question. Does "Bok" mean Book of Knowledge? My favorite thing about Milwaukee are the Brewers.
I suspect that Macha might have been hoping for a HR from Hall to tie the game with one swing. Counsell would have to get on base and then Braun would have to drive him in for a tie. You could argue that its a more likely scenario, but Hall has the power to end the game with one swing, it just didn’t work out that way.
The win graph showed a 4.9% win expectancy going into Hall’s at bat. I don’t think our chances would have been significantly better had Counsell batted. Now if we had Branyan on the bench…..
Remember...
Rickie Weeks had successful surgery to anchor the tendons in his wrist yesterday, and will be in a splint or long cast for the next two months. The recovery time from surgery would suggest Weeks could be healthy enough to play in September, but the Brewers have more or less ruled it out.
Just remember, the Brewers had more or less ruled Yo out in May last year too. I’m just sayin’.
"You guys know me. I take a long time to analyze things."
- Ned Yost
by SunglassesAtNight on May 21, 2009 10:00 AM CDT reply actions
I'd be very surprised
Players generally struggle after wrist injuries. Even if he’s healthy enough to play, he won’t be healthy enough to effectively hit.
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
I would expect Weeks to come back at the early side of the expectations. He has gone thru this once, knows what ‘normal’ feels like at each stage of recovery. The biggest thing to push thru will the mental barriers of the wrist being sore but not in danger of re-injury.
by Getting Yosted on May 21, 2009 10:41 AM CDT up reply actions
He took longer than expected to recover from it the first time
So, if we’re gonna make a guess based on his past history, I think we have to expect the late side of the expectations.
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
It's also important to remember
That there is prob a good 6-8 weeks minimum after he comes out of the cast before he regains typical range of motion, strength, etc. that allow him to use the wrist functionally. So 2 months from today would be late July, then at least another 2 months of rehabing the wrist and at this point he might finally be able to start taking swings. So by late September he might be able to start swinging after having not done any such activity for the past 4 months. There is no way his hand speed and ultimately his bat speed would be up to par enough to be able to take meaningful cuts in a playoff game. Add in the fact, that I think with Weeks the Brewers are going to take a very cautious approach to ensure this doesn’t linger the rest of the time he is in a Brewer uniform.
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 21, 2009 11:23 AM CDT up reply actions
on the potential DeRosa trade
Trade McClung? do not want
No, I won’t stop watching the Brewers if that happens; my issue is personal. No issue with Cleveland’s fans or players, but I always feel a bit odd watching the Cleveland Racist Mascots on purpose. Sorry.
by morineko on May 21, 2009 10:34 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs
Racist Mascots?
[insert big eyed super-smiley red face here]
captainbok: What do you like the most about milwaukee
Jeff Suppan: Captain Bok, that is a great question. Does "Bok" mean Book of Knowledge? My favorite thing about Milwaukee are the Brewers.
http://seattle.mariners.mlb.com/sea/ticketing/special_group.jsp?group=cheezburger
good lord
by warwick5s on May 21, 2009 11:16 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs
It's times like these that I wish I still lived in the Northwest
And then I realize that the Brewers are a better team and am fine with my current situation
"If lovin’ Braun is wrong, I want to be a repeat offender!"
RIP Nick Adenhart: Stop Drunk Driving
How about
Suppan for DeRosa and give the starting slot to DeFelice? Would love to see Suppan in a Cubs uniform but short of that anywhere other than Milwaukee is fine with me.
The Bambi's Bombers won because they played the game like kids! Let's do that again!!!
TH still won't shut up about the Peavy thing.
He’s taking reports and passing them along as if the deal is done.
Looks like Brewers fans who wanted the team to trade for San Diego ace Jake Peavy can forget it.
Peavy still has to approve a trade to the sox, so that means there is about a 50% chance that the deal will go through. Didn’t he say he wasn’t going to write about this Peavy anymore?
Get off your soapbox, Tom
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
Right
Despite about 100 updates and whatnot, I’m not going to mention the trade again until it’s done, because I think there’s an above 50/50 chance that Peavy will reject it.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
by Kyle Lobner on May 21, 2009 12:43 PM CDT up reply actions
And, for what if's worth
If Jake Peavy does block this trade, he belongs right up there with Terrell Owens and the like on the pantheon of “all about me” athletes. This would be the second time Peavy has blocked an attempt for his team to move on and pursue a new direction.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
by Kyle Lobner on May 21, 2009 12:52 PM CDT up reply actions
Soon enough he'll start arguing that:
the team that is trading for him is giving up too much, ruining their future. And he doesn’t want to play for a team with no future…
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
That was his argument against going to the Braves.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
In his defense
He put the no trade clause into his contract for a reason. He got thrown into this situation because his owner was getting a divorce, so I’d say he has a right to complain.
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
Ford doesn't trade their workers to Chrystler
I don’t really see why Peavy is being greedy in exercising a clause in his contract. MLB organizations show little to no loyalty to their players and the players have every right to do the same. The Padres didn’t do much to hold on to Hoffman out of loyalty, did they? If I were Peavy and I saw them kick a guy like Hoffman to the curb, I’d put no trust whatsoever in my organization, either.
If Peavy thinks his next deal will get him more money because he’ll have deflated numbers in an NL pitcher’s park then he sure as hell should make the decision to stay where he is.
If the Padres didn’t want to deal with this (a) they’d work out a deal with an NL team and (b) they wouldn’t have allowed a blanket no-trade clause. Some GM’s have to do more to earn their salaries than others.
by ecocd on May 21, 2009 1:51 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
but didn't Peavy more or less request a trade in the offseason?
I didn’t follow the saga too much, but it seems like he wants out, but he wants to micro-manage the situation in a way that makes it impractical for Towers to get a deal done.
Also, cheese.
by Jeff Sackmann on May 21, 2009 9:00 PM CDT up reply actions
"This would be the second time Peavy has blocked an attempt for his team to move on and pursue a new direction."
But if he’s traded, it’s not his team anymore.
Obscure baseball records and more at my blog, Recondite Baseball.
EPSN radio said today that Peavy’s agent did not think he would accept the trade at this time because he wants to stay in the national league. That being said, you wouldn’t think the Padres would go through the trouble of arranging a trade if they didn’t think he would go.
Silver lining though is that the Cubs wouldn’t be getting him.
UH
From Gord Ash’s twitter, 5 minutes ago:
the brewers will have a press release on a player transaction in th next hour
Is it a legit twitter
Or someone pretending to be Ash? This coming from a non-twitter so I haven’t been following if Ash is a twitter or not.
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 21, 2009 1:17 PM CDT up reply actions
And if it's true
I’m betting it is a Durham signing to a minor league contract with the opportunity to start at 2nd once he gets back up to speed after a month or so in the minors.
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 21, 2009 1:18 PM CDT up reply actions
Tom H. says it's a trade, but has no details.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
Or...
Doug posted this ad:
“MXRM seeking UMXR w/ 2BE. Call with 1-800-Brewers if meet criteria.”
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 21, 2009 1:23 PM CDT up reply actions
afaik it's legit
@brewerash if you want to take a look, but his follow is approval-only
I guess we’ll find out soon enough, but it did have weeks surgery and braun MRI results before anyone else did…
haudricourt confirms it's ash
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/45708477.html
Houston – Brewers general manager Gord Ash just posted a “tweet” on Twitter that the team has a player transaction forthcoming.
I have it on good authority it is not Jake Peavy, so no, he hasn’t turned down the White Sox to come to Milwaukee. Sounds like it’s something of much less significance, probably involving something on the bench.
I’ll let you know when I hear what the deal is.
The suspense here is starting to bug me.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
Apparently some people had the same idea I did
I tried calling Durham’s agent, but he’s not answering the phone and his voice mailbox is full.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
Jody Gerut.
Really?
I don't hate Kendall like everybody else, I'm a non-conformist like that.
by Dikembe Meiztombo on May 21, 2009 2:22 PM CDT up reply actions
Thankfully, it doesn't look like it's DeRosa
As he started/is playing for Cleveland as we speak
Ryan Braun: He loves it.
Depending on when the trade was finalized
He could still play today. If that’s the case, they’ll hold off on the announcement
Cards Announcers On Gamel's First Career HR, ""That’s all they need is another home run hitter".
clutchtaculicious
Let’s not forget that Billy violated BCB’s reigning motto last night. Did Ken take that into consideration? Also, anyone know how Peavy and Hoffman get along? Perhaps a nudge from Trevor would help out chances of signing Peavy.
"You combine the fact that they're good at everything and we're good at nothing, it's not going to be a very pretty outcome." -Ryan Braun
I heard 3 way
Mat Gamel to Twinkies, Nick Punto to Royals, Zack Greinke to the Crew
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 21, 2009 1:52 PM CDT up reply actions
This mystery box is probably way more exciting than the trade itself.
A boat is just a boat, but a mystery box! It could be anything! Maybe even a boat!
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
And inside da box is...
not-ting! Absolutely not-ting! Stupid! Yo’ so stupid!
Ah yes. Movie references older than many posters on the board.
I have that one on DVD.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
Watch the clip
And decide for yourself.
I firmly believe that Billy Madison is the best movie ever. Or Casablanca. One of the two.
by Capt Science on May 21, 2009 2:04 PM CDT up reply actions
UHF was my absolute shit when I was little. Great movie.
I don't hate Kendall like everybody else, I'm a non-conformist like that.
by Dikembe Meiztombo on May 21, 2009 2:21 PM CDT up reply actions
boy wouldn't it be interesting if it were Peavy
the supposed deal they had in place with the White Sox didn’t look that crazy…
Durham
I’m feeling it, although I wouldn’t be surprised if they traded away a bench guy to make room for Catalanotto either.
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 21, 2009 2:05 PM CDT up reply actions
MLBTR says the Brewers got Jody Gerut from the Padres for TGJ.
I Fanshotted it to the front page.
"The reports are that he is getting better. The definition of better is nebulous."
Are you serious?
I don't hate Kendall like everybody else, I'm a non-conformist like that.
by Dikembe Meiztombo on May 21, 2009 4:03 PM CDT up reply actions
A shot at sarcasm...
As soon as I posted it I thought it really wasn’t that funny even with the sarcasm….but alas, no edit or delete option
Hart
I just realized why hart has sucked since the ASB last year. It’s because of this, as I put it, barf-tinted image
All we need to do get a blue-tinted “cool” image of him posted on MLB.com, and he’ll start to play well again.
If Longoria had the sepia (wait…is that the same word root of “septic”?) image, he would have never won ROY or been leading the AL in RBIs and doubles in 2009. Hart would be raking. So, lets petition for a nice blue image of Hart ASAP.
Yep
Origin: 1560–70; < L sēpia cuttlefish, its secretion < Gk sēpía; akin to sêpsis sepsis
"I didn't realize his velocity was that high," said Macha, noting that radar readings aren't flashed during exhibition games.
okay...
so, rather than barf-tinted, shit-tinted was more formally correct?:P
by PagsBrewCrew on May 21, 2009 6:43 PM CDT up reply actions
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NL Central Standings
| W | L | PCT | GB | STRK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Chicago
|
0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | Lost 0 |
|
Cincinnati
|
0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | Lost 0 |
|
Houston
|
0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | Lost 0 |
|
Milwaukee
|
0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | Lost 0 |
|
Pittsburgh
|
0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | Lost 0 |
|
St. Louis
|
0 | 0 | .000 | 0 | Lost 0 |
(updated 2.8.2012 at 12:59 PM CST)
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