Thursday's Frosty Mug

Some things to read while screwing up Korean Heritage Night.

The Brewers are off today as they prepare for a very important homestand against the Braves and Nationals. Despite falling to just one game above .500, the Brewers managed to gain a game on the Cardinals while taking just one of three in Pittsburgh. Meanwhile the Astros have snuck up within a game of first place. Big League Stew wonders if a mediocrity-filled divisional race is good for baseball. It's possible the Brewers could vault into first place with a 5-2 homestand.

The front office continues to search for starting pitching help, but Doug Melvin says the team is more likely to use an internal option when they need a fifth starter again on Tuesday. Right Field Bleachers doesn't want the Brewers to trade for Roy Halladay if it means trading away Manny Parra. Meanwhile, Tim Dillard pitched an eight inning, one hit shutout last night in AAA to record his tenth win, facing the minimum 24 batters and walking none. At some point, he has to be considered as an option.

At SI.com, Joe Posnanski ranked the top 100 players in baseball. Prince Fielder checked in at #11 and Ryan Braun was at #13, which I can live with. Posnanski missed the boat with Yovani Gallardo, though, ranking him #97.

Jason Kendall has 280 ABs this season and has yet to crack a single home run. The JS has a table showing dozens of deadball era hitters and others who went longer without going deep. I was more interested in Brewer history, and here's what I found: Kendall's 280 homerless AB's are already the ninth most in a season in franchise history. Furthermore, he's on pace to record 477 at bats this season, and if he keeps up his current HR pace he'll reach second place. Here are the top nine:

The Brewers raided the independent leagues yesterday, signing pitcher Brandon Kintzler of the St. Paul Saints. He's expected to be assigned to Huntsville.

I don't have any other minor league notes today, but perhaps you're interested in coming out to discuss the minor leagues in person? We're working on a BCB meetup at Time Warner Cable Field on August 16. Follow the link and post a comment if you're interested in being a part of it.

On Power Rankings:

• Beyond the Box Score dropped the Brewers from 17th to 19th.
• MLB FanHouse dropped the Brewers from 16th to 19th.
• Summer Loving dropped the Brewers from #4 to #18.

It's a slow day on the transaction wire for teams not based in Boston:

Red Sox: Acquired Adam LaRoche from the Pirates for two minor leaguers and Chris Duncan from the Cardinals for Julio Lugo.
Rockies: Reliever Manny Corpas will undergo surgery to remove bone chips in his elbow and be out until September at the earliest.

The Rockies are scraping the bottom of the barrel looking for bullpen help: Mike Timlin threw a bullpen session at Coors Field Wednesday, and will throw another one Friday in an effort to get a minor league contract. Timlin is 43 and posted a 5.66 ERA for the Red Sox last season.

Mike Timlin isn't the only one getting older, though: Jorge Says No! has a look at some of baseball's aging managers, including this gem:

The Central Division leader is Detroit, managed by Jimmy Leyland, who is 64. That means that by the end of the year, four of the six division-leading managers will be eligible for full Social Security benefits."

The Brewers are back in the Dominican Summer League this season after an extended hiatus, giving the league 33 teams (several teams have multiple entries). Over at The Hardball Times, Jeff has a look at some of the trends in the DSL. Very few players actually leave the Dominican Republic and become impact players in the states, but there are some very big names among those who have.

Happy birthday today to Chuck Crim, who led the AL in relief appearances in 1988 and 1989 and turns 48 today.

Oh, and if you thought losing to the Pirates was bad, on this day in 1992 the Brewers gave up a triple to 44-year-old catcher Carlton Fisk.

Drink up.