Monday's Frosty Mug
by Kyle Lobner on May 17, 2010 8:03 AM CDT
in Milwaukee Brewers News
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PrintSome things to read while pouring a fresh shoe.
Another day, and again we ask the question: Is Ken Macha about to be fired? Howie Magner thinks today could be an interesting day, as the Brewers come off an 0-6 homestand. The Bucky Channel says "you gotta think that an 0-6 homestand is about as rock bottom as it gets."
Macha was booed at home when he was announced last night, and the heat was on in last night's postgame press conference, where he told reporters this:
"When it's all said and done, I know I've done the best job I can do," Macha told reporters after the Brewers' 4-2 loss to the Phillies. "I know I have put everything I could into this job, and that's all I can do."
To me, that sounds like a guy who knows he's in trouble. With that said, I'm not sure a firing today would make sense: The team has already left for Cincinnati. If anything, Macha might have one last road trip to prove he can turn the ship around: If the team remains flat through this seven game stretch, the axe might fall a week from today on the off day before the next homestand.
Before last night's game, the biggest story of the day was Doug Davis, who was scratched from his scheduled start and placed on the DL with pericarditis, or swelling of the lining of his heart (FanShot). Davis was hospitalized with chest pains Saturday, and doctors advised him against pitching. Fortunately, the situation is treatable and non-life-threatening, and Davis should be fine in a couple of weeks.
With Davis on the DL, the Brewers had a roster spot available once again for Adam Stern, who was recalled and in uniform for last night's game, grounding out as a pinch hitter. Stern actually hadn't left Milwaukee after being optioned between Friday and Saturday's games.
While Stern fills Davis' roster spot in the short term, the Brewers will still need to find a starting pitcher to fill his spot in the rotation when it comes up this week. Yesterday, Jordan made the case for Manny Parra.
Meanwhile, Jim Edmonds sat out yesterday's game and is day-to-day with a strained rib cage muscle. He doesn't think he'll have to go to the DL, though. Beyond the Box Score makes the case for Edmonds as baseball's most productive player in his age 40 or older season.
Other notes from the field:
- The Phillies' sweep was their first at Miller Park since 2004.
- Cole Hamels, Shane Victorino and Dave Bush are leading FanGraphs' Star of the Game voting.
- CoolStandings dropped the Brewer playoff chances to 10.3%.
- Trevor Hoffman only needed seven pitches to get through a 1-2-3 ninth last night, his third hitless inning in his last four appearances.
- As part of this weekend's celebration of the 1970s, scoreboard photos were...adjusted a bit to fit the era. Here's Casey McGehee's, for example.
The play on the field was ugly at times, but the 40th Anniversary celebration was still pretty popular: The Brewers drew 43,069 fans to Saturday's game, selling out Miller Park for the fifth time this season. They also drew 37,023 last night for the Hank Aaron bobblehead giveaway.
Uni Watch, however, was unimpressed with the Brewers and Phillies' efforts to replicate their 1970s jerseys. Follow that link for a full list of things they got wrong.
Prince Fielder has quietly returned to form, hitting .308/.379/.577 in May, but his HBP pace has dropped off: It's been 17 games since Fielder was last hit by a pitch. Even with that extended break, though, he's still among the leaders in Plunk Everyone's HBPs by Difficulty.
In the minors:
- Three Brewers are headed off to rehab assignments this week: Josh Butler will start tonight's game for Brevard County, Mat Gamel will join him with the Manatees on Wednesday, and Carlos Gomez will join Wisconsin on Wednesday as well.
- David Riske made another rehab appearance for Brevard County yesterday, but the results weren't nearly as good: He allowed five runs on seven hits over two innings, and struck out just one. We've got that and much more in today's Minor League Notes.
- Kentrail Davis is scuffling a bit for Brevard County. He's 0-for his last 19, but has walked five times and been hit by three pitches.
- The Appleton Post-Crescent has profiles of Timber Rattlers Cutter Dykstra and Cameron Garfield (h/t Rattler Radio here and here).
- The Baseball America Minor League Transactions report the Brewers have released infielder Brett Dowdy. Dowdy was signed a few weeks ago and appeared in three games each for Huntsville and Nashville.
If you missed this weekend, you missed a fair amount of Brewer news. Scroll down or click here for Noah's Weekend Mug to catch up.
Around baseball:
Athletics: Designated pitcher Edwar Ramirez for assignment, placed pitcher Justin Duchscherer on the DL with a left hip issue and designated pitcher Chad Gaudin for assignment.
Braves: Placed OF Matt Diaz on the DL with an infection in his thumb.
Indians: Released pitcher Scott Lewis, and placed infielder Andy Marte on the DL with an infected ingrown hair.
Mariners: Placed catcher Adam Moore on the DL with a bruised heel.
Marlins: Placed catcher John Baker on the DL with a strained flexor muscle in his right forearm.
Mets: Released reliever Kiko Calero.
Nationals: Designated pitcher Brian Bruney for assignment.
Phillies: Placed pitcher Brad Lidge on the DL with elbow inflammation.
Yankees: Claimed pitcher Shane Lindsay off waivers from the Rockies.
As the draft approaches, we're starting to learn a little more about players that could fall to the Brewers, who will draft 14th. One of the players that comes up a lot lately is Washington high school outfielder Josh Sale, profiled at Amazin' Avenue.
In former Brewer news: If you've ever wondered what happened to Wayne Franklin, Keith Ginter and Bill Pulsipher, Josh Levitt of The Hardball Times found them all in the Golden League.
Elsewhere in former (and current) Brewer news, the B-Ref Blog has a look at the longest home save streaks in baseball history. Current and former Brewers Trevor Hoffman, Eric Gagne and Bob Wickman all have streaks in the top ten, but none of those streaks were accomplished as Brewers. Doug Henry was perfect at home as a Brewer from 1991-93, the 15th longest streak.
And in former manager notes: Ned Yost's resurrection as manager of the Royals has led some to think back to his 2008 firing. Martin Manley thinks the Brewers "let a good manager get away."
We're almost at the quarter pole of the regular season, and the surprising San Diego Padres continue to lead the NL West at 22-14. Is it time to start taking them seriously? Big League Stew thinks so.
Behold the wonders of the modern era. Five years ago, the technology to do it barely existed, but this week Twins pitcher Pat Neshek is in hot water with his manager for using Twitter to inform fans that his hand injury had been misdiagnosed by team doctors.
It isn't the Mug unless I sneak in a story on baseball economics: Bus Leagues Baseball reports that two teams (the Marlins and Indians) are being outdrawn by their minor league affiliates. A third team, the A's, lead their minor leaguers by less than 1000 fans. The Brewers, with low-attendance affiliates in Brevard County and Huntsville and good attendance at home, have outdrawn their minor leaguers by nearly 400,000 fans.
Here's a trivia question that could keep you guessing all day. Can you name the last time two Brewers had five hits in the same game? Andrew McCutchen and Garrett Jones each had five hits for the Pirates on Friday, becoming just the ninth pair of teammates to do so since Kevin Seitzer and Scott Fletcher did it for the Brewers on August 28, 1992. Seitzer and Fletcher batted eighth and ninth for the Brewers that day, respectively.
Today's feelgood story of the day comes from the LA Times, which has the story of two Dodger minor leaguers who helped save the life of a motorcyclist who hit a turkey.
Happy birthdays to:
- Brevard County Manatee Steve Braun, brother of Ryan, who turns 25 today.
- Huntsville Star Evan Anundsen, who turns 22 today.
- 2003 Brewer John Foster, who turns 32.
- George Kottaras, who turned 27 yesterday.
- Former Brewer minor leaguer Michael Brantley, who turned 23 on Saturday.
- 1997-2000 Brewer Steve Woodard, who turned 35 on Saturday.
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1993/4 Brewers
I hate to be all gloom and doom here, but every day that this team goes out there I think more and more that I am back in 1993/1994. I am rooting for a team that I think should be winning and was recently successful, but they seem to be flushing it down the toilet…
They can’t pitch and they might have one or two guys every night that actually hit.
After this weekend, it might be time to can the season, put Parra in the rotation (if he can’t swim now, he might as well drown), and put the big man on the trading block (hopefully getting next year’s 3-4 starter (with #2 upside) and others).
What do you guys think? Is it time to start playing for next year? (After the next road trip?) What does the record have to be in the next 10 games to change your mind?
(Yes I know this is a repost-but I think it will get a bit more action here)
have they set a date yet?
i just see it as fall 2010 still.
i'm fighting all the french people i can find. happy cinco de mayo!
by sowingwildoats on May 17, 2010 11:15 AM CDT up reply actions
What I see
We’re actually a better hitting team this year than last year so far (.801 vs. .767 OPS), but our pitching is even worse (1.572 WHIP vs. 1.467). We are inconsistent on offense, and consistently bad with our pitching.
Offensive inconsistency imo is the result of not using a sound strategy to push runs across the plate. We are putting way too many people on base not to be scoring runs, and we have way too much speed not to be taking advantage of it. I’d like to know whether players have the green light ahead of Braun and Fielder, or if they’re being held.
Can anyone remember the last time someone in this lineup sacrificed a runner over? I don’t care if you’re hitting .300, stealing a base is still a higher percentage chance to get the runner to second if they have good speed, and sacrificing pushes runners over and takes away the double play. We can’t sit back and wait for the 3-run HR because we don’t have the pitching to win 3-2 games. We need to treat baserunners like they’re valuable assets, not accidental RBIs when someone goes deep.
Our pitching isn’t good, and it’s not going to get much better very soon, but we do have the option of carrying an extra pitcher instead of an extra outfielder. It gives us an extra arm to carry the relief load so we don’t get into situations where we feel we need to get 130 pitches out of our starters because the bullpen is tired.
Right now we have one 7-inning guy and four 5-6 inning guys. That means we’re probably going to use four pitchers every night, especially if we’re stuck on the “8th and 9th inning guys” concept. If that’s the plan, have the staff available to execute the plan. It means we need a deep pen, and we’ll be getting a lot of use out of our bench, so everyone should be ready to play every day.
As far as trading Prince is concerned, I wouldn’t care either way at this point. His current production is average for this team, Braun & McGehee would make a decent 3-4 in the lineup, and anyone can play first base. But I wouldn’t trade him away for anything less than his potential. It’s probably easier to handle in the offseason, but a team on the brink in a pennant race might be motivated to trade some future pitching for winning now and return us a higher value, because not all wins have the same value: Wins above 90 are more valuable than wins from 80-90.
TL;DR:
Don’t expect your pitchers to do what they’ve proven they can’t, plan for what they can do.
Everyone in this lineup can hit – get baserunners into scoring position first.
Prince is leaving – but wait for someone willing to pay for him with pitching talent.
Go ahead, take your swings :)
On defense
We could improve it by not setting up players for failure (Edmonds can’t handle CF, but fits nicely in RF when someone needs a day off) and by changing our pitching style. Right now we’ve got a lot of guys who nibble at the corners and waste a lot of pitches trying to strike people out. Start throwing strikes and put the ball in play. When the defense knows that the ball’s going to be in play more than once every 10 pitches they stay awake and field better.
Also, everyone on this roster can hit well enough, so people should be able to compete for starting jobs based on fielding skill because it improves the value of our pitching. Basically, Gomez should play every day, and Hart should be a pinch-hitter.
Or because Hart's
not that good, and doesn’t know how to play RF in Miller Park, despite doing it consistently for years now.
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
I agree with that.
I’ll take a .220 great fielding RF over a .260 bad-fielding one, and Gerut isn’t going to stay at .220 anyway.
The pitchers nibble because they don't have good stuff
Throwing more strikes results in more hard hit balls and HRs. Its not like the staff doesn’t know they need to get more GBs, they just aren’t very good at it.
DD, Suppan and Bush’s entire game is to hit the corners and get guys to chase an unhittable pitch.
If you ask Bush or DD to throw their mid 80s fastball over the plate more, its going to get crushed.
Get a ife broseph
yea, their 20.4% line drive rate bears that out
its second worst in the league and goes to show that opposing hitters are crushing the ball off brewer pitching
I blame
That new batters eye…it’s just too good. Bring back the ivy!
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 17, 2010 2:25 PM CDT up reply actions
76-49
Thats what I think they need to go the rest of the way to make the playoffs. Thats better than 6 of every 10 games.
They can probably pull that off for a month or two at the very best, but probably not the full season.
Can the season? No, its still very early and you never know what will happen to teams in front of you, but it definitely does not look very good. They could easily come back from this road trip 10 games under .500.
If this slide continues Fielder will be dealt sometime during July, no doubt in my mind (at least that is what the prudent GM would be doing, is DM that? No, but he’s not that short sighted that he wouldnt explore the option) and I am going to push for the A level pitchers with big upside/impact arms, over the mlb ready pitcher, just for the sake of sheer volume over immeadiate return concerns.
all we gotta do is 6 games better than the cards/astros the rest of the way
it’s still possible
Central won’t be won by a 90 game winner.
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 9:57 AM CDT up reply actions
6 games better than the Astros?
That I think the Brewers can handle.
by Cheeseandcorn on May 17, 2010 10:04 AM CDT up reply actions
Technically
They only have to do 1 game better than the Cards or Reds :P
90/91 wins assures you of that, I can easily see either of those teams winning that. I had the Reds winning the division with 87 wins, and they have already beat their Pythagorean W-L record by 3 games. Some people have the Cards at 90 as well.
"They only have to do 1 game better than the Cards or Reds :P"
I meant from this point forward. And I meant “and” not “or” with my slash. It’s not like a brand new season starts at this point – we have a disadvantage.
I suppose we have to do better than the Cubs and the Pirates as well, but the main obstacles are the Cards’ and Reds’ leads
If you think that the Cards will win at a .550 clip the rest of the way, then we have to beat that record by 6 wins (in tandem with 6 fewer losses of course:P).
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 12:09 PM CDT up reply actions
my only concern with that
is that the brewers have never shown any real ability to develop pitchers. i am a pessimist by nature — so maybe take this with a grain of salt — but i think if we were given a bunch of a-ball pitching prospects, they’d all be “whatever happened to…?” in a few years. i’d rather take a near-ready pitcher and an arm or two in low levels.
by Capt Science on May 17, 2010 11:08 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Completey agree
The money spent on the Wolf and Davis signings would have been much better used, to overhaul the player development staff, imo. Until a new philosphy, and new personnel are put in place in the FO, I dont see a big long term plan like that being put in place.
I mention “philosophy” because I feel part of this “spend now and hope for the best” metality is specifically designed to get people in the seats, win or lose, and it comes down from the peak of the mountain, Mark Attanasio. I realize that fans pay the salaries and fund the operations of the team for the most part, but there has to be a point where you choose sound business/baseball judgement for the sacrifice of short term fan happiness.
i'm not close enough to argue this point
but i kinda agree with the “hope for the best” strategy for now. as a long suffering fan, you get tired of rebuilds. and 2008 sparked enough optimism to think that the team could compete with the current offense… if we can just get league-average pitching. and so they spent to try to do that (though not in a way that suits my preferences) and i don’t begrudge them for it. i’d rather see them give it a shot instead of rebooting right away. people are sad now because they had expectations for the season. i’d rather be sad now than just hope for 3 years from now, like royals fan always have to do.
i think there is an organizational philosophy on pitching development and it’s centered around biometrics. BA or BP did a chat and said the brewers were light years ahead of everyone on that — before the rickster even. his hiring was more to do with fitting that, i think, than his making oliver perez, et al serviceable.
however, i don’t understand how that philosophy is leading to results… but i also don’t know how long it’s been in place and what it’s producing. perhaps our minor league pitchers are better and more durable, but we haven’t seen that matriculate to the major league level yet. or maybe it’s just because the problem is with scouting and we generally don’t draft good enough pitchers to turn into good enough major leaguers. i dunno. i wish they gave us more clarity into that.
by Capt Science on May 17, 2010 11:49 AM CDT up reply actions
With all the runs & runs against.
And the home stand sweep I’m thinking the ’96 Brewers.
should’ve kept him in a utility roll
by Zorakathura on May 17, 2010 12:02 PM CDT up reply actions
The headline from that Martin Manley post:
“Firing Yost Made No Sense!”
Well, this promises to be an informed, well-reasoned piece.
SRS BSNS
Here’s a trivia question that could keep you guessing all day.
since Kevin Seitzer and Scott Fletcher did it for the Brewers on August 28, 1992
Why do you ruin all the fun?
Wake up in the clubhouse feeling like Ken Griffey.
www.nextyearisouryear.blogspot.com
by chazerize on May 17, 2010 9:02 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs
Current forecast for Cincy is rain.
They should keep a very close watch on the radar & if it looks dicey start Manny. Losing Yo after a few IP & lengthy delay would terrible for this club right now.
This might be a dreaded “bullpen start.” But then again that would take some forward thinking on someone’s part…
by BrewCrewBrian on May 17, 2010 9:09 AM CDT up reply actions
shenannagans
This article was dated yesterday
“I was scheduled to fly out today,” Stern said. “But they told me to hold tight yesterday until they figured everything out. So, I just kind of hung out and waited for the call.”
So…the day before yesterday, before Davis had his heart inflammation ER visit, Stern was told to stay in Milwaukee because they were going to DL someone?
Yeah, they were worried about Edmonds.
No way Stern fills Davis’s spot in the “long” term.
Although, can he pitch?
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
Good point
Though, until he gets whatever that growth on his face is looked at, I wouldn’t trust him.
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
for good reason
he’s definitely well into the “questionable” range with that one
by warwick5s on May 17, 2010 2:33 PM CDT up reply actions 2 recs
Brett Dowdy
Once the club realized they already had a light-hitting infielder who could move to LF (paging Mr. Brewer), Brett Dowdy became superfluous.
Failure is just success rounded down.
Also
One of these extra infielders they’ve got around is likely going to have to go to make room for Gamel once he’s ready.
Now that's great tasting chicken!
by Kyle Lobner on May 17, 2010 10:43 AM CDT up reply actions
I figure the Brewers will get serious about trading Fielder as soon as Gamel is healthy. At least I hope so.
by KittenMittons on May 17, 2010 3:40 PM CDT up reply actions
after the second-in-charge of the front office just threw Gamel under the bus a week ago?
i don’t think so.
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 4:13 PM CDT up reply actions
It's probably wishful thinking.
But with the Brewers falling farther out of contention everyday, I’d like to see the young talent develop a bit.
by KittenMittons on May 17, 2010 5:08 PM CDT up reply actions
I'm not sure I agree with firing Macha
I suppose it’s something to cut through the malaise, but his management decisions haven’t been entirely unforgivable, have they? His bullpen is dramatically overworked and has forced him to make terrible decisions in some cases. Macha can’t make the starters pitch deeper into games other than having Narveson throw 130 pitches. He can’t make the pitchers throw to Fielder.
Edmonds wouldn’t be playing in center nearly as much as he has been if Gomez were healthy, just by definition.
I could be on board in a few cases, though. Would an interim manager have the power to clean house? Is he able to come in and get rid of Suppan within a week? If he’s just going to be a difference face trotting out the same pitchers and dealing with the same DL each week, I don’t really see the point.
If they get rid of Macha
They better get rid of the entire coaching staff too. Clean house.
And no manager is going to have anything more than an opinion on the players that should be on the roster. That’s the GM’s job, he decides how much weight to give the manager’s opinion.
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
Speaking of GM
At what point do we stop blaming the manager and start blaming the guy that has been responsible for assembling the talent the manager has to work with?
There is a lot of baseball to be played yet, but if this team doesn’t turn things around you have to think Melvin’s writing is on the wall…which scares me a little. I can imagine a scenario where Melvin goes into panic mode seeing that writing on the wall and throws together some trade deadline moves to try and make a push for the playoffs. Moves that could very well hinder the future of the club.
BCB, the preferred above replacement level sarcasm supplier.
by MadJimiBrewha on May 17, 2010 11:46 AM CDT up reply actions
I would think that the checks and balances would prevent him from doing that
mainly because it’d hinder opportunity for future employment.
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
i dunno
omar minaya has a job still. some people even think he’s competent. people question sabean all the time, but he’s still respected in “baseball circles” and his team is doing okay.
by Capt Science on May 17, 2010 11:50 AM CDT up reply actions
I'm already blaming the guy that has been responsible for assembling the (lack of) talent
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 11:48 AM CDT up reply actions
Lots of blame for the talent
You could also blame the failure of the Latin American program in the early 2000s.
Jack Z for not being able to “hit” on any of his pitching picks or find any sleepers in rounds 2-10 (sans Gallardo) and what looks to be the brutal 2008 draft run of Fredrickson, Lintz and Adams.
Reid Nichols for not developing players effectively under his watch
The Selig ownership for going cheap in the draft….etc.
Obviously the buck stops with Melvin, but there is a lot of blame to go around.
Get a ife broseph
by Supertramp on May 17, 2010 12:02 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
I'd rather have the current Seattle GM than our current one
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 12:04 PM CDT up reply actions
maybe by then there will be someone out there better
but I don’t think it would kill us to give a second look at Jack Z if the Ms release him.
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 12:10 PM CDT up reply actions
Why not?
Jack Z was a great scout, but maybe he’s not cut out as a GM. If he doesn’t pan out in Seattle, why should the Brewers give him a chance?
What I don’t want is for him to come in and resume drafting hitting before fielding and pitching.
he didn't make good picks on pitchers
so, I think there was a very good reason he was drafting hitters – it was something his scouting core could readily identify on under-the-radar prospects.
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 4:14 PM CDT up reply actions
The biggest problem with Macha is managerial style.
I think the most obvious difference between 2010 and 2009 is the mood of the team. The fun seems to be gone. The shirt untucking was a tribute to Mike Cameron’s father, and I understand why the team isn’t doing it anymore. However, absolutely nothing has replaced it.
Good or bad, people in their 20s (and even 30s) have an fundamental need to express themselves through their work. They also need more encouragement than men in their 50s and 60s think is necessary or appropriate. Ken Macha is on the extreme end of that scale. He seems to have no personality at all. His baseball decisions can be fairly debated, but his managerial style is the polar opposite of what this team needs.
I’m beginning to think that Mike Cameron played a vital role in team chemistry in 2008 – 2009. His clubhouse presence filled the motivational void produced by Ken Macha’s standoffish style. Without Cameron, Macha’s motivational shortcomings are taking their toll on the team.
by RobertArthur on May 17, 2010 11:41 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Work's not supposed to be fun.
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
at work I can comment on this blog
life is good
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 11:50 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
I could maybe agree with that, but...
the Brewers actually have one of the oldest rosters among MLB teams. I believe that they rank 26th youngest in terms of average age. Other teams don’t have any special celebrations after wins, so I don’t think that’s affecting the players.
I think the Brewers were getting a reputation around MLB that they were immature, which is why they’ve kept it pretty quiet this season. Granted, not winning many games isn’t giving them any reason to celebrate anyway.
Most of the starting position players are young...
so in any given lineup, most of the offense is comprised of men in their twenties, some of whom were drafted out of high school.
Also, the reason they are not doing celebrations this year is because Macha prohibited them. He made a point of explaining that in several spring training interviews.
I’m not attempting to argue that celebrations = wins. It’s not that simple. As the players explained several times in 2009, the celebrations were a product of team identity and group solidarity. That identity did result in more wins, I think. A good manager could have found a way to channel that team chemistry in more mature ways, without squelching it outright. I believe that Macha is incapable of doing that. In the absence of someone like Mike Cameron, who can fill that role, the Brewers clubhouse is missing a very important element from 2009.
by RobertArthur on May 18, 2010 9:27 AM CDT up reply actions
Heres a trivia
Who was The last Milwaukee Brewer Drafted in the first round as an outfielder to actually play at least 100 games as an outfielder for the Milwaukee Brewers?
FEAR THE DEER!!! but not til next year =(
by russelTHEmuscle on May 17, 2010 11:12 AM CDT reply actions
sorry forgot to add pre geoff Jenkins
FEAR THE DEER!!! but not til next year =(
by russelTHEmuscle on May 17, 2010 11:14 AM CDT up reply actions
obliquely?
o·blique (-blk, -blk)
adj.
1.
a. Having a slanting or sloping direction, course, or position; inclined.
b. Mathematics Designating geometric lines or planes that are neither parallel nor perpendicular.
2. Botany Having sides of unequal length or form: an oblique leaf.
3. Anatomy Situated in a slanting position; not transverse or longitudinal: oblique muscles or ligaments.
4.
a. Indirect or evasive: oblique political maneuvers.
b. Devious, misleading, or dishonest: gave oblique answers to the questions.
5. Not direct in descent; collateral.
6. Grammar Designating any noun case except the nominative or the vocative.
n.
1. An oblique thing, such as a line, direction, or muscle.
2. Nautical The act of changing course by less than 90°.
adv. (-blk, -blk)
At an angle of 45°.
it looked to be the opposite of def 4a. how about acutely or just directly?:P
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 11:52 AM CDT up reply actions
Yeah that works
It was Dion James if anyone was curious he played 128 games in 1984 hit 1 HR had 30 rbi and batted .295
FEAR THE DEER!!! but not til next year =(
by russelTHEmuscle on May 17, 2010 12:14 PM CDT up reply actions
Wow.
It’s been a while. I wonder how common it is to have outfielders play all the way through. You get a lot of guys being the best in their high school team which means they almost necessarily play shortstop and/or pitch. Does a guy need to be really raking, but with no defensive instincts in high school and college if he comes out as an outfielder?
I misread the Mug
to do so since Kevin Seitzer and Scott Fletcher did it for the Brewers on August 28, 1992
I didn’t see “for the Brewers.” I read it as needing to know Kevin Seitzer and Scott Fletcher were Brewers. My bad.
“Blatantly” would also work.
Well things are gloom now
Hard to not get frustrated, but with how up and down the season has been, maybe just gotta temper expectations now. Hope for the best, but don’t expect the best.
I hope we can get things together, but is this a playoff team if they even do? Might be time to start considering the future. Boras is sure taking his time on the Prince deal too, looking like it’s not gonna happen right now. It stinks, but at least Prince can help us stay competitive if he can net us a couple nice prospects.
Bahh, long season too, this mindset makes me so depressed. Just gotta let it play out now, gonna be a rollercoaster ride.
"I signed with the Milwaukee Braves for three-thousand dollars. That bothered my dad at the time because he said he didn't have that kind of dough." - Ueck
Boras is taking his time?
Got a source?
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
There has probably been preliminary talks
But Id be shocked if any numbers were being floated around regarding Fielder/Boras and a new contract. Boras has floated his $200 million number, but that was through the press.
He’s not really “taking his time” this is just his M.O. The only way Fielder is going to accept an offer before he enters FA in 2011 is if he goes against Boras’ advice and goes all ARod.
At this point, there is no doubt in most peoples eyes that the best move is going to be to trade Fielder by the deadline, or at worst during the offseason following this year. If the Brewers were to lock up Fielder with a $19-$25 million per year offer, the results this current team is putting forth would be repeated for the length of that Fielder contract: Big offense/no pitching/.500 team.
I wish we’d start winning so I could go back to making posters of Fielder playing Godzilla in visiting ballparks.
by nullacct on May 17, 2010 11:46 AM CDT reply actions 7 recs
Is there a "creepy rec" option?
I'm not arguing, I'm just offering a relentlessly contrarian point of view.
It's more fun
If you head over to IMDB and read the lines from the movie with Macha and Melvin instead of Kate & Leo:
Dougie: Kenny! You’re so stupid. Why did you do that, huh? You’re so stupid, Kenny. Why did you do that? Why?
Kenny: You jump, I jump, right?
Dougie: It’s all right. We’ll think of something.
Kenny: At least I’m with you.
Dougie: We’ll think of something.
I can see macha as the b*tch
FEAR THE DEER!!! but not til next year =(
by russelTHEmuscle on May 17, 2010 12:19 PM CDT reply actions 1 recs
Assume the sweep
That is all
Yeah, well, sometimes I drink.
by Dikembe Meiztombo on May 17, 2010 12:27 PM CDT reply actions
OT: Microsoft Audio Ad on Pandora
“We noticed that you are using Internet Explorer 7” blah, blah, blah “You may want to upgrade to internet explorer 8” and which they went on to say that essentially everyone else in the world is using IE8, so that must make it better than other browsers.
They’re not doing so great at browser detection, as I do not have IE7 on my system.
I'm going to order my Brewers License plates today.
Not sure if I want to personalize them or not. It’s not too expensive, but I’m wondering if NOSOUP is in bad taste.
SRSBND might be a little arrogant with nothing to back it up.
I’d rather keep it Brewers related than go with NOCUBS, which is probably taken anyway.
HEETHEN is too many characters.
TYOUNG is lame.
http://www.mlbsoup.com
polish chrizo hotdog italan brat
FEAR THE DEER!!! but not til next year =(
by russelTHEmuscle on May 17, 2010 1:05 PM CDT up reply actions
9LPRTA
should’ve kept him in a utility roll
by Zorakathura on May 17, 2010 1:16 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
Winner
Yeah, well, sometimes I drink.
by Dikembe Meiztombo on May 17, 2010 1:18 PM CDT up reply actions
I'm going with the non personalized one, btu this one is amazing.
Somebody needs to get this and take a picture of their car.
http://www.mlbsoup.com
Someone already has a plate similar to this
I’ve seen a car that says UNTUCKM.
My goodness.
by BrewHaHeather on May 17, 2010 9:51 PM CDT up reply actions
BRCREW
FEAR THE DEER!!! but not til next year =(
by russelTHEmuscle on May 17, 2010 12:55 PM CDT reply actions
Maybe Edmonds and Macha will
realize Edmonds is old and can’t hack playing more than 2 games a week.
Give him an offspeed pitch down and in. He will swing and miss.
Jeezaloo, you guys are abusing Walsh right now.
Yeah, well, sometimes I drink.
by Dikembe Meiztombo on May 17, 2010 2:56 PM CDT reply actions
I was disappointed to see they didn't let Escobar try running yesterday,
He got on base a couple of times, but the only action last night was Corey Hart’s terrible jump.
Macha
That picture made me wonder…
1. Does Macha stand the entire game?
2. Does Macha stand in the same spot the entire game?
Watching the games over the weekend, it seems like Macha is always standing in that same spot.
Melvin/Macha
When Macha says he’s put everything he can into it I think he’s kind of taking a stab at Doug Melvin without coming right out and saying it. I’ve mentioned my thoughts on Doug Melvin here before and some of the moves he’s made, many of you are quick to dismiss what my suggestions were (before the season started) and defend Melvin, that really makes me question how much some of you on here have a damn clue! Yes I’ve mentioned we should’ve kept Hardy and Hall, etc. and got laughed at…uh you people need to wake up and get a clue, it’s all about pitching at this point (that’s been obvious for atleast a couple seasons with this club) and Macha, although I don’t think he’s the correct guy for the job, can’t do a damn thing when you have the mediocre pitching staff Doug Melvin has assembled. I’m not getting into it again but one example was to keep Hardy and trade Escobar and another prospect for a top notch starter (and yes the free agent crop wasn’t great but some trades could’ve been made for Escobar’s over-rated ability). Wake up people and get on the FIRE DOUG MELVIN bandwagon!
" trade Escobar and another prospect for a top notch starter "
do you possess any evidence that suggests any team was in the market for Escobar? how do you know that Melvin didn’t shop him around, but couldn’t find anything of value for him? Just because a trade seems balanced on paper doesn’t mean he was able to get the other GM to the table.
Also, bringing up the Hall thing again doesn’t help your credibility. Plus, you said that a couple of weeks ago, not before the season started.
In any case, I’ve been with you on the whole “fire Melvin” thing from the start, it’s just that you’re rewriting history (saying Hall had value) or inventing it out of thin air (Escobar would have netted us a #1 starting pitcher without costing us millions of dollars a year). Part of the reason he kept Escobar and got rid of Hardy was cost – if you keep hardy AND add on a $12M/yr pitcher, you’ve expanded the payroll quite a bit, making signing/keeping other people on the club a problem.
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 5:17 PM CDT up reply actions
I’ve thought these things for a couple years and now it’s playing out the way I thought it would, you can’t win consistently without solid pitching and you really need two dominant starters to be a legit contender. Disregard the $ for a second, JJ Hardy will be better offensive player than Escobar over the course of his career in my opinion, Escobar is no Jose Reyes or Hanley Ramirez, never will be, even if he is better than Hardy a little so what, keep Hardy, keep a guy who can play an average centerfield (which is the only reason I mentioned Hall) and use your assets to make a big effort to improve the pitching, and if Escobar is as good as you think he’ll be making the money Hardy is in two years anyway, you don’t have to pay Suppan next year and you have a window to win with Prince here still if you’d get some damn pitching. The Brewers draw 3 million fans, we pay good money and we want a winner…Remember Jeff Suppan wouldn’t be here either if not for Melvin! Bye Bye Doug can’t come soon enough.
"Hall" and "average centerfielder" should not be in a sentence that does not contain the word "not"
other than that, I’m starting to see your point a bit.
However I do think that $ is a big part of it. And if Escobar is such a stud he demands $ down the line, we can consider then if a) we wish to trade him or b) sign him at the arbie price or whatever price he demands in free agency. That’s a road we can cross when we get to it, but the coaches and management saw his defensive upside and thought that outweighed his offensive liabilities. That being said, they see him as an eventual high OBP type that can hit at the top of the order. Not a Hardy-type moderate-power-but-low-BA/OBP that sucks hitting in low in the order (because he presses too much to try to clear the bases before the pitcher’s slot).
Hardy was an excellent hitter – when he was on. But he went through prolonged slumps that I think were psychologically induced. Escobar strikes me as the slow-and-steady type that won’t have many ups and downs.
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 6:27 PM CDT up reply actions
that being said
there’s probably a psychological aspect to Escobar’s batting, given his Winter League insanity. Being back in the home country was good for him. I’m not quite sure what his MLE was, but I’d bet it was well above .300. In any case, much better than he’s done in the US for the same number of ABs.
by PagsBrewCrew on May 17, 2010 6:29 PM CDT up reply actions
Again?
that really makes me question how much some of you on here have a damn clue
uh you people need to wake up and get a clue
Anyone who has read your posts is fully aware that you don’t like Doug Melvin, no need for the confrontational language.
Incoherent rants that come out of nowhere (you aren’t replying to a specific post that says DM is doing a great job) make you seem like an ambassador from Old Vegas — the made up “should have made” trades, inability to start a new paragraph, the use of ALL CAPS, and run on sentences help too.
Get a ife broseph
by Supertramp on May 17, 2010 7:00 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
There is no way they could've kept Hardy
and gotten the dominant starter you’re looking for. There’s just not enough money to do it. This is just how small market teams have to exist. Trade away players once they become too expensive and replace them with cheaper, younger players. If baseball economics were as simple as you seem to think they are, we would sign Prince for whatever he demands.
I’m not trying to defend Melvin here, I’m just saying that your particular argument isn’t a very good one.
My goodness.
by BrewHaHeather on May 17, 2010 10:07 PM CDT up reply actions
Why do you think people here like Melvin?
You’re a broken record.
should’ve kept him in a utility roll
by Zorakathura on May 17, 2010 10:28 PM CDT up reply actions
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