Gorman graduated from puppy class yesterday. We're all so proud.

Oh, and the Brewers won big, too.

Win Expectancy Graph
BR Box Score

And of course, after the game the Brewers continued to commit the most dastardly crime against humanity ever recorded in the book of "Are You Really Still Complaining About This?": the untucking of shirts. Please consult the proper authorities.

Bird Land has a post up on, you guessed it, untucked shirts. He actually explains the reasons, though. Maybe people will read it and learn something. Probably not, though.

According to Tyler Maas at Bugs and Cranks, Ryan Braun wore a different kind of uniform yesterday. Not sure if he kept it tucked in.

A friend of mine was recently working on compiling a list of things that are completely unnecessary to say. For example, he'll walk into a store, pick something up off the shelf and exclaim, "Oh, I wonder if they have these?!" Tom H. has apparently picked up the trend. This morning he's letting us all know that the Brewers, who won game 1 of a series last night, are also hoping to win game 2 to complete the sweep.

He did include this note in today's game story, though: Should CC Sabathia win the NL Cy Young? Steve Aschburner of SI.com makes a case for him.

One other awards note: Fungoes has Ryan Braun 12th in their rankings for NL MVP, behind, among others: two pitchers, an outfielder who's out for the season and an outfielder that no longer plays in the NL.

There have been times in the not-so-distant past when stuff like this would have been the only Brewer news in September: The Brewers announced their contributions to the Arizona Fall League yesterday.

Three members of the West Virginia Power (low-A) were named to the South Atlantic League's post-season All Star Team.

Also, here are some photos from Nashville including (relatively) rare photographs of Mat Gamel in a Sounds uniform.

Book your vacation days now, the postseason schedule has been announced.

On injuries:

J.D. Drew's herniated disc landed him on the DL after all.
Nats OF Austin Kearns has a stress fracture in his foot and will miss 2-4 weeks.
Rangers SP Vicente Padilla is still having issues with his neck and may not pitch Friday.
Marlins RP Renyel Pinto has been placed on the DL with a "sore hamstring" that couldn't possibly be related to this.
Rays C Dioner Navarro had to leave yesterday's game with cramping in his hamstrings and may not play today.
Nick Swisher left last night's game in the 4th inning after fouling a pitch off of his foot.

Again, this is the kind of stuff that used to be the biggest Brewer news in September: MLB Trade Rumors has projected free agent compensation for players likely to be on the move this winter.

Also likely to be on the move: most, if not all of your favorite Florida Marlins, as it seems unlikely the team will come to terms with all 18 arbitration eligible players they'll have this winter.

So let's say you're an MLB general manager and you're looking to upgrade your pitching this offseason. If CC Sabathia is out of your reach, who's the second best free-agent pitcher? Dave Cameron at Fangraphs suggests it's Derek Lowe.

I guess now that J.D. Drew has been DL'ed this move is mildly relevant, but it still feels like a yawner: The Red Sox acquired Mark Kotsay yesterday.

The race to 20 wins got a little closer yesterday: Cliff Lee picked up his 19th win last night, while Brandon Webb took the loss in his first shot at 20. If Cliff Lee reaches 20 wins, and all the signs would suggest he will, will it be the quietest 20 wins ever?

Oh, and do you hate love poems? Would you like them more if they were about Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame Catcher Carlton Fisk? I thought you would.

Drink up.

How quickly fortunes change: one season and now Pirate fans are wondering why they can't win in Milwaukee.

Sunday's Win Expectancy Graph
Sunday's BR Box Score

Saturday's Win Expectancy Graph
Saturday's BR Box Score

Friday's Win Expectancy Graph
Friday's BR Box Score

Obligatory photgraphic evidence of the world's most hyperbolic crime against humanity: the untucking of shirts.

So, how about Guillermo Mota as an unlikely hero? I'll admit I wasn't too excited when he was called into yesterday's game, but after the game even Tom H. gave him the credit he deserves.

Lost in everything else that happened yesterday: CC Sabathia was pulled after 6 innings, possibly because of the media uproar that occurred after his 130 pitch outing last week. In fact, 6-4-2 and the LA Times are still talking about Sabathia's likely free agent destinations and how his future performance might be affected by this season.

In other pitching news, The Junkball Blues is concerned about the inconsistency and workload of Manny Parra. He's already thrown 7 more innings in 2008 than he did in all of 2007, and still has a month to go in the starting rotation.

As noted in the Fanshots, Mat Gamel will spend the last week of the minor league season in Nashville as a tryout for a potential September callup. I'm curious: what kind of production do people expect from him in the big leagues at this point, as a guy who's spent one week above AA? Let me know in the comments.

As you may know, Baseball Tonight is conducting a series this season featuring the best player in the history of each franchise. Via Batter's Box Interactive, I discovered that ESPN.com's Page 2 is featuring the worst 3 players in each franchise's history. The NL is featured here, and the AL here. Feel free to check my math if you want, but I spotted 13 former Brewers on the list, including Hideo Nomo's appearance on the list for two different teams.

The Brewers rank 6th in Phil Rogers' most recent power rankings.

On injuries:

Josh Beckett still has numbness in his hand and his scheduled start has been pushed back once again, to Friday this time.
Johnny Cueto left yesterday's game after just 3 innings with a sore triceps tendon, and will get an MRI today.
J.D. Drew has a herniated disc in his back but is trying to avoid the DL.
Royals 3B Alex Gordon is on the DL with a torn muscle in his leg.
Orlando Hernandez will be out for at least a year following surgery on his big toe and may never throw the banana again.
Royals SP Luke Hochevar is done for the season with a bruised rib cage.
Rangers SP Eric Hurley is being shut down for the season with shoulder inflammation.
Geoff Jenkins strained his hip running out an infield single and has been placed on the DL.
Royals RP Ron Mahay has been placed on the DL with a sore left foot.
Mets SP John Maine may be shut down for the rest of the season with a bone spur in his shoulder.
Blue Jays OF Brad Wilkerson has been placed on the DL with convenient timing back spasms.

Remember when this was the most prominent event in Brewer second-half baseball? With a loss and an Angels win today, the Mariners could be the first team eliminated from playoff contention. If they don't do it today, the Nationals could sneak up on them and do it tomorrow.

Everyone has a bad day sometimes, and equipment guys are no exception: Twins SS Adam Everett had to change jerseys mid-game Friday to ensure he was wearing the proper spelling of Minnesota.

Oh, and this 1970's era Brewers commercial is...well, it's everything you'd expect it to be.

Drink up.

Remember last week, when I missed trash day on Wednesday? Because I missed last week's trash day, this week the trash is overflowing...and as a result, the garbage truck drove right by it. It's like a trash saga.

All-Star Game Win Probability
BR doesn't appear to have a box score.

Aside from, of course, the ridiculously covered All-Star game, the biggest Brewer news is probably the new infield the team will be playing on when they return home from the break. It can't hurt.

Bodog Sports has the Brewers at 7:2 odds to win the NL (second best, behind the Cubs) and 12:1 to win the World Series, tied for fifth with the White Sox.

Riding the Pine gives the Brewers a B- for their first half. They should've done more extra credit to see if they could sneak up to a B.

No injuries today (thankfully), so let's go straight to the other news: Even though the game went 15 innings and both teams ran out of players, Tim Lincecum couldn't pitch last night and had to check into the hospital due to flulike symptoms. That's a tough break. Does anyone remember a few years ago when Greg Vaughn was the only position player who didn't play in the game because he got food poisoning at the All-Star Gala?

In the other dugout, AL manager Terry Francona said he thought Scott Kazmir, who wasn't supposed to pitch at all, still had an inning or two left, but if the game continued past that he was ready to turn to J.D. Drew.

Which is more valuable: 3 solid bullpen arms or one dominant closer? Skyking162 is on the case.

Yesterday was TheJay's birthday. He spent it writing a post about team LOB percentages for Recondite Baseball. Could someone please help him learn how to appropriately spend a birthday?

Roy Halladay is upset with the Jays annual return to mediocrity. He's taken less money to stay, eaten a ton of innings and pitched Cy Young caliber baseball for years on middle of the road teams so I understand why he's upset, but pitching in Toronto does have one added perk: topless women in the outfield.

That doesn't happen at Yankee Stadium, I'd guess, although there is a NASA Gigapan you can check out if you want to make sure.

Alyssa Milano is done dating baseball players. Thankfully, if players are forced to date someone with less baseball savvy, the Mets are offering a seminar to teach women about baseball.

Got Facebook? Good. Go become a fan of Brew Crew Ball. You can add your photos, videos and other stuff and it won't get washed away like the Fanshots and Fanposts do.

Drink up.

So, Mike Rivera is batting .500 since I suggested he should play more. I know it's a small sample size (4-for-8), but it'd be a bigger sample size if he played more.

Win Expectancy Graph
BR Box Score
BDD Recaps

Thanks to Jeff for allowing you to drink straight from the tap with the Win Expectancy Graphs and BR Box Scores over the weekend.

Jim Powell blogged after Saturday's game. He's pretty excited about the homestand so far, and reasonably so.

He also mentions the massive home run Russell Branyan hit Saturday. I was at the game (my first of the season), and from my perspective, it didn't look like the ball actually made the Dew Deck. It looked like it hit near the back of the second deck. Unfortunately, at the ballpark I only got to see it once, and at game speed. Anyone have access to it on video?

Following Saturday's game, Ned Yost took a beating from Beyond the Box Score for allowing Ben Sheets to throw 120 pitches. I understand the logic at play here, but I find myself agreeing with the first commenter, who notes that everything would've been fine if not for the 11 pitch at bat with Lance Berkman, with two outs in the ninth.

Also Sheets related: Another Baseball Blog takes a look at Sheets' hitting and how it impacts a game. He estimates that the difference between Gallardo's hitting (near elite) and Sheets' hitting (near inept) is equivalent to about a .30 difference in ERA. If the swing from top to bottom is that small, maybe I've spent too much time worrying about pitcher hitting.

Dave Pinto notes that Brewer starters are 4-1 with a 2.47 ERA over their last 7 starts. It's probably a little early to say our pitching woes are over, but this is certainly an improvement.

Here's an interesting new stat: The Beane Count. It tracks home runs and walks, by hitters and pitchers, and combines them to form one number to evaluate. The Brewers rank 13th in the NL at present. I rank somewhere near dead last in being able to explain new stats.

While I'm on the topic of interesting stats, Recondite Baseball takes a look at the all time highest and lowest BABIP numbers. Most of these guys aren't huge surprises, but somehow, Gorman Thomas cracked the list on the low end, at #18. How did that happen?

On injuries:

Twins P Nick Blackburn is fine, amazingly, after being hit in the face by a line drive. He may not miss a start.
Hank Blalock had carpal tunnel surgery Friday and will miss at least another month.
J.D. Drew missed a start over the weekend with vertigo.
Padres P Shawn Estes broke his thumb falling down the stairs. The bad jokes here can only escalate.
Angels IF Chone Figgins has been placed on the DL with irritation in his hamstring.
Reds P Josh Fogg has been placed on the DL with a bad back.
Travis Hafner has been placed on the DL with a sore shoulder.
D-Backs 1B Conor Jackson will be out for a few days with a strained quad.
Braves OF Mark Kotsay has been placed on the DL with a strained lower back.
David Ortiz felt something pop in his wrist Saturday and will (maybe already did?) undergo an MRI.

The Brewers aren't the only team that can't win on the road. At The Book blog, MGL notes that the homefield advantage this year is significantly higher than average, and offers some reasons why.

Dugout Central notes a moment from Friday that's indicative of the problem MLB has with confrontational umpires: Seriously, aside from professional wrestling, is there another major sport where this would be tolerated?

If this works out, it'll set a dangerous precedent: Last week, the Braves designated backup C Brayan Pena for assignment, and placed him on waivers, presumably hoping to send him to the minors. The Royals claimed him off waivers, kept him on their roster for a day, then DFA'd him again, hoping to send him to the minors as well. If this is possible, couldn't Pena be claimed and DFA'd by teams needing a AAA catcher every few days for months?

Here's something new to check periodically: Baseball Musings has a daily chart showing the probability Chipper Jones will hit .400.

Oh, and here's some fun with misheard lyrics.

Drink up.

So the Brewers win, the Cardinals lose, the Cubs lose, and they appear to be signing Jim Edmonds. That's win-win-win-win if I ever saw it.

Win Expectancy Graph
BR Box Score
BDD Recaps

The circle of life continues: Chris Capuano will have Tommy John surgery as soon as Thursday, giving up the effort to come back without it. Also on Thursday, 2006 first round pick Jeremy Jeffress will return from his 50-game drug suspension and report to Brevard County.

Beyond that, it's kind of a slow day for Brewer news. Baseball Analysts, though, did take a look at players looking to avoid a sophomore slump, including one guy you may have heard of who's hit 6 extra base hits in 3 days.

On injuries:

Milton Bradley was held out of last night's Rangers game with a sore shoulder.
J.D. Drew injured his wrist making a sliding catch and is day-to-day.
A's 2B Mark Ellis missed last night's game with a hamstring injury, and will miss a few more.
O's C Ramon Hernandez missed last night's game with a sprained left wrist.
Reds SS Jeff Keppinger fouled a ball off his knee last night and has a fractured kneecap.
O's 3B Melvin Mora was hit by a ball in warmups yesterday and missed last night's game.

If you haven't been paying attention, Lance Berkman is pretty hot right now. He's hitting .605 in his last 11 games, and has scored a run in 15 straight games, leaving him 2 games shy of tying the NL record Rickie Weeks tied earlier this season.

Berkman also won this week's BaseballHappenings blogpoll for NL MVP. Brandon Webb ran away from the field in the Cy Young voting, and Geovany Soto dominated the Rookie voting. Here's the ballot I cast:

MVP:
1. Lance Berkman
2. Chase Utley
3. Chipper Jones

Cy Young:
1. Brandon Webb
2. Edinson Volquez
3. Carlos Zambrano

Rookie of the Year:
1. Geovany Soto
2. Jair Jurrjens
3. Kosuke Fukudome

Click the link above for the full results.

A rare former Brewer trifecta happened yesterday: The Mets designated Nelson Figueroa for assignment, called up Claudio Vargas and activated Matt Wise from the DL in the same day.

Oh, and here's a story about Tigers P Nate Robertson's unrequited love for bats.

Drink up.