Friday's Frosty Mug

Some things to read while labeling things for your zombie friends.

So, even following last night's loss, PECOTA is projecting the Brewers to win 86.6 games and gives them a roughly 30% chance of making the playoffs. I'll take that at this point.

Micah Owings was pretty good last night as both a pitcher and a hitter. Before the game, Baseball Musings wondered when one makes the decision to move him off the mound full time. Right now, I think I'd keep him on the mound.

Meanwhile, Reds SS Paul Janish probably won't return to the mound anytime soon: Janish was complaining of soreness after throwing 35 pitches Wednesday night, but was forced to play last night anyway after Brandon Phillips was scratched with the flu.

Now that several position players have pitched in a game this season, TheJay has updated Recondite Baseball's list of the last position player to pitch for each team. The Brewers last had one in 2004, when Trent Durrington made a mound appearance.

Chris Duffy might have gotten a bruise or two in the late innings of Wednesday night's game, but he doesn't care. The Official Site talked with Duffy about his highlight reel catch and prioritizing defense.

Speaking of outfielders who can play some defense, Mike Cameron checked in at #28 on Circling the Bases' list of potential 2010 free agents.

Around the league:

Cardinals: Placed Rick Ankiel on the DL.
Dodgers: Manny Ramirez has been suspended for 50 games for a violation of the league's drug policy.
Indians: Released reliever Juan Salas and designated Vinnie Chulk for assignment.
Marlins: Are expected to place Anibal Sanchez on the DL today with shoulder discomfort.
Mets: Angel Pagan, who was in Florida for a rehab assignment, was arrested yesterday for driving with a suspended license and several unpaid fines for traffic violations.
Nationals: Designated reliever Mike Hinckley for assignment.
Orioles: Utilityman Ryan Freel was scratched from a rehab appearance yesterday, and could be activated or designated for assignment today.

Odds are you've heard about Manny Ramirez's suspension. I probably skipped over 50 or more posts and columns about it this morning, and I'm not about to write another one. There is one thing I'd like to mention, though: Now that I know that a player like Ramirez can get caught and baseball won't sweep it under the rug, I have significantly more faith in the current testing program.

Also, a note on Angel Pagan: I know pursuing warrants for minor violations isn't a top priority for law enforcement, but how did it take years to arrest Pagan for outstanding warrants dating back to 2005? Anyone who took five minutes to look at his team's schedule could tell you where he'll be every day.

I picked Cecil Cooper, so I would have lost my money: D-Backs manager Bob Melvin was the first manager fired in 2009 yesterday, and he took hitting coach Rich Schu and pitching coach Bryan Price with him. Babes Love Baseball thought Ken Macha would be the first manager canned. If Macha is canned now, the Brewers could hire Melvin to form a Doug Melvin-Bob Melvin braintrust that would confuse columnists and talk radio callers across the land.

The news might not be good for former Brewer farmhand and current Orioles reliever Dennis Sarfate, currently on the DL with a circulatory problem. Sarfate is expected in for more tests today, but it's possible the issue is career-threatening.

Meanwhile, Brian Shouse, who seems to show up in conversations about obscure stats and rules all the time, picked up his first Rays win last night despite not entering the game until after the Rays had the lead.

Oh, and Brett Lawrie's sister can knock you out.

Drink up.