Some things to read while building a pizza oven.
What's next for Manny Parra, who was awful last night and has lost three straight starts in ugly fashion? As of this writing, 78% of voters at the JS think Parra should be removed from the rotation. Quevedo at the Buffet has gone ahead and gotten Manny the extended weather forecast for Nashville and a Grand Ole Opry schedule.
If Parra is bumped from the rotation, Mike Burns (who threw four scoreless innings last night) and Seth McClung will likely be considered to fill in. Mark DiFelice might have been an option, but he'll be leaving the team this weekend to attend his grandmother's funeral.
One of the eleven hits given up by Parra last night was Dan Uggla's 100th home run, making him the quickest second baseman to 100 HR in major league history. Uggla, though, didn't want to make a big deal out of it.
How many Brewers belong on the All Star team? Dave Cameron of FanGraphs filled out an NL roster, and has two Brewers on his team: Ryan Braun and Mike Cameron. I'd be pretty surprised if Trevor Hoffman doesn't make the squad, and one could certainly make a case for Yovani Gallardo, too.
First, they need to get out of Florida, but this is nice too: Teams in first place on June 1 make the playoffs two thirds of the time. Of course, the 2007 Brewers were in first place on June 1, too.
I'm awash in minor league notes today:
- Jeremy Jeffress, the Brewers' top pitching prospect, responded well to a demotion to Brevard County, allowing just two hits and no runs in seven innings last night.
- Baseball America has a list of minor leaguers who attempt a disproportionately high number of stolen bases, and Alcides Escobar (21-for-27) shows up on it. We don't frequently mention speed as part of his game, but if Alcides could develop into a 30-40 SB guy in the majors, it would add a fair amount to his value.
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Chris Cody was called up to Nashville to fill Mike Burns' roster spot; At The Old Ball Game has frame-by-frame pictures of his delivery. (Now there's also video.)
- Rattler Radio has a preview of tomorrow's Timber Rattlers promotion: the "Salute to Cows." If you're headed to the park tomorrow for this one, you might see me there.
- Nashville plays Iowa at noon today, and you can listen live here. Chase Wright is starting for the Sounds.
The Brewers continue to prepare for the draft next week, their first draft without Jack Zduriencik. The Capital Times talked with Doug Melvin about the draft and his apparent dislike for the system. Baseball Reference has their draft preview up.
Meanwhile, Prince Fielder is on the cover of 2K Sports' The Bigs 2, and sat down for an interview to mumble something indecipherable about it.
Around the league:
Nationals: Catcher Jesus Flores has a stress fracture in his shoulder and may miss the rest of the season.
Rangers: Placed Josh Hamilton on the DL with a groin strain that may require surgery.
Reds: Placed Edinson Volquez on the DL with elbow tendinitis.
Milton Bradley may be headed back to the DL as well. Bradley left last night's game with a leg injury.
Yesterday I mentioned the possibility that the Nationals were getting ready to make a coaching change. They made one, but not the one I expected, firing pitching coach Randy St. Claire. Acting GM Mike Rizzo said the move was made due to a difference in philosophy, but Craig Calcaterra of The Hardball Times says St. Claire's laid back nature probably made it easier to fire him.
If Randy Johnson wins his 300th game but no one comes to see it, does it make a sound? Johnson will get his first shot at 300 wins in Washington, and Umpbump wants to know how many fans will show up.
It's still early, but the NL Central is significantly better than a lot of experts predicted. Dayn Perry, though, still ranks it third behind the AL East and Central.
Are you a roster rule junkie? If you are, you should check out this edition of Quid Pro Quo over at Inside the Majors. It's written by Bart Given, former assistant GM of the Blue Jays.
Finally, here are a bunch of obscure former Brewer notes:
- Elvis Andrus was hit by a pitch yesterday, making him just the second player named Elvis to get hit. Until yesterday, former Brewer Elvis Pena was the only one.
- It looks like Kevin Mench's adventures in Japan are drawing to a close. I doubt he'll be invited back.
- Teddy Higuera surprised me by making this list of players who have thrown nine innings with three hits or less in three consecutive starts, joining Roger Clemens, Bib Gibson, Sandy Koufax and John Tsitouris.
Oh, and happy birthday to Robert Machado, who caught 51 games for the 2002 Brewers and turns 36 today.
Drink up.