Some things to read while making the face.
For what seems like the tenth or twelfth time this season, today could be the final day as a Brewer for Jeff Suppan. Kameron Loe was called up from Nashville following the game yesterday (FanShot), and the Brewers will need to free up a spot on both the 25 and 40 man rosters to make room for him. Brewers Daily is calling for Suppan's head, while The Bucky Channel wonders if he can cheat death again.
Meanwhile, Disciples of Uecker has a look at the pros and the cons of bringing up Loe.
Elsewhere in roster moves, Jim Edmonds has been activated from the DL, and Adam Stern is getting on an airplane back to Nashville for the third time this season. It'll be interesting to see how Edmonds is used: Odds are he won't be taking much playing time from Corey Hart, who has ten home runs in his last 16 games, so any time he gets might come at the expense of Carlos Gomez, who is hitting .227/.244/.364 since coming off the DL.
It appears the Brewers have been playing without a backup in the infield for several days now. Adam McCalvy reports that Craig Counsell has been limited to pinch hitting duties for several days with a sore quad, and Joe Inglett still can hit but can't run with a sprained ankle (FanPost). Also, Todd Coffey was unavailable yesterday with a sore thumb. He injured it while hitting on Sunday.
Other notes from the field:
- The Brewers have now been outscored 36-17 in the sixth inning this season.
- The four Marlin runs in the seventh inning would not have scored if Dan Uggla had been correctly called out on a play at the plate with two outs. Uggla never touched home plate.
- Cody Ross, Chris Coghlan and Cameron Maybin are leading FanGraphs' Star of the Game vote.
- CoolStandings has the Brewers' playoff chances at a season-low 1.5%.
- It was a close-friends-and-family type day at Sun Life Stadium, where the Marlins drew a season-low 10,115 fans.
Baseball Brew lists former first base coach Dave Collins as the lone former Brewer working for the Marlins. Apparently Wes Helms and Mike Lamb don't count.
If you'd like to know why the Brewer bullpen has been struggling lately, here you go: The Brewers are tied for second in all of baseball with 3.17 relievers used per game. The median teams (the Cardinals and Diamondbacks) are using 2.81.
Meanwhile, the starting pitching carousel continues to spin: Chris Capuano will start on Thursday, sending Manny Parra back to the bullpen. Parra only lasted seven innings over a combined two starts (with two relief appearances in the middle), but I'm not sure how many innings the Brewers could have reasonably expected from the first couple of outings of a guy who wasn't stretched out.
Zach Braddock had a rough outing over the weekend, but is still a great story. Tom Haudricourt has a look at Braddock's long and winding road to the majors, which included Tommy John surgery in high school and a battle with mental issues.
In the minors:
- 2006 second round pick Brent Brewer has decided to quit baseball. Brewer is 22 years old and was in his fifth season in the organization. He hit .240/.305/.345 between four levels, reaching AA for the first time this season.
- The Brewers activated Josh Butler off the DL and optioned him to Huntsville yesterday. Butler takes the roster spot vacated by Amaury Rivas, who was placed on the DL with "tenderness" near his elbow (FanShot).
- Brewerfan.net has updated their Power 50, with Jonathan Lucroy, Brett Lawrie and Zach Braddock hanging on to the #1, 2 and 3 spots.
- On the field, Taylor Green went 3-for-3 with a home run and drove in six runs for Huntsville last night, but also committed two errors. We've got that and more in today's Minor League Notes.
- Meanwhile, I continued day one of Draft Week with the second installment of Where Are They Now?, looking back at the 2009 draft class. You can also follow this link for the same feature on the 2008 draftees.
On the draft:
- MLB FanHouse's third mock draft has the Brewers selecting Ohio St RHP Alex Wimmers.
- Minor League Baseball Prospects has their list of the top 300 draft prospects.
- Baseball America has a look at the top seven Wisconsin prospects available (subscriber only).
On power rankings:
- Craig Calcaterra has the Brewers at 23.
- ESPN has the Brewers at 24 (27 last week).
If you haven't yet, please take a moment this morning to vote in this week's BCB Tracking Poll. You have until tomorrow at noon to do so.
Around baseball:
Cubs: Placed reliever John Grabow on the DL with a knee injury.
Giants: Placed third baseman Ryan Rohlinger on the DL with a hamstring strain.
Mariners: Designated pitchers Kanekoa Texieira and Jesus Colome for assignment.
Phillies: Designated pitcher Nelson Figueroa for assignment.
Pirates: Acquired outfielder Jonathan Van Every from the Red Sox for a minor leaguer.
Rangers: Placed starter Derek Holland on the DL with rotator cuff inflammation.
Twins: Placed infielder Alexi Casilla on the DL with bone spurs in his right elbow.
Another day, another series of umpire embarrassments:
- Roy Oswalt, who hadn't been ejected from a game since 2004, was ejected by umpire Bill Hohn yesterday. Follow that link for video of the incident and to read Oswalt's comments: Oswalt left the mound after a pitch and yelled something to his left, away from the umpire. Hohn came out from behind the plate, and the video clearly shows Oswalt say, "I'm not talking to you." Seconds later, he was tossed.
- I haven't seen video of this one, but Jason Beck has the details of an extended confrontation between the Tigers and home plate umpire Laz Diaz, who twice followed a Tiger back to the dugout to continue an argument yesterday.
Any turf nerds out there? If so, you might be interested in reading about the new Astroturf, which is being used in Toronto and apparently considered in Tampa.
I struck out on birthdays this morning, but thanks to FtJ for passing along these two:
- 1977 Brewer Ken McMullen turns 68.
- 1976-77 Brewer coach Hal Smith turns 79.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get started.
Drink up.