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Some things to read while hitting the bottle hard.
As the offseason gets underway it's the season for 2013 salary and roster projections, and MLB Trade Rumors helped us out yesterday with a look at the Brewers' arbitration-eligible players. Here are their 2013 salary predictions, assuming none of these players are non-tendered (and some likely will be):
| Player (Arb Season) | 2012 Salary | 2013 Projection |
| John Axford (1st) | $525,000 | $5.1 million |
| Carlos Gomez (4th) | $1.96 million | $3.4 million |
| Nyjer Morgan (2nd) | $2.35 million | $2.6 million |
| Jose Veras (3rd) | $2 million | $2.6 million |
| Kameron Loe (3rd) | $2.18 million | $2.6 million |
| Manny Parra (3rd) | $1.2 million | $1.6 million |
| Marco Estrada (1st) | $486,000 | $1.6 million |
| Travis Ishikawa (1st) | $525,000 | $900,000 |
| Chris Narveson (1st) | $500,000 | $800,000 |
Axford's number, obviously, is the one that jumps off the page. The fact that he could get a near-900% raise this winter will certainly draw some attention given the disappointing nature of his 2012 campaign.
Elsewhere in potential large expenditures, Buster Olney of ESPN (via Alex Poterack of Disciples of Uecker) still insists that the Brewers are a contender to sign Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton. As I mentioned last week, Las Vegas (or at least Bovada) doesn't think the Brewers are one of the ten teams most likely to land Hamilton.
Mike Fiers, meanwhile, will still make at or near the league minimum again in 2013. Baseball America has him as a starting pitcher on their 2012 All-Rookie Team, and Blake Murphy of Beyond the Box Score says his curveball has the most vertical movement of any curve in baseball.
In yesterday's least surprising news, Ryan Braun won the voting for the #1 spot in our second annual MVBrewer rankings, and you can see his profile here. The voting for the #2 spot is open for a few more hours, and as of this writing Aramis Ramirez is carrying a commanding lead.
In the minors: Johnny Hellweg pitched two scoreless innings in the AFL yesterday but it was not enough as Phoenix and Salt River played to a 3-3 eleven inning tie. You can read about that and more in today's Winter League Recap.
We know the Brewers won't be there, but we're still planning on holding a BCB meetup to watch Game One of the World Series at The Tracks Tavern and Grill in Milwaukee on October 24. Make plans to join us and RSVP today, if you haven't already.
Even if you can't be a part of our World Series Party, I hope you'll still take a moment this morning to nominate some of your favorites for the BCB Inside Joke Awards.
Around baseball:
Braves: Catcher Brian McCann could miss Opening Day 2013 after undergoing shoulder surgery.
Mets: Pitcher Justin Hampson has refused an outright assignment to the minors and is now a free agent.
Today in baseball economics:
- The Cubs are lowering ticket prices for 2013, dropping the price of some seats by as much as 10%.
- The Mets will reportedly wear at least six different uniforms next season.
This morning's edition of Today In Brewer History marks the 30th anniversary of the Brewers' win in Game 5 of the 1982 World Series to take a 3-2 lead over the Cardinals. Today is also 1986-90 Brewer Glenn Braggs' 50th birthday, and Plunk Everyone notes that his 24 career HBP are the second most ever for a player born on October 17.
It's a slow news day, so I headed over to Wikipedia this morning to see if Glenn Braggs is still coaching somewhere or otherwise involved in the game. He's not, but I did learn these things about him:
- He's married to an original member of En Vogue.
- He's a real estate agent in Los Angeles.
- He's a vegan.
I think I know more about Glenn Braggs now than I ever did when he was playing.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to take a step forward. (h/t BBTF)
Drink up.