Some things to read while catching a ferry from the ferry.
First things first: Congratulations this morning to Rubie Q, winner of our "Find A New Place For John Axford's Facial Hair" Photoshop contest. You can see Rubie's contribution to science on your right, and follow the above link to see several more qualified candidates.
Yesterday's biggest non-photoshop-related news was the Brewers placing Marco Estrada on the DL with a strained quad and recalling Mike McClendon from Nashville. At the moment it looks like the Brewers are planning to start Manny Parra in Estrada's place on Tuesday night, but Jaymes Langrehr of Disciples of Uecker notes that the team still could send McClendon down on Monday to call up another starter.
Meanwhile, the Brewers are in Phoenix today and open a three game set with the Diamondbacks tonight. AZ Snakepit has their series preview, and you should plan to check back around noon for ours.
Everybody got a day of rest yesterday, but it'd probably be good for the Brewer bullpen if Yovani Gallardo pitched deep into tonight's game and everyone got another day off today. Yesterday I posted a look at the bullpen's recent workload, including 129 pitches over the last seven days for Manny Parra and Kameron Loe. Jim Owczarski of OnMilwaukee.com talked to Parra about his recent work.
Tonight we'll probably see the Brewer debut of recent waiver claim Cody Ransom. Wendy Thurm of FanGraphs notes that when Ransom appears in his first game for the Brewers they'll be the sixth team he's played 35 or fewer games for.
As the Brewers continue to flounder below .500, the resulting frustration is becoming increasingly apparent in our BCB Tracking Poll. Doug Melvin's approval rating took a significant dive for the first time this week, and just 56% of voters still think this team can make the playoffs.
Ron Roenicke's approval rating, by the way, is back down to 52%. Miller Park Drunk looks at five of Earl Weaver's laws of managing that Roenicke breaks on a regular basis. Adam McCalvy and Jeremy Warnemuende of MLB.com say Roenicke faces a difficult test in his second season as manager.
If Ron Roenicke had been included in this post, I could have written an awesome segue here. Instead, I'll just have to tell you that Tyler Maas watched Mr. 3000 just for the purpose of comparing that fictional Brewer team to the 2012 Brewers.
If the Brewers change their mind about starting Manny Parra on Tuesday, they've got a couple of viable internal options: Michael Fiers pitched last night for Nashville and retired the last 16 batters he faced in order, and Tyler Thornburg pitched 6.1 innings and allowed two runs as part of his sixth win. Either would be on normal rest on Tuesday.
Elsewhere in the minors:
- The affiliates went 3-0 last night (their second straight perfect night) and Scooter Gennett had three hits in Huntsville's 4-3 win over Birmingham. You can read about that and big nights for Brooks Conrad, Logan Schafer and Greg Hopkins in today's Minor League Notes.
- The Brewers made a small transaction yesterday, trading catcher Paul Phillips to the Blue Jays for cash (FanShot). Phillips had caught 14 games for the Sounds.
- Nashville broadcaster Jeff Hem has an interview with Sounds reliever Donovan Hand.
After reading this, I'm both saddened and surprised @poonix wasn't involved. Four fans at Miller Park on one of this week's $1 hot dog nights set a new Miller Park record by consuming 42 of them. In other news, someone at Miller Park has nothing better to do than count and verify someone's hot dog-eating records.
Finally, congratulations are due out this morning to proachinf, yesterday's winner in our SB Nation Pick 6 contest. Here's the full leaderboard:
| Rank | Player | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | proachinf | 89.4 |
| 2 | Noah Jarosh | 75.7 |
| 3 | Megalomaniac | 73.7 |
| 4 | texwestern | 73.3 |
| 5 | Uhhhhdel | 72.1 |
| 6 | MadisonWino | 70.5 |
| 7 | kruejoe | 70.1 |
| 8 | sjlee | 67.2 |
| 9 | aaronetc | 66.7 |
| 10 | Badger Boy in Vail | 64.9 |
There's a full slate of night games tonight, so as of this writing you still have roughly 7 1/2 hours to make your picks. And while you're at it, don't forget about Prognostikeggers.
Around baseball:
Marlins: Placed outfielder Austin Kearns on the DL with a hamstring strain.
Orioles: Signed reliever J.C. Romero to a minor league deal.
Rangers: Claimed pitcher John Gaub off waivers from the Rays.
Tigers: Placed outfielder Austin Jackson on the DL with an abdominal strain.
White Sox: Placed pitcher John Danks on the DL with shoulder tightness.
Today in former Brewers:SABR has a new biography of longtime Brewer GM Harry Dalton.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go put this on my car.
Drink up.