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Some things to read while checking in.
The Brewers play the second of a four game set in Miami tonight and will do so with reinforcements on board: They announced the callups of pitchers Wily Peralta, Tyler Thornburg and Josh Stinson and outfielder Logan Schafer this morning. I've got more on all four players at the link. Peralta is now scheduled to start in place of Mark Rogers tomorrow.
There had been some speculation that Nashville pitchers Hiram Burgos and Mitch Stetter could also get the call, but both players tweeted about going home for the winter yesterday. Meanwhile, Doug Melvin took the opportunity to issue his usual complaints about the unfairness of changing the rules in September.
Back on the field, the Brewer winning streak was halted by one bad inning in a 7-3 loss to the Marlins yesterday afternoon. We've got the recap, if you missed it.
Mike Fiers picked a bad time to have a rough day yesterday: Tom Haudricourt notes (behind the JS paywall) that he was pitching close to home and had over 40 family members and friends in attendance.
Other notes from the field:
- The Brewers missed an opportunity yesterday to get back to two games under .500 for the first time since May 4.
- Brandon Kintzler was called up before yesterday's game and pitched a scoreless seventh in his 2012 debut.
- Yesterday's game featured an odd scoring play and some confusion about whether what would have been the Marlins' sixth run in the fourth inning should count following an out at first base. MLB.com has video of the play and an attempted explanation of the call.
- Despite having to slow down a bit at the end to avoid passing Jonathan Lucroy, Carlos Gomez rounded the bases in 16.78 seconds following his home run yesterday.
- We've got a look at the game's turning points.
The series continues in Miami at 6:10 tonight, and Clark Goble has the MLB.com preview. Noted leisured gentleman Carson Cistulli of FanGraphs gave tonight's Shaun Marcum/Wade LeBlanc matchup a three out of ten on his NERD scale.
The Marlins had been scheduled to pitch rookie Jacob Turner tonight, but have pushed him back to Friday and are moving to a six man rotation in an effort to keep his inning count down.
Elsewhere in inning counts, the Brewers have shut Mark Rogers down for the season. Rogers made 25 appearances between AAA and the big leagues this season after missing most of 2011.
The Brewers had closed the gap from 12.5 to 6.5 games in the chase for the NL's final Wild Card spot, but some of the excitement about that might have been dampened by yesterday's loss. Nick Prill of The Brewers Bar says the 2012 Brewers are not the 2011 Cardinals.
Carlos Gomez had four hits this holiday weekend and all four went for extra bases, including home runs on Sunday and Monday. Gomez now has 16 home runs this season despite never having hit more than eight before 2012. J.P. Breen of Disciples of Uecker wonders if Gomez has finally turned the corner.
Gomez was one of five Brewers to homer on Sunday. Here are their distances and trot times:
| Hitter | Distance | Trot Time |
| Rickie Weeks | 431 feet | 24.84 seconds |
| Yovani Gallardo | 377 feet | 23.36 seconds |
| Ryan Braun | 421 feet | 23.34 seconds |
| Carlos Gomez | 382 feet | 19.37 seconds |
| Jeff Bianchi | 416 feet | 18.99 seconds |
Elsewhere in weekend home runs, Corey Hart hit a walkoff shot on Saturday and Jaymes Langrehr of Disciples of Uecker captured this gif of the aftermath:
Hopefully Yovani Gallardo was protecting his arm during this little incident. Robert J. Baumann of NotGraphs' "Leaderboards of Labor" showed that Gallardo is among the league leaders in pitches thrown, sliders thrown and pitches per plate appearance this season.
Looking back a little further, Lew Freedman of Call to the Pen notes the somewhat unlikely nature of Jonathan Lucroy's seven RBI game on Thursday. Chris Jaffe of The Hardball Times says the Brewers' 12-11 loss to the Cubs was August's fourth most exciting game.
Jeff Bianchi's recent performance had likely pushed Cody Ransom to third on the depth chart at shortstop, but that's not a problem the Brewers will have to worry about anymore: The Diamondbacks claimed Ransom off waivers on Friday and Eric Farris has been recalled to take his roster spot.
Aramis Ramirez had a solid holiday weekend, going 6-for-16 and driving in seven runs. He's our reigning Brewer of the Week and probably has a chance to repeat.
The Brewers got some good injury news this weekend, as Mat Gamel has started hitting off a tee and Chris Narveson played catch on Sunday for the fourth time following shoulder surgery. Both players should be ready to go next spring.
With the Brewers adding four more pitchers to the roster in the last two days it's possible Jim Henderson will have some time to kill in September. He's now on Twitter.
In the minors:
- Congratulations are due out this morning to Huntsville first baseman Hunter Morris, the 2012 Southern League MVP. Morris led the Southern League with 28 homers and 113 RBI while hitting .303 and is the first Brewer prospect to win the award since Corey Hart in 2003.
- @Mass_Haas notes that the Red Sox drafted Morris in the second round in 2007 but failed to sign him.
- The affiliates went 2-2 yesterday and Nashville (2-1 loss) and Huntsville (rainout) closed out their seasons with a whimper. You can read about that and more in today's Minor League Notes.
- While regular seasons have wrapped up for all the Brewer affiliates except Helena, the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers will open postseason play in Burlington, Iowa on Wednesday. Kevin Kimmes of Cream City Cables has an interview with manager Matt Erickson on his first playoff appearance.
- Nashville broadcaster Jeff Hem has one last interview with Sounds manager Mike Guerrero.
- John Sickels of Minor League Ball reviewed the tenth and eleventh rounds of the 2012 draft, saying left-handed pitcher Anthony Banda "has a very good curve, average heat, control problems so far" and former Navy righthander Preston Gainey's numbers "won't get it done."
We talk a lot about John Sickels of Minor League Ball's work in this space, and deservedly so. Over the weekend he announced he's now accepting orders for his 2013 prospect book, and I've already got mine reserved.
Looking back to Friday, by now you've probably seen many of the quotes and pictures from the ceremony to unveil Bob Uecker's statue outside Miller Park. Big League Stew says the eight foot bronze sculpture is "understated."
If you'd like more Brewer coverage today but you're sick of reading, I'll be making my usual Tuesday rounds:
- I'll be appearing on The Watercooler with Jimmie Kaska on Sports Radio 1400 in Eau Claire at 5:15.
- From there I'll jump directly over to The Sports Den with Downtown Ollie Burrows on SportsFan 100.5 in Wausau at 5:30.
Around baseball:
Astros: Claimed third baseman Brandon Laird off waivers from the Yankees.
Braves: Acquired infielder Jeff Baker from the Tigers for a PTBNL and released infielder Jack Wilson.
Cardinals: Placed shortstop Rafael Furcal on the DL with an elbow injury.
Giants: Designated pitcher Hector Correa for assignment.
Orioles: Designated pitcher Jason Berken for assignment.
Pirates: Designated outfielder Oscar Tejeda for assignment.
Rangers: Designated pitcher Miguel De Los Santos for assignment.
Rays: Designated pitcher Albert Suarez for assignment and acquired outfielder Ben Francisco from the Astros for future considerations.
Yankees: Designated infielder Ramiro Pena for assignment and released outfielder Kosuke Fukudome.
Today in former Brewers: Jack Moore of Disciples of Uecker notes that Carlos Villanueva is having a big season as an unlikely starter in Toronto.
This morning's edition of Today In Brewer History marks the 20th anniversary of Dan Plesac's 133rd and final Brewer save in 1992. Chris Jaffe of the Hardball Times notes that it's been 1000 days since the Brewers signed LaTroy Hawkins as a free agent and 17 and 41 years since the MLB debuts of Mark Loretta and Ben Oglivie, respectively. Today is also 2000-02 Brewer Luis Lopez's 42nd birthday, and Plunk Everyone notes that his 26 career HBP are the fourth most ever for a player born on September 4.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have more work to do.
Drink up.