On this day in 1972 Jose Cabrera was born in La Delgada in the Dominican Republic. He signed with the Indians in 1990 but didn't make his major league debut until joining the Astros in 1997. He had pitched parts of five major league seasons as an Astro and Brave when the Brewers acquired him in the spring 2002 trade that sent catcher Henry Blanco to Atlanta.
The 2002 Brewers were Cabrera's last major league team, and it's not hard to understand why. He made 50 appearances (including eleven starts) for a Brewer team that went 56-106 and posted a 6.79 ERA. To this date that's still the worst ERA in franchise history for a player who threw at least 100 innings:
| Pitcher | Season | IP | ERA |
| Jose Cabrera | 2002 | 103.1 | 6.79 |
| Glendon Rusch | 2003 | 123.1 | 6.42 |
| Dave Bush | 2009 | 114.1 | 6.38 |
| Manny Parra | 2009 | 140 | 6.36 |
| John Snyder | 2000 | 127 | 6.17 |
Amazingly, Cabrera was still active professionally last season. He made 30 relief appearances and posted a 1.14 ERA in 2012 for Tabasco in the Mexican League. That sounds like I made it up but I promise I didn't.
Thanks to the B-Ref Play Index for informing me that Cabrera turns 41 today. With help from Brewerfan.net, we'd also like to wish a happy birthday to:
- 2012 Helena Brewer Sean Albury, who turns 24.
- 2012 Huntsville Star Andre Lamontagne, who turns 27.
- Corey Hart, who turns 31. We covered his birthday in this space last year.
- 2002 Brewer Jim Rushford, who turns 39.
- 1990-92 Brewer Ron Robinson, who turns 51.