What we learned: April 30, 2014

Yesterday's Results

Brewers 5, Cardinals 4

With Ryan Braun, Aramis Ramirez, and Jean Segura all recovering from injuries, and Jonathan Lucroy needing a day off, it was the B-lineup in for the Brewers yesterday. Not many expected the Brewers to win, yet they somehow pulled it off.  Kyle Lohse gave up a three-run home run in the first inning, then settled down and kept the Cardinals off the board for the rest of his start.  He also chipped in with a two-run single in the three-run fourth inning.  The game went to extra innings for the second straight night, and Lyle Overbay put the Brewers ahead with an RBI single..  Francisco Rodrgiuez closed the game for his 13th save and the Brewers 20th win.

We found out who the Brewers superhero equivalents would be.

Monday was National Superhero Day.  It's probably one of those holidays made up to sell greeting cards (though I don't know of any greeting cards for this holiday), but it did get Noah thinking about something.  What superheroes would the members of the Brewers relate to?  Yesterday he dug into this idea and came up with comparisons for some of the players.  There's not much to think about here, but it's one of those things that can be fun to wonder about.

The community may feel differently about the state of the Brewers broadcasters.

On Monday rankings came out from Awful Announcing that rated the different TV broadcasts for the different teams, and the Brewers team came in at eighth.  It's a nice ranking, but despite that, there are some problems that many people see.  How would the Brewers fans rate the broadcast?  That's the question that Nicole asked yesterday, looking for ratings on each individual broadcaster.  It's true that some are better than others, so what will the people say in this poll?

Cram Session

Injury Updates

• Adam McCalvy has some injury updates on the Brewers. Jean Segura and Aramis Ramirez are a day or so away from returning, and Ryan Braun shouldn't be far behind.
• With the recent injuries, roster depth has been more important than ever. Curt Hogg of Disciples of Uecker looks at the current roster situation for the Brewers.

Success of the Brewers

• Jon Morosi of FOX Sports says that the Brewers are for real, and that their pitching makes them legitimate contenders.
• Over on FanGraphs, Dave Cameron writes about how good the Brewers bullpen has been and how hard the upcoming regression will hit.
• Steve Engbloom of Call to the Pen notes that the early success of the Brewers has leaned on the success of the starting rotation.

Other Notes

• In a story that will probably start some deep discussion today, Ron Roenicke says that he wants the Brewers to get better at bunting.
• A story that has spread a little over the last few days is the story of Carlos Gomez making a fan cry. Adam McCalvy of Brewers.com has more details on the full story behind the scene.
• Over on Ron Roenicke Stole My Baseball, Badgernoonan believes that Monday night's win was a joke.  No word on his thoughts for what happened on Tuesday yet.
• In 2014, the Cardinals have hit six Brewers with pitches, including three in Monday's game.  Plunk Everyone has some details on that feat.
• Over on Reviewing the Brew, Steven Jewell notes that the Brewers had an excess reliever problem and wonders who could be expendable.
• Brian Anderson has been away for a few weeks now, and Matt Lepay has been filling in well.  Enrique Bakemeyer of The Brewers Bar notes that he hasn't missed Brian Anderson while he's been gone.
• At Sunday's game, the Brewers ended up running out of the Carlos Gomez bobblehead and had to issue rainchecks.  Nick Michalski of The Brewers Bar wonders why the Brewers weren't prepared for this.
• Lyle Overbay has been one of the more pleasant surprises this season for the Brewers.  Ben Tannenbaum of The Brewers Bar looks at how his game has improved since he returned from paternity leave.
• Jaymes Langehr of Disciples of Uecker has a review of OOTP 15.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• Tyrone Taylor hit for the cycle on Tuesday in Brevard County's 20-0 win. Adam McCalvy has details on the feat.
• The UCL tear for Johnny Hellweg was confirmed by Dr. James Andrews, and Adam McCalvy reports that Johnny Hellweg was scheduled to have Tommy John surgery yesterday.
• Jim Callis looks at the upcoming draft, and notes that there is a lot of pitching talent available.

Check out morineko's daily minor league update for a more in-depth look at yesterday's minor league results.

Division Update

• Reds 3, Cubs 2: Billy Hamilton went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI on a home run. Meanwhile, Alfredo Simon held the Cubs to two runs in six innings, and the bullpen chipped in three scoreless innings.
• Pirates @ Orioles was postponed due to rain.

Today's Games

• Pirates (Charlie Morton) @ Orioles (Chris Tillman) - 6:05 pm
• Cubs (Edwin Jackson) @ Reds (Tony Cingrani) - 6:10 pm

Today's Action

The Brewers conclude their three-game series against the Cardinals with a Wednesday matinee.  Matt Garza looks to complete the sweep, and Shelby Miller hopes to salvage one game in the series.  First pitch is at 12:45 pm, and MLB.com has the preview.  Today's game will be on MLB Network for those of you outside of the Brewers & Cardinals blackout zones.

(Don't forget to make your predictions.)