What we learned: February 23, 2015

Brewers News and Analysis

From Brew Crew Ball

• On Friday, MLB introduced some new rules to help speed up the pace of games. Noah looks at these new rules and gives his opinion on why they won't help the pace of a game very much.
• Jordan continued his series of BCB Community Over/Unders with a look at Scooter Gennett.
• Derek kicked off the yearly BCB Community Prospect Rankings this morning with the vote for #1. Make sure to stop in the thread and cast your vote for the top prospect.
• Yoan Moncada officially signed with the Red Sox this morning, meaning that the Brewers did not get the prized Cuban prospect.
• As part of the Brewers pursuit of more starting pitcher depth, Michael Blazek will stretch out as a starter during Spring Training.
• If you missed the sound of a bat hitting a ball, then Noah has the Twitter post for you. Listen in as Martin Maldonado hits a ball during batting practice.

Early Camp News from Brewers.com

• As camp began on Friday, Adam McCalvy put together a list of some of the big stories around the Brewers as camp begins.
• Jonathan Broxton is the assumed closer for the Brewers for now, but the team isn't willing to make it official yet. They plan to evaluate all of their options before making a decision later in the spring.
• Everything will be as normal for Ryan Braun as camp begins. He is not expected to have any restrictions beyond minimizing extra hitting.
• Another player that won't be under restrictions is Tyler Thornburg. After a platlet-rich injection and some rest, he is healthy and ready to go at full strength as camp begins.
• While Taylor Jungmann may be #6 on the starting pitcher depth chart for now, he doesn't plan to take it for granted since he hasn't proven anything yet.
• Pitching prospect Johnny Hellweg is still several weeks away from finishing his recovery from Tommy John surgery. However, he is feeling encouraged by the progress he has seen so far and believes he will make a full recovery.
• Dontrelle Willis has provided a burst of positive energy early in Brewers camp. Willis is trying to make a comeback to the majors after three years of time away from a Major League field.
• There's been a lot of criticism about Doug Melvin's decision to limit the number of moves he made this offseason. However, Melvin strongly defended his offseason plan, noting that the team did more than people realize.
• The new pace of game rules from MLB have resulted in a mix of feeling from players around the league. Many of the Brewers players gave their opinions on the new rules that MLB put in place.
• Brewers.com has a list of notes from Sunday's first official workout, which includes Jonathan Lucroy missing a few days with the flu and Matt Garza's presents to the starting rotation.

Other Notes

• On his Brew Beat blog, Adam McCalvy notes that Jonathan Lucroy is progressing well from his hamstring injury and may get more work than expected this spring.
• The shuffling of rumors between Jonathan Papelbon and Francisco Rodriguez continues. Charlie Wilmoth of MLB Trade Rumors notes that Mark Attanasio has been speaking with Scott Boras about signing Rodriguez to a fourth contract with the Brewers.
• What would happen if Kyle Lohse threw more changeups? That's the question that Justin Schultz of The First Out At Third analyzes over on his blog.
• Over on JSOnline, Tom Haudricourt has his own list of questions facing the Brewers as camp begins.
• Kyle Lesniewski of Reviewing the Brew looks through all of the changes that the Brewers made this offseason and grades what the Brewers have done so far. He also has a profile of infielder Donnie Murphy, who the Brewers signed to a minor-league deal.
• Meanwhile, also on Reviewing the Brew, Pete Schwichtenberg thinks that the Brewers should consider signing reliever Brian Wilson.
• In his first few weeks on the job, Rob Manfred has made some moves and comments that have generated a lot of debate. Enrique Bakemeyer of The Brewers Bar looks at the new rules Manfred has put in places, and notes that what Manfred has said so far does not inspire much confidence.
• The Brewer Nation recently interviewed 2013 top draft pick Devin Williams, and posted a transcript of the interview on their blog.
• Brad Krause of Miller Park Prospects has a profile of minor-league pitcher Jorge Lopez.
• Cait Covers the Bases has the first look at the bobblehead of Rob Deer that will be given out on April 12.

NL Central Update

• David Schoenfield of ESPN SweetSpot looks at the lists of non-roster invitees for all five teams in the NL Central.
• Marcus Young of Miller Park Prospects put together a list of the top ten prospects from the Chicago Cubs minor-league system.

Around Baseball

Transactions

• The Blue Jays signed outfielder Chris Dickerson to a minor-league deal with an invite to Spring Training.
• Starting pitcher Mike Minor won his arbitration case against the Braves and will make $5.6 million in 2015. The Braves were seeking a salary of $5.1 million.
• The Dodgers signed RHP Brandon Beachy to a one-year deal with $2.75 million guaranteed. The contract includes an option for next year worth between $3 million and $6 million.
• The Mariners defeated reliever Tom Wilhelmsen in their arbitration case against him. He will make $1.4 million in 2015 compared to the $2.2 million he was seeking. The Mariners also signed LHP Joe Saunders to a minor-league deal with an invite to Spring Training.
• The Orioles won their arbitration case against outfielder Alejandro De Aza. He will make $5 million in 2015 compared to the $5.6 million he was seeking.
• The Red Sox extended the contract of manager John Ferrell through 2017 with an option for 2018.

Other Notes

• Charlie Wilmoth of MLB Trade Rumors wraps up the arbitration cases from this year, with players winning six of the fourteen cases.
• Jeff Todd of MLB Trade Rumors has a quick look at trade possibilities for Jonathan Papelbon. One important thing to note here is that Papelbon has not been directly approached about a trade possibility yet, and a team may not be required to pick up the option.
• Carson Cistulli of FanGraphs notes that the Rockies have changed their broadcast camera angle, moving to the center angle that more teams have been moving to in recent years.
• Jim Caple of ESPN SweetSpot put together a countdown of the top ten baseball scenes in non-baseball movies.
• The Simpsons episode of "Homer at the Bat" turned 23 years old on Friday. In honor of that episode, Ian Denomme of Big League Stew updated the team to what it would look like it players from today were chosen.