<link>https://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/blog/34-smash/</link><description><![CDATA[<p style="text-align:center;"> <span style="font-size:18px;"><u><em><strong>Jacob Barnes' LinkedIn Profile:</strong></em></u></span>   </p> <p> Remember former Brewer Jacob Barnes?<span>  </span>No, not Oliver Drake, that was the other guy.<span>  </span>Jacob Barnes was a very average relief pitcher when he was a Brewer.<span>  </span>He was selected by Milwaukee in the fourteenth round of the 2011 draft, came up to the big leagues in 2016, and was waived by Milwaukee during the 2019 season.<span>    </span> </p> <p> During his time with the Brewers, Barnes had a 3.93 ERA and a 1.359 WHIP.<span>  </span><span> </span>In the days before pitch clocks, Jacob Barnes took his time on the mound, often turning an inning into a saga that included many deep counts and lots of runners on base.<span>  </span>When Barnes was entering games, fans often thought, “Jacob Barnes, why didn’t they bring in that other guy?” and then fell asleep before his inning of pitching was completed.<span>  </span>In his 167 innings pitching for the Brewers, Jacob Barnes amassed a .5 total WAR.<span>  </span> </p> <p> And although Jacob Barnes was extremely average as a Brewer, what is truly remarkable is what Barnes has done since leaving the organization in 2019. He has been consistently very bad.<span>  </span>But he continues to pitch major league innings each year. Barnes has pitched for eleven different major league organizations and never had an ERA below 5.50 for any team! His WAR since leaving the Brewers is a terrible -1.3 in just ninety-four innings.<span>  </span> </p> <p> How does Jacob Barnes keep getting a job as a major league pitcher?<span>  </span>He is cheap and available.<span>  </span>He most often signs a minor league contracts with a major league option that pays the league minimum. <span> </span>From there he works release options till finally being picked up by one of the teams with the worse pitching in baseball.<span>  </span>That team can shuttle Barnes back and forth to the minors and not worry about using up a prospect’s options or starting their major league clock.<span>  </span>Bad teams appreciate this value he brings to their organization. Last year he found innings with the St. Louis Cardinals.<span>  </span>Their pitching was terrible. Barnes fit right in.<span>  </span><span>  </span> </p> <p> Barnes has made a career out of being a bad pitcher that can cheaply take the ball to fill meaningless innings.<span>  </span>Jacob Barnes is one step above having Rowdy Tellez pitch.<span>  </span>Barnes will likely latch onto some other team with terrible pitching this off season and throw around thirty innings in the majors in 2024.<span>  </span>You will know the Brewers aren’t expecting to compete, if they resign Jacob Barnes.<span>  </span> </p> <p> <span style="font-size:11pt;">Jacob Barnes deserves a lot of credit for finding a way to stay in the game.<span>  </span>Over his career he has earned approximately $3 million dollars for being just bad enough to only earn the minimum salary.<span>  </span></span> </p> ]]></description><language>en</language><item><title>The Incredible Shrinking Tyler Blackhttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/109-the-incredible-shrinking-tyler-black/In 2021 the Brewers drafted Tyler Black.  An infielder from  Toronto Canada who had just completed his Junior season at Wright State University.  To be very specific the Brewers drafted Tyler Black: the 6.2” infielder from Wright State university.   Also reporting that Tyler Black was 6...109Fri, 12 Jan 2024 15:41:27 +0000Bullpen Decisionshttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/108-bullpen-decisions/The Brewers were very adept at developing a productive bullpen again in 2023.  How do they do this?  Perhaps the most important element to a Brewers bullpen is a recognition that only a few players will be good bullpen pitchers for more than a couple years in a row.  The Brewers plan accordingly:...108Tue, 09 Jan 2024 23:25:43 +0000The Value of Adrian Houserhttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/107-the-value-of-adrian-houser/There are reasons Adrian Houser has been a fan favorite.  Anyone that can puke on the back of the mound and then turn around and continue pitching has to be appreciated.  This is the definition of a gamer.  Houser is also the last remaining Brewer from the 2015 fleecing of the Houston Astros in the...107Tue, 02 Jan 2024 15:56:13 +0000Your Tokyo Dodgers Ladies and Gentlemenhttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/106-your-tokyo-dodgers-ladies-and-gentlemen/While the Yankees and Braves may argue over who is “America’s team,” and the Brewers and Cubs may argue about who is Kenosha’s team, the Dodgers are doing baseball at a totally different level.  With the signing of Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani the Dodgers have set themselves up as Jap...106Fri, 22 Dec 2023 16:10:54 +0000The Qualifying Offer System and a Willy Adames Tradehttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/103-the-qualifying-offer-system-and-a-willy-adames-trade/Any decision on whether to trade Willie Adames will be influenced by how the Brewers feel about extending a qualifying offer (QO) to him after the 2024 season.  Players with six years of service time may opt to enter free agency.  The team can attempt to retain the player for one year by exten...103Wed, 13 Dec 2023 15:03:03 +0000Setting Some Expectations Around The Chourio Contracthttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/101-setting-some-expectations-around-the-chourio-contract/The Brewers and Jackson Chourio have agreed to an eight-year contract extension with a reported value of $82 million. It also includes a team option of extending the contract for $25M a year for two more years.  There are $10M of incentives available to Chourio.  Is this a good deal for the B...101Mon, 04 Dec 2023 23:15:29 +0000Bally Bankruptcy Short and Long Term Impacthttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/100-bally-bankruptcy-short-and-long-term-impact/Bally Sports is going through bankruptcy.  This is causing consternation among many major league teams including the Brewers.  There are fourteen teams that generate revenue by selling telecasting rights to the local Bally affiliate.  In a number of markets Bally has already delayed or flat out ref...100Wed, 29 Nov 2023 18:55:05 +0000When Do The Brewers Trade a Catcher?https://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/99-when-do-the-brewers-trade-a-catcher/Any discussion of the Brewers trading a catcher begins with looking at the progress made by William Contreras.  During the off season prior to the 2023 season, the Brewers were part of the three-team trade that brought Contreras to the Brewers from the Atlanta Braves.  At the time Contreras was see...99Mon, 27 Nov 2023 16:24:04 +0000Freshmen -- The Sequelhttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/97-freshmen-the-sequel/The Brewers spent a lot of time and energy promoting “The Freshmen” during the 2023 season.  They invited fans into a reality show about the future of the team.  Unfortunately, the reality was that this group of players weren’t as good as many fans hoped once they got to The Show. Mitchell has...97Fri, 17 Nov 2023 16:33:34 +0000Overcrowding in the Outfield?https://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/95-overcrowding-in-the-outfield/As we look towards 2024, one position of strength on the Brewers seems to be outfield.  The Brewers have five outfielders coming back that played in at least fifty games during 2023: Joey Wiemer (132 games), Christian Yelich (122)  Tyrone Taylor (75) Blake Perkins (61) and Sal Frelick (55).  If you...95Mon, 13 Nov 2023 17:40:56 +0000Craig Counsell to the Cubs: It was in his naturehttps://brewerfanatic.com/blogs/entry/94-craig-counsell-to-the-cubs-it-was-in-his-nature/There is the parable of the scorpion and the frog.  The scorpion asks the frog to carry him across the river and then halfway across the river, the scorpion stings the frog.  The frog asks, “Why? We are both going to die.” The scorpion replies that he couldn’t help himself, “It is in my nature. It...94Thu, 09 Nov 2023 15:01:48 +0000