Who do you think is our main catcher next year?

[Hate those Rodents]

Not who you want to be our catcher, but who do you think actually will be our main catcher? Do you think we ultimately resign Kendall and give him the majority of the starts next year or do you think we go with either Rivera or Salome?

[Brewer Fever]

Kendall will be back.

[hauser42]

Kendall I think will be back on a one year deal. Dont think either one of the young guys is ready for next year. Really like Rivera but not sure that he can handle every day duties.

[trwi7]

I think it will be Rivera and Corporan unless Kendall wants to come back for like $1.5 million.

[Brewer Fever]

I think it will be Rivera and Corporan unless Kendall wants to come back for like $1.5 million.

 

Don't underestimate how much the Brewers value his work with the pitching staff. And they're right, btw.

[TooLiveBrew]

I hope trwi's right, but I have a sinking feeling it'll be Kendall for another 1-yr. deal.

 

And as far as his work with the staff, you have to consider how much dead weight he is at the plate. Right now there's just no way his assumed defensive value outweighs his almost complete lack of hitting talent.

[Mr QL]

I think Kendall will be back if not then Mike Rivera.

[JJHardy7]

Don't underestimate how much the Brewers value his work with the pitching staff. And they're right, btw.

 

I hope management doesn't feel the same way. If Kendall wants to come back cheap, fine. He'll have to earn playing time. I'd rather Kendall doesn't come back for $5 million and use that money elsewhere. Rivera and Corporan have been my picks for awhile for next year and I'll stick with them. Rivera will have worked with most of the Brewers staff (I'm assuming Kendall will get more off days -- not a lot -- as the season goes on) and Corporan has worked with quite a few guys in the minors and the majors either in the regular season or spring training.

 

I think Kendall will retire at the end of the year and that will make not bringing him back much easier. Sooner or later he'll realize he can't do much with the bat and call it quits -- my guess it's this off-season.

[endaround]

He's not going to retire. He'll be looking for a job until he's 40. After all Ausmus is still out there. But no reason it should be in Milwaukee.

[DHonks]

I think Kendall should be back. It really baffles me how Counsell can slap the ball all over, but Kendall can't. I wonder if it's cause he gets such poor extension on his swing

[endaround]

Kendall has always been an extreme GB hitter. It just that as his speed left and then his little power there was nothing left

[SoCal Brew Crew Fan]

I'd put the odds on him being back...probably at a lower price. It seems our young guys could use another year. I would think that Rivera would gradually grab more playing time...maybe more of a 1/3 - 2/3 split.

[bklynbrewcrew]

Kendall will be back unless he bats below .200 and even then I would expect him back. I dont think people realize how much Melvin loves the guy. I personally think he might be the weakest everyday offensive player in baseball today and a complete albatross in our lineup but I think he will be back. I dont think we can really afford to keep him but I think it will happen.

[logan82]

I think they sill bring Kendall back for one more year. I think they will hand the job over to Salome or Lucroy in 2011. I get the feeling we will be considered contenders next year and Melvin thinks Kendall is a guy who will help a contender.

[endaround]

Keep in mind Melvin also pulled the plug on a cheap Miller for a backup whose OPS was 100 points higher than Kendall's currently is.

[fuzzmeister]

I sure hope it isn't Kendall. I don't care how good he is with the pitching staff. His lack of offense is eventually gonna hurt this team. I would like to see Rivera get a shot to be the everyday catcher with Salome backing him up.

[fallingleaves]

. I don't care how good he is with the pitching staff. His lack of offense is eventually gonna hurt this team.

 

Are you kidding? With the offense the rest of the team produces, we can dedicate our catcher toward lowering the era of our pitching staff.

[razzzorsharp]

Before we say that he helps the pitchers so much, I would like to to see some stats that say so. I am not sure there is some.

[Tbadder]

I hope they save their money for Cameron, not Jason. Cheap, cheap, cheap or nothing.

[JohnBriggs12]

I think Kendall should be back. It really baffles me how Counsell can slap the ball all over, but Kendall can't. I wonder if it's cause he gets such poor extension on his swing

Counsell doesn't slap the ball. He swings as hard as anyone on the team and his tendency is to pull the ball. Counsell generates a lot more bat speed than Kendall who is all arms and hands with his swing.

 

For next year, I see Salome and Rivera splitting time 50-50 initially with Salome gradually taking over. If Salome fails, then Lucroy will replace him. Unless Kendall can hit .250, no team is going to invest in him as a starter considering his lack of power. I don't think he'd accept a backup role with the Brewers.

[Invader3K]

I hope they save their money for Cameron, not Jason. Cheap, cheap, cheap or nothing.

Yeah, if it comes to keeping one or the other, I think most would much rather retain Cameron at this point.

 

I say re-sign Kendall if he comes cheap, otherwise let him walk.

[Ennder]

I find it absurd to believe that Kendall actually has a large effect on our rotation. Suppan has pitched just like he always has since Kendall became a Brewer, Bush hasn't changed at all and if anything he got better when Rivera became his C. Parra has struggled this season and hasn't lived up to expectations from his minor league numbers. Looper is the same guy he was the past couple years.

 

There is absolutely no evidence that he is having a large effect on our bottom line. He probably helps somewhat but it is something so minor that there is no way his current offense is being offset by it.

[JJHardy7]

He's not going to retire. He'll be looking for a job until he's 40. After all Ausmus is still out there. But no reason it should be in Milwaukee.

 

Well he may not have a choice. If he finished the season hitting under .200, I don't know that a lot of teams will be lining up to sign him as a starter. Sure the staff may like him, but at the same time to me it comes down to price. Would Kendall come back for $1 million and share more time? I don't know. If that's the case I could see him calling it quits. The guy gets upset when you give him a handful of days off during the year. I don't see a paycut and less playing time making him want to continue playing. Now if someone gives him $5 million and starting everyday...sure he'll be back.

 

I hope they save their money for Cameron, not Jason. Cheap, cheap, cheap or nothing.

 

Agreed. I'd also like to see not a huge promise of playing time. Macha seems to be a 'promise' type manager who will stick to his word rather than what's best for the team.

[joepepsi]

I'll believe Kendall is wonderful catcher, but the difference between a wonderful defensive catcher and an average one can't be enough to make up for the crappy offense.

 

It seems to me Rivera was once considered a fine defensive catcher. Then he started hitting, so his reputation switched to being an offensive catcher. I never heard that Kendall was a great catch and throw guy when he was with Pittsburgh. It wasn't until he went to Oakland and stopped hitting that his defensive reputation skyrocketed.

[patrickgpe]

I think Kendall will come back. He seems to like it here. If we can keep our main cogs on the team next year, his .200 batting average won't be as big of a deal. What he has done with pitchers compared to our previous catcher is night and day. I'm sure he will get offers from teams with young pitching staffs (CIN) who may be looking for a catcher to help them.