Luis Lara's playing time...

[DonBarclay]

11 minutes ago, shanedog19 said:

This is the brutally honest and correct answer. Yelich's playing time at DH shouldn't be a given anymore. The team should still look to improve offensively at 3rd base. The lineup last night would struggle to push runs across against the Dodgers in a playoff scenario, which should be the barometer come October.

The scary thing is, Yeli still has 2 years left after this. If Murphy remains unwilling to bench him in a pennant race this year, I wonder if that’s an indication that he’ll simply be penciled in for the next 2 as well. If he doesn’t turn things around, and there’s no real reason to believe that he will, that will certainly hamstring this competitive window. 

[Fear The Chorizo]

Yelich hasn't deserved everyday ABs for quite awhile this season - and it's because his back and age has made him a shell of the player who would be a great fit at the top of this lineup.

 

They need to find a legitimate reason to put Yelich on the IL for awhile, and chronic back issues are more than legitimate - maybe a few weeks off gets him back to being a positive offensively - right now he's an anchor.  Getting Yelich off the active roster gives Bauers and Vaughn platoon-advantaged everyday at bats and get the best Brewers OF (offensively and defensively) on the field regularly.  Honestly, it's the time to have that tough conversation with a player who has to know his own eyes aren't deceiving him, either.

[titanrick]

3 minutes ago, DonBarclay said:

The scary thing is, Yeli still has 2 years left after this. If Murphy remains unwilling to bench him in a pennant race this year, I wonder if that’s an indication that he’ll simply be penciled in for the next 2 as well. If he doesn’t turn things around, and there’s no real reason to believe that he will, that will certainly hamstring this competitive window. 

I think the disconnect is that this forum seems convinced Yeli is washed and will never hit well consistently again.  Murph seems convinced Yeli is in a funk and needs to work his way out of it.  I have to admit, our chances of winning a WS are significantly improved if Yeli is an .800 OPS hitter rather than what we've seen lately from him.

I have to hope that Murph realizes the jig is up in October if Yeli is still struggling this badly.  You can't win playoff series with your leadoff DH being a non-factor.

Or, Yeli turns it around and we all look foolish for doubting that he could still perform like we need him to.

[Playing Catch]

Yeli's wRC+ of 96 puts him in the same neighborhood as the following hitters in descending order of wRC+...

Bregman (99 wRC+), Chisholm, Guerrero Jr., Naylor, Stott, Dansby, Dubon, Chapman, Kwan, Adames, Henderson, Adell, Simpson, Varsho, Durbin, Altuve (90 wRC+).

Obviously, several of those names derive most of their value as defenders, and Yelich being a DH certainly impacts his individual WAR. But for the team, his being sub-standard as a hitter isn't any more impactful than those other teams' experiences with even younger, middle-of-the-order bats.

I'm not disputing Yelich should take more time off due to his performance, or that his contract is underwater, but the degree to which he's been struggling is being vastly overstated, particularly when we witness him hitting an opposite field bomb just the other day.

[Jim French Stepstool]

I've been as critical of Yelich as anyone. OTOH, the calls for his head on a stick are similar to what we heard last June, and we all know how he hit the last few months of 2025. He IS a year older though & no, I don't expect a similar re-emergence. But if you bench him because he can't hit, he's...........a pinch runner? With a four-man bench, he HAS to contribute as a DH to have any viability, so that & the fact he's signed for two more years make it obvious why they're handling this the way they are and hoping for the best.

For those who want him moved on from or buried, I think the only two options are 1) an IL stint; phantom or otherwise or 2) after another five weeks or so, if he doesn't catch fire you can add another option on 9-1....Black, Luke Adams, maybe Baddoo can regain health? You might add a bat before the deadline but it appears the mound is a greater priority.

[DonBarclay]

1 hour ago, Jim French Stepstool said:

I've been as critical of Yelich as anyone. OTOH, the calls for his head on a stick are similar to what we heard last June, and we all know how he hit the last few months of 2025. He IS a year older though & no, I don't expect a similar re-emergence. But if you bench him because he can't hit, he's...........a pinch runner? With a four-man bench, he HAS to contribute as a DH to have any viability, so that & the fact he's signed for two more years make it obvious why they're handling this the way they are and hoping for the best.

For those who want him moved on from or buried, I think the only two options are 1) an IL stint; phantom or otherwise or 2) after another five weeks or so, if he doesn't catch fire you can add another option on 9-1....Black, Luke Adams, maybe Baddoo can regain health? You might add a bat before the deadline but it appears the mound is a greater priority.

Talk about sunk cost fallacy… he doesn’t need to contribute as a an every day DH with a 4 man bench. If he’s not contributing when he’s in the lineup, you don’t keep putting him at DH because he “HAS to contribute” there. You DH him a few times a week, and the rest of the time he’s a pinch hitter. You still have 5 guys that play OF, that doesn’t change. He's played 70 games, that’s exactly when he heated up last year. You give him a few more weeks to figure it out, then you need to seriously consider changing the lineup strategy. 
 

I have no issue with Murph talking him up and sticking with him to this point. If we’re in the same spot production wise in late August and there’s not been any meaningful changes to his playing time and spot in the order, then I think we should all have a huge issue with it. 

[Matt]

I would be 100% behind sitting Yeli if it's between him and Bauers. But given Yeli's contract and status in the organization I don't think it's realistic to believe he gets benched. 

[DonBarclay]

Would imagine that Lara will be starting every day now if Buaers hits the IL with his fractured big toe. 

[thebruce44]

3 hours ago, DonBarclay said:

Talk about sunk cost fallacy… he doesn’t need to contribute as a an every day DH with a 4 man bench. If he’s not contributing when he’s in the lineup, you don’t keep putting him at DH because he “HAS to contribute” there. You DH him a few times a week, and the rest of the time he’s a pinch hitter. You still have 5 guys that play OF, that doesn’t change. He's played 70 games, that’s exactly when he heated up last year. You give him a few more weeks to figure it out, then you need to seriously consider changing the lineup strategy. 
 

I have no issue with Murph talking him up and sticking with him to this point. If we’re in the same spot production wise in late August and there’s not been any meaningful changes to his playing time and spot in the order, then I think we should all have a huge issue with it. 

I don't think anyone is suggesting killing him. I just would have him batting 7th or 8th at this point and give him days off against tough pitchers.

[TURBO]

5 hours ago, Playing Catch said:

I'm not disputing Yelich should take more time off due to his performance, or that his contract is underwater, but the degree to which he's been struggling is being vastly overstated, particularly when we witness him hitting an opposite field bomb just the other day.

The issue is, at least to me, that he continues to bat lead-off.

I know they aren't going to stick him on the bench 4-5 games a week, but for the love of God, put him down in the order until he gets back on course.

[RWeeksFan23]

2 minutes ago, TURBO said:

The issue is, at least to me, that he continues to bat lead-off.

I know they aren't going to stick him on the bench 4-5 games a week, but for the love of God, put him down in the order until he gets back on course.

finally not batting leadoff tonight!

[Jim French Stepstool]

5 hours ago, DonBarclay said:

Talk about sunk cost fallacy… he doesn’t need to contribute as a an every day DH with a 4 man bench. If he’s not contributing when he’s in the lineup, you don’t keep putting him at DH because he “HAS to contribute” there. You DH him a few times a week, and the rest of the time he’s a pinch hitter. You still have 5 guys that play OF, that doesn’t change. He's played 70 games, that’s exactly when he heated up last year. You give him a few more weeks to figure it out, then you need to seriously consider changing the lineup strategy. 
 

I have no issue with Murph talking him up and sticking with him to this point. If we’re in the same spot production wise in late August and there’s not been any meaningful changes to his playing time and spot in the order, then I think we should all have a huge issue with it. 

I think we're in agreement. Maybe I wasn't clear. I'm saying DH is the only role where he can contribute. 

I'm not saying he has to play every day.

[adambr2]

I’m not just dogging Yelich here either, I’m trying to think of ways to get him going. 

Isn’t it possible that he has too high of expectations for himself and it’s causing him to press and hurting his performance?  Isn’t it possible that he’s out there every day thinking “they still trust me at the top of the order to get this offense jumpstarted, and I’m failing”.

And isn’t it possible that it would be beneficial to sit him down and tell him “hey, we don’t need you to be that guy anymore. We still believe in you, but you don’t need to put pressure on yourself, we’re going to hit you 7th for awhile no matter what happens, and let’s just focus on getting you comfortable again?”

[torts]

22 hours ago, DonBarclay said:

The scary thing is, Yeli still has 2 years left after this. If Murphy remains unwilling to bench him in a pennant race this year, I wonder if that’s an indication that he’ll simply be penciled in for the next 2 as well. If he doesn’t turn things around, and there’s no real reason to believe that he will, that will certainly hamstring this competitive window. 

You're boldly assuming there is any season next year 

[DonBarclay]

56 minutes ago, torts said:

You're boldly assuming there is any season next year 

This may be naive on my part, but there’s simply too much to lose for games to get cancelled next year. Baseball has not been this big in decades, a true lockout into April and beyond jeopardizes so much growth. Both parties would be insane to let that happen. 

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

I'm way more optimistic on Yelich than most of this board, I think. His 95 OPS+ is BY FAR the worst of his career, and it still makes him essentially a league average hitter.

There might be a case for playing him less. Indeed, I think there is. But the idea that he's washed feels premature. Players dip from time to time, and he's only 35! I mean, I know that seems old in baseball terms, but in this era where elite athletes are having longer careers in much more demanding sports, writing off his final two contract years seems like a big mistake. 

 

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

7 minutes ago, Cool Hand Lucroy said:

I'm way more optimistic on Yelich than most of this board, I think. His 95 OPS+ is BY FAR the worst of his career, and it still makes him essentially a league average hitter.

There might be a case for playing him less. Indeed, I think there is. But the idea that he's washed feels premature. Players dip from time to time, and he's only 35! I mean, I know that seems old in baseball terms, but in this era where elite athletes are having longer careers in much more demanding sports, writing off his final two contract years seems like a big mistake. 

 

Maybe semantics, but Yelich is 34 until December.

[tmwiese55]

10 minutes ago, Cool Hand Lucroy said:

I'm way more optimistic on Yelich than most of this board, I think. His 95 OPS+ is BY FAR the worst of his career, and it still makes him essentially a league average hitter.

There might be a case for playing him less. Indeed, I think there is. But the idea that he's washed feels premature. Players dip from time to time, and he's only 35! I mean, I know that seems old in baseball terms, but in this era where elite athletes are having longer careers in much more demanding sports, writing off his final two contract years seems like a big mistake. 

 

Yea while I of course see how blah he's been lately and am all for moving him to around 7th in the lineup and sitting almost all games vs lefties, I think the last week or two of discussions on here are going a bit too far.

Last night for example, I had the realization that Contreras's OPS is 730 and Yelich's is 713.  One, is considered washed and should be put out to pasture, the other is so good that we can't afford him and his 150 mil contract that is coming next year and bats 3/4th for us every day.   Of course, I know being a C and all that, but I think one gets the overall point. And last year Yelich was 795 to Bills 754.   So just saying there's still a chance Yelich is in a slump here and gets another streak at some point this year. But yea all for moving down the lineup and if he's still in the low 700s a month from now to keep reducing PT even more

[adambr2]

29 minutes ago, Cool Hand Lucroy said:

I'm way more optimistic on Yelich than most of this board, I think. His 95 OPS+ is BY FAR the worst of his career, and it still makes him essentially a league average hitter.

There might be a case for playing him less. Indeed, I think there is. But the idea that he's washed feels premature. Players dip from time to time, and he's only 35! I mean, I know that seems old in baseball terms, but in this era where elite athletes are having longer careers in much more demanding sports, writing off his final two contract years seems like a big mistake. 

 

None of the points that are made about Yelich's bat still being about average address the fact that other options have started to emerge. Yelich OPS'ing .700 is really not that big of a deal when your alternative options were Blake Perkins and Brandon Lockridge. We're deeper than that now, so the bar is higher.

 

The breakouts of Lara and Pratt are great for the team. They also are two more mouths that need to be fed. Eventually, you run out of room at the table if your performance isn't up to snuff. 

 

The fact of the matter is that Yelich is a DH only player, and this hurts his standing considerably. If he were an average fielding 3^rd baseman, he'd be playing every day and his bat would be no issue. The DH is the leftover after you've fielded your 8. This locks in Contreras, Turang, Pratt, Chourio, and Mitchell, plus two of Lara, Vaughn, and Bauers, plus one of Ortiz or Hamilton. That leaves one single spot in the lineup open for one of Yelich and whichever one of Lara, Vaughn and Bauers isn't in the field and whichever one of Ortiz and Hamilton isn't in the field.

 

This isn't even counting Sanchez, and when Frelick returns you still have another one to figure out. The fact of the matter is that a 95 OPS+ isn't good enough when this is the competition. And this is all assuming that they make NO other starting additions and that guys like Made and Fischer are still over 2 years away — big assumptions to make. 

 

No one is saying Yelich is a disaster. He doesn't need to be a disaster to be benchable. He needs to be a worse option than 9 other players, and he is getting there. 

[harrydalton]

Sit Yelich for a series and see if that helps. 

[CheezWizHed]

11 minutes ago, harrydalton said:

Sit Yelich for a series and see if that helps. 

Honestly, I'd go further than that.  Sit him for the month of August.  I'm sure a "back flare-up" can justify the vacation.  Bring him back in Sept to get his timing back and hopefully get hot in Oct. Its been a long time since Yelich has been hot in the playoffs...

	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025	2026
Mar/Apr	764	1264	N/A	826	727	656	1166	719	826
May	928	935	N/A	672	695	842	872	754	710
June	776	1149	N/A	844	764	912	787	936	682
July	1095	1112	220	628	856	1015	1008	690	681
Aug	1030	939	937	829	724	676	N/A	973	TBD
Sept/Oct	1313	1237	789	620	689	817	N/A	653	TBD
Overall	1000	1100	786	736	738	818	909	795	701