TooLiveBrew

It's kinda hard to be too upset about taking Braun over Tulo. Oh, I'm not upset about Braun at all (see my avatar http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif ). I would just rather to have the SS over the LF.

Fwiw, he shared POTW with Arizona's Daniel Hudson

I think if Komatsu can keep hitting like this, he should attract enough prospect-watcher attention for us to get some more comprehensive reviews of his defense. If he can handle CF progressing higher up the chain, then it's absolutely going to be a competition between him & Schafer.

Whoops, I completely misread that initial post on starters

I shall call him... Mini-Me http://i.imgur.com/l7bXX.jpg

There's been quite a bit of rain off & on today in Appleton. My guess is the game was delayed so that the second game of the doubleheader became the first. ... ? Not sure why Braddock wouldn't have just started the first game that wound up getting played today, though. Maybe he preferred to start game 2 this evening/late afternoon?

The projection for Branyan is better than the projection for Kotsay. Projections aside (sort of), Branyan has been the far more talented hitter in recent seasons. Kotsay will, in all likelihood, hit for a better avg. But Branyan will probably have a comparable or better OBP & has a lot more power. So this really boils down to whether or not people find strikeouts particularly annoying. Neither guy should really play any spot in the field aside from 1B or maybe corner OF. Last 4 seasons OPS (just since it's widely known), including '11, oldest to most recent - Kotsay: .732, .717, .683, .667 Branyan: .925, .867, .810, .629 In terms of offense, arguing for Kotsay over Branyan isn't too dissimilar from arguing for James Loney over Prince Fielder. It's possible that Branyan has slipped to a level where he's no better a hitter than Kotsay, but given recent history I think it's very unlikely. I would definitely take the gamble that Branyan will continue to be a more talented hitter than Kotsay. Even if you take the 4 small samples I cited above as a sign of something near a linear decline for Branyan, that would put him at a .760 OPS (crudely guesstimated), and still a significantly better hitter than Kotsay.

David Ortiz hasn't been ranked by Tangotiger's Fans' Scouting Report since 2004 (played 37 games at 1B since then). Here are his scores from '04 & '03: Overall Instincts First Step Speed Hands Release Arm Str. Arm Acc. Level of Agreement [url=http://www.tangotiger.net/scouting/scoutResults_BOS.html]2004[/url]: 27 35 17 15 28 28 38 37 0.67 [url=http://www.tangotiger.net/scouting/scout_Results.html]2003[/url]: N/A 16 12 14 22 25 40 27 0.81 That is, quite literally, about as bad a Fan's Scouting Report as you will see. In 2004 he played his age-28 season. 2012 will be his age-36 season. Since '04 he's also had a torn right meniscus ('07), & torn left wrist tendon sheath ('08). It's not that I don't think Ortiz could still hit through another season or two, but I wouldn't bet a penny on his being able to play the field & stay healthy... let alone play the field at an acceptable level.

Those are the 2010 April ERAs of 4 pitchers that a lot of people would have called aces last year. Ubaldo Jimenez through yesterday's start: 6.14 ERA

I'll preface this post by saying that I linked anything I thought was interesting or relevant, so yes there are a lot of links to threads. I included some quotes with the threads; I'm not out to make anyone look bad, just 20/20 hindsight stuff. Wanted to include the thoughts at the time of & leading up to the '05 draft. Why the Brewers ever asked Tulowitzki if he'd move to 3B is just beyond me. Seems like it was a very poor analysis of defensive tools & ability. But, then again, this was the braintrust that felt Braun could play 3B. - You're Doug Melvin & you take (insert name) at #5: "I wouldn't touch [braun] with the 5th pick after seeing the video." - Patrick's 2005 BF.net Draft Preview: "Braun is having yet another good season offensively for the Miami Hurricanes. He quickly made a name for himself as a freshman after going undrafted out of high school, and hasn't stopped hitting since. Braun currently plays third base after playing shortstop his first two seasons at Miami, and there are some rumblings that he will be moved to the outfield upon signing as a pro. There is a hitch in his swing along with concerns about how well he'll do with a wood bat, and to be honest I don't see the Brewers drafting the third best college third baseman." - Maybin Vs. McCutchen: interesting to me that the now-Pirates CF was looked at by BF.netters back then; this thread is just one of many spots where the love for Maybin was on full display - Exciting Draft Potential: "Ricky Romero, Troy Tulowitzki and Andrew McCutchen would probably fall in right after those 5 [upton, Gordon, Maybin, Zimmerman, Clement], and I would be happy with any one of these guys." - With the 5th pick Milwaukee selects...: "One GM predicts that after Justin Upton, the next five picks will be Nebraska third baseman Alex Gordon to Kansas City, Tennessee right-hander Luke Hochevar to Seattle, Long Beach State shortstop Troy Tulowitzki to Washington, Virginia third baseman Ryan Zimmerman to Milwaukee and Fullerton State left-hander Ricky Romero to Toronto." -- Peter Gammons, quoted by RyDogg66 - Question for the experts 2005 draft: "This year I too would like to see a college player selected, but Maybin could very well be the example of a real special HS player. He's that good." (in response to a post of "I'd like to see them take the best college player available, unless there's a REAL special HS player at their slot." - Top high school prospects for 2005: "According to Baseball America ... Keep in mind, these top prospect lists aren't necessarily top prospects overall for the 2005 draft, just the top prospects for the event." - 2005 top ten?: BA top ten, as of 10/8/04: Upton, Maybin, Gordon, Clement, Tyler Greene (SS, Ga. Tech), Wade Townsend (RHP, Rice), Luke Hochevar (RHP, Tenn.), Mike Pelfrey (RHP, Wichita St.), Stephen Head (1B/LHP, Miss.), Tulowitzki - Our 2005 pick: there was plenty of Alex Gordon love to go around, too

I feel like "MRI finds tumors on Gary Carter's brain" does these developments more justice than "medical troubles". Good luck, Mr. Carter. EDIT: Wow, didn't mean to come across as harshly as that might read to prophet. Just was shocked when I opened the link in the OP.

Dylan Covey, the young man diagnosed with Diabetes after the draft. He decided he wanted to be close to his family so he went to the Univ. of San Diego.

If Hunter Morris keeps hitting, Mat might not have all that long of a shot at the 1B job in Milwaukee.

Haha, true. I remember hoping that Gordon would fall to the Brewers at the time.

Oh, man. Hang in there, Mark. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/frown.gif

Thanks, StarsBooster! Hope that's true, I like that they're being aggressive with him if that's the case.

Wow. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/frown.gif

I have to expect 5-4, & hope for better, because I still believe this team has enough talent to make the postseason. Honestly though it wouldn't shock me to lose 2 of 3 to both COL & SFG.

That's awesome. Hard not to like Phillips.

If you have time & can remember, please post here to let us know when it's up!

Alternate headline: "Israeli Girl's Parents Have No Taste, May be Morons" It's just my way of saying to my fantastic daughter, 'love.' No. Quite literally, it's your way of saying to her, "like."

Every time I look at that '05 draft, I see Troy Tulowitzki lower than Ryan Braun, & I wish for what might have been.

I have to ask, why do people keep throwing Lindor's name out there for #12? Sure, he might be projected to drop a bit, but #12 overall? Seems pretty far-fetched.

Here, without any exaggeration, was RRR's depth chart against a RHP tonight: Kotsay Gomez Rivera Betancourt ... (?) Boggs I'm really starting to think that Roenicke doesn't have a clue how to manage this team. EDIT: I don't think Tic-Tac-Toe Playing Chicken has been hired away by any other organization; might be time to get him on speed-dial.

"I don't think anybody else thinks like me, so it's nothing against him. I don't want anybody to think like me. That's a curse I wouldn't want to put on anybody." I like Randy Wolf quotes. The Force is with him.