TooLiveBrew

Three players... my guess is Gamel, Cain, & Axford? Maybe not Axford, but Jeffress/Rogers? Ugh, could even be Cain+Rogers+Jeffress, come to think of it. Escobar, Jefferess, & Gomez would be my guess. Just too hard to part with Cain. That's not even close. Gomez has essentially zero value in trade imo.

Per Rosenthal Deal is final, pending physical. I like this for San Diego. Not terribly expensive, and his glove alone basically makes him worth the contract.

Via TH's latest blog post, Andrew Friedman isn't looking to move a starting pitcher. I thought it was a bit curious that TH said, "unless Friedman is posturing for some reason...", as though a GM in Friedman's position *wouldn't* have a potential reason to posture. Oh well. Honestly I'm not sure this changes anything; seems like this has been the message from Tampa's F.O. all offseason. However, there have been enough leaks of 'Rays looking to deal ____' & the Rays' own admission they need to shed salary, that I think it's a matter of when & not if for them to move a SP. I think they'll only move one, though. Interesting to note that Marc Topkin doesn't mention the Brewers at all in this article. He specifically mentions the Cubs & Rangers on Garza, and the Rockies on Shields.

Nolasco would be a decent fit for 2011, but I'm not sure I'd want to see the Brewers commit to him long-term.

Gomez also has a poor attitude. Last August when Cain took over for him in CF Gomez was quoted saying that "I'm is the best CF on the team". I don't like his attitude and I think he is delusional to be completely honest. He clarified that comment & said he meant defensively, not overall.

Delfino really didn't go unnoticed by many, if any, Bucks fans

Nothing confirmed yet, but according to a tweet from the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo, "Atlanta sources tell me Dan Uggla closing in on a 5-year, $60-61 million extension." Weeks is a more talented all-around player, but obviously Uggla has a longer track record of staying healthy. If the rumor is true, the deal would cover Uggla's age 31-35 seasons, and have an AAV of appx. $12M. I would love to see the Brewers clone this contract with Weeks (would cover him from 28 to 32).

Chad & Jamie: I'm so, so sorry for your loss. I hope you can find strength in yourself & your family. I can't begin to imagine what you're going through, but you are in my thoughts.

He's far more likely to have "issues" than pitchers with no history of anxiety.

Yeah, definitely worth the time to read. Honestly it didn't even take that long, the article flows very well.

Why would the Yankees want to trade (arguably) the best hitting prospect in the minors for a one-year rental of Fielder? That makes no sense to me. If they want to sign Fielder in FA, they can just do that. And like endaround notes, they'll have several players to use in the DH spot in the near future. To put this type of idea in a Brewers context, it would be like trading Lawrie for Cliff Lee last season. Except Montero blows Lawrie away offensively.

I'd want Montero and Joba. You & probably every GM in the league, at least on Montero.

Apologies if this has been posted already elsewhere, but via McCalvy...

Maybe here Prince is imagining that he's standing next to Boras, and the kids are all MLB GMs in the 2011-12 offseason http://brewersbeat.mlblogs.com/fielder7.jpg

I don't think that waiting is warranted in the Counsell situation. If they wait on him, the best 'fall through the cracks' guys are going to be picked up elsewhere. The problem continues to be that you don't know if Melvin is or isn't waiting. If anything, there's evidence that he covers his tracks (asking the Dodgers about Loney in case he moves Prince), not that he doesn't. Fwiw, Counsell's going to be 40 for next season, but I know that doesn't change your stance. Harden would have fit nicely into that equation, and every day one of these reclamation guys seem to land somewhere, if you wait too long on Capuano, they'll all be gone. No, he wouldn't have, because he can't start anymore. If any MLB team believed he could still start, literally any of them could have beaten OAK's offer to him easily. And yes, if you wait too long, all FAs will sign. However, mid-December doesn't come close to qualifying as "too long". As Texas GM Jon Daniels said late Monday night, "the off-season is just getting underway." I do find it odd that last season, Cappy re-signed in November, and this year we are almost a week from Christmas. I'm not so sure that Capuano will be coming back if he gets a decent offer somewhere else. Obviously last year was much, much different circumstances. I'm not sure Capuano will sign with the Brewers, either, but I'm not about to start complaining that he hasn't been signed yet. It seems obvious that he'll wait until Pavano signs, and probably for a Blanton trade, if that seems imminent. If the Brewers still haven't signed Cappy & it's nearing the end of January, then I'll agree that it's probably less & less likely. For now, I just don't think there's a better fit for Chris than staying with the Brewers (but that can change if another trade is made, for example) -- the rotation isn't set, & he pitched well both as a RP & SP last season. I agree with you on the 7-8 pitchers count. What I see right now for '11 contribution is Yo/Marcum/Wolf/Narveson/Rogers, so I'd like to see Cappy & another arm or two added to the mix. Jeffress could surprise & pitch himself into the conversation, so while I don't agree with you on Rogers, overall I do on not counting on anything from Jeffress as a SP in '11. Rogers I think will be up by June or July, so if Melvin is able to trade for another good SP, sign Cappy, & sign maybe one other guy that can work out of the 'pen or start, the Brewers should be alright.

Yeah. Found it via this post by Funketown in the "Ryan Braun Facebook Page. Real or Not?" thread. Believe it or not, it's Gamel's Facebook profile picture. Hah, just noticed that Braddock's is kinda funny, too: http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/hprofile-ak-snc4/hs171.ash2/41629_677138168_9122_n.jpg

Counsell is most definitely wavering, as we were supposed to hear 'in a day or two' last week. I'm confused, in one post you say you're going to "throw up in [your] mouth" if Counsell is signed for $1.5M, and in this one you seem to be criticizing Melvin for not already signing a 40-yo contemplating retirement. Or did I misread you somewhere? Capuano is obviously and rightfully gauging the market, but I can't imagine that the Brewers' offer would have been less than $1.5 million with incentives- if so, they really lowballed him. I don't understand what good does it do to imagine ways to insult Melvin -- 'If they sign Counsell at Amount X, I will be angry.' 'The Brewers won't offer enough money to sign Capuano.' And while Cappy is certainly an amazing recovery story, I'm not sure I want the Brewers guaranteeing him any significant amount of money this season. I'm guessing he's waiting for the Pavanos & Blantons of the MLB world to find their homes for 2011 before signing with anyone. Even then I'm not sure he'll find a deal over $2M or so. Even though TJ surgery is pretty routine nowadays, Capuano has only thrown 114.2 innings since 2007. Harden is still a 'name guy', in that he used to be a stud. Those guys (like Prior) tend to get the most money out of the 1-yr. deals, not guys like Cappy. I'll be surprised if he can find a deal over $2M, and I'd be willing to bet the Brewers are able to sign him to an incentive-laden deal. They stuck with him throughout his rehab, and I have to think that carries weight with Chris.

Willingham just can't luck his way into a hitters' park, can he? I like the addition for Oakland, Willingham is a nice bat. Dave Cameron did a nice comparison of Willingham & Bay last offseason at FanGraphs.

I always thought that must have come from the classic "Homer at the Bat" episode, but didn't remember those players. I'm glad to finally know what your avatar actually is, Invader. Don't ask me why I never just pm'd you about it.

I like Cappy, but the fact that he hasn't signed yet tells me that he is going to command more than the Brewers were willing to offer I think you assume too much about the offseason. You've had no way of knowing whether or not Melvin even contacted Harden, for instance. We have no way of knowing what's going on with Capuano, or Counsell, or anyone really. Capuano might want to wait until after Christmas to sign. Or he might want to wait until after New Year's. Or maybe Doug Melvin doesn't want to commit too much money before he brings in another SP via trade. Imo you're just rushing to way too many conclusions based on nothing tangible. Haven't heard any news about Pavano & the Twins lately... this tells me he's not going to re-sign there.

Hah, gotta love contract season motivation. Lookin' sexy Prince! And how can you not love the MJ t-shirt. Classic. I'd be in the best shape of my life if I were Prince, too. This is probably the one shot he gets at a mega-deal. Come to think of it, the trip to Japan was a savvy PR move as well.

I had a Mudcats hat 'back in the day'. I still like that logo & nickname.

So you want to add Harden, someone not capable of starting anymore, to the rotation? Or is there someone else you've noted?

This admittedly deviates further from the thread topic, but fwiw Matheny has been working as an analyst on the MLB Network this offseason.

I have this queued up on the DVR, & can't wait to watch it. Thanks for pointing this stuff out JB, I'll have to take notice of the elements like this.