batman

We were too distracted by the cheese sandwiches, Toby. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif http://www.prosperity.com/fun/deck/toolshed.jpg He even catches popups, huh? ~Bill

Boom. ~Bill

It also looks like they haven't been able to add the "sky camera" that can do replays from directly above home plate. I know Bill and Daron were both talking about that on the trip and they said some techies at MP were up in the catwalks working on it. I hope they can make it work, 'cause that's always a really nice shot to have on strike/ball calls. I agree with you re: the behind the catcher cam, too... it's cool as a replay, but not as live footage. ~Bill

Well, it would appear that Chris Capuano is going to start tomorrow. So, who goes down? ~Bill

Boom. ~Bill

All better, Greg. And I definitely agree with you about Davis... this wasn't a great start, but it also was pretty good for a "bad start". If he can put together streaks of two-to-three starts like this and two-to-three-starts like he was earlier in the year, he'll be a really valuable pitcher. The one promising sign is that he's made a lot of mechanical changes and so he's not really the same pitcher he used to be... and even then, he was MLB average. ~Bill

Is it that easy to tell already? http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif How can you not love a guy who says something like this: "I'll go wherever they want me to go, as soon as they want me. I'm just happy they have given me to opportunity to go out and play. I am going to take advantage of it." Coach: Steve, I want you to jump. Steve: How high, coach? http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif ~Bill

Cool, thanks Patrick. His command was off today and his delivery was a bit sporadic. At the plate, his swing reminds me of a right-handed Brooks Kieschnick... he takes quite a mighty cut. This was the first time I've seen him, and I can certainly see why folks like his athleticism. He's just a good baseball player... he might not be "good enough" at any one skill, but he's an awfully nice college ballplayer. ~Bill

Parts one and two of an interview with Mark Rogers are up on the Brewers' Radio Network site. Check 'em out! www.brewersradionetwork.com/ ~Bill

From a notes column by JR Radcliffe at MLB.com: ~Bill

Since no one else mentioned it....... I'm going to take tonight's game thread (mostly) off... you'll have to pick up the slack, RoCo. Go team. ~Bill

Did You Know? Junior Spivey attended the same Community College, Cowley County (in Arkansas City, KS), as Brewers' 2003 Draft Choice and recently-signed DFE catcher Clay Blevins. Milwaukee's third-round selection in this year's June Draft, Josh Wahpepah, also hails from Cowley County CC, as does forty-fifth found pick Deik Scram. ~Bill

Final: Indianapolis 2, Charlotte (White Sox) 1 The Indians grab a much-needed win tonight. Clint Weibl with an outstanding performance - he went seven and two-thirds and allowed only one run on three hits and four walks while striking-out 5. The lone run came on a bomb by Bryant Nelson. Roberto Giron picked up his second save. Indianapolis Box Score: Seven hits, four of which were doubles, and three walks... and only two runs? C'mon, fellas... GAME DATE: 6/11/04 IND at CHR INDIANAPOLIS 2 AT CHARLOTTE 1 YTD YTD INDIANAPOLIS AB R H BI AVG CHARLOTTE AB R H BI AVG P.Bergeron CF 4 2 1 0 .222 A.Torres LF 3 0 0 0 .287 C.Magruder LF 4 0 2 1 .271 J.Reed CF 4 0 1 0 .273 C.Hart RF 4 0 1 1 .284 B.Nelson 2B 4 1 1 1 .319 J.Nunnally DH 2 0 0 0 .247 B.Smith SS 3 0 0 0 .264 C.Coste 3B 4 0 0 0 .312 J.Borchard RF 4 0 0 0 .278 M.Johnson CAT 3 0 0 0 .285 M.Bell 1B 3 0 0 0 .213 L.Figueroa SS 4 0 0 0 .274 M.Valenzuela DH 3 0 1 0 .232 B.Gemoll 1B 3 0 1 0 .244 J.Aceves CAT 3 0 0 0 .286 M.Erickson 2B 3 0 2 0 .228 R.Paz 3B 1 0 1 0 .258 C.Weibl PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 J.Grilli PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 C.Michalak PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 D.Sanders PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 R.Giron PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 TOTALS 31 2 7 2 TOTALS 28 1 4 1 INDIANAPOLIS 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0- 2 7 0 CHARLOTTE 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0- 1 4 1 E--B.Nelson. DP--INDIANAPOLIS 1, CHARLOTTE 1. LOB--INDIANAPOLIS 5, CHARLOTTE 4. 2B--P.Bergeron (2), C.Magruder (13), B.Gemoll (3), M.Erickson (12), J.Reed (11). HR--B.Nelson (12). SB--C.Hart (9), M.Erickson (6). CS--C.Magruder, C.Hart, M.Johnson, B.Smith. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA INDIANAPOLIS C.Weibl (W,2-0) 7.2 3 1 1 4 5 1 1.77 C.Michalak 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 5.86 R.Giron (S,2) 1.0 1 0 0 0 0 0 4.50 CHARLOTTE J.Grilli 7.0 5 1 1 3 2 0 3.82 D.Sanders (L,0-1) 2.0 2 1 1 0 2 0 6.04 SO--C.Hart, J.Nunnally, M.Johnson, M.Erickson, A.Torres 2, M.Bell 2, M.Valenzuela. BB--J.Nunnally 2, M.Johnson, A.Torres, B.Smith, R.Paz 2. T--2:11. A--4073Indianapolis Game Log: www.sportsnetwork.com/mer...MEID=14163

Notre Dame provides updated biographies for each of their drafted players. Here is Steve Sollmann's updated info. ~Bill

Some thoughts from Steve Sollmann in Notre Dame's post-draft press conference: Available Online at: und.collegesports.com/spo...04aaa.html ~Bill

Atlanta: Georgia 7, Georgia Tech 5 (Box) - Georgia leads series 1-0 Austin: Texas 15, Vanderbilt 3 (Box) - Texas leads series 1-0 Fayetteville: Arkansas 7, Florida State 5 (Box) - Arkansas leads series 1-0 Long Beach: Arizona 6, Long Beach State 5 (Box) - Arizona leads series 1-0 I'll try to keep this updated. ~Bill

Let's try to keep CWS-related thoughts in this thread... the Draft board is already quite crowded. Georgia/Georgia Tech was a great game, FSU/Arkansas has been a great game, and now on ESPN we get to see Vandy and Texas. All this wonderfulness, and we're only in the super-regionals. J.P. Howell (first round pick of KC) is on the mound for Texas against super-duper-wonder-kid Jeremy Sowers. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif EDIT: Sowers just got knocked around for five runs in the second against Texas. The Longhorns offense is mighty good... I don't think they'll have any trouble getting past Vanderbilt and they've gotta be a favorite to win the CWS. J.P. Howell looks really good... Check it out. ~Bill

More lineup hijinx from Nedley tonight: HOUSTON MILWAUKEE AVG HR RBI AVG HR RBI Craig Biggio CF .300 8 26 Scott Podsednik CF .261 7 18 Adam Everett SS .288 3 12 Junior Spivey 2B .263 3 20 Jeff Bagwell 1B .280 9 34 Geoff Jenkins LF .251 6 36 Jeff Kent 2B .317 9 43 Lyle Overbay 1B .324 6 43 Lance Berkman LF .333 14 48 Bill Hall 3B .257 4 24 Richard Hidalgo RF .263 4 30 Ben Grieve RF .248 4 13 Morgan Ensberg 3B .275 0 18 Chad Moeller C .218 2 13 Brad Ausmus C .259 2 12 Craig Counsell SS .243 1 9 Tim Redding RHP .211 0 0 Doug Davis LHP .000 0 0 (3-4, 5.33) (4-5, 3.55) ~Bill

Cappy or Wise will go tomorrow... no decision has been made, yet. Here's the DB Preview: www.brewerfan.net/ViewDai...portId=246 ~Bill

I'm irked, but as my mother always told me... if you don't have something nice to see, don't say anything at all. The little grumblings we hear certainly add up, and that's disconcerting. We can only look the other way and pretend we're not listening for so long before public opinion starts to turn. I'm just saying. ~Bill

Micah Owings was pitching today on ESPN against Georgia. Not very impressive, although he did flash signs of stellar-ness. Is he a better prospect as a pitcher or a hitter? He looks like he can rake. ~Bill

Come on man, you can't tell me you re-read that without thinking that it was showing at least a little favoritism to Adams... Yeah, you're right... I can understand that. And obviously, I do think Mike Adams is a better pitcher than Jeff Bennett. But if the roles were reversed, I can honestly say that I would have blamed Adams for the runs. The other thing to note is that Bennett didn't have it at all tonight. He couldn't find the strike zone. The two hits Adams gave up were lucky... neither was hard hit, and they both could have easily been outs (and the grounder from Guillen could have been a DP). That doesn't absolve Mike of his responsibility for getting the job done, but the performances of Bennett and Adams were night and day. Like I said, Bennett walked two guys, and it was Adams who allowed them to score. Bennett didn't pitch well, but Adams sure didn't get his job done either. He hung a few sliders, but he didn't get hurt with them. The results didn't get the job done, but the *process* did. Adams got a grounder and a blooper... short of striking out those two guys, he did what could be reasonably expected. The fact that the Angels hit 'em where we weren't meant that those two balls were singles instead of outs. That's all I'm saying. At least Adams made the Angels beat us, whereas Bennett just handed them a pair of walks. For the record, I didn't see the game, but was listening at work. Myself and all of my co-workers were completely in agreement with the way Yost handled the pen and made his in game moves (Grieve hit for Bennett, etc). The execution was poor and the result wasn't a win, but Yost did set his guys up to succeed.... they just didn't do the job themselves. That I can't agree with. The Grieve move was good, obviously, but that's a separate issue. 1> Was Kieschnick ready to pitch? Apparently not. I don't know when he got back or what kind of emotional shape he was in, but at least some of the blame for his meltdown needs to go to Ned. That was a high-leverage situation for a guy who in all likelihood just got off a plane, hadn't thought about baseball in days, and was thinking about his new baby. This is really a minor quibble, though, and Brooks deserves 90% of the blame. 2> If you have Mike Adams and Jeff Bennett both available, which do you choose for a high-leverage situation? I'll take Adams, and Yost took Bennett. I disagree. He also didn't have anyone warming to begin the inning, trusting that Bennett would be fine, and after the first walk he got Adams up. That gave him only one batter to get ready to pitch, and Yost brought the hook. I can't disagree with yanking Bennett there, as he was obviously not going to have any success tonight, but he definitely rushed Adams into the game. Again, that's a small issue... the major concern is with the choice of Bennett over Adams. 3> He didn't use Kolb to face the heart of the Angels' order. This I won't get too worked up about because few managers would, but Kolb should have been the guy when we needed to face Guerrero, Anderson, Guillen, et. al. Not Bennett _or_ Adams. They could have pitched the ninth against the bottom of the order. Yes, the players deserve the blame for not getting the job done. But at the same time, I'm very surprised that you don't take issue with any of Nedley's moves. Do you really prefer Jeff Bennett to Mike Adams in a high-leverage, game-critical situation? EDIT: Good night Peavey, BTW. I'll be better in the morning, I promise... crappy day + crappy game = ornery Bill. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif ~Bill

More about Wahpepah, Scram, Blevins, and a Junior Spivey connection. "Two Cowley players taken in baseball draft," The Arkansas City Traveler, 06/09/2004 www.arkcity.net/stories/0...0003.shtml ~Bill

Come on now, you're letting your favoritism of Adams cloud your view. Who was it that gets the blown save? Who gave up the 2 hits to allow the 2 runs to score? It wasn't Jeff Bennett. To say that Bennett is the goat while Adams was 'not bad' is pretty untrue. No, it's not. Jeff Bennett walked two batters to leadoff the inning. Mike Adams then gave up a grounder through the hole to Guillen and a flare over shortstop to DaVanon. He hit Kotchman to load the bases, but retired the next three batters. The only real mistake was the HBP, which didn't come back to haunt him. Adams didn't pitch *great*, or even *good*, but he certainly pitched "not bad". Did you even watch the game? If Bennett doesn't walk those two hitters and force Adams into the game without much time to warm up, those runs don't score. Even if we assume Adams got all the time in the world to warm up, he would not have given up any runs had the inherited runners not been part of the equation. This was the worst Adams has pitched in his few opportunities thus far. I love him, but he's not immune to criticism. I think you're projecting your own love of Bennett onto me, Peavey http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif . ~Bill

Here's a nice article about Yo Gallardo and the decision many of our draft picks need to make about going to college or turning pro. Lots of quotes from Tom Grieve, father of Ben and a former cohort of Doug Melvin with the Rangers, who himself was a first round pick way back in the 60s. This is worth a read. "High school seniors weighing pros, cons of college baseball," Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, TX), Byline Nathan Sanders, 06/09/2004 www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sport...907.htm?1c ~Bill