Tbadder

I'm of two minds when it comes to this. My first mind, my primary mind, says booing is classless and I never do it personally. But...I understand where the people of Baltimore are coming from. Given the state of the world the fact is that the smallest contract in baseball is obscene. Then there's the precieved lack of loyalty. I personally know people who have taken far less money in order to remain loyal. They have sacrificed their whole lives for some thing greater than the bottom line. I admire these people, and obviously 95% of professional athletes do not fit into this category. I guess I don't believe these guys should get carte blanche for their decisions just because they're talented, just because people like what they do, or because it's the demand of the marketplace. These are lousy excuses for poor decisions. So while I don't boo, I want to boo, because as human beings they represent the worst in us. They are nothing but Ferengi, and quite frankly they don't deserve our respect. And I know that people can fire back all sorts of reasons about short careers, it's only human, doing what's best for your family, yada, yada, yada. It holds no water in the face of human suffering, the public good, and what is really admirable about the species. But boo them? I still say no. I do not want to be ugly like them.

That's really the point. There's no viable alternative to Suppan. AAA is awash in mediocrity, unless Wright or Green find their way and I kinda doubt that will happen. Sometimes you just reap what you sow and the Crew are stuck with Suppan. I personally think he's fine as a number 5 pitcher. I like Macha's idea of sacrificing him against the other team's number 1 and would do that as much as possible. And don't forget every once in a while Soup will give up one run in seven innings.

25 seems pretty dead on. 15 to 17 for Gallardo, 8 or 9 for Parra. It'll be close. I'd guess a tick under though. Durability will be the key with Gallardo overcoming a major injury last year, and well, Parra's lack of...

I think we are living and dying with Suppan and Parra and Bush and Looper. Their leash should be the entire season no matter how bad they falter. Nobody in AAA is gonna be the answer, and trading for pitching is going to be expensive. You've got to go with what you brung.

I know it's the smallest possible sample, but I saw plenty of good things today. I loved the walks; I hope it's indicative of a maturing plate approach. Rickie looked so much better up there. Cam was the man. I like how they took advantage of Lincecum's delivery on the basepaths. The pitching was no good, but is often slow outta the gates. I guess the only thing that bothered me was the Braun strike out with two men on.

I know it's the smallest possible sample, but I saw plenty of good things today. I loved the walks; I hope it's indicative of a maturing plate approach. Rickie looked so much better up there. Cam was the man. I like how they took advantage of Lincecum's delivery on the basepaths. The pitching was no good, but is often slow outta the gates. I guess the only thing that bothered me was the Braun strike out with two men on.

1. I will continue to find the humor in our bullpen and support the lovable ones like a good Cubs fan rather than getting upset and throwing things 2. I will chuckle knowingly every time Duffy comes to the plate, realizing how much of an upgrade he is over TGJ 3. I will concentrate on the Brewer's affiliates and try to understand our depth more realistically 4. I will not wavier from my belief that Scott Boras and the New York Yankees are proof positive that humans are evil by nature and shouldn't be blamed for their actions 5. I will bleed blue and never turn off the broadcast, hoping against hope

This team looks great. Imagine a best case scenario here, especially on the pitching side. Strong well rounded offense too. I can't wait to buy my tickets. There might be some quick promotions so I'm going to concentrate on early season games.

Kendall: better than last year with less at bats Fielder: better than last year Weeks: much better than last Hardy: slightly better than last year Hall: significantly better than last year Braun: not as good as last year, but real strike zone improvement, an Albert year is coming but not now Cameron: slightly worse than last year Hart: significantly worse, loses his starters job to Nelson Casey: won't see enough time to make a difference, not good but not bad Cousell: slightly worse batting stance be darned Nelson: significant contributor for a year or until cain or gillespie are ready, a nice stop-gap measure Duffy: our most humorous acquistion, will hit under .220 Rivera: much worse with the bat, a true back up, not bling worn around Kendall's neck--thank god Gallardo: double digit wins, ERA under 4 above 3.5 Parra: just under ten wins, ERA over 5 Bush: the same as always, low double digit wins Suppan: just under 12 wins, ERA over 4.75 Looper: Duncan-less and adrift, just under ten wins, ERA over 4.75 Coffey: over 5 ERA, off the team shortly after all-star break Julio: over 6 ERA, jettisoned by end of May DeFelice: eats some innings, ERA over 4 McClung: eats some innings, ERA over 4.5, ungodly whip, thrown into a trade for another reclaimation guru Riske: ERA over 5.5, end of the line, on the hook for the contract, won't be able to get it together in AAA Stetter: ERA slightly over 4, forced to use him too much Villy: ERA over 4, some bad outings but holds his own Hoffman: no real significant contribution, end of the line possibly

Hmmmm... Most improved player: Weeks. Count me among those who think he'll bust out. .265/.378/?. Most disapponting player who will have a decent year: Braun. Two intercostal injuries is a pattern, won't really cut loose, 2 stints on the DL, but strike zone judgement improvement .292/387/?. Biggest disappointment who will tank: Hart. I expect him to be the 4th outfielder by August. His swing is too long, he doesn't generate enough power for a guy his size, and his strike zone judgement is atrocious, .234/296/? which leads us to... Rookie of the year: Nelson. Somewhat of a defensive liability but really consistent hitter who as a workable plan, ocassional power, pretty good OBP. .269/.348/?. The best thing the Brewers will do this year is keep Gamel in the minors where he belongs. Most surprising player of the year: Bill Hall. Nice little line improves all around. Saves his career but not enough for the Brewers to keep him past his current contract. He'll be good enough to basically root Casey on the bench. Pitching: a disaster. Not enough innings from the starters, taxes the bullpen, Hoffman never really shows up. Julio? What were they thinking? Riske's done, put a fork in him, although I was a big supporter of his acquistion--stupid me. We're gonna beg Torres to come outta retirement. Melvin has finally turned the Brewers into the Texas Rangers. Best overall player: JJ. He basically does everything well this year except steal bases. Solidifies himself as the clubhouse leader. It's a darn shame he plays in Milwaukee as Rollins and Reyes and Ramierz (sic) (both of them) get more credit. The best non-elite player in the National League (maybe even a Jeter mini-me). 83 wins, I'm sticking with this because it was the first thing outta my mouth and I got suckered in by those who claimed that the Crew's starters were essentially as good as last years Non-CC starters. So...83 wins it is. Oh and one other thing. Even though they wouldn't be close to the Wildcard (Mets and Phillies will see to that) this team will be an even more entertaining team on a per game basis as they really start to pound out runs. Maybe over 900 of them this year. Definitely deserving of our unconditional support, especially given that management continues to point the organization in the right direction. Most important event: This year's draft. A Z-less draft will have to be a good one in order to keep the Karma coming. Minor League Impact: Rob Wooten jetting through the system, middle of next year a significant contibutor to another rebuilt Brewer bullpen

9-13, rough start but a tough schedule early. May will bring better things as the bullpen gets straighted out a little.

I would like to see Duffy buried on the bench. He's not a meaningful player. Nelson is the guy who needs to be investigated through DHing when possible, pinch hitting, and all the extra corner outfield starts we can supply him with. Cameron is a good, if not great deal better, than Duffy. If Cameron needs one day off in 20 okay, Duffy's the guy, but I'm not gonna stop from wincing every time his name is in the line up.

I just want to stop the talking about the guy. Hopefully this does it.

Very good discussion. I wanted more. It does seem like the Brewers have a bit of a mystery system now (deep and studless) and it should be fascinating to see how many of these guys step up and turn themselves into topflight prospects. I sure hope it's pitching. Personally, I think Wooten is going to jet through the system and either shine or flame out, though I doubt the latter. Dale Sveum has got to get a hold of Brewer, what an ugly stance. In defference to Astro fans I can't imagine him being a successful big league hitter looking like that.

It's a plausible trade. I loved it.

In a way this is the best news. If the fans truly support a team that's not going to be as good as last year's team, then they deserve many kudos, and it really does bode well for the future if this continues. I hope the fans here have turned a corner and realize that numbers clicking thru the turnstiles directly affect the competitiveness of the organization--Bravo!

I know this is an impossibility, but if I could match up Suppan and Looper against the other team's number 1 and number 2 pitcher all year I'd take that. I like Gallardo, Parra, and Bush against the bottom of the rotation. So I think it's a good strategy. Weaver used to do that all the time--throw out a sacrificial lamb to the other guys' number one starter. Then he'd steal a few and really destroy you in a 3 or 4 games series.

That just feels good (the review). And I agree, the organizational processes that are in place seem to be both effective and professional. A lot will hinge on the second wave of talent coming in 2010, and of course this year's and next year's draft as the new men in the organization must make correct decisions and keep the pipeline going. The pipeline can never shut down, even for a while--that's black gold, texas tea, to quote a famous man.

Now, I didn't say we should have turned it down. Quite frankly we deserved more given the effort we put forth. But the idea that far too many teams make the playoffs is interesting. This isn't as big a problem in baseball as say the NFL or NBA or...well, everyone. But I wouldn't mind discussing the possiblity of dumping the Wild Card and just going with division winners, etc. And when was the last time someone or some organization admitted publicly that the didn't deserve the reward or the praise or the award they got? I think that would be a really interesting discussion.

I have to say I agree with most of the sentiment around here. Lets draft a high OBP, lefthanded hitting, powerful, 3rd baseman. (insert smiley face dude) And then a ton of arms. Keep throwing arms at a wall and some might stick.

Actually if I thought Russ was serious I could've got behind the idea of turning down a playoff spot because we didn't deserve it. Now that would've been historical and generated a lot of interesting discussion and debate. But alas, mere sarcasm--too bad really.

Fair enough. I'm only thinking out loud. I don't want to suppress anyone's memory, but merely want to point out that there's a greater picture, and maybe, just maybe another way to think about it. We all know what a burden the talk of 1982 has been. I'd rather that we don't replace it with 2008 talk. That's all really. It's a minor point. Oh...and just one more thing: I really do think there's a good chance that decades could go by without making the playoffs: small market, lack of tradition, inability to produce another "wave" of players from the minors, etc., etc., etc.

I'd take 50 grand for every Lou in the system if I could.

Can't say as I'm for this. Number one: it seems weak, grasping at straws. Number two: if I have to be reminded, well... Number three: if others do it by all means follow. Number four: what will be the results when it's another 26 years till we make the playoffs again. And what's the results when pople realize there's no WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS banner up there, and the real possibility there never will be. I'm afraid that hoisting a banner only serves to remind us that our franchise has been...

This brings up another point. Remember when the AFL was the minor leagues, and the NFL was the majors. It's time that the US "World Series Winner" plays the Japanese champion.