LouisEly

So a couple of folks said that they have a hard time imagining the Brewers getting back sufficient value to justify a trade of Fiers. But that means one of two things: 1) he has a lot of value to the Brewers, or B) he has little value to others. Given that he is effective and cost-controlled for several seasons, that eliminates B) above. But if he has a lot of value to the Brewers for those reasons... wouldn't he have a lot of value to other teams as well? Isn't this a classic case of undervaluing your own players and overvaluing other team's players? If you knew nothing else about a player except that he was an effective major-league starter and cost-controlled for several seasons beyond next year, wouldn't you say that player has a lot of value to any major league team? Why would the cost to the Brewers to acquire him or replace him be any more than the cost of another team to acquire him?

Back to the Orioles and Gomez...

Does anyone else think that a hotel conference room sticking out onto the course that you have to hit over and having grandstands in the middle of the course soils such a majestic and historic venue?

TOR has a bid need for LHRP too, so might as well throw in Cotts. Gomez, Fiers, K-Rod, Cotts for Norris, Pompey, Castro, Pentecost, and Reid-Foley?

He had to make a lot of adjustments to his delivery, how he threw his curveball, and learning a changeup. They said on the broadcast that they have had him working on his changeup a lot since his callup. Today his fastball topped out at 95 (sat at 92 the last 2-3 innings but threw at least four 94/95 in the 3rd inning), his changeup at about 84/85, and his curve 74/75. To have a 17-20 mph difference between your pitches - if you can throw the change and curve for strikes - is extremely tough on hitters and keeps them off balance. Like Fiers - his fastball tops out at 91/92, his change at 82, and his curve as slow as 69/70. Keeps hitters off-balance because of the 20 mph differential. On the contrary, Broxton was throwing his fastball at 95/96 and was overthrowing his slider at 90/91 - not enough differential to keep hitters off balance (and too hard to generate much movement or command), thus the bad results. In Broxton's last few outings his slider has been more like 87, and he's had better results.

He's older than Dominguez (27 vs 25), but hits lefty and has performed better in the major leagues than Dominguez has. Posted a decent .752 OPS last year, but his 2013 and this season were sub .700 OPS. Dominguez does have one option remaining, whereas (I assume) Gillaspie does not. I think you can likely pencil in Perez as the 3B of 2016, but do the Brewers take a flyer on Gillaspie given he has had at least one reasonably decent MLB full season and provides some LH balance? Gillaspie is definitely worse against LHP, decent career against RHP (.743 OPS), and they would have Perez and Gomez to start at 3B/2B against tough lefties. Interesting to note that yesterday was Gillaspie's 27th birthday. Heckuva birthday present, but at least the White Sox let him celebrate his birthday as a major leaguer.

Wondering if some folks here can recommend some golf shoes that are good/comfortable for people who like to walk the course. I like to get exercise - walking the course and carrying my clubs - even at the expense of a few strokes down the stretch; it helps me rationalize the expense of the greens fees. Keep in mind, I'm 6'3", 220, so the shoes need to be good for bigger guys that like to walk. Not a fan of Nike for many reasons, and they would likely make some of the most comfortable given their athletic shoe technology, but if they are really amazing I might put aside my issues with Nike.

Regarding prospect for prospect trades, Anthony Rizzo was traded for Andrew Cashner back in 2012. Seems to have worked out pretty well for both teams, tilted a little towards the Cubs, but both players have played well since the trade.

Uecker, Easter Sunday, 1987.

To quote the guys over at Brew Crew Ball, "What would the Brewers get if they traded Lucroy? The biggest haul of prospects you have ever seen." They can get more than Walker for him. A lot more. If the Brewers put Lucroy on the market, a majority of teams in baseball are going to want in, contending or not right now. They will trade other players to acquire the young talent needed to trade for Lucroy. Let teams bid up on Lucroy at the winter meetings. Some teams that would desperately want him aren't ready to make that deal right now.

Mike Fiers hopes this is true - brotha' gonna get PAID!

Ramirez to go on a tear the next two weeks and get traded, or packaged with another player (Parra, Cotts, Lohse, K-Rod, etc.), for legitimate talent. Lohse to find his groove over the next month so that he gets traded for some type of prospect. Minor injuries to contender's starting pitching (nothing career ending, just stuff that keeps them out for 4-6 weeks like a pulled hammy or the famous intercostal strain) that forces them to acquire Lohse out of necessity. He'll likely pass through waivers so the Brewers can still trade him in August, and if he doesn't pass waivers, let that team take him and his salary. Parra, Cotts, and K-Rod to get moved sooner rather than later since they are hot. I want the Brewers to be competitive, but I wouldn't mind if they lost a lot of games by one run and got their wins in blowouts to pad the stats of the hitters. Let the youngsters take over in September.

Generally speaking, what I've read is that in the majors they have much more data on hitters so they know much more where batters hit balls, which allows for better placement of defenders. A guy who has been in the majors for 7-10 years will have 7-10 years of spray charts; you don't have that on guys in the minors, and spray charts may not be as relevant in the minors anyway when guys make the big jumps (A to AA, rookie to A). I don't have stats to prove it, but if this is true then ground ball pitchers would seem do better in the majors because of better defensive positioning due to more data. Generally speaking, there isn't much scouting done in the minors for the purposes of winning - the scouting is done predominantly for the purposes of talent evaluation. In the majors much more scouting is done for the purposes of winning, so much more data is collected on where guys tend to hit the ball.

Jay Bruce's salary is double Parra's and has another guaranteed year; if a team doesn't want to take on much salary that's a deterrent. But if salary isn't an issue, he has another year guaranteed and a team option for 2017 at $13M. It's a very reasonable salary for his production, no reason to believe a team won't pick up the option year. Low risk acquisition and the acquiring team would be eligible for a comp pick, so a team would likely have to give up more to get Bruce than Parra. Ben Revere isn't as good offensively and has a terrible arm. Markakis has 3/$33M left on his contract; great OBP and good defense, but his power has disappeared. Will Venable's offense might be suppressed a bit by Petco Field; he might be the biggest threat - he's a better CF, but Parra has a better bat and arm. Justin Upton is making $14.5M, and SD isn't eligible for a comp pick if he leaves. Shane Victorino is making twice as much and is washed up.

NYY - 20:1 - Don't have a huge need, but they get what they want. Both Gomez and Parra would be the youngest OF on the roster. Beltran is on his last legs, Young is a free agent, and an OF of Gomez, Ellsbury, and Gardner could cover a lot of ground. Don't know if they have the prospects to get Gomez. BAL - 6:1 - Parra is a nice fit here to rectify the failed Delmon Young experiment, as BAL needs a 3rd OF badly. The teams are no strangers to making deals, and if BAL is willing to move Sisco it could be a done deal, but other than Sisco there isn't much to their system that I would want that BAL is likely to move. TBR - 10:1 - Parra would be the best OF on the team, much less Gomez, and they need an offensive boost. Gomez isn't the type of move they would make, but Parra's reasonable salary might be if they want to make a push. Don't match up well prospect-wise though, as many of their top prospects are infielders and outfielders. With the depth they have at SP, would be interesting if they offered Matt Moore for Gomez. Would be funny if they offered Odorizzi for Gomez. TOR: 6:1 - If there is a spot for Gomez at the deadline this is it. With Buehrle and Dickey on the wrong side of 35 it may be time to go for it. They have the trade pieces too - Norris, Pentecost, Hoffman, Castro. These teams match up well with needs & prospects. Outside chance at a blockbuster here - Gomez, K-Rod, and Cotts for... KCR: 8-1 - Gordon is out for 8 weeks, and Rios is washed up. Heck, Logan Schafer might be an upgrade on Rios. Parra would be very interesting to them. I wonder if Shane Peterson would be a low-cost temporary solution until Gordon returns. MIN: 5-1 - Again, Parra might be the best OF on that team right now, much less Gomez. If they're not willing to move Buxton, Sano, or Berrios then I don't know if a deal for Gomez happens as there's a big dropoff after that; might take at least Stewart plus one or both of Gonsalves and Hu. Other than those three there aren't many prospects of theirs that I would want. Parra for Hu? Hu would make for priceless listening to Uecker. HOU: 20-1 - With Springer on the DL and Marisnick struggling, perhaps Parra makes sense. But I don't think this is the year they go for it, and the Astros likely have a bigger need at SP. LAA: 6-1 - Parra and Lind to the Angels makes too much sense. The only question is if the prospects line up. Don't know if Lind and Parra are enough to get Newcomb, but I might take Kubitza and Gatto. WSN: 10-1 - With Span on the DL with back spasms and Werth on the DL for a while longer with the wrist fractures, grabbing Parra might make a lot of sense. Taylor has had some big hits, but overall his sub .700 OPS means they can upgrade. If the prognosis on Werth isn't good, do they go for it and make a splash for Go-Go? NYM: 8-1 - What don't the Mets need offensively? Parra would be a nice upgrade over Cuddyer, and with the big OF there a good defensive OF has extra value. The question is, would Parra + Ramirez + Segura be enough to get one of the Mets stud young pitchers? What about Gomez + Ramirez? STL: 10-1 - Holliday and Jay on the DL, Jay has stunk all year, Grichuck is due to come back to Earth, and Bourjous has been mediocre. If the prognosis on Holliday and Jay isn't good, might be a good bet for Parra. The last trade between the two worked out well for MIL. PIT: 12-1 - Hart is no longer a quality option defensively and Polanco has struggled. Parra to PIT - if nothing else to make STL mad - is not that far-fetched. CHC: 8-1 - Soler and Fowler struggling; again, Parra's position flexibility has value and the Cubs have plenty of prospects to deal. Because of that, this is the sleeper destination for Gomez. SFG: 6-1 - SF reportedly loves Parra, and with Aoki out a few more weeks it creates a need. The question is if prospects match up. If they won't part with Beede or Bickford there isn't much, but I might take Aramis Garcia plus PTBNL 4th round pick Mac Marshall or Parra. One of Beede/Bickford plus Garcia and Marshall for Gomez? Lots of potential suitors here, and the high demand for Parra and possibly Gomez I think will push up the return, especially if you can play some division rivals against each other.

The Orioles released Delmon Young, Snyder has had a disappointing season, and their backups are a group of 30-ish journeymen in De Aza, Lough, and Reimold (everyone... "Who???"). Need a 3rd OF badly. With Jones in CF and not a lot of top prospects in their farm system I don't think they are a landing spot for Gomez, but Parra would fit nicely here. Prospects line up nicely too. The Brewers could grab their catching prospect in Chance Sisco; he's a little ways off in high-A, but a high OBP/low strikeout LHH catcher is just what the Brewers need. Because he's still at the A-ball level, perhaps the demand for Parra could get the O's to toss in David Hess or Brian Gonzalez.

Two things: 1) Having watched most of all of his starts, I would not say that his curveball is "pretty average". When it's on, it's pretty darned good. Occasionally he won't throw it well, but last night he made one of the best hitters in the game, Adrian Gonzalez, look pretty bad with it. It has a late, sharp break, with both vertical and some horizontal break. 2) Fastball quality isn't all about velocity, it's about deception and location too. See: Fiers, Mike. Jungmann throws a few mph harder than Fiers, but Fiers delivery is so deceptive that it appears faster than it really is, and because of that Fiers can go up the ladder to strike guys out on high 90 mph fastballs. Jungmann has some deception to his delivery, which can make his fastball appear faster than it really is, and he's done a good job of locating it low in the zone. A common comp for Jungmann has been Jered Weaver, and while it has been a few years since I've seen Weaver pitch, I don't recall Weaver throwing harder than 91-92. Too many people (pitchers and armchair evaluators) focus too much on the radar gun and not enough on deception and delivery. You can't go entirely on minor league numbers because most players are learning different mechanics/new pitches and it takes a while to learn them. They have said that they made a lot of mechanical adjustments to TJ's delivery - he supposedly used to throw even more cross-fire than he does now - and it takes a while to learn that. Certainly pitching in Colorado Springs isn't going to help with your curveball because you need friction between the air and the seams to make the ball break, and when the air is thinner there is less friction. I don't doubt that he will regress a bit, certainly the BABIP suggests he will, but I think he is a better pitcher than his minor league numbers may indicate.

$9 each? I don't know about Canon, but for my HP I can get all four (BCYM) in XL for $10 on eBay.

The good news is that the western Colorado/eastern Utah area is getting some much needed rain.

The reason STL was even in the playoffs during their WS winning years of 2006 (83 wins) and 2011 was because of epic collapses (ATL in 2011) and mass mediocrity (2006). ATL lost 9 of their last 12 games in 2011. Hell, STL almost had one of the most epic collapses in the history of the game in 2006 - they were 7 games up on 9/20 and eight days later were only 0.5 games up. The Brewers aren't the only team to benefit from poor finishes by other teams.

So you agree we need to rebuild? Absolutely. I've said it before that I'm looking forward to a few years of top 10 picks to build the next wave. I believe in the "sine wave" approach if you aren't a top payroll team. I have no problem with what they've done the last few years because I agree with the go-for-it then bottom out and get high draft picks approach. The last few years were the crest of the sine wave/go-for-it time. Now it's time to get those high draft picks.

Tampa wouldn't have made it to the WS in 2008 or the playoffs recently without Longoria and Price, two top three overall picks, or Garza, who was acquired for a former #1 overall pick. They also probably wouldn't have made it to the WS in 2008 without 35-year-old Cliff Floyd, who signed as a free agent the offseason prior. Yes, they spun Garza for Chris Archer, but they needed Delmon Young - the #1 overall pick in 2003 - to acquire Garza. Unless you have a payroll in the upper 1/3rd of the league, you need a string of top 10 picks (Giants, Royals, Rays, now Astros, Cubs, Pirates; actually, the Giants have both - a string of top 10 picks and a payroll in teh top 1/3rd). The Cardinals are the exception this year, but last year they were 9th in payroll, 10th in 2013, 9th in 2012, etc. The Cardinals have done a great job with talent identification and development, but it helps that they can have a big payroll to keep those players.

You have a HP OfficeJet 6600 (or similar)... just like me! It doesn't print black/white using those colors, but every time you print it is programmed to clean the print heads which uses a little bit of all three colors. I've had times when I can count the number of color pages I've gotten from the CMY cartridge with one hand before they were empty. And then - my favorite part - it will refuse to print in black ink only if any of the CMY cartridges are empty. HP thought, "Hey, we'll make a ton of money with CMY cartridge refills by depleting them with these settings! No, the consumers won't mind, they'll just pay up." Yeah... If it really is printing b/w with those colors, I am assuming you have done this: Print > Properties > Advanced > then click the "Print In Grayscale" setting select "Black ink only". Do that in the Control Panel under Printers to set the default. Tip - buy the recycled CMY cartridges off of eBay. HP printers can't sense the ink levels in those so they assume they have ink and will let you print in black ink only even if the CMY cartridges are empty.

Well played, sir, well played.

Thinking outside the box, what if the Brewers added some prospects in the deal? What if the Brewers added Tyrone Taylor or Devin Williams? Gomez, Cotts, and Taylor/Williams - would that get Buxton or Sano? Gomez, Cotts, and one of Taylor/Williams for one of Buxton/Sano and Chih-Wei Hu?