DuWayne Steurer

I love how any athlete busted for anything anymore automatically blames it on the people he hangs out with. You can pretty much paraphrase.... "I realize that I have to be more careful about choosing the people I surround myself with. I fully accept the fact that my own personal decisions in who I hang out with have allowed me to be in this terrible situation, so to the fans of the (NFL, NBA, whatever) I totally apologize (not for killing dogs, or shooting body guards, or doing drugs) but for choosing the wrong people to hang out with." Pathetic.

Also, just to keep going back to facts and stats, the average PC per plate appearance in the NL is 3.73. The Brewers starters average 3.79, which will amount to one more pitch every 18 batters or so. Nibbling isn't the problem, walking guys isn't the problem. (ok, walking guys is a problem, but the Brewers are not worse than average in this aspect). They're just not pitching good right now. I have 100% belief that each guy is going out there TRYING to throw strikes, and pitch a quality start. I can't honestly believe that telling them they have to "Try harder or else" accomplishes anything at all, aside from fracturing up an already frustrated clubhouse.

RoCo, the only issue that I have with this is that it's the season average, including when the Brewers were "hot" and the starters were going deeper into games. I would imagine, unfortunately, that the "average" start for a Brewers starter, say, after the hot start is below that... and after Sheets got hurt, even lower still. If the pitchers aren't presently going deeper into games, the bullpen is going to be more worn down than, say the Padres'. I completely see and understand that. And I agree. But "making" a guy stay in there to get shelled for 7 innings proves nothing, and does nothing to help win games. I'm as frustrated as anyone I'm sure, but just forcing your starters to burn up, regardless of how effective they are accomplishes nothing but make your DL list longer.

Brewers starters are 6th in the NL in fewest walks allowed amongst starters. However, they're 12th in batting average against. I can't find a stat off hand for BABIP, but I think you're at least strongly on to something.

Maybe Sheets when he gets back... I think this, more than anything is the problem. Most teams have one guy, maybe 2 who you can count on to give you a solid 7 inning outing more often than not, and when you don't have that guy, it compounds the problems that most teams already have keeping their bullpen fresh. The other thing that can be said about the bullpen effectiveness, and I know others are saying it, and it's just a theory, but I'll say it again. Ned makes his relievers get up, warm up, sit down, warm up, sit down, and then come into a game more than any manager I've ever seen. Those bullpen pitches (especially the last 15-20 before you come in) are just as taxing on an arm as the pitches you throw in a game. I think our bullpen woes have a lot more to do with the loss of Sheets, and Yost's general mishandling of the bullpen than a perceived lack of starter ability to pitch what's considered a fair workload.

Brewers starters average 5.85 IP per start. The Padres starters, interestingly enough average 5.81 IP per start. EDIT to add that the NL average IP for starter is 5.86, for for all intents and purposes, the Brewers are exactly at league average.

Brian, I found this, which helps, but doesn't give an exact average. I'm guessing you've got the math skills to figure this one out! http://static.yuku.com//domainskins/bypass/img/smileys/wink.gif EDIT, crap, I don't know how to post links anymore. Anyways, I found ESPN's stat page, and you can sort it by "starters only", and the Brewers are 9th in the NL in IP for starters, so they're right in the middle of the pack. 719 IP in 123 starts, FYI.

Just for reference, Claudio Vargas pitched 8 innings July 27 vs. the Cards, with a PC of 117, after not going more than 6 innings in his last several starts. After that 8 inning stint, in his next three starts he gave up 15 ER in 15 and 2/3 innings. I wouldn't doubt that there's a strong possibility that was at least in part due to his overuse in that win vs. the Cards. I understand that it was necessary to get a long outing from him, due to the doubleheader on tap for the following day, but there's a larger picture that needs to be focused on as well.

Telling someone they have to do something isn't going to make them better at doing it. At this point, I think ultimatums are only going to make matters worse. These guys know what they have to do. They know what's at stake. Issuing "demands" such as minimum workloads isn't going to make them "want it" any more than they already do.

Hall would have fetched twice as much as a trading chip after last season as he would now. For the production that he is capable of (.825-.850 OPS) he's going to be underpaid for the next few years. I see no reason to move him at this point, considering the return would almost certainly not be of equal value to what Hall himself is likely to provide next year in a full healthy season.

FINALLY got a chance to watch Children of Men. Excellent movie. The agendas of the differing factions isn't made crystal clear (unless I wasn't paying close enough attention) but it didn't detract from the movie. Michael Caine smoking ganj and dropping F bombs was pretty much hilarious. As an aside, over the years, I can't help but notice that in many, many movies that are either British in origin, or are set in Britain, the main characters almost always eschew the use of guns, even when a gun is readily available, and would be imminently helpful in the current situation. I'm sure there's a message there......... I've always enjoyed British literature and films, my wife hates me for it, and won't watch Lock, Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels anytime I pop it in the DVD player.

I wouldn't call those "dink and dunk" hits. He walked Dunn, Conine lined a solid single to right, and the next guy drilled a single to left. Each of those balls were hard hit. That aside, it's mind boggling, to the point of ludicrousness, that a team can blow this many 5 run leads in so short a time. It's absolutely appalling that a 5 run lead for this team is nothing but a recipe for disaster. In reality, it's awfully tough to say a season is "over" when you're 1 game back with 38 games left to play, but I can honestly say I don't see how a team can expect to win when you can't count on your pitching staff to give up less than 7 runs a game any more than once a week. Even the 27 Yankees would have a hard time scoring enough runs to win consistently with this awful, awful group of pitchers we're throwing out there right now.

Not much to update. She has an easier time going out the front door and down the front step, so we've started letting her out that way. The only downside being that she thinks the neighbor's front yard is part of her run. (Downside for them, not me) She's not growling at anyone or showing her teeth since I last posted, which is good, of course. As far as some of the other comments and stuff.... She never gets table scraps or "human food", we've always been very careful about that, even since she was a puppy. I know too many people who give their dog scraps, and thats the type of dog that sits by the dinner table and expects stuff. I didn't want that kind of dog. We switched her to an "older dog" dog food about 2 years ago, and she adapted really well to that. I haven't started her on any meds yet (mostly just haven't had much time to get to a vet the last few weeks), and I'm really loathe to start her on anything as long as she seems to be doing ok these last few weeks. I'll definately look into it before November, as I'm sure she's going to have a hard time with the cold weather.

(Just to bring it up....anyone else find themselves watching significantly more movies in the theater this year than in previous summers? I went to at least 6...and I'm probably forgetting another one or two. Absolutely. We probably make it to 3-4 movies a year in the theaters, but this year we've seen close to 10. I think this is just a good year for movies. And I 2nd Roberts exclamations on Hot Fuzz. That movie was simply awesome.

I know it'd be just as easy to go and ask a vet these questions, but I want to hear what actual dog owners have to say, and this place is as good as any. My dog (Black lab) is 11 years old. She's got a pretty bad set of hips (From what I've heard this is common with labs). She doesn't have a whole lot of trouble getting around, but even navigating the 2 steps to get in or out of the back door is a chore, and standing up, she more or less looks like an old man trying to get out of a recliner. She's gotten to the point where she'll just piss in the house somewhat often rather than go outside. She's getting ornery (and I can't stress enough what a good tempered dog she's always been), and she's showing her teeth and growling at us when she's so much as startled slightly. She hasn't bitten anyone yet, but I strongly suspect that it's at least a good possibility to happen in the right circumstances. She's just basically acting "old", and I've never had a dog this age. I'm not against going to the vet of course, I'd just like to get some opinions from some experienced dog owners before I go sinking a load of money I can't afford into medical costs for a dog that probably doesn't have a really long time left to live. (added tag --1992casey)

I specifically stated that I understand that this is very likely an issue of perception and not reality. What I'm really getting at (no, I don't have a set of stats that will either prove or disprove my argument) is that with the makeup of the Brewers offense, it seems to me that giving up an out for the sake of moving one base is a situation of diminishing return. It's only my opinion, and it's colored by what I've seen lately, I'll readily admit that. In my opinion, I never like seeing a hitter, even a bad one, have the bat taken out of his hands on a sacrifice attempt, when the only thing it appears to accomplish is give you one less out to play with to score a run. Given that many of the Brewers hitters are prone to striking out (aside from Estrada and Mench), I don't like the "man on 3rd with one out" any more than a man on 2nd with no out. I understand that what run probabilities are per inning, I won't even try to dispute the statistics. I'm only saying that you have to look at it contextually, and with Hart coming up, I would just as soon see Weeks hit away in this situation. I'd like to see proof that the Brewers actually have a problem doing that. I think only a 100% success rate in those situations would placate baseball fans. Sometimes it's worthy to have a discussion, even when I say "in my opinion" and "I realize it's a perception issue" without having to be berated for not having statistical evidence of everything.

Cana Island lighthouse on the Lake Michigan side is pretty neat. As far as places to stay (and trying to not spend a lot of dough), most of the hotels/motels up there are going to run in excess of $75 a night, if not more. There's a good number of hotels in Sturgeon Bay that are probably going to run less than most of the places further out on the peninsula, and Sturgeon Bay is within an hour, hour and a half drive of everything out there, more or less. And yeah, the Tannenbaum's Christmas shop is a pretty cool place. The Door County Winery is neat, if you're into that type of stuff. There's a couple of farmer's markets out there that have a lot of stuff, including baked goods and such.

Bear with me, this isn't just specific to tonight's game....... I don't like when Yost tries to play "small ball" with this team. The team (IMO of course) isn't constituted in such a way that makes playing (or trying to play) small ball a feasible strategy. When Weeks came up in the 9th, I was listening to the radio saying "don't bunt, don't bunt, don't bunt". My buddy says "You have to bunt here, to put the winning run on third base, don't you?" Well, yeah, I see the reasoning, but all too often (and I completely understand that this is a perception issue, as I haven't looked up the statistics to bear me out), it seems like a leadoff double gets bunted over to third, and then stranded. I don't believe this team has the type of players needed to succeed with a small ball strategy, even only occasionally. Hart, Braun, Fielder, Hall, Weeks, Jenkins, heck, just about everyone strikes out too much to really be able to rely on bringing home a runner on third with one out. Now, I am not AT ALL suggesting that Melvin should acquire the types of players that would fit a small ball strategy. I'm not suggesting that our guys need to work on bunting more. By and large, aside from pitchers, I hate seeing a guy bunt and give up an out for the sake of one base being gained, as you're really putting the onus on the next guy to bring him in, because if he doesn't, the situation isn't all that different than a man on 2nd with 2 outs, because most singles with 2 outs bring a runner home from 2nd anyways. In my opinion the whole "getting the guy to 3rd with one out" strategy really boils down to allowing yourself one decent shot at bringing that runner home, and with the makeup of our club, I don't think it's a sound strategy. Hey, Braun bailed us out tonight, but generally speaking, I just really don't think this team (or most teams anymore) are really suited to playing for one run.

It seems like lately, the cameras have caught Ned a fair amount of times yelling at, or generally chewing out one of his players or pitchers. Given the record lately, I would have to conclude (with minimal data to backup my theory) that the whole yelling and screaming tactic isn't really working out. Considering however that Rickie was involved in 2 near-miss collisions in this game as well, I don't think it would be out of line to just talk to him about making sure he communicates on the field, takes advantage of the help that's available to him in the form of base coaches, and generally just be aware of game situations at all times.

Next on NBC, Brian Williams hosts"To Catch a Troll". I don't know about Brian Williams, but I know Brian K "caught" an ESPN troll that was harrassing the crap out of me by goading him into signing up on Brewerfan, which of course gave Brian access to his IP and other such information. That wasn't anything close to a cool situation, as this guy claimed to know where my kids went to school. 99% chance he's just blowing smoke, but you don't want to be wrong about that 1%.

When I had elbow surgery 4 years ago, I more or less became an internet/message board addict. There wasn't much else to do, and I was out of work for almost 18 months. There were about 3 message boards, as well as countless sites that I visited every day that if I didn't see them all at LEAST once a day, I was wondering what I was missing out on. Like any addiction, they're tough to break, but once you do, you really do realize what you've *actually* been missing out on. We bought a new house and moved in April, and I find I really don't have time for surfing the web all that often, and the more time I spend away from it, the less I feel the urge to be on it. I still check here now and then, I check the weather every day (It's a heck of a lot faster than waiting for Local On The 8's!) and I'll read the news a little bit, but that's about all I have time (or the inclination) for anymore. As for the tv, I think it's probably the same deal. If you tear yourself away from it, you find you don't miss much after a while. I don't watch anything "regular" anymore. I still watch tv, but there's no program that I'm hooked to on a weekly basis. As for the Brewers, I think Jim and Bob are in many ways preferable to watching on tv.

5 times in 11 days this team has blown a lead of 3 runs or greater. That's not just improbable, that should be damn near impossible. I have to take a hiatus from watching or listening to the games, there's nothing fun about watching when you're up 5 or 6 to nothing, and still feel like you have slim/no chance to win.

It's entirely possible that Paul Molitor got boo'd when he came back for the stuff he did off the field (or in the locker room, as may be the case)

I honestly hope Prince doesn't think that New York (and Philly) are the only places that fans boo poor play. I'm not saying it is or isn't ok to boo your guys, but it happens everywhere.

The scoreboard was at least a source of humorous diversion during the last season. A friend and I went to a weekday night game later on in the year vs. the Cubs. It was cold, rainy, and we were a few of a handful of die hards hanging out in the bleachers that night. The scoreboard was operating horribly, and I think I remember hearing that during that last season, they weren't going to bother with repairing it that late in it's final season. Anyways, the Mets were playing the Marlins that night, and of course with the rain the scoreboard was operating rather terribly (as I said). At one point we looked up, and it was showing out of town scores, and with the bulbs burnt out and acting screwy, this is what it looked like it said..... HATS -- 70 BERLINS -- X Yes, the Hats were beating the Berlins, 70 to X. (Roman Numerals perhaps?)