jaybird2001wi

With Ryan Braun being slated to be in Brewers blue for the next 7-8 years and with his power numbers, he could be the most likely candidate to break several team hitting records that could be well within reach, most notably the franchise home run record set by Robin Yount at 251. I did some calculations and here is what he could be within reach of and also within reasonable reach to make the top 10 in each category, I utilized baseball-reference.com's 162-game average to calculate his projections: Key: Braun's current stats How much remaining to top 10 and current 10th All-Time record holder Projection at end of eighth season Hits: Braun - 229 Hits (162-game average: 204) Remaining: 771 hits (1,000 career Brewer hits by Jeff Cirillo) Projection: 1,632 Hits (5th All-Time behind Yount, Molitor, Cooper and Gantner) Projected year of 1,000th hit: End of 2011 season (Age: 27) Doubles: Braun - 44 career doubles (162-game average: 39) Remaining: 133 doubles (177 career doubles by Charlie Moore) Projection: 312 Doubles (4th All-Time behind Yount, Molitor and Cooper) Triples: Braun - 9 Triples (162-game average: 8) Remaining: 12 triples (21 triples by Darryl Hamilton and Ben Oglivie) Projection: 64 Triples (3rd All-Time behind Paul Molitor and Robin Yount) Home Runs: Braun - 54 Home Runs (162-game average: 48) Remaining: 80 home runs (134 home runs by Don Money) Projection: 384 Home Runs (1st All-Time in Brewer history) Projected Year of Record-Breaker: Mid-2012 season (Age: 28) RBI: Braun - 152 RBI (162-game average: 135) Remaining: 373 RBI (525 by Jeromy Burnitz) Projection: 1,080 (2nd All-Time behind Yount) Runs: Braun - 133 runs (162-game average: 118) Remaining: 373 Runs (506 by Jeff Cirillo) Projection: 944 (3rd All-Time behind Molitor and Yount) Just for curiousity - Stolen Bases - 21 stolen bases (162-game average: 19) Remaining: 59 stolen bases (78 by Jose Valentin) Projection: 152 Stolen Bases (3rd All-Time behind Yount and Molitor) SINGLE-SEASON, according to current 162-game averages: Braun has the potential to be the single-season franchise leader in both Home Runs and RBI.

Football: Marion Butts, Mossy Cade, Dick Butkus, Craphonso Thorp, Elisha Manning (Eli), Ben Gay Basketball: Spud Webb, God Shamgod Baseball: Calvin Coolidge Julius Caesar Tuskahoma McLish aka Cal McLish, Antonio Bastardo (Phils minor leaguer),

Mike Hegan?

According to CNNSI's Truth and Rumors section, there was a variety of reasons why the Texas Rangers decided to let Sidney Ponson go because of major alcohol and attitude issues. According to the article CNNSI posted, it appeared Ponson decided to get liquored up the night before his start at Tampa. I never knew Ponson was this bad. It speaks dividends when your own teammates attempt to break up a fight between a teammate and a bartender in a hotel bar the day before a start. He was released following "embarassing incidents to the organization" when it scrawled across ESPN's bottomline a week or two ago, but this article gets into specifics about what really led them to releasing him.

I am doing research on past Brewer and other teams minor league affiliates and am in search of old logos and stadiums (such as: Danville Warriors, Shreveport Captains, etc.) and am wondering if there is a good website out there that can direct me to what I am looking for. For those of the "old timers" in here who may have been Minor league fans in the 70's and 80's, do any of you have pics of stadiums and teams from back then? I am looking for mainly Midwest League pics because I may want to do an in-depth research project on the Class A league.

Besides, the coverage we now have of ballplayers is really unprecedented. The warts of players used to be hidden, only serving to glorify their 'idol' status even further. That statement is very true. A lot of people perceived Willie Mays as a "good guy" but according to some insider reports from his playing days, he may have been considered a vile-type of player. But now that we have a 24-hour sports network and endless National TV games, there really is obviously a lot more coverage of said players today. Prior to the ESPN days, we would be lucky to catch one National game a week and the All-Star game was the "one chance" we got to see the games best in one arena and nowadays, the All-Star game is now more of a spectacle than anything else. But even the 70's had PEDs, Speed and other amphetamines, but now it is about strength, not energy. The book Ball Four is the perfect depiction of "greenies" in the 70's and prior. But the 80's may have been the beginning of the steroid era, but also the end of the alleged "global" use of greenies and cocaine in MLB. I seem to remember cocaine being an issue in the mid 80's with probation being handed down to a handful of players including Mookie Wilson and Keith Hernandez. But in perspective to eras, you may be right when it comes to looking into the future. We may actually talk about the playing abilities of A-Rod and Manny. But in my perspective, the two position players that stand out to me right now as being future "legends" are Griffey and Chipper Jones. As I stated before, Jones is the most overlooked player. He played third base, switch-hitter, played his entire career with one-team (pending any future developments and this is a rarity in today's era of free agency and trades) and was a solid defender and has 400 homers as a switch-hitter. Today's future Hall of Fame pitchers are the players I can place in "legendary" status much easier than position players due to the hitting era. Greg Maddux (active leader in wins with 350, four behind Clemens for eighth all-time): Had a tough rookie year with the Cubs and was almost shown the door after his rookie campaign and was able to step it up. Four consecutive Cy Young Awards and is probably the best fielding pitcher in ML history. Due to his "finesse" pitching style, there is probably minimal talk about PED use. Tom Glavine: Location, location, location. That is what his game was all about. He almost always delivered the ball right into where the catcher spotted his pitches. Earned two Cy Youngs and the 1995 World Series MVP. Like Maddux, is also a member of the 300-win club. Randy Johnson: Had he not been a power and strikeout pitcher, he may have amassed more wins. Strikeout pitchers equals more pitches and more wear and tear on the body. He really didn't "catch fire" in his career until he passed his 30th birthday Had he been more productive prior to his 30th birthday, he would have gotten to his 300th career win by now. But he has been one of the more durable pitchers after his 30th birthday. Trevor Hoffman: The new career saves leader with 538. Due to the formation of the "closer role" in his playing era, could this discount his accomplishment more than say, a Dennis Eckersley or Lee Smith? Both pitchers played in an era where the closer role was just being developed. Of the top 20 saves leaders of All-Time, more than half played in the late 80's until present with seven currently being active (Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, Billy Wagner, Troy Percival, Roberto Hernandez, Jose Mesa and Todd Jones.)

With Manny Ramirez hitting his 500th career homer basically stamping his admission into the Hall of Fame, I just can't see him in the same class as Legendary outfielders Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente. In my opinion, what Aaron, Mays and Clemente did for the game will always be much bigger than what today's stars have done. In an era where there was no question these players did it naturally and also in an era of racial disharmony, it seems to me that today's stars will never be as legendary as Mays, Aaron and Clemente. Clemente risked and lost his life for the good of the people of Nicaragua in the aftermath of the Hurricane down there while the stars today just don't seem to be as "humanitarian-like." Aaron endured death threats during his run against Babe Ruth's Home Run record in a divisive southern city of Atlanta during the aftermath of the Civil Rights era while Bonds endured the "steroids questions." It just seems like there is no match for today's future Hall of Famers against their counterparts of yesteryear. Even Mickey Mantle and Joe DiMaggio are in classes by themselves, Mantle managed to pound out a productive Hall of Fame career despite a magnitude of injuries and battles with alcoholism and DiMaggio's 56-game hit streak hasn't been touched. Of the prominent hitting records still standing, DiMaggio's hit streak and Ted Williams .400 season still stands in the books. I just can't envision people 40 years from now ranting and raving and telling stories of how great Manny Ramirez was or how great some of the newer members of the 500 home run club where. Aside from that, here is what I believe about the hitting "benchmarks" players of today have in getting inducted: 500 home runs: Barry Bonds - Much to debated about his record-breaking career. Prior to his 73-home run season in 2001, he had 494 home runs. If there wasn't a question of whether he took steroids to boost his statistics after 2000 and had more human-like stats after that season, he would have been a sure-fire Hall of Fame without any question. Not to mention, he once was a base stealer which could have swayed voters to voting him in had he not approached 700 career homers. Sammy Sosa - Another player filed under "steroids skepticism." He should be more scrutinized than Bonds when his name appears on the ballot because prior to his 66-home run season, he had a mere 211 career home runs. If you averaged out his Home Runs per season prior to the 1998 season, he amassed 19.18 home runs per season. After his home run tear, he averaged 42 home runs. There just seems to be more question in my opinion about whether he was artificially enhanced after that season. The difference between Bonds and Sosa is, Bonds would have been a Hall of Famer anyway had he continued his "baseline-type" seasons prior to his 73-homer season in 2001. But writers may discount Bonds anyway, because he broke a sacred record while allegedly on steroids. Ken Griffey Jr. - Had he not been injured so much after being traded to Cincinnati, he may have been in the 700-home run club by now. He amassed 398 career homers with Seattle before being traded to Cincy. In 11 years with the Mariners, he averaged just a shade over 36 home runs a season. Had he continued that average with the Reds and not gotten injured, he would have accumulated 723.63 home runs by now. Keep in mind that many sports writers and analysts across the nation believe he is the most natural (non-PED) hitter among the active hitters in the 600-home run club. He will definitely be more approved by the BBWAA come the time his name appears on the ballot than Bonds or Sosa. Alex Rodriquez - There really isn't as much accusation of A-Rod using PEDs than any other active player on this list. But there have been a couple if not fewer whispers he may have used PEDs (namely Canseco). But he does seem to be a more respectable member of the 500-club than Bonds or Sosa. But he does play a more demanding position at third base than any of the outfielders on this list, so he will likely be looked at in higher regard than any of the other members of the active 500 homer club. Frank Thomas and Jim Thome - Due to this era's over-inflated power-stats, could Thomas and Thome be discounted from the Hall of Fame or passed over on their first ballot? Manny Ramirez - Ramirez should be the anti-Roberto Clemente due to his flamboyant personality on the field. The way he views his home runs and trots out hits shows he may not respect the game as much as the legends of yesteryear. In my opinion, "Manny being Manny" could lose votes among the current Hall of Famers for lack of respect for the game. I could be wrong. Most overlooked player: Chipper Jones - Given the fact that he has played a demanding position like A-Rod and also that he is a switch-hitter, he should be considered a first-ballot Hall of Famer NOW. On top of that, Jones reflects a rarity among stars, the ability to say he played his ENTIRE career with one team. He is the last link among Braves position players to Atlanta's 1995 World Series champion team and passed 400 career home runs. He is 36-year-olds right now and seems to have time to approach and pass 500 career home runs. Could he be the all-time leader in Home Runs by a switch-hitter by the time his career ends? Quite possibly, he needs 135 more to tie Mickey Mantle.

My parents just received a "check" in the mail from a Canadian company calling themselves "Capital Direct" and since I am more computer literate than them and they instantly and obviously knew it was a scam, my Mom asked me to do an inquiry online. I simply googled it and came up with three instant "Fraud Alerts" plus a news article (Police Blotter from a newspaper in Portage, WI) in the News section of the search engine. It freaked my Dad out so much, he just decided to file it at the Racine Police Station as a "message" to other consumers. I am just wondering if any of you or someone you know received the same letter "claiming you won $250,000" and you "must cash this $4,200 check..." My parents are no consumer dummies, it was blatantly obvious.

For those who have Time Warner Digital Cable in the Milwaukee area, they have WTMJ WeatherPlus channel on 104 of the Digital lineup. But since they essentially have a 24-hour local weather channel and a 24-hour sports channel (Time Warner Sports Channel 32), why not have a 24-hour local news channel? There are lots of ways to make it interesting and very local for a 24-hour stretch, here is what I'd have in mind for a Programming LineUp or for a better word, local shows with local celebrities, politicians and anchors. 6a-10am: The Morning Rush with (insert two local prominent anchors) 10am-11am: Local Sports Report 11am-12pm: Local Business Outlook/Report (for those white-collar people) 12pm-2pm: The Lunch Report with (insert two local prominent anchors) with some features on local heroes and celebrities 2pm-4pm: Local Headlines with continuous loop (same type of setup as say SportsCenter or CNN Headline News) 4pm-5pm: Nightly Sports Preview (reporters on scene with pre-game coverage of Brewers, Bucks, Packers, Admirals) 5pm-6:30p: Local News with (insert two prominent anchors) 6:30p-7p: Weather Report and feature involving a weather issue of the day or maybe a gardening feature or something 7p-9p: Mike Gousha (idea as a talk show host) Show (Larry King Live setup) 9p-11p: Local Headlines and any breaking news 11p-1am: Nightly Sports Report Final (same format as FSN Final Score) 1a-2:30am: Re-Run of 5pm newscast 2:30a-3a: Weather Report Re-Run 3a-5a: Off Air/Infomercials 5a-6a: DNR Report/Wisconsin wildlife feature On top of all of that, since there are a lot of communities surrounding Milwaukee (Waukesha, Racine, Brookfield, Kenosha, etc.) they can have a show every other day or something featuring a local business or maybe a feature on one of their people. They can easily find a lot of programming ideas to make this channel possible.

Since I am beginning to take a liking to the Force daughters (Ashley, Brittany and Courtney) whom are making waves in the NHRA and with the recent victory of Danica Patrick in Indy Racing, I have often wondered if it would ever be possible for a woman to break into a male dominated Major League Baseball or National Hockey League. It'll likely never happen in the NFL, unless she were to be a kicker (a la Katie Hnida), but with the locker room atmosphere in professional sports being brash, it would take a lot for a professional sports circuit to allow a female into the locker room. When I was a kid, I played for a Youth baseball league in Racine, and there were a few girls in the league that was more boy-oriented. I also did some sports reporting for the Beloit paper in college and discovered there were a few girls on the majority of the Madison high school hockey teams. Baseball did have a women's pioneer, Ila Borders, for awhile but she never made it out of Independent League Baseball and as mentioned above, Hnida was the subject of harrassment among other things when she was a kicker for the NCAA Colorado Buffaloes. The Hnida case is likely one of the few reasons Gary Barnett was fired from the University of Colorado and it drew a lawsuit from Hnida. The NBA has a female counterpart, so that will never happen now. Auto Racing is probably the most welcoming of all sports these days when it comes to open doors for women drivers. Patrick, the Force daughters, Sarah Fisher and others have had some success in the auto racing world. But welcoming is a generous word given the scrutiny that Patrick faced when she first began her Indy Racing Career, with male drivers stating she had an unfair advantage due to her lower weight and body mass, allowing her vehicle to weigh less and create more speed on the track. What does everyone think? Given the professional sports circuits that don't have a female equivalent or professional counterpart, which sport will most likely be the first to break the gender barrier? (Moderators, if you can, you can make this into a poll of some sort) A. Major League Baseball B. National Football League C. National Hockey League

The reason I didn't include the Pods for Lee deal is we essentially rented Lee and then subsequently traded him to Rangers for Francisco Cordero, Laynce Nix, Julian Cordero and Kevin Mench. Both deals were wishy-washy that could be perceived by some as either good or bad. Lee didn't last long in Rangers blue, Pods vanished off the face of the Earth for awhile and we only have Nix to show for at this point in time. But if you were to analyze Carlos Lee's both trades, we may have gotten the short end of the stick due to us losing Cordero and essentially replacing him with Gagne. But because Lee ran for the money in Houston and now that we have Braun in left field, it doesn't seem like that bad of a deal.

I have often thought of some of the worst and best trades the Brewers have made throughout their 40 years as a total franchise (including the 1969 Seattle Pilots). Oh, and I also just realized that next season is the Brewers essential 40th Anniversary. Top 10 Best Trades: 10. November 30, 1994 - Vina was a Player to be named Since I decided to go with a top 10 of both best and worst, it became apparent that the more I flipped through the years, it became harder to compile 20 total trades the Brewers made. Fernando Vina was one of three players to be named sent to the Brewers for reliever Doug Henry. Vina showed grit and hard work as a Brewer, earning respect from the people of Milwaukee. 9. June 15, 1970 - Mayday in Milwaukee The Brewers, in its first year in Milwaukee, traded two players to Baltimore for little used outfielder Dave May. May's first two seasons in Milwaukee were underwhelming, but in 1973 he became the Brewers' All-Star representative with a .303 batting average, 25 home runs, 93 RBI and a .352 OBP. The acquisition of May allowed us to trade for Hall-of-Famer and newly minted Home Run King Hank Aaron prior to the 1975 season. 8. December 18, 1985 - Deer brews up a winner Rob Deer is acquired from the San Francisco Giants for two minor leaguers. Although he never established a Hall-of-Fame career, he still has a fan following for some Brewers' diehards who followed the team closely in the 1980's. Deer also made the cover of Sports Illustrated in 1987 under the headline: "Brewing up a Storm." 7. August 30, 1982 - Sutton comes in for pennant push With the Brewers sporting a 4.5 game lead over the Boston Red Sox and a five game lead over the Baltimore Orioles on August 30, 1982, they acquired Pitcher Don Sutton from Houston for two players to be named later in a waiver-wire trade. The two PTBNL were later announced as then-promising prospect outfielder Kevin Bass and pitcher Frank Dipino. Sutton went on to post a 4-1 record the last month of the regular season. Bass had a 14-year career with the Astros, Mets, Giants and ending his career with the Orioles in 1995. But the acquisition of Sutton made a difference at the end of the 1982 regular season when the Brewers were deadlocked with the Orioles on the final day. 6. December 1, 2003 - Sexson dealt to 'Zona for six This trade would be ranked higher, but overall after a few years, we obviously got the better end of the deal. We received Junior Spivey (traded for Tomo Ohka), Craig Counsell (veteran backup), Chad Moeller, Jorge de la Rosa. The two bigger pieces we received were Lyle Overbay (sent to Toronto for three players) and Chris Capuano (once was an All-Star but is now on tap for his second Tommy John surgery). 5. October 31, 1972 - Its in the Money The Brewers added one of its first members of the 1982 American League Champion team as they made a deal with Philadelphia for Don Money. Money appeared in four All-Star games as a member of the Brewers with no appearances as a member of the Phils. The Brewers sent Lonborg, Ken Sanders, Brett and Earl Stephenson to the Phils for Money, John Vukovich and Bill Champion. Champion's most productive season came in 1974 when he went 11-4. 4. October 10, 1971 - Brewers trade first All-Star rep to Boston for George Scott as part of 11-player trade The Brewers attempted to trade speed for power in this deal by acquiring George "Boomer" Scott from Boston for the Brewers' first ever All-Star representative Tommy Harper. The trade did not significantly increase team power numbers, as the Brewers went from 104 home runs in 1971 to 88 in 1972. The trade did give the people of Milwaukee its first ever fan favorite in Scott, who was heralded by fans for his intensity on the field. Scott did appear in the 1975 All-Star Game in Milwaukee as the Brewers' favorite, posting a then-team record 36 home runs with 109 RBI and a respectable .285 batting average. The Brewers full trade with was the Brewers sending Pitcher Marty Pattin, Lew Krausse, Harper and a minor-leaguer Pat Skrable to Boston for Scott, Ken Brett, Jim Lonborg, Ken Brett, Joe Lahoud, Don Pavletich and Billy Conigliaro. Scott was later traded back to Boston as part of a deal for Cecil Cooper. 3. December 6, 1976 - Scott back to Boston Cecil Cooper arrived in Milwaukee following the Brewers trade of Boomer Scott back to Boston along with Bernie Carbo. Cooper is the second representative of the 1982 team acquired by trade. Cooper made five All-Star appearances and earned three consecutive Silver Slugger awards. 2. July 28, 2000 - Sexson acquired, ties season record in homers Without a legitimate power threat at first base for more than a decade since Cecil Cooper left, the Brewers were in search of a youngster who can hit. They found him in Cleveland after sending Bob Wickman, Steve Woodard and Jason Bere to the Indians for Richie Sexson. Sexson went on to tie the team record for home runs in a season with 45 home runs. Also going to the Brewers were Paul Rigdon, Kane Davis and Marco Scutaro. 1. December 12, 1980 - Vuke, the 'Stache and Simba In what some people consider the biggest blockbuster trade in Milwaukee Brewer History, the Brewers nabbed a Cy Young Award winner, a near 20-game winner and another piece of Harvey's Wallbangers. Rollie Fingers won both the 1981 Cy Young Award and MVP while also obtaining the year's Rolaids Relief Man honor. Vukovich's best season came in the 1982 season when he posted an 18-4 record with a team-leading nine complete games. Simmons and Fingers accounted for four combined all-star appearances as members of the Brewers. The Brewers sent Sixto Lezcano, David Green, Lary Sorensen, and Dave LaPoint to the St. Louis Cardinals. Honorable Mention: Carlos Lee to Milwaukee for Scott Podsednik. Top 10 Worst Trades: 10. December 4, 1995 - Chuckie takes his hacks in Milwaukee The Florida Marlins dealt speedy Chuck Carr and a minor leaguer to the Crew for a minor leaguer. Carr was supposed to help us in the speed department since we didn't have a legitimate leadoff threat, but he fell out of favor with Phil Garner. Garner told him not to hack on 2-0, but Chuckie likes to take the hacks. 9. November 17, 1992 - Bichette to Colorado Bichette wasn't exactly an All-Star player or major fan favorite here during his time, but the question remains, why in the world did Sal Bando trade him to the expansion Colorado Rockies for Kevin Reimer, Matt Mieske 2.0? 8. November 25, 2006 - Sharpie to the Desert This trade is not nearly as historical by any means, but it reflects a lot of what has happened to several players. We dealt Doug Davis, a lefty starter, which we really could use at this point along with a once-promising prospect who completely fizzled out and a guy that was traded to Oakland for Rich Harden. We got Johnny Estrada, one of the most recent targets of dislike among us Brewer fans. The two other pitchers we received are no longer on the team: Greg Aquino and Claudio Vargas. 7. June 6, 1983 - Stormin' Gorman dealt The Brewers traded long-time franchise man Gorman Thomas less than a year after its first and only World Series appearance. Thomas has long been liked by the fans of Milwaukee. Another insult to this trade was the guy we acquired, Rick Manning. Not only did Manning have an issue with Dennis Eckersley in Cleveland, he is also the only Brewer ever to get booed at County Stadium for having a game-winning hit, preventing Paul Molitor from extending his hit streak to 40 in 1987. 6. March 26, 1992 - Sheffield to San Diego If not for speculation and reports Gary Sheffield "purposely" committed errors after being disappointed in the organization's handling of him, this trade may be number one on the list. Another reason this is No. 6 and not No. 1 is he has worn out his welcome in every Major League city he has ever been in. The reason this makes the list is the players we received: Ricky Bones, Jose Valentin and Matt Mieske. All three players were supposed to be can't miss prospects, but all three missed. Bones became implicated in the Mitchell Report, Jose Valentin disappointed after Sal Bando made him "one of the pieces" to the Miller Park puzzle and Mieske never materialized into an everyday player. 5. January 12, 2000 - Near trash for all trash After having several disappointing seasons from Jose Valentin, General Manager Dean Taylor had enough, finally dealing the last piece of the Sheffield puzzle along with an oft-injured but good when healthy Cal Eldred to the Chicago White Sox for Jaime Navarro, who had no gas left in the tank and John Snyder, who never had any in the tank to begin with. 4. December 8, 1997 - Brewers go with "Plan B" After losing out on the Kenny Lofton Free Agent sweepstakes, the Brewers went to Plan B, taking Marquis Grissom off the hands of the Indians. Grissom became loathed by all Brewer fans for his crazy low on base percentage and multitude of injuries. The Brewers gave up a serviceable reliever in Mike Fetters, an injure-prone starter in Ben McDonald and Ron Villone to get Grissom and starter Jeff Juden. Juden was more known for his guitar at Summerfest than his pitching performances at Milwaukee County Stadium. 3. July 31, 1996 - Trade draws boos at County Stadium Fan favorite Greg Vaughn was the subject of trade rumors for weeks prior to the 1996 trade deadline. Vaughn was dealt shortly before the game against Seattle, where yours truly, attended the game. The chorus of boos reflected the depressing era of being a Brewer fan in the mid 1990's when we would rather sit and watch paint dry than watch this team play. We received Bryce Florie, Marc Newfield and Ron Villone. 1t. December 13, 1999 - Cirillo to Colorado 1t. January 21, 2002 - Burnitz to NYM Not much to explain why both of these deals were not very favorable to fans, so I will let you all explain it to yourself why you feel these deals were not very good.

Thank you Mark Attanasio for allowing us long-suffering Brewers fans the ability to forget the years 1993-2002 where we had to deal with a revolving door of All-Star caliber players leaving. Thank you Mark Attanasio for making Miller Park a fun and happy place to see a game again. Thank you Mark Attanasio for recognizing the importance of our young studs. Thank you Mark Attanasio for not being afraid to open up your wallet. Thank you Mark Attanasio for bringing class and dignity to the Brewers organization after fans booed and ran Wendy Selig-Prieb out of town out on a rail. Thank you Mark Attanasio for putting Milwaukee back on the map with the label "might or want to play at" instead "places to avoid playing at" Thank you Mark Attanasio for rewarding diehard Brewer fans who have stuck with this team for our entire lives waiting for the next big season. Thank you Mark Attanasio for now making me wonder if it is okay to have a man-crush on Ryan Braun.

Since most of you folks have already mentioned some of the advantages of this signing, there was one small thing in the JSOnline.com Brewers blog that caught my eye: "Braun's contract also has a full no-trade clause for four years, a limited clause (12 teams), the next two years and a further limited clause (six teams) the final two years." I seriously never thought a player in Milwaukee would actually either accept or request a no-trade clause. I am not sure which is the case, but I would think this little snippet is worthy of comment and praise from both the organization and the Braun camp, because it essentially means Braun wants to stay here in Milwaukee. My how times have changed since our depressing days of the mid 1990's Brewers squads that trotted out the likes of Marc Newfield when we continually traded our best guys (sorry now I may have made some of you cough up phlegm). But the thing that really impresses me the most about Braun is that, as stated prior in this thread, is he has a good head on his shoulders. I knew that from the get-go after watching the FSN interviewed called, "In My Own Words," when Braun (paraphrased from what I believe he said) basically said, "I know I had a great rookie year and there is always room for improvement and I feel like I can be 'much, much better.'" I seem to remember him specifically saying 'much, much better' in regards to what his playing expectations are when he plays the game into the future. In my opinion, what makes this signing much better looking is when the contract expires, he will be 32 at the end of that calendar year. We will be able to see and reap the dividends of what he will really be like once he hits the true prime of his career.

Sweet, thanks sbrylski. As a matter of fact, I didn't even know baseball-reference.com had its statistical applications essentially in a spreadsheet mode. All that was needed was to cut and paste and it placed everything nearly perfect.

I have been googling for the last half hour trying to find specific statistics. I would like to find a website that offers League Leaders from 1950-present in Excel format. I don't want to go cell-by-cell because it would take a ton of time to do and I am trying to organize some statistics for my own use. I am looking for something along the lines of baseball-reference.com statistics, but in Microsoft Excel or any other spreadsheet database format. Can anyone help?

I think one of the reasons people may not like Conan is that he does a lot of "arbitrary" humor. His old material was much much better than his most recent material. I prefer his old material better when he is on the street interviewing people, but now it seems like he NEVER goes on the street to interview people. His strength is finding humor in random people rather than just arbitrary humor inside the studio. For example, the comedy sketch where he tries to find an apartment for his writer, Andy Blitz a few years back, is downright funny and also the sketch where him and Andy Richter were Ice Cream men were hilarious. But now it seems like he plays the same stuff all the time and the same bits that don't seem to work as well now. I also thoroughly enjoyed it when he discovered that the Houston NBC affiliate didn't air his show until 3:30am so Conan made a road trip to Houston and interviewed people at 3am at bus stops, college campuses, etc. That is what makes him funny, but now it seems like doesn't know what to do now. He also over-utilizes his self-depricating sense of humor now, which has gotten old now. He needs to go back to what made him great and not do "random" humor that either doesn't make sense or doesn't appear to be funny to mass audiences. Jay Leno's comedic style has also gotten old. I find myself truly bored with both shows on NBC at times but Ferguson isn't any better. But the one thing that Conan has that Leno doesn't is that Conan finds a way to unleash celebrities inhibitions, like when Gwyneth Paltrow is a guest. Paltrow is a seemingly professional actress and Conan always finds a way to get her to talk more openly about issues which produces a laugh.

<---------- Residential CareGiver for a Milwaukee county group home system <---------- Sometimes college student at UW-Whitewater

As all of you may know, Conan O'Brien will replace Jay Leno on the "Tonight Show" next year leaving an opening for the Late Night gig. It has long been rumored and now it has been made official that Jimmy Fallon will take over Conan's studio once Conan makes the switch. I think this is a great move, I always liked Fallon when he was on "Weekend Update" on Saturday Night Live with Tina Fey. It makes me wonder if Conan, a person who has been born and raised in the Northeast, will be successful in Los Angeles once he officially takes the keys to Leno's studio. From the interview with Fallon last night on Conan's show, it has been made clear that Fallon will get the Late Night studio once Conan departs. Fallon stated in his Late Night appearance that he is going to feel the pressure once he takes over on Late Night. On the positive side, at least we know of Fallon's comedic abilities prior to his takeover of Late Night rather than a "no-name Conan" when he took over. It is going to be weird hearing these show names for awhile: "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon"

Well, I checked my online banking site TWICE since 3am and did NOT receive my stimulus tax rebate despite the fact that my SSN falls in line with today's pay date. Then I checked turbotax.com and it says that the IRS cannot track down the routing numbers from the Online e-filing forms from my 2007 return. What is worse is I went to the IRS to track my payment and it says, "We are sorry, we have no record of you filing." This also happened to my parents on the IRS website. What gives? And what is going on here? I am surprised people are not in an uproar over this. Now turbotax says I will likely get a "paper check" because I used a "third-party" transfer through Santa Barbara Bank and Trust. Ugh, just when I NEEDED this additional $600, somehow it screws me over once again and now I won't be able to get a car... until freakin June 27?

Last summer I biked to work EVERY day. I didn't have a car and lived in Waukesha for a few months and biked to work in Muskego, which was 13 miles. I got in nice shape that summer. I would bike a total of 26 miles a day. It started getting to me because I feared for my life going down Racine Ave. as I passed National Ave. because the hills were so steep I went about as fast as the cars. By the way, if you Waukesha County folks every saw a guy biking between April and July last year on Racine Ave. just outside of Waukesha, that would be me.

Just got back from the doctor today. Apparently I may have a case of Restless Leg and Muscle Syndrome because at night, I tend to have difficulty finding a relaxation point and can't seem to sit or lay still. The past few weeks, I had to have pillows under my arms in order to be more relaxed. They also took blood from me to check on my thyroid deal and the doctor gave me a prescription for Mirapex (the one on those RLS commercials). I am gonna feel like an old man taking this pill.

I read the book, "Baseball," by Ken Burns (most of you probably watched or heard of the PBS documentary of the same name) and it basically describes the origin of the Indians name in Cleveland. There was a myth that the Indians were named after a former player of the then-Cleveland Naps, Louis Sockalexis. The sidebar which I read in "Baseball" suggests that they renamed the Cleveland club, the "Indians" in honor of Sockalexis. There was a legend that Sockalexis could have been one of the greatest players in Baseball history had it not been for his intense alcoholism, which claimed his life early on. However, the Naps were renamed the Spiders after Nap Lajoie was traded to the Philadelphia Athletics and it took years for them to switch from the Spiders to the Indians. The team owner of the Cleveland Spiders allowed the fans to vote for a new name through the Cleveland newspaper sometime in the early 20th century with fans voting in favor of the Indians. But there is some conflicting reports that the Indians were named as a "knock-off" of the then-Boston Braves. But during the turn of the 20th century, several Native American names did not exist for most sports teams. The Atlanta Braves were originally known as the Boston Red Caps, according to baseball-reference.com. It wasn't until 1912 that the team was named the Braves but after the 1935 season, the Boston team changed its name to the Boston Bees for a short time before going back to the Braves nickname in 1941. It should also be noted that the Cincinnati Reds were once deemed as an "offensive" team name due to the war on Communism. They changed from the "Reds" to the "Red Legs" from 1954-1959. As for the Washington Redskins NFL team, I am not totally sure of why they named them the Redskins, but according to wikipedia, they used to be located in Boston around the time the baseball Boston Braves were there. Aside from that, there are some offensive high school team nicknames in our own backyard. As a favor to my former colleague at UW-Whitewater who held an editor post with the Oconomowoc Focus, I covered the Oconomowoc High School basketball team for a game and found the team name, "Cooney," to be offensive. Except the actual school name was Coons.

Maybe I should have phrased my initial post better. Yes, I know Gagne leads the league in save opportunities and no, I am not defending Gagne. I just don't get it, have any of our position players learned how to make correct adjustments when facing pitchers? It seems like they go into every game not knowing about any of the opposing team's starters and it is as if they don't even read the scouting reports prior to each game. I have not seen a single game where our offense has made a major adjustment to prey on the opposing starter's weak points of their game. I have not seen a single hitter work the count and force the pitcher to throw a strike down the middle. I have not seen any base runner put pressure on a pitcher to the point where the pitcher is forced to throw strikes to prevent any stolen bases. What is worse is that it seems that every homer hit by either Braun or Fielder is a solo shot. Bill Hall has SEVEN homers and 19 RBI while Braun has FIVE homers and 23 RBI. The way this team has been playing, they should call themselves very lucky for having a .500 record.

I have never seen such a collective offensive slump among an entire team at this point in the season. There is not one infielder batting above .260, our leadoff hitter is batting below the Mendoza line with a .322 OBP and we only have one starter batting above .300 (Corey Hart). What is the major problem here? I just can't see any major trend to justify or put into an understandable context of this woeful offense at this point. Has there ever been a Brewer team collectively have worse hitting stats than 2008? I tried to compare this team to prior years using baseball-reference.com but can't figure out how to sort the stats. There has to be a reason for this season starting so anemic. As much as we bash Eric Gagne at this point, but there are times where our offense can't even get the ball to Gagne for a save situation, and when Gagne does blow the lead, our offense does bail him out. I can only remember once or twice when they couldn't bail Gagne out. There are too many one-run games thus far. I can't even remember a game where we won convincingly at this stage of the season.