JohnBriggs12

It was a knucklehead move on his part. If he's telling the truth that he "forgot to wipe off" before entering the game then it's also on Lee Tunnell who's only job during a game is monitor the relievers.

The Dodgers are in first place with Kershaw nowhere near in his usual form and having to piece together the back end of their rotation. Why exactly do they need Lucroy with 26 year old Grandal hitting .287/.402/.465? Braun?? Again not a need worth surrendering top prospects. They have outfielders in abundance. The Dodgers could use an experienced starter on a relatively short term contract to fill out their rotation on a short term basis. The Brewers have that guy in Lohse and maybe could interest them in Garza. Choice for the Brewers seems to me to go for a B or C level prospect, who may or may not ever reach the big leagues or try and sweeten the deal with a B level guy of their own (Yadiel Rivera??) and try and grab a Turner or a Guerrero to play 3B post Aram in more of a retool on the fly strategy.

Strange. Henderson's allowed no runs and fanned 6 hitters with no walks in his last 4 games. He must still not be near 100% physically because he's not working back to back days.

Lind won't be traded. Teams in contention aren't usually desperate for 1B/DH types and who do the Brewers have behind him at 1B? Answer: Nobody until Braun gets moved there, probably in 2017. If the Brewers don't turn it around in the next 6 weeks, they'll punt on 2015 by why should they throw in the towel for 2016? Braun looks like his old self. Gomez is playing at a very high level and should again next year. Sardinas looks like a major league player now. Segura isn't quite to his 2013 level, but he's been playing well. Lind is under control for 2016 for a relatively cheap option. They'll have money to spend and a few holes to fill but nothing drastic. They will get some return on the castoffs from this season that make sense like Lohse and K-Rod.

I don't think Lind's going anywhere. First his value isn't all that high. Most contending teams already have productive 1B/DH. Secondly, I believe they are beginning to see enough from the guys they control beyond this year like Braun, Lucroy, Gomez, and Lind and they are getting enough development from talent in their system particularly at Biloxi, that they aren't going to reflexively unload guys especially at positions where they aren't deep that could help them contend in 2016 just to boost their farm system a bit unless there's a surplus at the position. I don't see a surplus at 1B. The first 20 games might have sabotaged this year though that's not entirely determined yet, but it's still just a 20 game stretch and you don't conclude you have no hope going forward based on that. Forget the collapse last year. Lots of reasons for that that have either been resolved (manager gone, Braun's thumb healed, 1B spot filled), or can be resolved with one or two shrewd moves with some of the money they'll have to spend.

If Sardinas reminds you of Counsell, then we must be watching a different player. Sardinas is a gifted, very fluid, skilled athlete. Counsell earned everything he had but I don't think anyone would describe him as gifted or fluid. Sardinas reminds me of Jordon Spieth. That's right Jordan Spieth, the golfer. They are young, extremely talented and play with a maturity well beyond their years. In an individual sport like golf, there's no waiting your turn. Sardinas so far looks like he belongs. Whether that means Segura goes to 2B or gets traded, that's what we'll have to wait and see.

The 2005 Astros should give everyone hope. They were 16-31 after getting shut out by the Brewers on May 27th, and 21-35 on June 7th. They reached .500 two days prior to All Star break by winning 22 of their next 30. It can happen. Oh yeah, they made it all the way to the World Series that year where they got swept by the White Sox.

Weather in and around Colorado Springs not too promising today either.

Was it my imagination or did Jonathon Broxton touch 98 in his last pitch last night? That's the Broxton from his closer days in LA. If he continues to do that, there will be scouts swarming to take another look even with a substantial salary for the rest of the year that will limit his market in terms of a return. I think the most likely to be dealt (in order of most likely) of guys the Brewers will consider dealing in season are: 1. Lohse 2. K-Rod 3. Parra 4. Ramirez 5. Broxton 6. Garza They should get something back for Lohse, Parra, and Ramirez, but K-Rod might be the most valuable in terms of a return. I would expect most of what they'll get for these guys are lower level prospects. Not the A list prospects but solid guys who have a chance. I don't see anyone else being dealt in season and I don't see wholesale trading this winter. They will be open to deals for Gomez, Segura, and Lind but not Lucroy this winter but I still don't think they'll unload all three and they'll look for return here that is more developed (and perhaps already in the big leagues) than the lower level guys. They are going to have money to spend in FA too so it's going to be tempting to try and compete in 2016.

The White Sox haven't lost since dropping the opener to the Brewers and the Mets are a first place team. This is a tough stretch. If they can hang in there and pick up some wins like last night, there's still a glimmer. Lets see how this team looks with Lucroy back before we bury them completely. From a perspective of selling off assets, Broxton touching 98 last night could be very significant, and Jeffress was plain nasty.

Well the Cubs have apparently solved their catching surplus by shipping Wellington Castillo to Seattle. No word on the return but the Cub bullpen has been a problem area. Is this an isolated deal or will there start being more action on the trade front?

He is almost 26 and is repeating AA so can't get too excited. Still his K rate is improving noticeably every year so he's putting more balls in play without sacrificing power which is a very positive sign. He probably belongs in AAA at this point but he's blocked by Clark. Biloxi might be the most fun team to watch in the system in a long, long time. There's hope that if the major league roster does get turned over in the next year or two, we are going to have some exciting young players to watch.

It would also improve if he could hit for an OPS over .700, which he hasn't done since his hot first half of his rookie year. If he is a "hot commodity" now, it is because other teams see the team control and the potential. If we hold onto him for another year or two, and he proves himself to be a mid-.600 OPS guy with limited team control remaining, I don't think we'd get much in trade. Even if he hits better, once the team control goes away, we probably wouldn't get more than we could get today. With Sardinas, Gomez, Herrera and eventually Arcia all waiting in the wings, I think we're taking a big chance if we do not trade Segura by this offseason. Assuming, of course that the market for him is as hot as it is rumored. In regards to Gennett, this is sad, but not totally surprising as he was never considered that great a prospect. I hope he can figure it out, as he should be a nice guy to have around while he's young and inexpensive during the probable "lean years" ahead, and he's certainly an easy guy to root for. Scooter is not the only young player who's struggled mightily this season. Who would have thought Christian Yelich would be hitting .178/.268/.233 in Miami? I thought he was headed to stardom and I know I wasn't alone. You often really don't know about a guy until they've been through adversity. It's a lot different struggling at the major league level than it is in the minors. Brewers were patient with Scooter to a degree and said the right things, but players know they if they aren't producing they will find themselves benched/sent down and they add pressure internally. Time for him to clear his head and just go play. His talent is still there.

If the plan is eventually to move Segura to 2B anyway for Arcia, doesn't it enhance Sardinas' trade value if he's producing at the major league level as a 22 year old? I'd at least consider keeping him there if he's producing.

You think Segura to 2B? I think when he returns Sardinas goes back to AAA to keep getting regular at bats (only 21 right?) and they keep Hector/Ellian at 2B. Just speculating of course, but Gomez (.239 OBP) and Herrera (.284 OBP) while having had their moments, I'm sure are still seen as utility guys. If Segura's at 2B, Sardinas would be getting regular AB's as the starting SS. Sardinas turned 22 the other day by the way. With Gennett out of the picture for now, Sardinas is going to play every day until Segura returns. Lets see how he does. Remember Gomez' OBP is just .239, not exactly what you want out there everyday. Herrera is Ramirez' backup and 5th OF.

I've been a big Scooter fan, but it was a bit overdue. His picture is next to the word "pressing" in the dictionary. It's a amazing what can happen when a guy loses confidence and starts pressing. Can Sardinas do enough to stick when Segura returns? Segura to 2B? Not surprising they went to 13 pitchers, but don't believe they'll stick too long with 13. Knebel has some nice peripherals including 22 K's in 15 IP. It was only a matter of time for him. Time to get a close look at the return for Gallardo.

Sad news. Ollie got some big hits during the 10 game winning streak the Brewers put together in 1973 that propelled them ever so briefly into first place in June that year and got the fans excited really for the first time. That order that had George Scott, Davey May, Briggs, and Ollie Brown had some pop. He was exclusively a DH for the Brewers. After that 73 season, Brown was part of a multi player deal with the Angels which netted among others, Clyde Wright, who was a bust as a Brewer losing 20 games the following year.

Because they simply don't have a very potent lineup (the explosion vs. the Brewers notwithstanding) and if they think they can win it this year, they need help offensively. Theo Epstein has argued that in today's game where bullpens are full of guys throwing in the high 90's and rotations are pretty deep overall, premier everyday players are more valuable and actually harder to find.

I think it's ok to be somewhat excited about Wagner and Hall. Wagner's coming off a full season of 150 IP with a sub 2 ERA and Hall's shown signs before that he could have a big league future. Maybe neither projects as top of rotation types, but having cheap controllable arms filling out the back end of rotations means more money to spend on the front end and in the lineup. Both were 4th rounders, so it's not like they came out of nowhere.

Sardinas is hitting .224/.235/.313 away from Colorado Springs this year. Lets temper the enthusiasm a bit. Gomez is going to get the bulk of the SS work anyway with Segura out. The home/road splits for the entire team are ridiculous. Brewers need consider having their top guys bypass AAA all together. The pitchers at Colorado Springs are already shell shocked. It can't help the hitters playing half their games there either.

Brewers should consider having the very top guys bypass Colorado Springs. It can't be good for a young guy's development to pitch in that hitter's paradise. Same might hold for hitters too. Look how hitting in Coors affects the Rockies. They may be great at home but struggle on the road.

Reed does seem to project as a nice 4th OF. Would like to see him promoted to AAA at midseason.

One of the reasons many believed Braun was that he never became that barrel chested guy with the big biceps that people associated with PEDs. Heck most of the players in the league looked like that in the late 90's and early 00's when PED's were pervasive. Farmer says a lot of stuff. He's one of those guys who likes to hear himself talk. He's not to be taken too seriously.

You've been paying too much attention to the opinions on mlbtraderumors site who for no apparent reason are down on him. Garza's the exact same guy he's always been and that's a solid mid rotation starter. He's not a dominant guy, but he's posted 4 straight quality starts and he's under contract for next year too at what these days is fairly reasonable terms. Any big market team that fancies itself as a contender that finds itself in a bind for a starter will be interested. Value? Well Boston got Joe Kelly AND Allen Craig for John Lackey (who's older and more expensive than Garza) last year. Kelly's struggled recently but I'd take him. Nobody saw Craig falling off a cliff.

With the mess that is the 2015 Brewer pen, I'll take some action on that.