JohnBriggs12

The Cubs job is his if he wants it and the price is right and we'll know by Friday. That's what's being reported down here.

Signing Sandoval keeps your from getting substantially worse at a position that had been a strength but won't be with a rapidly declining Ramirez, or a young unproven player. The areas where this team can improve is 1B, RF and SS with a better player at 1B and better seasons from Segura and Braun. Preventing a position from becoming another black hole is just as important as filling a black hole. Sandoval played in a pitchers' park so his numbers would be likely to improve significantly playing in Miller Park too.

Well one reason those wanting A-Ram back cited, lack of other options, is being certainly being addressed. McCalvy reported that Brewers hadn't decided if they were picking up Ramirez's option or not. It certainly appears to me that they have and they are looking in other directions. I think the only way Ramirez is back is if there's little interest in him in the FA market and he'll play for a lot less.

Last time Melvin claimed a blocked 3B off waivers in October, it turned out quite well. Like the fact he can run a little too. Ramirez's jogging between bases was hampering the offense. Appears the plan is sign LaRoche, bat him in the middle of the order, go with a young 3B, either Jiminez or Rogers down toward the bottom of the order (where the 1B has been hitting the last couple years). I would hope Melvin would at least make some effort at the veteran 3B and I don't think this claim precludes that.

Far fetched that a guy with an .812 AAA OPS over 287 games can't put up a .725 OPS in the majors? That's assuming Ramirez continues to slide from his .757 OPS in 2014 which is safe assumption considering his age and recent history with guys like Beltran, Konerko, etc. Bianchi's gone by the way. You don't add a competitor for a utility job to your 40 man in October. You can find them by the dozens on minor league deals. Veterans are available on minor league deals too. Besides Jiminez has played a handful of games at 1B but he's primarily a 3B. He's not a utility candidate. He doesn't play middle infield spots. That's not to say they won't be looking for an established 3B other than Ramirez, but Jiminez provides them with competition for Rogers of nobody else is acquired.

Sign they don't plan to bring Ramirez back? Hope so. You don't use up 40 man spots for guys you don't think can make your team. Jimenez has solid minor league credentials albeit it in Salt Lake City in AAA. Not far fetched at all that he could post numbers as good as Ramirez can at this stage.

It's been a long time since a young player with such promise met an untimely demise. Old timers will remember Cub 2B Ken Hubbs who perished at age 22 in 1964. Hubbs was a 20 year old NL Rookie of the year in 1962, and also won a Gold Glove that season. The only active Brewer to perish was relief pitcher Danny Frisella on New Years Day, 1977. He died when his dune buggy overturned in the Arizona desert outside of Phoenix. Frisella, who spent several fine years with the Mets, but was in the minors for most of the famed 69 season, was quite effective coming out of the pen for the 76 Brewers. He was 30 years old at the time of his death. Tragic when such young lives are cut short.

Similar strategies perhaps, but vastly different results. There's more to managing than strategizing. Maddon's got respect that Roenicke lacks. Cubs aren't unhappy with Renteria, but they would hire Maddon in a heartbeat, then try and keep Renteria around in some capacity. With Roenicke clearly on the hot seat entering 2015, might he accept a deal where he steps down and becomes Maddon's bench coach? That would certainly give him more job security and it might appeal to Maddon, if the dollars are competitive.

Austin Jackson??? Please. The guy had a .527 OPS last year. I don't think the Brewers can afford to deal Gomez. As frustrating as he is at times especially on the bases, he's their number one offensive weapon Lucroy notwithstanding. They'd really miss that production not to mention his defensive prowess. If we knew Braun would return to his previous form, and they made serious upgrades at 1B and 3B, yeah then he'd be expendable but certainly not now if they have any intention of competing next year.

Maddon can sit out a year, probably make a nice living doing television, then have his pick of any number of teams.

I think the White Sox could come up with a package, but they don't really have a need in CF. They like Eaton a lot in CF and as a leadoff hitter.

Good luck with that. History has shown that hitting coaches usually don't have much impact on how batters approach their at bats. Guys who are patient, take walks, and mostly swing at pitches in the strike zone did that in the minors before ever making the big leagues while impatient free swingers tend to have been that way in the minors before making the majors. Trying to change that approach significantly after a hitter already has a few thousand at bats under their belt is really hard to do. Maybe you can eventually get a guy to raise his walk rate up a little bit like say how Gomez has the last two years, but expecting a hitting coach to turn long time free swingers into patient hitters isn't all that realistic. To paraphrase, he said if you only swing at strikes, the pitcher has to throw you strikes and you will get better pitches to hit. So wait for the pitcher to throw one in the zone that you can handle. I believe that's how he defines patience. In theory that will lead to more walks but I think the goal is better hitting all around.

Managerial record is not so hot, though those Huntsville teams in 2012 and 2013 were very short on talent to be sure. That he was slated to manage Nashville says organization likes his work. He says the right things. Hope he can get it across to Brewer hitters.

I've heard Lind is a terrible defender at 1B. I know fielding isn't the top priority for 1B, but having lived through Fielder and Francisco at the position in recent years, I just hate having more of the same. Still, I haven't seen the guy (that I recall) in the field. So I'm just going by what I have read. Seeing his name again prompted me to look up how he finished the year -- .220/.291/.456/.747. After a first-half .828 OPS, he crashed & burned to the tune of .561 in the second half. So for the year in total, he was the same guy that made us Brewers fans want to punch walls. What relevance are Francisco's splits to the discussion about Lind? When I first read your post I thought you were talking about Lind. Lind's splits were fine in the 2nd half.

I've heard Lind is a terrible defender at 1B. I know fielding isn't the top priority for 1B, but having lived through Fielder and Francisco at the position in recent years, I just hate having more of the same. Still, I haven't seen the guy (that I recall) in the field. So I'm just going by what I have read. His UZR/150 was -14.8 last season. He definitely is a terrible defender at 1B. There is a reason guys like Lind, Kendreys Morales and Billy Butler are full time DHs. Their value is lost once they put on a glove. Lind has not been a full time DH. He's started 280 games at 1B over the last 4 seasons. We're not talking Francisco like incompetence here. Lind has 19 errors in 304 games there, while Francisco has 12 in just 87 games. Brewers won a lot of games with Fielder playing 1B. His defense wasn't an issue and rarely is. Lack of range at 1B isn't that big an issue. Many of the balls they can't get to, the 2B does. I'm more concerned about ability to dig out throws in the dirt. If the Brewers were that concerned about defense at 1B, they wouldn't play Lucroy there. Lind's as good as Lucroy there. Speaking of Lucroy, he'd figure in as a platoon option there vs. lefties too.

Report is Toronto is getting calls on Adam Lind, including some from NL teams. I would assume Brewers would be one of those teams. Lind would fit nicely at a relatively modest price compared to what it might cost for LaRoche. Might need to find a platoon partner, though they may have that guy in Rogers who can also fill in at 3B a couple days a week for the aging Ramirez (assuming he's back tho I hope not) or Halton who tore up lefties at Nashville in 2014 (.342/.387/.509).

Monty, your fears are my fears. Yankee fans are livid about the contract the Yankees gave Carlos Beltran, who showed what happens at age 37. Now they are stuck with him through 2017. If Ramirez returns and they sign LaRoche, they become one of the oldest teams in the league. Not only do you need to ask if Roenicke has the wherewithal (I'd use another term) to sit Ramirez twice a week, does he have the guts to hit him 7th in the order which is where he belongs at this stage? Contending in 2015 is going to be a lot more difficult than it was in 2014. Pittsburgh's been building to peak in 2015 and 2016. Cardinals aren't going anywhere and the Cubs figure to be a factor too. Keeping an aging player clearly on the downside for a lot of money like Ramirez is not a good idea. I don't see any reason Rogers couldn't be adequate or maybe even a revelation at 3B. He hit at every level of the minors. The knock was that for a power position he didn't hit a ton of HR, and that he was always a year or two older than you'd like for the level he was at. But offsetting that is that he's made decent contact and has shown patience. His K/BB ratio of 1.5 is very good. What fans need to realize is there are other options at 3B too. It's a long offseason. There's the FA route. Those names have been mentioned. There's trades too (maybe Miami signs a 3B and McGehee is available or my personal target, Prado from the Yanks) and of course there's usually a gem or two in the scrap heap. Adding LaRoche would give them a 1 through 6 of (in random order), Gomez, Gennett, Braun, Lucroy, LaRoche, and Davis. Does paying a guy $14 million or some ridiculous amount to hit 7th make any sense whatsoever? I'd rather give Rogers his shot and spend the money elsewhere.

Why spend the additional $10 million at all and risk having to suffer through a bad season in 2015? He has to be replaced soon anyway. Get started on that now. If you can't find anyone via trade or FA, give Rogers a shot and back him up with Reynolds or some other cheap vet off the scrap heap.

I didn't say the Yankees are trying to unload Prado. You offer them Gallardo to entice them to give him up because the Yankees have had a lot of instability in their rotation and one thing Gallardo is, and that's durable. Yankees have the means to go after Sandoval, or bring in Ramirez as a stop gap too. They like Prado I'm sure, but they may need dependable starting pitching more.

Look at the careers of recent contemporaries of Ramirez. Guys like Beltran, Konerko, and before them Rolen. Their production cratered right around this age. Yankee fans are calling Beltran's signing their worst ever. Ramirez' poor 2nd half is more than likely a signal of things to come. What makes anyone think this isn't happening to Ramirez too? If they brought back Aram, then they better be prepared to dump him midseason if he's not producing and give Rogers a good look.

With the shift on vs. LH power hitters, the gap between the 2B and Aoki, even if he's on the warning track isn't that great and you Aoki better able to cut off balls in the gap or down the line.

Here's a 3B suggestion. Offer Gallardo to the Yankees for Martin Prado. Yankees have a problem with what to do with A-Rod, and they also have the means to go after Ramirez, or one of the other 3B options should they choose to. I think a corner infield of LaRoche at 3B, and Prado at 3B would be a huge upgrade. Two years of Prado is worth one year of Gallardo.

Amazing how Brewer fans forget that Betancourt hit .267 from June 1st on with 10 HR and 50 RBI and a slugging percentage of .409 and the fact that he had 5 RBI in the NLCS vs. the Cardinals or that he led the league with 10 sacrifice flies that year. While it's fine to point out his shortcomings, I think a little balance is in order.

Another ominous comparison: Scott Rolen at age 35: .285/.358/.497 with 20 HR and 83 RBI Scott Rolen at age 36: .242/.279/.397 with 5 HR and 36 RBI. Rolen at 37: .245/.318/.398 with 8 HR and 39 RBI. Ramirez has reached that age where significant falloff in offensive numbers is the norm. To expect differently is just ignoring historical evidence.

Why the Brewers should be vary, vary wary of paying Ramirez: Paul Konerko at age 36: .298/.371/.486, 26 HR, 75 RBI Paul Konerko at age 37: .244/.313/.355, 12 HR, 54 RBI Ramirez and Konerko have had remarkably similar careers offensively. In fact, they've been virtually the same player. Konerko stopped producing anywhere near his career norms after turning 37. Ramirez' started dropping off after he turned 36 in late June. Ramirez still has some value but it should be in a significantly reduced role for a lot less than $14 million.