JohnBriggs12

Thank goodness the Brewers didn't get Olt, who hit .168/.276/.275 in 131 AB's at AAA after being traded to the Cubs. He's making Andy Marte look like less of a bust and that's hard to do. Fortunately for Cubs, they drafted Kris Bryant.

I don't think you move Rogers past Halton just yet. Let's see how he does in AAA. Halton wasn't overwhelmed last year, showed power and hits lefties well too. He has experience in both corner OF spots and just as much (almost none) as Rogers at 3B.

Those minor league numbers don't include the .411/.470/.556 he hit in 90 AB's in the AFL in 2011. Gennett's not a big guy and he played nearly non stop from the beginning of 2011 season to spring of 2012. That likely affected his numbers (which weren't bad) in 2012. Unlike Davis, Gennett's also has always been slightly younger than most at the levels he's been at. He reached AAA before he turned 23 and did it on merit. Forgetting the numbers, to me, he passes the eyeball test with flying colors. Looks a little to me like a LH version of young Paul Molitor. Molitor wasn't a big walk guy either.

Nobody has brought it up but coming off a poor offensive year, does anyone else think they should bring in some competition for the backup catcher spot? The Giants just DFA'd Johnny Monell, a lefty swinger who put up a nifty .858 OPS at AAA last year. Don't know about his defense as he had a high amount of PB in his career, but he's average (29%) at throwing out runners. I like the fact that he hits from the left side, has some pop and on base skills. He's also played a significant amount at 1B. I'm not suggesting they replace Maldonado, just bring in some real competition.

Old? Seriously? Gennett and Segura both turn 24 next year. Davis will be 26. Thornburg is 25. Peralta turns 25 in May. This roster got significantly younger last year. Bench isn't a bunch of mid 30's guys either. They aren't kids but guy like Bianchi, Gindl, Maldanado, Schafer, and Halton are all in their 20's. Alex Gonzalez is gone. Yuni is gone. Aoki could or could not be on the block. Hart seems older than he is. but he hasn't turned 32 yet. Gomez and Lucroy will be 28 next year. They along with Braun who just turned 30 are in their prime.

"But clearly this is the type of signing with Peralta's that shows FA is out of Milwaukee's league" Except that those type of signings for aging bottom of the rotation pitchers and position players should always have been avoided by teams like the Brewers. It's not a recipe for success and never has been. The Brewers can still selectively sign FA. They get a boost from national TV money too. But they are always better served waiting till the big market teams finish with their wish lists. That's where there's value.

I have faith in Burgos. I'm convinced he was injured in that 3 inning stint where he was left in to allow 12 runs (10 earned) in 3 innings. That wasn't the same guy that dominated hitters in the WBC.

His 2012 numbers were very close to Corey Hart's: Jones: .274/.317/.516, 27 HR, 86 RBI Hart: .270/.344/.507, 30 HR, 83 RBI Both will be 2 years removed from those numbers, one coming of a bad season and one coming off an injury. Those factors almost wash as well. With an adequate platoon partner (Halton maybe?), I'd certainly take Jones over Francisco or giving up something for Ike Davis.

I'm fine with him out of the NL even though his last couple years weren't as impressive. The Braves are a team that's likely to be fighting for a wild card, and his loss weakens them. He's a good fit with the Yankees.

Another possibility is the interest in Hart has driven up his price over what they had budgeted by about the amount they are saving on Badenhop. Badenhop is fine as the 11th or 12th man on a staff, but you don't need to pay $2+ million for that spot.

Badenhop wasn't used much in the last month so likely wasn't in their plans. Anything for him is a bonus. The first hitter faced in his 63 appearances hit .333/.349/.517 off him. That's not getting it done out of the pen.

I don't think Hart affects Aoki at all. If they don't re-sign Hart, it's more likely they will either play Francisco at 1B, or acquire a lefty hitting 1B via trade (that could involve Aoki) or FA. This is an extreme RH dominated lineup and that's even figuring Gennett gets the full time 2B job. If Hart is back they may want to keep Aoki to retain some lineup balance. That may mean Davis and Gindl go back to Nashville to play regularly, while Schafer and Halton back up in the OF, and handle PH duties along with Franciso (or perhaps Green) who'll give Hart and Ramirez occasional rest. Again the thinking being that Schafer and Halton are seen more as backup types anyway and with Braun, Gomez and Aoki all healthy, that's not going to leave much time for backup OF.

I know the believers in the randomness of hitting will disagree, but Lucroy's had a knack of hitting with men on base, so I think he's more valuable in the 5th spot. Gomez would benefit hitting in front of Braun and having speed at the top of the order is still a plus.

I'll take Francisco/Halton platoon over Davis any day and throw a third line into the mix: Player #3: 391 ABs .212/.240/.355, 13 HR, 46 RBI Ok, ok, the .240 OBP gave him away, but point is Davis isn't an upgrade over what they put out there last year.

Is there anyone out there that actually believes Melvin's denials about Aoki being shopped? It's not 100% certain, and it won't happen until things get clearer at 1B, but it's more likely he gets dealt than not.

For all the success he had, it was only 153 PA, and it's hard to know what he'd do over a full season. In fact I like Gindl, who's really being overlooked, almost as much as Davis. Gindl had almost as many walks (20) as strikeouts (25). Every time I see him take a cut, I see a young Matt Stairs who really didn't blossom until his late 20's. I can see Roenicke doing what he did much of the 2nd half, mixing and matching guys. Gindl batting 2nd, is intriguing. As for leadoff, Gennett vs. RHP, and Segura vs. LHP. Neither are going to walk a ton, but batting ahead of the likes of Braun etc, they'll see pitches plenty of good pitches to hit and combined they should easily account for a .350 or better OBP in the leadoff spot.

I was in the trade Braun camp after the truth came out but honestly if Ike Davis is all you'd get for him then no. Davis is supposed to provide power, but Yuni outslugged him in 2013. I believe Braun will perform up to his past. The venom he'll get directed at him will gradually fade too. It's happened with Michael Vick.

Mitch Moreland?

Some fans are taking it seriously even suggesting the Brewers pay part of Braun's salary. What planet are they on? I do question why Melvin would even be talking with the Mets. They are as hard up for a 1B as the Brewers. Now if Detroit wanted to pay half of Fielder's salary, that might be a fair swap for Braun, but Ike Davis?

With all the various injuries he's had, I still think $8 million is a lot. But it's not surprising considering how dominant he was when healthy. Maybe the big park in SD will allow him to ease off some. He seems headed down the path of Rich Harden.

Gregory Polanco will step in RF solving their revolving door between Tabata/Snider. Starling Marte now has a year under him of learning the Leadoff roll. McCutchen is a proven bat. Alen Hanson is a SS that while likely doesn't start Opening Day, is a much improved Bat at SS in the lineup when Super 2 status has passed. Tony Sanchez will get more appearances behind the Plate over Martin. There's just so much to love about the youth and talent Pittsburgh has today and tomorrow. Their offense aside from McCutchen doesn't have Wow impact, but next year will be filled with tough outs 1-8. Cole is as good as Burnett so he's covered. Taillon when inserted will be Liriano like. And they are adding Nick Kingham. That's 3 very capable replacements for the 2 you're concerned about. And there's 2more on the way beyond 2014. These are top 40 Prospects in (10)Taillon,(13)Polanco,(39)Hansen preparing to insert in to Pittsburgh's everyday lineup. This after Cole(7) and Marte (40) graduated last season. You seen the impact Segura who was 55th in ranking had on the Brewers. Now you have Pittsburgh with 5 Better thought of Seguras joining/being a part of their team next season. 3 of them Elite in regard top 15 prospects. I wouldn't be surprised if Pitts. won the next 4 Divisions with 94 or more wins each of those 4 seasons. There's a 100win team coming one of those seasons. Polanco and Hanson might be very good prospects, but they don't project to do much in the majors in 2014. Between them they have 105 games played above A ball. Polanco hit .263/.354/.407 in 68 games at AA. He might indeed be a fine major leaguer but it won't likely be in 2014. Hanson did even less at AA. I'll take the 2014 Brewer lineup over the 2014 Pirate lineup and it's not really all that close.

I honestly don't think Melvin has any interest in Arroyo either. Brewers have guys that will eat innings and that's Arroyo's main strength and teams in need will overpay to get that. He'll likely add a veteran to compete, but not one who they can't afford to cut if the young guys shine. I'm thinking along the lines of guys returning from injury like Scott Baker or Jeff Niemann, who are buy low guys who's track records when healthy are worth taking a flyer on.

Even with Estrada's arbitration amount and a significant raise for Gallardo, as of today, the Brewers have under $30 million obligated to their rotation in 2014. Whether it's good enough is one thing but as a percentage of payroll, at least it's not outrageous. With Peralta, Thornburg, Nelson, and others, there is hope that finally the development process isn't coming up empty as it has for many years.

It reminds me of the Giants in the last year or two of Bonds. They surrounded him with all grizzled old guys. That didn't work out too well. Seriously, I'd run a Ramirez for Cody Asche by Amaro...he just might bite.

Jeff Niemann has opted for FA after being outrighted off the Rays roster. Is coming off of Rotator cuff surgery, he missed most of 2012 and all of 2013. Might be worth a minor league deal with opt out. Would also be nice having him starting the year in the Nashville rotation with another 6'9" pitcher, Johnny Helweg.