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JohnBriggs12

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Everything posted by JohnBriggs12

  1. JohnBriggs12
    The need to let Rogers and one or two others mature a bit before they dangle Wolf out there, but if they do, he's a logical guy to shop after the season when those guys may be ready and there are alternatives that could be cheaper.
  2. JohnBriggs12
    The only way Prince stays beyond this year is if Boras thinks the market for him will be better after the 2012 season and he accepts a Brewer arbitration offer. That's where the Pujols situation could figure in. It's not a likely scenario, but it's not one that can be completely ruled out either. Keep in mind the Brewers have to offer arbitration to get the draft picks back, and I think they'd gladly inflate the 2012 payroll a bit if he chose to stay another year. They also could dump some salary by dealing Wolf if he does well enough this year to have trade value. Either way, one extra year of Fielder would not preclude signing the pitchers.
  3. JohnBriggs12
    Wasn't it 8 yrs/$200 million? That would be $25 million per, same as what Howard got over 6.
  4. JohnBriggs12
    If the chances of him before this happened staying a Brewer were 0% (which I believe is the case), then this might have increased it to 2%. The fact is that Prince is gone after this year. I'd peg the chances at about 3-5% myself but only for one year, but that's higher than the 0-1% if Pujols weren't on the market. I'm basing that on Fielder deciding it would be in his best interest to take a one year Brewer arbitration offer so he can have a free run the following year. That's not likely, but not impossible.
  5. JohnBriggs12
    Knowing the pitchers and catchers are practicing in Arizona doesn't do much for me. It's still winter here. The golf courses are closed. There's no real games for another 6 weeks.
  6. JohnBriggs12
    If you ever get a chance to attend indy league baseball I suggest you do. There are teams as close to Milwaukee at the Lake County Fielders, just across the Illinois Border and the Schaumburg Flyers, both of whom have changed leagues for 2011. You see a wide variety of players, from one time major leaguers, to guys signed out of local semi pro leagues. Most guys have some affiliated experience though usually up to high A and AA. In 2009, I saw 44 year old former NL all star Felix Jose, who was DHing for Schaumburg and even at that advanced age and out of shape, he could still rake. That same night, former Brewer farmhand Travis Ezi homered for Schaumburg, then was released the next day.
  7. JohnBriggs12
    Kelly Johnson, probably Weeks' most close comparable, just agreed to $5.85 million for this year from the D-Backs. That's slightly closer to the Brewers arby figure of $4.85 than it is to Weeks' $7.2 number.
  8. JohnBriggs12
    Just a general question as I notice a lot of guys picking Betancourt to disappoint. If nothing is expected from a guy, then how can he disappoint?
  9. JohnBriggs12
    Breakout: Narveson and Betancourt Disappointments: Weeks and Gallardo Narveson builds on his 2010 as a "poor man's" Cliff Lee, wins 15 games and gets a 3 year deal. Based on what some fans say about Betancourt, he can only surprise on the upside. He hits .275, 18 HR, and knocks in 80 and makes under 20 errors. For all his positives in 2010, Weeks still had periods where he was lost. With FA possibly looming, it works on his head. Gallardo disappoints in that he continues to run up his pitch counts and as a result, his record ends up 13-11, with an ERA around 4.
  10. JohnBriggs12
    After this year, if both Fielder and Weeks depart, it might make some sense. The Brewers would have the money, another year to develop a prospect or two that would interest Texas, and the Rangers would still likely pick up part of that contract. I completely disagree with motheshipconnection. Overbay doesn't belong in the same sentence as Young. Young might not be a top 1B, but given the alternatives, is certainly a better option than Overbay. Plus I would presume he can still play some at 2B (replacing Weeks) where he'd still be in the upper half offensively.
  11. JohnBriggs12
    Don't forget they'll have $20-22 million available next year that they are spending on Fielder and Weeks this year to reconstruct 3/4 of the infield. Best available SS would be Reyes. Nobody else is close unless Rollins becomes available too but he's no kid. The best 2B other than Weeks could be Kelly Johnson, who would be a real nice fit too because he hits from the left side. First base is a crap shoot beyond the big 3.
  12. JohnBriggs12
    The Brewers need to devote their pitching resources into extensions for Greinke and Marcum. The aren't going to be able to afford another $13 million arm, even if they deal Wolf a year before his contract expires. They should look to continue to fill the 4 and 5 spots around the big 3 internally, only dipping in for veterans on very short term deals as needed.
  13. JohnBriggs12
    Reality check. It's February. It will be interesting to see how he does over a full season but it's a lot to expect him to be the guy he was in 05. Even if he does well, it's not likely the Mets will contend. If the Brewers are in position where they need a starter at midseason, I'm sure he'd be on their radar given his history.
  14. JohnBriggs12
    Narveson doesn't take a backseat to Gallardo as a hitter either though without the power. I still like Gomez hitting 2nd and Hart 6th. Gomez would see a lot more pitches to hit there (he hit a respectable .272 in that slot last year) and they need to do everything they can to get production from him. Hart showed last year he could produce hitting 6th where he posted a 1.091 OPS last year. I think hitting 2nd Gomez can post something like .265/.315/.385 and in Roenicke's run offense, steal 35-40 bases and score 80 runs. Batting 7th or 8th ahead of either Lucroy or the pitcher, he'll likely hit only .240/.290/.375. Another thing Roenicke may try is hitting Hart 5th and McGehee 6th. Betancourt should hit 7th, because whoever hits there behind Fielder, McGehee, and Hart is going to have a lot of RBI chances. Betancourt has shown he can drive in runs.
  15. JohnBriggs12
    Personally, I think Uggla's contract is over the top. He's likely at some point well before his contract runs out to be moved off 2nd, more than likely to 1B, where his numbers are good but not elite. But I don't put Weeks in the "elite" category either. His 2010 season, while impressive in some very obvious ways, looks very similar to the type of season Jose (K) Hernandez put up in 2002 and I don't think Jose K was ever though of as "elite". Unusual? Yes. All or nothing? Yes. Elite? No. I know I'm old fashioned but a .269 BA, and 184 K's, which not too long ago would have been a major league record, are pretty significant negatives. To me, elite seasons by a 2B are what Utley put up from 05 to 08, Joe Morgan from 72 to 77, several seasons by Sandberg (84, 85, 87, 89-92) and most of Jeff Kent between 97 and 05.
  16. JohnBriggs12
    Even after acquisition of Greinke, I feel like the Brewers should have (maybe they did) inquire to the availability of Adam Jones for Fielder, provided the Orioles were given a negotiating window with Prince for an extension. Jones' acquisition would have shown to the fans and Greinke more specifcally, we were still going for it. From the Orioles perspective, even with Jones traded, they still have the young-ish hitting core of Fielder, Markakis, Wieters and Reynolds. Man, I would STILL inquire about this with Baltimore. With Vlad, Luke Scott, and Derrek Lee, they probably don't have a pressing need for Fielder this year though I like your idea.
  17. JohnBriggs12
    If Weeks and Fielder leave as FA, they'll have plenty of cash to go after a big name FA. Since SS is more a premier position and they don't have any options in the minors, I'd rather they spend it there. The money coming off the books for Wolf in 2012 and Hawkins can be used toward Greinke. They'd have to use some of the Fielder/Weeks cash savings to sign both Greinke and Marcum admittedly, but some should be left over for a position player. As for the Mets, they have all kinds of money issues tied into lawsuits over the Bernie Madoff situation. I don't see that clearing up in time for them to keep Reyes.
  18. JohnBriggs12
    Bud Selig was the commish at the time and his daughter Wendy owned the Brewers. All this talk about Milwaukee having been an NL town and all was really just talk. One team had to change leagues, and only one team had the daughter of the Bud Selig as it's owner and thus it was the path of least resistance. The other big factor was the Cubs. The Seligs liked the idea of the Cubs being in the same division as the Brewers. There had been 13 seasons of NL baseball in Milwaukee prior to 1998, and 28 seasons of AL baseball. While it's true some people missed the NL style of play, the Brewers had some heated rivalries in the AL too. I miss the great series the Brewers used to have with the Yankees and Red Sox back in the day. Of course that was well before the inequities that now plague the game in salaries so it's probably for the best.
  19. JohnBriggs12
    I'd like Young, but I don't see a match unless Texas added some of their young pitching and made a play for Fielder. But it seems clear the Brewers closed the door on dealing Prince.
  20. JohnBriggs12
    Pettitte's winning percentage of .635 is his best credential as is the fact he never had a losing season in 16 seasons. A lot of that has to do with the teams he was on but I also don't think you can totally ignore a 19-10 record in the postseason either. 240 wins in this era of baseball is also quite impressive. But a pedestrian WHIP of 1.35, a good but not HOF quality 3.88 ERA, will keep him out as will the HGH admission.
  21. JohnBriggs12
    All your points are good so lets take a look. The one guy I think the Mets would be interested in assuming he's pitching well this year of course is Rogers and the Brewers likely not want to risk dealing Rogers unless they had a long term deal in place for Reyes. Of course that's as of now. The Brewers do have a number of pitchers who could emerge as attractive targets this year. The Mets also figure to need to replace Beltran, so Hart might interest them too, not as a CF of course but as a solid offensive outfielder. Your second point is valid but when have the Brewers had a pitching staff headed by Greinke, Marcum, and Gallardo? That has to be attractive to a potential FA. Finally is Reyes an upgrade over Weeks? I think Reyes is a better overall player than Weeks, but of course if Weeks signs for considerably less than what it would take to get Reyes, that's probably a better option. But my proposal assumes they don't sign Weeks.
  22. JohnBriggs12
    We know it's likely Fielder will not be a Brewer in 2012. It's also possible that Weeks will be gone as well. The bright spot of one or both of those leaving is that it frees up a ton of cash that can be spent elsewhere. We also know that the Brewers lack a long term answer at shortstop, and one of the best of the 2012 FA crop figures to be Jose Reyes who doesn't turn 28 until June. Now many will say to use that extra cash to lock up Greinke and Marcum. Keep in mind though, Wolf will be coming off the books after 2012, and sooner if he's traded so there is more than just potential savings on Fielder and/or Weeks to spend on starting pitching beyond 2012. Reyes will undoubtedly be in great demand and won't come cheap even though his 2010 numbers were fairly modest and he's fallen off his peak year of 2008. But if the Mets don't contend, and with that rotation, it's likely they won't, it's quite possible they will look to move Reyes in mid season. If the Brewers were able to pull off a deal to acquire him in July, not only would that give their chances this year a huge boost (and quiet all the Betancourt bashers), but it might put them in better position to land him long term. Projecting forward to 2012, an infield of McGehee, Reyes, Farris, and Gamel, might not be too bad. I think if you look at it, Reyes may have considerable more value to the Brewers than Weeks as they may have a replacement in house (Farris) at 2B or could likely get one cheaper at 2B than SS.
  23. JohnBriggs12
    Tim Dillard will surprise everyone and make it until the last week before being sent down.
  24. JohnBriggs12
    Alert to Gregmag, I'm about to throw out meaningless stats: Kotsay at Miller Park: 10 for 24 (.417), 1.107 OPS. Kotsay at Minute Maid: 28 for 75 (.373), 1.041 OPS Kotsay has been a Brewer killer. Overall against the Brewers he's 47 for 134, with 6 HR, 25 RBI, and a .998 OPS (.351/.393/.604). Certainly those claiming he can't hit aren't basing it on what they've seen vs. the Brewers. He's also been good vs. the Astros (.863), and the Reds (.850), not bad against the Cubs (.764), Pirates (.761), and rather mediocre (.717) vs. the Cardinals. Look, he's a solid veteran bench bat. He's had plenty of post season experience meaning he's not going to be overwhelmed in big situations. He's had success as a PH which will be his primary role. He can still play the field well enough in a pinch. I don't expect him to be used nearly as much as Edmonds was last year, but remember Edmonds couldn't throw at all anymore. He's more likely to allow them to option out Gamel than replace Boggs on the roster.
  25. JohnBriggs12
    Sure they'll take a short term (a couple years) hit, but really you don't the Cardinals won't be able to be competitive in a couple years especially with all that money they would be saving? Or that St. Louis baseball fans will abandon them? Heck they'd probably be able to get Fielder for 1/2 of what Pujols is asking. The Cardinals won championships without Pujols. They haven't won many times with him too. He's not God. Paying any one player such a ridiculous sum will just as likely result in them not winning because they won't afford to put people around him, as it will to ensure them winning. Major league baseball isn't the NBA (thankfully). No one player affects a franchise in the way Lebron James did in Cleveland. That money he is asking for has to come from somewhere.
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