JohnBriggs12

I'm sure Melvin would insist on at least one of their major league ready guys, Tommy Hunter (8-0 with Texas) or if not him, lefty Derek Holland who last pitched a rehab (perfect 3 IP, 6K's) in Arizona rookie league last Friday. Rangers can't take on additional salary so Brewers would have to pick up the $3.8 million owed Fielder this year. That gives Melvin even more leverage in players. I would imagine Rangers in addition to pitching would throw in 1B Chris Davis who's monster minor league numbers haven't yet translated to the majors, but who's still only 24. Rangers have the young talent to get it done. I don't see the Angels having the major league ready arms the Brewers want.

I trade Manny Parra, Todd Coffey and Cody Scarpetta to the D-Backs for Edwin Jackson ($8.35 million in 11) this week. I sign Jake Westbrook to a 2yr/$13 million deal ($6.5 in 11) in the offseason. My rotation is: Gallardo ($2.35), Wolf ($9.5), Jackson ($8.35), Westbrook ($6.5) and Narveson (0.6). That's $17.8 million total for rotation. For the bullpen, I'd add a lefty (say Will Ohman) for about $1.5 million. My pen would look like: Axford ($0.6), Hawkins ($4), Loe ($1.3). Villanueva ($1.3), Braddock ($0.5), Ohman (1.5), Rivas (0.4). That's $9.6 million for the bullpen. My OF would be Braun ($4 million), Cain (0.4), Hart ($8.5), Gomez ($2.0) and assuming Edmonds retires: Eric Hinske ($2.5). That's $17.4 million for the OF. Infield is: McGehee (0.7), Escobar (0.5), Weeks (7.5), Fielder (14.5). Backups are Counsell (1.2) and Farris (0.4). Infield total is $24.8 million. Catchers are Lucroy (0.5) and Kottaras (0.6). That's a total of 1.1 million for catchers. My total payroll for my 25 man roster is $70.7 million. If I do trade, it will be Fielder but only if a major league ready starting pitcher is part of the package in return. That would negate the need to sign Westbrook. To replace Fielder, I'd sign Lance Berkman to a 2 year with option deal for around $9 million per year.

Before making a statement like that, you should do some research. Roger Maris hit 39 HR in 1960 batting mostly 4th behind the most feared hitter in the AL at the time, Mickey Mantle. In 1961, Ralph Houk (may he RIP), flip flopped Mantle and Maris so Maris batted 3rd and Mantle 4th. That resulted in Maris hitting 61 home runs. The following year, 1962, Mantle was injured and missed a month of that season. During the month Mantle was out, Maris batted a paltry .182. Mantle was the great and feared hitter. Maris was a lesser player, a pull hitter who could take advantage of the short porch in Yankee Stadium. Pitchers feared Mantle. It's true, as has been pointed out that the games greats, like the Pujols, Mantles, Aarons, are not affected at all by who hits around them. They produce regardless. But guys who are a not in that category tend to benefit batting in front of a true great. Now the question Brewer fans need to ask is whether Bruan is truly a great hitter. If he is, it won't matter. So far the evidence has been stark that Braun is a much better hitter batting in front of Fielder. As a number 3 hitter, Braun has a career .946 OPS. As a number 4 hitter, his OPS is .637. I don't think you can completely say this is just a statistical fluke. Personally, I think the departure of Fielder will likely not only affect Braun, but probably the entire lineup. Fielder's been lousy this year with men on base, but he does put fear in most opposing pitchers. While I've argued in other threads that Fielder is not a $25 million a year guy, he's still pretty close to that and the reason is that his presence in the lineup generally helps other hitters around him. There are not too many guys that you can say that about.

The Brewers have a fairly large inventory of starting pitchers from low class A up to AA that could be major league ready between 2012 and 2014 (there's 10 such guys in the power 50 top 21). What they really need are major league ready pitchers that could crack the 2011 rotation. I would offer Bush along with one of the many lower level pitching prospects to a contender needing a veteran starter for a guy who's major league ready now or should be in 2011. Now that type package won't get you a guy that projects any higher than a 4 (unless maybe you include Odorizzi), but having such a guy will save you from spending $4-6 million next winter on another 4-5 veteran.

I'm also not surprised one bit by their logic. We saw it last year and we're seeing it again this year. I'd agree with you, but the guys they've talked about moving are under control through next year too and they don't have to trade them now.

Jason A. Churchill (an ESPN guy) said that he likes what Doug Melvin has done. Melvin is asking for what he thinks his guys are worth, and if no one is willing to offer that, he has no need to trade them yet, as they are both under team control for 2011. That said, it still worries that Melvin & Co. are doing absolutely NOTHING at the deadline. Not trying to get talented prospects for the future, not trying to improve the current team to make a run. Just standing pat. That worries me.I think you could see a minor move or two. They have to clear a spot for Hawkins in the bullpen. That could mean they DFA a guy like Riske, or deal him or someone else. I'm sure Melvin would listen to an offer for Bush if one comes along. I think Melvin might explore the market if the Brewer were to sweep the Reds, but he'd be looking not only for help this year, but next as well because you can't give up prospects, especially arms, with playoffs still pretty remote. The Fielder talk died when Melvin asked for Danks or Floyd. The Sox were the only realistic partner for Fielder but that deal was never going to happen. If I were Melvin, just for fun, I'd float a Dave Bush and a lower level prospect (Scarpetta for instance) for Daniel Hudson proposal to Kenny Williams. Sox are in a little panic that Hudson might not be seasoned enough for a playoff run. They might have a greater need for an experienced arm than a big lefty bat.

In Wolf's final 11 starts of 2009, the Dodgers won 9 of them. Anything's possible. What good offers has Melvin turned down for Fielder and Hart? I haven't heard of any. Don't tell me a couple A ball pitchers are good offers. That's no better than the draft picks both figure to bring if they get to FA. Granted it's a longshot but not because this Brewer team isn't capable of getting hot for 2 months. If the offense clicks on all cylinders and two of those starters pitch a bit over their heads for 10 starts, the Brewers can close strong. They aren't likely to win the division because the Cardinals throw Wainwright and Carpenter out there twice every 5 games. Now should one of those two go down with an injury, that's a whole nother story.

Like it seemed every year under manager Del Crandall, the 75 Brewers were a first half team. In fact as late as July 3rd, the Brewers were in a virtual tie with Boston on top the AL East with a 43-35 record. Unfortunately they went just 25-59 the rest of the way. That cost Crandall his job. Of course that year will be remembered for the homecoming of Hank Aaron. I also remember it negatively because it was the year they traded two of my all time favorites. At the deadline (which back then was June 15), they traded Johnny Briggs and his .447 OBP at the time for the putrid Bobby Darwin. Earlier they had dealt Bobby Coluccio for the vanilla Bill Sharp. Pitching fell apart that year. The rotation was Slaton, Travers, Pete Broberg, Jim Colborn, and Billy Champion. Nobody had a very good year. Closer Tom Murphy who had been so good the year before, melted down as the season wore on. The late Eddie Rodriguez, another of my favorites, assumed closing duties eventually. Augustine debuted that year. Darrell Porter and Charlie Moore platooned at catcher. That was a pretty good combo. The infield from 3rd to 1st was Don Money, Yount, Pedro Garcia and George Scott. Garcia showed flashes but never really fufilled his promise. The OF was Briggs/Darwin in LF, Sharp/Thomas in CF and Lezcano in RF. Overall, that was a pretty sorry group except that Lezcano was very, very young and promising. Thomas gave no indication that year of things to come for him. Aaron was the DH.

Speaking of older guys, an intriguing FA to be is Hiroki Kuroda. He'll be 36 next year but has shown no sign of slippage yet. As with most Dodger pitchers you have to check is home/road splits but they are about equal. He's had great success against the Cardinals (.179 BAA), Reds (.217 BAA) and Cubs (.204 BAA). That's a trifecta in my book. I think he may command a tad more than Lilly or Vazquez, but less than the $15 million he's making this year. If you could get him on a 2 year with an option, that might be worth exploring. Attanasio sure is aware of Dodgers and could have an in on another one.

Actually they went 40-19 over the last 59. Willie Randolph played a big role on that team. He was tremendous. It seemed he got a hit every time up with 2 out and a runner in scoring position (in fact, he hit .373 in those situations). There's some similarities with this year's team. Doug Henry came out of nowhere as a 27 year old rookie to take over for the then fading Dan Plesac. Julio Machado (what a waste of talent) was that year's Kameron Loe. They didn't have a lot of starting pitching depth behind Bosio and Navarro, but Bill Wegman got on a tremendous hot streak out of nowhere going 9-1 in that stretch. Molitor made his next to last year one of his best as a Brewer. Overall though, this year's team seems more talented. Imagine that 91 team with Fielder at first instead of Franklin Stubbs? To duplicate that team's run, one if not two pitchers among Narveson, Wolf, Bush and Parra, has to go on a two month tear like Wegman's in 1991. Wolf did that last year with the Dodgers going 6-1 in his last 11 starts (Dodgers won 9 of those), so he's done it. Whether he can again or not remains to be seen. We've all seen Bush have good stretches but never to the extent Wegman did, though nobody saw it coming from him either.

With three "decent" pitches, is it set in stone that Pokorny projects solely as a reliever? I would think a guy with 3 pitches including a low 90s fastball might be starter material.

I'm very skeptical about Lilly and Vazquez, who will both be 35 next year getting anywhere near those amounts. I wouldn't be interested in either if I'm Melvin. I'd be looking at AL right handers who might be had for bargain rates, who might improve in the NL, would be further removed from past medical issues, and who if they aren't doing well, you won't fret about dumping. Two guys in that category are Jake Westbrook and Jeremy Bonderman. I'd also gauge the Washburn situation. But having salary room also gives you flexibility to trade for guys that other teams may need to dump to save money.

Patience at the plate for a slugger is certainly an asset, but he's paid to drive in runs when the opportunity presents itself.. Fielder is hitting .178 this year with RISP. Howard is hitting .288. Granted Fielder is taking quite a few walks in those situations, but that's less helpful than hits in that situation and many times its the preferred outcome for opponents. No doubt Fielder has the added burden of seeing lefties almost exclusively late in games especially with men on, but so does Howard, so that's why it's fair to compare their numbers. Bottom line is you can't "toss out the RBI's". I know it's an "old time stat" but runners rarely score without a batter knocking them in, and the object on offense is to score, not see how many guys you can get on base.

Saunders has pitched in AL, and had one very good season where he was 17-7 with a 3.41 ERA and a 1.212 WHIP. When did Parra or Bush ever come close to that pitching in the NL where the pitchers bat? Saunders pitches to contact and the difference between his All Star season of 08 and now is that his control the last couple year has not been as sharp. Saunders makes a lot less than Haren so they accomplished getting a major league starter back and while saving quite a bit. Rodriguez is a decent young bullpen arm which they desperately need and Corbin appears to have some promise down the road as a starter. This could turn out all right for both teams though I don't think this makes the Angels significantly better.

Another guy who is conspicuous by his absence from the list is Jonathan Pokorny. Maybe it speaks to the depth, but how can you ignore a guy with 65 K's in 44 IP and a 4.3 to 1 K/BB ratio? Granted he's a reliever, but he's clearly more than a lefty specialist having logged 44 innings in 30 games. Anybody seen this guy throw? Is he a hard thrower or finesse guy with big breaking stuff?

Like Doug Davis, Dave Bush, and Randy Wolf? It's thinking like you expressed in your post that resulted in them passing over Garland and Pineiro and instead going for "bat missers" Davis and Wolf. Pitching to contact = lower pitch counts and less stress on the bullpen. As for supposed deficiency in Brewer defense, it's not bothering Kameron Loe is it? Carmona profiles similar to Loe.

Edmonds recent hot streak has me thinking about a lower profile deal with the White Sox. Edmonds isn't Dunn or Fielder but he's not a bad fit for them. The Sox have a 27 year old right hander in AAA named Carlos Torres. Torres is 17-10 with a 3.00 ERA in AAA the last couple years with a strikeout per inning. He had a cup of coffee with the Sox last year with mixed results (he did shut out the Cubs for 7 innings). While his ERA is up a run over last year, his peripherals are nearly identical and still very good. Though a late bloomer, he might be a guy worth giving a good look at for 2 months. Of course it will take more than Edmonds to get him, but maybe they can take advantage of Don Cooper, a pitching coach with a huge ego, and coax them into taking Parra off our hands or alternatively, Bush.

While it's been fun watching Suppan struggle, I was hoping that he'd pitch just well enough that they won't go out and get Oswalt.

He's played error-less ball at 2B in 7 of 9 games in Arizona. He DH'd the other 2. He also stole a base the other day so I would imagine he's ready physically. It's just a matter of getting timing down at the plate. I can't imagine it will be too much longer before he's back in Nashville.

This has nothing to with trading Axford, but it finally occurred to me just who Axford reminds me of and that's Jim Kern. Back in the day, Kern had some of the best stuff around and what a workhorse. In 1979, Kern had an incredible year. He pitched, get this, 143 innings in relief, was 13-5 with a 1.57 ERA, and 29 saves. Kern at his peak may have had a couple more MPH on his fastball than Axford has, but they had very similar builds and similar stuff.

Sorry, but the numbers say Howard is better. Since both became everyday players in 2006, Howard has out-homered Prince 220-182, has more RBI, 647-489, more total bases, 1480 to 1383, more runs scored 573-440, and a higher slugging percentage, .545 to .517. While it can be pointed out Prince gets on at a slightly better clip, teams pay for the run production.

If you had July 23rd in the first thread about trading Axford, you're a winner! Why is it every time a Brewer performs better than expectations for a month or two, the first thought is "what can we get for him"? I'll take Sept. 24th for the first thread suggesting trading Lorenzo Cain. Of course the answer is always never as much as you might think. Teams look at guys who've done it over a short period with skepticism, especially so if you make it known you're shopping the guy. Look Axford's cheap and effective. Teams like the Brewers need cheap and effective players no matter what role.

He's younger but he's not as consistent a run producer as Howard. He won't get anywhere near what Boras thinks he will. More like 6 years, $135 million.

Hudson was hitting 95 with regularity the other night and mixed in 3 other pitches. He's got 364 K's in 310 minor league innings. If that's a 3-4 type, then Bush and Wolf are 9-10 types. Either Melvin must be looking at the pre-2008 draft scouting report, the same one that caused him to pass on Hudson 4 times that year, or he posturing to get a better player along with him. Frankly, I think Hudson as the primary return for Fielder isn't bad at all. Williams is the same guy that gave up Clayton Richard last year. There aren't too many GM's out there that so willingly surrender young pitching. P.S. No way the Sox include Beckham. They'll take Parra and a reliever (Coffey or Villanueva) along with Fielder, and if the Brewers agree to take Teahen (who could be stopgap 1B for Brewers), they might agree to add Brent Morel, but forget Beckam.. Only problem with that scenario is Teahen is currently on the DL with a bad finger. They could acitvate him and then deal him but he's not expected back until early August.

I think Jeremy Bonderman might be a good value FA pickup. He'll only be 28 and he seems to be over the shoulder problems that plagued him in 2008 and 2009 as he hasn't missed a start this year. His K rate is down slightly, but his WHIP and K/BB ratios are at his career norms and aren't bad at all. Before everyone starts shouting about his career 4.80 ERA, keep in mind that's in the AL. Also if you're concerned about his pitching in a pitchers park, career wise he's actually been better on the road.