danzig6767

Isn’t this the same “hindsight” argument we aren’t supposed to be using? At the time we had Cain, Yelich, Braun, Phillips, and Broxton as major league ready outfielders. We also had Thames who could play there. That’s 6 additional options. We didn’t “need” him. We had plenty of quality depth to replace him. But in reality, the team hasn't been able to replace what they hoped Santana would do at the plate after what he did last season. Braun is always hurt/on the DL or suffering from some nagging strain or pull. When healthy, he has a .692 OPS. Broxton is CF depth, not corner OF depth where he can't hit well enough to play RF often. Much of his value as a player resides in his defense in CF, but we have Cain playing that position. Phillips is similar to Broxton. A good defensive CF, but also a strikeout machine who won't hit well enough to play LF or RF often. He had only a .742 OPS in a AAA hitters haven. Thames at least can hit well enough vs righties to justify regular corner outfield at bats, but he's hurt often and also makes Santana look like a Gold Glove outfielder. Had Santana hit as the team hoped for, with Braun and Thames missing so many games, along with Braun hitting .229 and a .275 OBP, Santana would have received a lot of at bats in the 5th spot in the order where consistently a bunch of baserunners have been on, only to be stranded by guys who instead should be batting 7th or 8th in a better lineup. The struggles at the plate by both Santana and Arcia are a fairly big factor in why the offense has struggled so much. A .875 OPS bat like Domingo was last year would be a godsend to the Brewers lineup where so often after the first four batters hit, it's been a wasteland of below average to bad hitters.

Look we can go on and on. But what we do know is this. Domingo Santana was not needed given the other offseason moves. Actually, Santana has been needed. Given all of the injuries and struggles of other players, had Domingo hit anywhere close to like he did last year, that would have been a huge boost to a Brewers offense which has consistently struggled to score runs. For the last few weeks, the lineup depth has been so thin, scrubs like Saladino and Perez have been hitting 5th with lots of baserunners on. Stearns has talked often about how much he values organizational depth because regularly, whether it's injuries or other factors, in a blink an area of the team which you initially thought had lots of quality players, things can get thin and suddenly you have below average players being forced in the lineup or pitching staff. Obviously Santana has struggled mightily this year instead of building off what he did last season, but had he hit well as we all hoped he would, his not being traded could easily have helped win some of these brutal losses where the team pitched well, but simply couldn't score runs.

Stearns isn’t the hitting coach but that is also why I suggest that he isn’t a true baseball man or talent evaluator. But to your post, Volatile is a great word. It wasn’t long ago that Arcia was hitting 15 HRs, Santana was a beast, Anderson and Nelson formed a true 1-2, and Kneble had the best closer year I’ve seen here. Stearns seems to judged on the small sample size alert. I’d like to see what his 5 year plan looks like when he has had the job for 5 years. What happened with Segura happens all of the time in baseball. A player leaves an organization and a new hitting coach or pitching coach tweaks something and that player gets better. Or say a pitcher gets help from another pitcher on that new team on how to throw his changeup or cutter, next thing you know that pitcher is quite a bit more effective. The list is long of players who leave one organization whether via being waived or trade and for a variety of potential reasons, they perform better with that new team. And even without leaving an organization, many players end up surprising their team by being way more productive than expected, while others with higher expectations, nosedive so badly that the team gets caught off guard. Obviously to be a good GM, they have to be right more often than wrong, but more good fortune than bad luck along the way sure helps a lot also, especially for small market GM's.

What i think this shows is that there is also luck which factors in for every GM. Sure Stearns and his staff had to like Aguilar enough to grab him off waivers, but even Stearns would admit that he couldn't have predicted getting a .987 OPS season, anymore than the Reds could have envisioned Scooter Gennett turning into Robinson Cano after claiming him off waivers. With Segura at least, there is a concrete explanation. A coach in winter ball the year after we traded him got Segura to significantly alter his batting stance and he hasn't stopped hitting since. Granted, blame could be placed on our coaching staff for not making a similar suggestion to Segura, but Stearns isn't a hitting coach. Sports are both a mix of being predictable and unpredictable. Odd stuff happens though to players around the league. Hell, Beane waives Muncy and suddenly with the Dodgers he's a hitting beast. On the flip side Bryce Harper has a .218 batting average. There are tons more examples. Any GM will do well so long as he makes more good moves than bad overall, but mixed in will inevitably be some players that far exceed what he could have envisioned and others who do much worse than he could have envisioned because it's a volatile sport.

Santana was progressing as many young players do. He didn't go from a guy who showed very little power in the minors or majors and out of nowhere hit 30 homers/59 extra base hits last year and an .875 OPS. In 2016 with his first chance to get a decent number of at bats, Domingo posted an .792 OPS at age 23. Then he followed that up with an .875 OPS at age 24. So yea, i do think it is inexplicable that out of nowhere this season, he lost all of his power. That's more surprising to me than jumping from a .792 OPS in 2016 to a .875 OPS the following season. Going into this year, i could have pictured Santana staying around what he did last year, getting even a little better, or regressing some, but not turning into largely a singles only hitter, with a few doubles sprinkled in. Plus, Santana wasn't some swing at anything hacker like Arcia which makes hitters more prone to big slumps. He was second on the team last year in walks with 73 and even this year he had 18 in 189 at bats.

Saladino is probably the safest to remain. He is versatile, good defender, and hitting well. Is he though? Good defender or hitting well? He hasn't looked like he is a near-Arcia-level defender to me. Also he hit well at first. But he has come down to earth. Last 50 at bats, he is OPS .659 and trending down from there. Saladino is the only shortstop, unlike Perez, Miller, and Villar. I guess Perez could play short in a pinch for a few games, but that's it.

Had Samtana hit anywhere near what he did last season, keeping him would have been a great thing for the team given the massive trouble the lineup has had scoring runs. The lineup has been so lacking run producing bats the last few weeks, Tyler friggin Saladino has often been hitting 5th in the order. If instead we had Santana of last year or something close to that, he'd be ideal batting 5th after Aguilar or Shaw. There is no way though that Stearns could have predicted Santana would go from a 30 HR/.875 OPS guy to someone with a slap hitting .354 SLG percentage. Sports are volatile. For every good surprise like Aguilar in a season, there are bound to also have a Santana who inexplicably loses all of his power.

Consider me very skeptical of Miley. Walks have been what hurt him on other teams and here he sits with 11 in only 17 innings with us. He keeps doing that and it's only a matter of time before those free passes come around to score runs.

I noticed that about about Davis awhile ago because i found it so bizarre and almost impossible to happen. I totally understood why he was traded when he was, but his bat sure would look nice in our feeble lineup.

Segura changed his career while in winter ball after Luis Mercedes persuaded Segura to lower his hands and he hasn't stopped hitting since. Unfortunately, that happened after the trade. If any blame towards the Brewers should be placed, it should be on our hitting instructors for not making a similar suggestion, assuming they didn't.

thank God mlb has a brain. Unlike the nfl. To me, whether Hader had received a short suspension or not is largely irrelevant for him at least. Missing say 3-5 games had he been suspended would have quickly been over with after those 3-5 games, but his name/reputation will never be the same, which will hurt him far far more than missing few games would. The same for having this happen on the night of his first All-Star appearance. Devastation and shame in a blink as this leaked out. That devastation of what happened last night and going forward will haunt way more than any suspension could.

Because if he were entering in the 6th or 7th inning with a fresh pen he would not be throwing 34 pitches if he didn't have it, he would have been replaced by then. Yet another consequence as I mentioned of a conventional closer, for whatever reason the manager feels obligated to give him the entire inning no matter what and live with the result. And for me the inning is totally irrelevant, it's about situation. String of free swinging righties coming up? Sure, go with Knebel or William's. In a jam and looking for a groundball or K? Jeffress or Hader is good. Top of the order up with a couple lefties due? Hader. To me the idea of going with a certain guy because of what number happens to be in front of "inning" is antiquated and insane, yet precisely what they do with Knebel. I don't care if there is a set closer or not, in the end it's about getting outs with the back end of the pen and situations often to don't work out like you posted. Look how often for example Jeffress has been brought in to snuff out unplanned for trouble as early as the 5th inning and not based on any situation except kill the trouble brewing, which he'd do. Not long ago at all, a reliever as dominant as Jeffress has been, he'd be pigeon holed into an 8th inning setup guy or closer, yet Counsell went outside the box and has used Jeffress in every situation possible. Hader also used much earlier in games than other managers typically used a dominant reliever. Knebel is really the only guy who has been used in a set role and i'm fine with that changing, but to think all Counsell has to do is to wait only for the exact perfect times in select games where 2 or 3 straight free swingers will be up BAM, problem solved, well, that strikes me as a bit naive. He was dominant last year with an even higher walk rate and similar WHIP, the K's are down a bit though so more contacted balls are finding holes. That can happen in any situation or inning he's used in.

Does any sports TV person, regardless of employer, ever ask anything of substance of athletes/coaches/GM's? No. Sometimes you'll have a football sideline reporter ask the coach about going for it on 4th down or something as they're running into the locker room at half time but that's about it. All you get from those folks is the standard How does it feel, What we're you thinking when whatever happened, Are you excited because of whatever, Did so and so play well stuff. Just puff questions. Yea, they almost always ask softball questions. Same stuff when i watch Bucks coaches after a loss. Here and there, a tough question gets asked, but then if the question is completely dodged or not given a direct answer, a follow up question is almost guaranteed to not happen. Maybe in bigger markets with a bigger pool of reporters and a tougher mindset of reporters, more often will tough questions be perused. With the Brewers and Bucks though, there simply is just one beat writer following each team and Sophia.

If hypothetically Knebel was moved back instead to pitching in the 7th or 8th inning in close games and blows a lead in those innings vs blowing the lead in the 9th inning, what is the big difference unless people want Knebel pushed back into a garbage man role in the pen? Sure it stings more for fans when a lead is blown in the 9th inning instead of the 7th or 8th inning, but either way, the lead is still lost. Move either of Jeffress or Hader into the main closer role, and it takes away their ability to snuff out rallies in say the 6th or 7th innings as they've done so many times. Our starters rarely go beyond six innings. Many leave in the 6th inning. So once one of them leaves a game with a small lead, those 6th, 7th, and 8th innings which need to be covered are just as important as the 9th inning to keeping that lead.

I agree. There is this assumption that if I don’t spend money for a baseball game I’ll just go spend the same amount somewhere else. If i am planning on going to a game and spending, say,, $150 on parking and tickets and dinner and beer at a bar ahead of time, and then all of a sudden it falls through for some reason, I am probably more likely to just stay in and save the $150. Or perhaps I’ll go somewhere else, maybe a local beer garden, and spend less than I would have had I go to the game. It’s the same argument that people make when talking about the possibility of an NHL team here. They say “well that’s just money that will be taken away from some other local entertainment option”. Why is it assumed I’ll spend my money on another option vs just saving it? The parking and ticket money goes directly to the Brewers. Then given where Miller Park was built, it isn't exactly in a place where tons of people before and after the game will go visit surrounding businesses, unlike say a downtown arena where more people are in walking distance to all kinds of restaurants and bars. I usually attend about 5-7 Brewers games a year and people i've gone with, we often tailgait, but rarely ever visit a business after unless it's one of those opening day party buses. Obviously some people do, but i'm pretty sure that fewer do compared to a park or arena in walking distance from restaurants and bars. FWIW, I'm glad Miller Park is where it is. I love to tailgait on a nice summer afternoon or night. I often enjoy that as much as the game itself and i believe so do tons of other fans. Without the ability to tailgait in large numbers, i really think it would lessen attendance. People in the Milwaukee have to endure awful weather for 1/2 to 2/3rd of the year, so for lots of people, being able to get together in groups on a nice summer day/night and tailgait for an hour or two before the game, it enhances the overall experience of attending the game.

That won't get it done for Fulmer. Start with offering Burnes or Peralta to at least keep the Tigers on the phone.

A few years ago I also had a 7 losses in a row stretch, but it was attending games at Miller Park. To make matters worse, the Brewers scored two runs or less in five of those games. At least having fun tailgaiting takes out a bit of the bummer effect when attending a really boring game, but spending 50-100 dollars each time with little to no action did blow and like you i started feeling cursed.

There should be a referendum though where citizens actually get to vote on whether they want to pay the hundreds of millions, and that goes for any pro sports facilities.

If the Orioles try forcing teams to include Britton in a package for Machado, Baltimore should expect less in return, not more given Britton will be owed about five million dollars for his last two months. Maybe if a trade doesn't go down until around the 31st and Britton is lights out the next few weeks, he won't have negative value. Other than that, he's an anchor added to a Machado trade, not a positive asset.

Because it's not really similar in terms of offense- Amazingly, Miller is nearly as bad as Machado (-1.5-2 defensive WAR) at SS, but is only worth 2.5-3.5 with his bat. That means Miller is only +0.5-+2 net, Machado could be +4 assuming no defensive improvement.... No question we'd be better with Machado even with his terrible defense at SS, it just makes me less excited about the idea of trading for him if the cost gets driven up high prospect wise. As exciting as the thought of being in the playoffs with Machado hitting 3rd in the lineup would be, just as easily could arrive in close playoff games is missed opportunities for outs at crucial times because Machado couldn't get to balls that good shortstops are able to.

1. He's bulked up since he entered MLB 2. Thirdbase and shortstop are entirely different positions. The amount of ground a shortstop is asked to cover compared to 3rd is night and day. A player at thirdbase also isn't asked to turn double plays where footwork and athleticism matters a lot. Having to make catches on flares into the outfield that a guy playing thirdbase just stands and watches. Machado is built more like an NFL safety now than the smooth smaller athletes who play well at shortstop.

Keep this in mind if we got Machado to play at shortstop https://www.theringer.com/mlb/2018/7/5/17536062/baltimore-orioles-worst-defense-manny-machado-adam-jones He clearly can rake, but he'd be really bad defensively. I'd like hm more if he had a need at thirdbase instead of shortstop.

Props to Stearns over his use of the waiver wire. Not just Saladino, Aguilar, Miller, Guerra, Jennings, and Jeffress were all DFA by other teams before Stearns picked them up. Pina was a throw in to the the K-Rod trade. Saladino obviously won't keep up a .966 OPS pace, but he makes hard contact on mistake pitches and so far works the count. He also looks to be good defensively, thus no big drop off from Arcia.

But huge K guys like them are the exception. The issue is teams have smartly figured out how important bullpens can be. So most managers no longer keep tiring starters in or starters who typically struggle past the 5th/6th inning, because with 8-9 deep bullpens, protecting the pen isn't as needed. Instead in comes a parade of hard throwing two pitch relievers who often have better K rates than the starters they are replacing. Mix in the analytics angle of many teams prioritizing walks and power from hitters over contact, along with minimizing the running game, quite a few games devolve into a walk, K, and homer fest. I don't mind because i love the sport no matter what, but it's likely not all that appealing to much of the younger generation.

I love baseball, but can't imagine watching it anymore without a DVR to fast forward through the countless Gruber commercials, pitching changes, reviews, and all of the other dead time in the game. I got my mom into the Brewers and was at her house for dinner last week, so i watched the game there. It was torture watching it in live time with all of the stoppages and it was a boring game on top of that. When i'm at Miller Park, all of the dead time doesn't really bother me all that much because i'm with friends and we'll be talking/hanging out. Good times to hit concession stands or bathroom. At home though, it can be brutal to me on the rare times i watch a game live, especially later in some games when it's a parade of pitcher changes.