tyguy20204

You guys are right to call out TheCrew on his assessment of Fielder/Hardy, but I have to agree with his argument that some of our prospects may be undervalued. Remember, you can't simply say "BA ranked our system 15, and so we have the 15th best farm system in the majors." The Brewers in recent years have a track record of churning out quality players, and this has to be taken into account. The highest Ryan Braun ever placed on a BA Top 100 list was #26, behind players such as Alex Gordon, Delmon Young, Brandon Wood, Andy Laroche, Billy Butler, and a slew of other players that are promising but still in the minors. The highest JJ Hardy ever placed on the BA Top 100 list was #28. Guess who preceded him that year? That's right, it's our old friend Jose Capellan at #25. Corey Hart never placed in the Top 100. That's not to knock BA, who do the best they can at predicting outcomes in an uncertain field. I'm just saying that I'll continue to trust the Brewers scouting department until they give me reason not to.

If you're going to start picking away at the realism of The Office (US) you're not going to have much left.

A transition from Weeks to Escobar would be moving sideways at best. Any defensive upgrade you'd gain by the move would be offset by the offensive downgrade. Essentially you'd be starting Escobar's clock for no reason.

His range doesn't really pass the eye-test though. I'm skeptical of any stat that says he has exceptional range.

Let Escobar play AAA in order to see if last year was a fluke or if it was evidence of real development on his part. Because of the inflated numbers of the entire Huntsville team, I have my doubts. If Escobar has a good year in AAA, then deal Hardy this off-season if a lucrative return can be achieved. If Escobar has a poor year in AAA, then keep Hardy for 2010 or even try to extend him if the money's right (which, I admit, it probably won't be). Let Escobar continue to develop in AAA for 2010, then call him up if Hardy opts for free agency. Escobar is only 22, he can handle two more years in the minors. Remember this is if he doesn't have a solid season this year. If he isn't performing, he doesn't have a right to complain. Like others have said, Escobar's value comes from his defense. He should not be moved from that position in any situation. Weeks, even at his worst, is currently a much better overall option at 2B, and his clock is already ticking. Bringing Escobar up to play 2B (even worse, 3B) would be moving sideways at best, while also increasing costs for the future. By the way, am I correct in saying that Escobar has one more option after this year?

Yeah, it was quite odd. Uecker mentioned that Koskie liked to play a lot of stupid practical jokes. Maybe Uecker was the victim of some crude humor?

Right, exactly. There is a definite point where "insults" can be considered to be crossing the line, but comments such as that should not be censored. The new rules are quite muddled. What exactly is it that we're supposed to be doing in this forum, if not capturing the mood of the game? When I talk baseball, whether it be around the kitchen table, or online here at Brewerfan, I want to be able to converse about the whole experience. That includes the highs and the lows, the praise and the derision. Doesn't fandom entail being short-sighted at times? Doesn't fandom require it? These new rules are essentially aimed at taking away any sort of passion that one might feel during a game. Any actual analysis of a game can be more properly done after taking a few hours to contemplate what has occurred. So why have in-game threads at all, if they're only going to cover something that can be better covered later on? But most importantly, the new rules strip away my favorite part of Brewerfan - the near-hallucinogenic extra-innings threads that made this forum special.

Count me down as in favor of the old rules. I'm all for structure discussion, but lately the site has become a little too regimented...subtracting from the fun of viewing the forum. This is still the best Brewers forum around, but it's become a little disheartening, to tell you the truth.

This is great news. Good to hear. On a side note, doesn't this warrant its own topic? It's a bit annoying to navigate such a large, disjointed thread, and I would think the biggest free agent signing of the off-season deserves more attention than to be tacked on at the end of this one. Or is that how we roll now?

I agree with valpo, Creed's shadiness has been so overplayed that it's no longer funny, if it ever was to begin with. It's definitely the type of humor that I would expect from a mediocre CBS sitcom, not from The Office. That said, I enjoy pretty much every episode of The Office. Some are worse than others, but they all have a certain level of quality.

The fact that it had no punchline was what made it funny. Dwight's fantasies (that he's apparently spent a great deal of time thinking about) completely defy genre expectations. Meanwhile, Michael's purchase of the $500 salad was the worst part of the episode. No one is that clueless, not even Michael. Not to mention that if I remember correctly, he once smoked a joint that was passed to him at a Dave Matthews concert. Then, to believe that he would have the cops called in was unreal and not funny.

I completely disagree. For the most part, the new episodes are just as good as the old ones, if not better. Yes, there are noticeably terrible moments to the relationship narratives - see the dinner between Pam, Jim, and Jim's brothers - but on the whole I think the relationships have been handled well. Pam and Jim's relationship has been portrayed through a nice mixture of minor moments, like the one that the episode closed on last week. It's not as if they're entering Ross and Rachel territory. Meanwhile, the relationship between Michael and the Amy Adams character was the best thing to happen to the Office in a long time. It was simultaneously sweet and funny funny. It was believable, awkward, and endearing. Not once did they hit a bad note, and Amy Adams gave an incredible performance. I would argue that the comedy hasn't suffered in the least. Just because they're branching out into new story lines doesn't mean things are necessarily going downhill. To the people that miss the first few seasons, what exactly is it that you want? Do you want every episode to involve Michael doing something stupid, Dwight playing the lackey in an obnoxious manner, Jim making Jim faces at the camera, with the rest of the crew tossing out funny one liners? Yes, that formula is tried and true, and it works - as a matter of fact, they still use it to a large extent - but, speaking for myself, I like to see variations on that theme. I too watch the old episodes on TBS and I must say that I find the new ones to be remarkably more fresh than the old ones. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think a lot of your complaints stem from the fact that you don't like humor that derives from the awkwardness and uncomfortable. I get the feeling that you enjoy humor that involves people getting into funny situations and saying funny things. If that's true, then perhaps I can understand why you take issue with the last couple seasons. There has been a definite push towards humor steeped in the awkward. Jan's narrative of the past few seasons, especially the dinner party episode as well as her recent visit to the office, is exemplar of this shift in tone from the light-hearted to the uncomfortable and sometimes agonizing. Myself, I enjoy both brands of humor. But our differences in enjoyment may simply come down to matter of differing taste.

Well, it's likely he had one manager in mind this entire time, dating to before he even interviewed Sveum, so it's not too surprising to see such a short shortlist. It will probably Macha, considering Melvin's past interest in him.

Melvin says that Brenly will probably be the last interview. That makes the choices Macha, Randolph, or Brenly. Brenly Third to be Interviewed

Right, but the odds are independent of each other, and so they don't have to add up to 100%.

Who are they pitching tomorrow?

1. I'm not sure if I would go so far as saying the ump work has been biased in favor of the Phillies, but I will say that there have been some atrocious calls, first against C.C., and now in favor of Moyer. 2. Corey Hart is not good.

Brian was right, just trying to even out the vibes.

I think Yo is going to get hammered in one inning before tearing the ACL on his other leg. The bullpen will then melt down, forcing Counsell to pitch in order to save the arms. Meanwhile, the Brewers offense will be one-hit.

Gallardo to pitch game one, followed by C.C. Link: JS Online Blog Looks like everyone is chomping at the bit to post the news. I think it's a good move, as long as Sveum has the bullpen ready to go if Gallardo should falter.

Sveum has done nothing to make me think he's any better at managing than Yost. In fact, the argument can be made that he's been worse.

Man, Ryan really has to get it going. Sooner rather than later, I hope.

Yo has such good command of his fastball. It's pretty amazing to watch.

The Mets play the Marlins. Should actually be a tough series. The Phillies play the Nats. The Crew is only one behind them in the loss column.