NievesNoNO

As much as I'd like to believe Sizemore can be relevant again I just don't see it. He's been hurt for the last three years and while he's only 29, that's an old 29 considering how he played CF and the types of injuries he's had. If we had a DH spot it might be worth the risk. I think Gomez/Morgan outproduce him next year and I don't think it'll be close. Not that you should just take somebody at their word all the time, but for a team that's pretty light in OF bats you'd think if Cleveland thought he could make any sort of resurgence at all they would've held on to him. They likely have a clearer medical picture on him than anyone else.

Not a bad thought. I don't think he's an upgrade over Gamel though. He hit righties decent but has been pretty awful against left-handers. I'd like him in the same role he's had for Texas.

As much as watching the Cardinals winning it sucks, it was quite a series and a crazy run for them. Congrats..... I guess. On to 2012.

I don't really know much about him besides what I searched today. He was a pretty decent prospect with Philadelphia. He was pretty much blocked there and looks like he may have underperformed a bit. Now in Cleveland he's behind a bunch of good young infielders. His minor league numbers look like he has some decent on-base skills and can play adequate D at SS. At worst he'd be a nice utility guy at best maybe hes a Scutaro or Carroll? Does anyone know anything about him or seen him play? Thoughts on if he could be a starting option at short or what it'd take to acquire him?

I initially thought maybe they could pry Escobar away form the Jays with Hechaverria likely close, but they just gave him an extension and I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that they'd look into moving Escobar to 2nd or 3rd to keep them together. That said, if you offer enough I doubt he's untouchable. I think you'd likely have to start with Peralta. Peralta, Axford, Farris, Schaefer?? On a side note, I really like the direction the Jays are going. I think they're a little light on pitching yet, but they're really close with the bats to making a strong push in that division. Fielder??

The Nats are getting to be a pretty interesting team. A healthy Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman along with one more front-line guy would be pretty impressive.

Wow!! What a series!! Gotta love a game 7 no matter who's playing or wins it!

Well, clearly you were trying to support your argument by posting a random quote from somebody who might appear to have some credibility. So, obviously you think his opinion matters in the context of this discussion. Obviously there are those who prefer to stick with Gamel this season and those who think we need to upgrade and some who think Gamel has no future. Count me as somebody who thinks he still has a future, and we should give a chance while being open minded to an upgrade but not necessarily pursuing one. I'd much rather put time and resources into signing Barmes, bringing Ramirez to play 3rd or upgrading pitching.The sky can look red sometimes, I rarely call people idiots, and if I did, it really shouldn't matter to you. He does have credibility - he gets paid to write about baseball. He's also someone objectively looking at Gamel instead of some blatant Brewer homer. If all I had to go on with a player was Matt Klassan's opinion and BF.net's collective opinion, I'm taking Klassan's. I also don't get how I don't think Gamel has a future. He has a chance to be a 2 WAR player - that's good! That's a valuable piece that I'm excited to have. And the fact that you would "not necessarily pursue" an upgrade for your baseball team is insane. It's like saying, "Well, we could make the team better, but...nah". And, as for your plan, why Gamel over Taylor Green? That makes 0 sense to me Really, you wouldn't take the collective opinion of a group of people that have likely seen and researched Brewers players more in 1 day than 1 guy has spent in his "writing" career. I wasn't specifically referring to just you. No, I wouldn't put a lot of time and effort to try and upgrade the 1b position. I never said anything about the rest of the team, but twist my words if you must. What has Taylor Green done to have earned the 3rd base job?

Well, clearly you were trying to support your argument by posting a random quote from somebody who might appear to have some credibility. So, obviously you think his opinion matters in the context of this discussion. Obviously there are those who prefer to stick with Gamel this season and those who think we need to upgrade and some who think Gamel has no future. Count me as somebody who thinks he still has a future, and we should give a chance while being open minded to an upgrade but not necessarily pursuing one. I'd much rather put time and resources into signing Barmes, bringing Ramirez to play 3rd or upgrading pitching.The sky can look red sometimes, I rarely call people idiots, and if I did, it really shouldn't matter to you.

Yes, I was CPRP certified. Everything else being equal I guess the extra certs never hurt. It's been a while but I believe there is a 1 year of experience requirement to take the exam which it sounds like you have. You also must achieve a certain amount of CEU's to maintain your certification. I think it's 2 CEU's over two years. I just attended the annual WI Parks and Rec. conference to achieve those, but you can achieve them in other ways. The exam itself I didn't find all that difficult. If you have the background most of the questions seemed to be common sense, however there is a study guide that I would definately recommend taking the time to study as they will pull some random questions that you'll probably never encounter on the job. I do think it holds some weight in that there are requirements to sit and take the test and there are requirements to keep it. So at least you know the candidate has a baseline level of knowledge and has worked in the field for a minimal amount of time without looking at a resume. Of course, who doesn't like adding certification initials after their name http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif CPRP... actually I kind of miss that one! I don't necessarily think not having it would cost you a job or an interview for that matter. I guess it depends who's screening the resumes. Good Luck.

Wow, I didn't know Matt Klaassen was a MLB GM!! Great, he works for Fangraphs, how nice. I'd say his opinion matters about as much as yours or mine.

I don't think its inconceivable that Gamel ends up as good as the players on the last half of your list. Heck, Morse was in the same position Gamel is now and never hit minor league pitching as well as Gamel has. I'm not against trying to upgrade ANY position but 1B just wouldn't be at the top of my list as I feel the cost to make a sure significant upgrade in terms of either dollars or prospects could be used elsewhere. I like Either as much as the next guy. If LA would trade him straight up for Gamel I'd certainly consider that move. Would that 10-12 million paid to Either hinder us from improving at SS, 3B or from keeping the bullpen stable? I'm not sure. It would just be nice to have Gamel step up and pencil him in at 1B at a nice cost for the next few years seeing he's already on the roster.

Even if you say the Brewers stashed him at AAA since 2010, that puts him in the majors as a 25 year old. Not exactly a 22 year old stud.Well, at age 22, he was considered a top 20-25 prospect in the game so yes he was a 22 year old stud who never got a legit chance for whatever reason. I'll concede he probably shouldn't play 3rd and he might not ever end up an elite player. However, I think he's being dismissed by some as not an option to play 1B this season for some reason when he's likely a better option than almost anyone we could bring in via FA.

Gamel still being in the organization is 0 indication of his talent level. The Brewers have butchered the handling of Gamel, imo. He needs to be given a chance to play, and actually he put a pretty respectable line in 2009, when he was up for about a half season. I'd stick him at 1B to start the season without reservation. It's his time to sink or swim. I'd say there's more data supporting he'll hit just fine as opposed to not. Why? He can't play 3rd. The Brewers tried everything they could to get him to stick there and he didn't. I don't really want him there either, but the original post referenced moving Hart to 1B if we acquired a RF. I don't like that option, but if those were 1st two moves I'd move him to 3rd. I'd put him back at 3rd before I put him in RF. He's played like 7 seasons of minor league ball at 3rd hasn't he? I would've hoped they would've figured out he has no chance to play over there before last season if he's truly horrible there. I'm not saying he can or can't play 3rd. I guess the data says he's not all that good, but I thought I remember somebody indicating alot of his problems were throwing and not actually fielding the ball.

Yeah, they really would have to be blown away to move him. I was just wondering what people thought he could bring back. I remember there being a rumor of a Storen for Span deal during the season that seemed pretty fair. I guess that might be a decent comparison. Markakis is probably not the type of player the Brewers should look for in return as his salary is a bit high for his actual production and not a need for the Brewers. Spring Training is too far a way!

Agreed. I'm excited to finally see what Gamel can do when given a legit chance. I wouldn't trade Hart but if Hart was moved to 1st I'd try and sign David DeJesus. I'd then move Gamel back to 3rd.

What do people think Axford's trade value would be? I've been throwing the thought around in my head lately and think he's likely our best trade chip, albeit an important piece to our current roster. His value can't get higher than it is now can it? I'm not sure if Baltimore intends on getting in the Prince derby and what their financial situation is but would they move Markakis to sign Prince? Not sure if they'd need to clear salary to REALLY consider making a push for him. What about Axford for Markakis? Hart could then be moved to 1st, Gamel back to 3rd and we'd have a couple lefty bats in the lineup. McGehee and Green to the bench. Green seems like he might be a really nice super-sub type. 1. Weeks 2. Markakis 3. Braun 4. Hart 5. Gamel 6. Lucroy 7. Gomez 8. FA SS

I still don't get why people say they will boo him. Yes he could be on a rival team but that doesn't negate what he's done for the Brewers in his career. I'm not saying he should be cheered but there's no way he should be booed. What's wrong with just being indifferent, no cheers, no boos. People like Sheffield should be booed but not Prince. Actually, I like Fielder just fine as well but if he's a Cub I'll boo him. I won't think less of him, but it would just feel like a bit of a slap in the face and I'll be happy to let him know how I feel about his decision. It's not like he's being traded, he would be choosing to go and play for the biggest rival of the organization he's spent his entire career with thus far. I don't think being a fan of a particular team and being indifferent really go together.

Agreed. He's not great on defense but he's not a complete butcher either. I'd keep him in the outfield unless Gamel proves he's not an adequate major league hitter through spring and the first couple months next year. At this point, they simply have to give Gamel a legit shot. I'd say you could look into trading Gamel, but considering his prospect status has basically been burned up I don't think you'd get much for him until he proves he can hit... in which case it wouldn't make much sense to get rid of him. I don't think anyone outside of Yo and Braun are untouchable so if you're blown away by an offer say by the Braves for a young pitcher then maybe you deal him but I wouldn't be actively shopping him I guess. I just don't see a lot of scenarios were trading Hart improves the team now or in the near future. You have to kind of be realistic in regards to what you are looking for in return and what you hope the retuning player can do. If you look to move him for a pitcher the pitcher will not likely be a high end type guy and they really don't need another #3 type. If you move him for another position player to fill a hole at ss or 3rd you may improve there but then have to replace Hart. If you look to move him for a package of prospects you're basically saying you're in slight rebuild mode. While that's not bad if you have an adequate plan to replace him, what's the upside of those players? If the upside of the main piece coming back is Corey Hart then you haven't really accomplished much. That's alot of rambling to basically say I wouldn't trade him unless the Braves offer me Teheran or something along those lines.

I don't see a lot happening this off season and I really don't think there needs to be. As long as we have Greinke, Yo and Marcum we'll compete for the division again. An improvement at SS and a stronger bench will go a long way in filling in for the loss of Fielder. 1. Weeks 2b 2. Scutaro ss (FA, 2/8-10mil) 3. Braun lf 4. Hart rf 5. Gamel/Robinson (Wolf to KC) 1b 6. Lucroy c 7. Green/McGehee/Gamel 3b 8. Gomez/Morgan cf Bench: Morgan, Hairston (resign), Reed Johnson (FA), Clint Robinson (trade Wolf to KC), Kottaras, McGehee Rotation: 1. Greinke 2. Gallardo 3. Marcum 4. Narveson 5. Estrada Pen: Axford Saito (resign) Hawkins (resign) Loe Braddock/Parra

I can't watch the WS this year. Somehow all they do is win. Credit where credit is due I guess. I still hate LaRussa but he's got them back without their ace. Well done... I guess.

This would be easier if it wasn't the Cardinals. I don't know whether to be pissed, sad, or just indifferent. I just wish Marcum or somebody had the guts to say he wasn't right and hasn't been. Might not have changed the outcome but.. It's been a great season. I think the disappointment is knowing this was likely our best shot that will come along for a while. Please Prince don't become a Cub!

That's the kind of crap managing that makes me hate Roenicke. Saito, KRod and Axford can never pitch when they are losing. But La Russa has no problem using anyone in his bullpen at any time. It also helps he's working with a lead. The Brewers again leaving a small village on the base paths and piss poor D costs us this one. I will admit La Russa's the better manager but I don't get how this game was poorly managed. Poorly played, YES. Poorly managed, no. Gotta defend the home turf boys. Please let the Marcum of July show up! I'm pissed about the loss tonight, but I'm oddly confident about taking care of business at home.

May the legend of Greinke begin now!

I kinda feel the same. I didn't see too much that was out of line there. Truthfully, if the Cards did the beast mode thing all the time we'd be annoyed with them too. I actually think it's gone a little overboard myself when we're down 7-2 and Braun is sitting on second 'beast moding'. Personally I have had 0 problems with Cards fans. I went to St. Louis last year with a small group and sat in the bleachers with no other Brewer fans around us. We cheered all game, albeit not obnoxiously and didn't talk any crap to the people around us, and nobody ever said a word to us. Brewers won 1-0 and we went out and celebrated and only one person we ran into the whole night told us to go home. I do think their organization tries to portray itself as the classy, we're better than you organization. LaRussa being the biggest whiner in the game along with some of his bush league antics has me disliking him more than anything. For me, Cubs fans are 1000 times worse. At least you could probably talk to a random Cards fan and have an actual baseball conversation. I'm fairly certain half the fans at Cubs games couldn't even name more than 5 players off their own team, but somehow they're still the greatest and have no problem letting you know about how it in a vulgar and obnoxious fashion.