silversurferr

I cannot understand why fans continue to defend the status quo; the greed of the agents and the players. What's wrong with asking the players to be reasonable? Moreover, just throwing money at them ain't gonna make them win. And, you cannot build a team around just Prince and Braun. We need pitching, which is even more expensive and risky. Sad to say, but if we have to pick between the two, it ain't as difficult to find first basemen that hit .280 with 35-40 home runs (that are mediocre in the field), as it is to find a pitcher that will throw 200 innings with an ERA under 3.50. If we lock up Fielder for the 100 mill he wants, then it is gonna be tough to sign Parra and Gallardo, let alone any good free agent pitchers. But I still love the Prince, and will be happy if he signs long term for big money. But there is NO WAY Boras is gonna have a good effect on the clubhouse atmosphere. Again, Boras benifits from the publicity generated from big contracts fights. How is that good? The thing that really irritates me is that Boras will cause a disturbance, even though negotiating this contract is like taking candy from a baby; Prince will get a monster contract, with or without Boras's antics and posturing.

Boras is bad news. Would it be good for the team for Boras to represent every star Brewer? Of course not. That would result in half the team leaving through free agency; the team would have to bet on two or three key players, and fill the roster with minor leaguers and cast offs. We've already seen the second part of that equation. I'd rather see some reasonable behavior; guys signing reasonable contracts that make them filthy rich but that also enjoy playing together in a nice city with great fans. Boras ain't gonna help that happen. As I said before, Prince is a passionate guy. That is good. However, Boras (and there are other similarly bad agents) will misdirect some of that passion off the field and into the clubhouse.

Retaining Boros IS an attitude problem. A slap in the fan's face. By doing so the player is saying either he wants to leave town asap or I want to financially cripple the team. (Apoligists; save your nonsense about how Milwaukee could pay him Arod money and still compete. It dramatically reduces the probability.) Prince is certainly entitled to his fair share, and should negotiate for it. Brewers would give him 50 plus million for 5 years, or somewhere in the area? How about taking it and playing ball? You need that extra ten mill right now for what? Prince ain't gonna do that. There is no rational argument for the extra money that makes sense to me. And Prince's personality does not seem conducive to completely separating the contract problems from his "clubhouse attitutude." Who of you could?!? If he does not get what he wants, he will continue to be upset and, I think, become an increasingly divisive element in the clubhouse. What do I base this on? The situation with his dad, for one. Not that he dealt with that improperly; but it illustrates Prince's way of dealing with big problems. He seems like a passionate guy. I love that about him, and I bet his teammates love him for it, too. But that passion could make him more of a problem in the clubhouse if he is pissed off at the ownership. It makes sense that he could turn it into a strictly personal matter, a vendetta. Add to that he is always under the microscope as the "face of the franchise," the team leader, of a bunch of young, impressionable guys, and what do you get? A fractured clubhouse. All that said, with the partial view we get of him through the media (who want as much controversy as they can stir), HE IS THE BEST THING TO HAPPEN TO MILWAUKEE SINCE SCHLITZ BEER! Hope they can work it out.

Assuming for argument that there is a bad clubhouse atmosphere, what is the cause? Probably one of three possibilities: 1) place in standings because of general underperformance, Gallardo injury and Gagne's failure; 2) a few bad player personalities (Prince's attitutude about contract?) ; 3) Ned. Cannot do anything about the first one. Second one we are stuck with if the problems are key or talented players. But they can fire Ned at anytime. Of course, large doses of winning is the salve that will heal all wounds.....

Yost is still hoping to get Mench so he can start him in front of Hart. Probably already said, but if Cameron leaves, Hart could be next year's CF with Laporta in right. Hart also seems like a great guy; he is certainly modest. Sign him up and give him what he wants. Who is his agent?

Not even close; the rivalry is much stronger between the Brewers and Cubs. I actually like Minny and root for the Twinkies when we ain't playing them. I ALWAYS hate the Cubs, their fans, their team, their city. I cannot even think of a Twin player that is a pinhead. But the Cubs? Current team, Soriano and Ramirez for their showboating style; Zambrano is the biggest attitudinal reprobate in baseball this side of Elijah Dukes. Recent memory? Barrett, SOSA!!!!! Hate'm.

Any chance that his knee is worse than the team is letting on? Cartilage or partial ACL tear? Also, I wonder about Week's eyesight. Simply put, with his swing and bat speed, he should make better contact than he does. Part of the problem is his moronic tendency to stand on top of the plate. Maybe few inches off the plate and a heavier bat, and he could better develop his power potential.?

Bringing in Tavarez was a stupid move. There is a reason he was jobless until the Brewers picked him up. He is a decent mop up guy that can save your staff in a blowout, but nothing else. Coulda brought in Dillard or Mota, correct? I think I saw Ned screaming at Simmons after Tavarez's meltdown. Tavarez mighta been Teddy's bright idea. Fire Ned. Bring in Molitor. He won't overthink ever move.

Fire him. I like him, but he continually makes the SAME damn mistakes. What angers me the most is that you can see most of them coming, before they happen. Mota's blow up was a prime example. Although Mota might appreciate Ned's confidence and support, I guarantee his teammates did not like it.

Bill Schroeder keeps commenting that Hardy's shoulder is bothering him, which is affecting his ability to pull the ball.

Dlk, Exactly! If the batter occasionally hits a fat first pitch, the pitcher is more likely in future at bats to fish and get behind in the count. Result? More walks. With Ricky's power, he in particular should occasionally jump on the first pitch fastball.

Pinch hitting with Counsell against a lefty is a good idea? Cmon.

Yes. Tonight, Yost pinched Counsell against Hendrickson (a lefty) with a runner on third and one out, and Counsell whiffed. Surprise!

Although it is a good philosophy to work the pitcher, it ain't so good to routinely take first pitch, batting practice fastballs right down the middle. Most of the Brewer hitters are doing this; particularly Ricky, Billy and JJ. Anyone else notice that these three are starting every at bat at 0-1?

Hall had one of the early key at bats in tonights game; left the first pitch fastball right down the middle (bad guess), then swung at a bad pitch off the inside and weakly grounded into a double play (worse guess). Bill (and Ricky) cannot seem to work the count into their favor and often hit the ball weakly in key situations. (Ricky lunges and pops up).

Love Bill at third base, but I am not so happy with him batting fifth. I think Hart should bat fifth, moving Bill to sixth. Hart has a great, short swing, and about the same power as Bill. They need to get Hart more at bats and RBI chances.

Loved Yount, Molly, Gorman, and Benjy, but Cecil Cooper was always my favorite. I could not stand Roy Howell (although he seemed like I nice guy), or Kevin Mench (who not only stunk, but seemed like a knob).

Melvin is easily one of the top 10 GM's in the game. Possibly top five.

Davis sucks. I am not a huge Vargas fan, but at least we got rid of Davis. Vargas is a quality middle reliever (if we ever use him as such), which are at least as difficult to find as mediocer fourth starters like Davis. Was Eveland worth Estrada/Mota? Yes, if Mota has a solid year.

But how well is he throwing?

Vargas is an excellent 3 inning long reliever. He is a mediocre fifth starter.

We need one lefty in the rotation. I love Cappy, but he's done. Noticed last year that his fastball was 89, topping at 91, which is 2 mph lower than peak form. Combined with an inability to consistently spot his pitches, and he is dangerously close to being a meatballer. In contrast, I watched Parra throw 92 topping at 95 with excellent control. Despite Parra's injury history, there is no comparison; Parra is our lefty starter.