HiAndTight

Meh, I think being in the race right down to the end is pretty much as good as actually being in the playoffs. It's not like Matt Kemp last year who should have won it, but the Dodgers where further out of the playoff picture. IF the Brewers finish with 86 wins for example which is gonna be really tough, I don't think that'll play much of a role. The PED thing will be far bigger. Especially if...who was it, Law or Olney...one of the usual suspects said that he estimates 35 pct of writers won't even place him on their top 10 ballot. Which is asinine.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/a/aybarer01.shtml Erick Aybar - Signed through 2016. Except Segura was moved to SS before Aybar signed his extension(earlier this year) and was actually playing 2nd base when Aybar was entering his arbitration years, and the Angels had a good player, Howie Kendrick locked up BEFORE Aybar at 2nd base. Both where set to become FA's after this year, so my guess is that is the reason he was moved TO SS, not the other way around. I don't think anyone has a real answer for this question though other than perhaps he simply matured and his arm got stronger and became a more viable option at short. We don't know what he looked like at 18-19 years old when he was a bit injury prone and playing 2nd base.

Like Bianchi? That was my very thought. He gets dismissed a bit on here for some reason, but we're talking about a guy who's a pretty respectable defender from the eye test, and he's got a decent bat... I also agree with "SenatorShriv," in that I'm feeling a lot more comfortable with Segura starting out the season at Short for us next year rather than re-signing Alex Gonzalez for example to a 1 yr 2 million dollar type deal. All the sudden SS looks like a good position moving forward, as does our starting pitching.

Exactly. I respect Cabrera for making this decision for the record. To have the title "Batting Champ," that's something that you carry with you for the rest of your life. To step up and give it back...again, something that has gained back a bit of my respect.

I would give the edge to Peralta over Rogers because I think he pitches more to contact and over the long haul will go deeper into games more consistently. I don't think we have a pitcher on Sheets level in our whole system. Gallardo, as good as he is, is not on Sheets level. I agree with the last sentence. We need a starter better than Gallardo if we're going to contend for a WS. He's a very good #2 on a contender. Which again is why I think we should take a leap of faith and be aggressive in trying to sign Greinke, or bring in another guy who for one reason or another has the potential to be better than Yo, but may be available for a good value like a Jake Peavy if you could get him for 3/40 or Dan Haren for roughly the same if their options are declined. Again though, it's great to see the Brewers have pitchers make it through the minors with the ABILITY to be better than Yo in Peralta and Rogers. Again, I believe it's highly unlikely either will end up being better as Yo's incredibly reliable, and he's a great pitcher. But all you can ask for is a guy to have a chance to be a true ace and hope that luck with injuries fall your way, and they continue to develop for you.

It's almost funny how it's either; A-The Brewers get no respect because they're not an East Coast team and nobody cares about them; B-The author(fill in the blank) is a terrible article and I don't like how it was written. I agree with the OP. Nice article. But...I guess, if we can't complain...what else is there?

Carpal Tunnel is not a freak thing. Its a repetitive stress injury. Yes genetics can play a role, but it nerve damage due to repetitive motions. You know, like pitching. And what would account for him having the same issue on his left arm? As far as I know, we where told it was completely fixed and shouldn't be a problem moving forward. I obviously don't agree with some of the comments on here. I think all you have to do is look at what Doug Melvin has repeatedly said about Tyler Thornburg, the newest to the organization to see that they don't view him as a reliever, so I think he'll get ample chance to prove he's a starter. There are a couple other things as well, just as paul said, Rogers hasn't had shoulder injuries for a couple years now, so we need to stop treating him like it's going to fall off every year. Of course being careful this year was the right move, even if we end up a game or two short and he might have made the difference. But it's GOT to be Peralta by a decent margin at this point. He was outstanding last year, though struggled early this year, but he does have a changeup. People pretend the guy doesn't throw one and can't throw one. He does and he can. He needs to improve it, but he's not 26 years old, he's 23. He and Rogers have shown they're capable of being aces in the big leagues. Legit, dominant aces. Neither PROBABLY will, but the fact that both look like they can be and have shown flashes of it, that's enough for me. We have enough really safe bets to be good innings eaters and middle to back or the rotation starters that a guy who looks like he can be a ace is the guy I get more excited about. So Peralta and then Rogers a little bit further behind because Peralta HAS been more durable and he gets so many GB's. But god do I love watching a guy who can reach back for a 98 MPH fastball in the 7th-8th inning, even if it was just one start. That's when you start gaining a little more confidence that it's not JUST that he's a new arm with a small scouting report, but a guy who might be able to dominate. And Peralta should have virtually no innings limit next year. Still think another big time front line starter with all these young potential studs is imperative for us to truly contend next year and not just lean on a insane run like we've had.

A GB pitcher that is throwing 97-98 late in innings with a + slider isn't good enough stuff by who's estimation? And few prospect "guru's," had him as a reliever coming into this season. In fact had him as an innings eating starting pitcher with the upside of a #2. he was also hardly an afterthought by scouts. And to ender, his ball has a lot of movement on it. I don't think it's as simple as telling hitters to just "not swing," and he'll become a 4/5 or whatever you tabbed him as. It's amazing how long we wait for a guy like Peralta to show the type of absolutely dominant stuff like he's shown and how so many rush to say, "yeah, but he's not that good," or "well, he won't be that good if he doesn't do this or that." I get it's a small sample size, but there is a reason why teams have scouts who use their actual eyes to watch a player. Not to mention, Peralta does have a changeup. I don't think the argument's been made that at 23 he's a finished product, nor is his change. It's as if we're so worried about getting too excited we're looking for reasons to not be high on him. -Sorry, one last thought. There have been quite a few more pitchers who've succeeded with just two pitchers over the last 15 years than Johnson and Sheets. I don't know where that comes from. RA Dickey has done pretty good with effectively one pitch. There are several pitchers who throw their fastball/change 90 pct of the time.

A couple things. First of all, I don't think Braun really follows the way prospects are ranked, other teams prospects, their development or anything like that. So TC07's argument as to why Peralta wasn't the top pitching prospect is kinda obvious. I think what Braun was saying was based on what he's been seeing, and I don't know how it can be argued he's just talking up a player. The guy VERY possibly could become a #4 type starter, struggle to keep his BB rate at 4.5 or so, but so far what we've seen is a guy who throws an easy 94-96 and can hit 98 late in games, has a dominant, dominant slider at times, has shown what could become a plus change and his command has been outstanding..........in three starts. And there are a lot of these types of pitchers. But there aren't nearly as many as TCO7 is suggesting that have dominated at the upper levels(showing they CAN locate and dominated advanced hitters while being young for their league). And once they have that type of success in the big leagues and they realize that their stuff is good enough to overpower some very good big league hitters, they develop more confidence in their pitches and all the sudden, they take their game to another level. There is no question he has the stuff to be a legit #1 pitcher. Long way to go before he proves it and he doesn't have a track record like others, but why is Shelby Miller ranked so much higher than Peralta? One last thing, I think it's foolish IMO to claim he wasn't a top 50 prospect coming into THIS season the way he finished last. Either way, I'm going to continue to root for the improbable. For the him to become a #1/2, for the Brewers to get another pitcher from all their flamethrowers, Rogers, Hellweg, Nelson, Pena, Scarpetta to reach their potential and hope for a mostly home grown rotation that can make us legit contenders.

Absolutely. I think it was still possible on the table as late as maybe 2-3 weeks after his shoulder soreness(or elbow..whatever). But after two years in a row of soreness in his throwing arm and a couple months on the DL, 13 million or thereabouts was off the table long ago in my opinion. We get that additional draft pick now for being a small market team. That's enough, we don't need to risk money that could be going to extending someone or signing a legit FA. I still want the same parameters for FA's this year though. Either elite players and spend to get them, or short term players that fill a particular need. Loogy, Utility IF'er(though that maybe covered, just an example) maybe SU man like Balfour.

I'M going to be either thrilled or extremely disappointed. You're not providing enough facts. If Marcum is in the Brewers rotation next year given the fact that we're looking at the potential of as many as 8-9 1st or 2nd year guys potentially starting games next year(high end, but could be even more depending on development) on a cheap deal, I think that'd be great, because a guy who throws as bad of a fastball as he does and still has as much success as he has knows how to pitch, and he by all accounts is a good guy who attacks hitters. And some may think it's overrated, but I think he'd be a great guy for young guys to listen to. Think about the possibilities of getting Jimmy Nelson, Tyler Thornburg, Peralta, Rogers, Burgos, Fiers, Jungman, Bradley, maybe Scarpetta among many others to learn from him and use his approach to pitching with much better stuff. But if we're paying 10 million for him, that's 10 million that you're paying for a really minimal upgrade if any over another young pitcher, or hell, a Claudio Vargas who really isn't THAT BAD. I'd rather pay Vargas 1 million than Marcum 10. Everyone knows what I think the Brewers are capable of spending, but that doesn't mean just because I think they COULD spend X-amount of dollars that they should. Overpaying for pitching hurts teams like the Yankees. So what's it going to do to us.

Well, I think it's obvious they're going to weed out the weak arms moving forward. That's just...being a young player. It's not like the NFL where Harrell is going to get another chance because he was a 1st round pick, or hell, even a 5th round pick like Terrell Manning who made the team despite showing absolutely nothing to the coaches and on his talent alone(that and the fact that he had a hellacious virus or whatever it was that made him drop 25 pounds and he didn't miss a single practice). Plus we took a guy who was projected to be a 1st round pick going into his last year at NC State, dropped to the 5th after breaking an ankle and actually traded up for him. But in baseball, those rules just don't apply the same. Sure, a power pitcher will get more looks than a Fiers, but eventually if you're getting guys out at the rate a Hiram Bugros is(and I finally watched quite a bit of video on him, and he reminds me a great deal of Fiers, though it's hard to tell how good his fastball was because he was blowing it by minor leagues as opposed to big leaguers..but he spotted it exceptionally. So yeah, eventually I have no doubt they'll weed out the lesser pitchers. Everyone does. My issue is with RIGHT NOW. Hey, we're there. We're in a legit playoff race and we're still throwing out Marcum for some totally unknown reason. Again, I get Thornburg hasn't thrown, but if the plan was for him to get some starts, and they're comfortable using him out of the pen, give HIM the start. Again, you might only get 4 innings, 5 if you're lucky because above all you want to play it VERY safe, but those 4-5 could very well be better than Marcum, and we can't afford to have Marcum blow 2 more games out of these 10 road games, or god forbid one of the final 6 that we basically HAVE to sweep in order to get in. We're 2.5 back, already a long shot, but we've jumped most of the teams, the Dodgers have a schedule that makes me believe they're not a threat IF we play exceptionally well given their injuries. The Cards on the other hand would scare me if they where within 4 games of us with their schedule. We've got 10 vs the Pirates/4-Nats/Reds and they have the next 9 vs the Astros/Cubs/Astros, the two worst teams in the NL, and the Astro's are literally one of the worst teams I've ever seen. So to my way of thinking, they've got the evidence. He burned us last year, he's not pitching well after being out a couple months, Thornburg at least has a fastball that he can make a mistake with and get away with it, and then we can bring in the pen which has been pitching great and have a punchers chance. But 2 almost guaranteed losses by Marcum followed by what's bound to be at BEST 1 additional loss and likely 2 in a near best case scenario over the next 9 and we're done. So weed out the weak now. Hell, I'd honest to god rather start Livan instead of Marcum right now. Next year, healthy, different story. But not now. And frankly, against aggressive teams like the Nats, Livan could have one of those inexplicable games where he shuts a team down with his 14 different pitches that are all just junk. Certainly done it before.

Agreed. I think the Brewers will continue to show fans that despite being such a small market, they've got a lot of money to spend. They're really in a good financial place right now as are all small market teams, in particular the Brewers who've done a fantastic or maximizing revenues. I think the risk of trying to win a bidding war for Greinke is less of a risk than to trade guys like Peralta, Thornburg, Rogers and a list of another 8-10...

I would say that making the race so fun THIS year in particular is the fact that Peralta, Rogers, Henderson, Segura are all a HUGE part of this, Kintzler as well to a smaller degree. Making up what, 12 games or whatever in the WC race in a month is awesome, and while some claim that it's a miracle, it seems as though every year some team comes together, and with Weeks, Aram, Axford, K-Rod and all the rest who struggled early, it's just amazing how a team can come together and completely turn things around. Anyway, watching Peralta dominate for 8 innings out there tonight is what makes this last month so exciting..to me. Watching the future and actually developing pitchers from within who look like they could be legit front line pitchers. And with what I think the Brewers will be able to spend in a few years, I think they can add to that. Maybe not Greinke. Maybe just Edwin Jackson this year instead of Marcum. Maybe these young guys will finally make up for all the lost prospects of the past in Jones, Gold, Neugebauer, etc..etc..etc... It's amazing what a month+ can do to change your mind on what the future of a franchise looks like. But with MLB signing new massive TV deals, the luxury tax kicking in the same year, the Brewers own TV deal next year, gone are the days where one team spends 200 million and another 30. I'll throw that into the encouraging news from the last couple weeks...the ESPN TV deal and the impending bidding over playoff TV with Fox and TBS and presumably CBA, ABC and NBC figuring into the mix.

Meaning? In terms of this year? Or they'll just weed out the weak pitchers moving forward?

I agree with moving Marcum out, but I don't see it happening. Thornburg hasn't started in how many weeks now, and I doubt the Brewers are going to take TT and throw him into the fire. If they had a couple weeks ago, that would have been perfect. The point was to get a look at these guys, and the Brewers have gone off and gotten themselves back in the playoff race, but they're still OBVIOUSLY a long shot. So you might as well start Thornburg, have an 80-85 pitch limit on him and then use our bullpen to cover the last 4 or 5 innings. Some may say with the young arms we've got that would put too much pressure on the pen, but you're only getting that out of Marcum now, and you're doing it while giving up 4ER's pretty much every outing. I also think it's nearly impossible for us to have the WC "wrapped up." At 5 games back, I was happy just to be in the picture, at 2-3 games back with 18 to go, I'll be thrilled to have a CHANCE the last week of the season. But we do have 7 games left with Washington and Cincy and the Cards have a cupcake schedule which is why the Dodgers need to win today...they have a much tougher schedule.

Well, the idea about Meek was because he'd still be under our control for another 3 years. We'd be able to control him, and if he can get his walks down, he could be a dominant reliever. He throws a mid 90's fastball, has a good slider, was an all-star and from '08-'10 he had an ERA of 2.74 while being a decent GB pitcher with a 1.80/2.08/1.57. A guy with a 95-96 MPH fastball and a nice slider looks good when you look at that, right? The obvious problem, and the reason he was DFA(aside from an insanely deep bullpen and needing room on the 40 man) was because despite a nearly 8K/9 ratio, he had just a 1.79 K/BB ratio. He's a very talented arm, and one that, if he could cut down on his walks, could be a nice addition to our bullpen. I also wasn't really thinking about THIS YEAR. This year is just for fun. The run the Brewers have made helps you look at the future a little different. We're going to have a ton of money to spend(I've goneinto all of MLB's expiring TV deals, the 30 million we should get going into next year in ADDITIONAL revenue(At a minimum, ignoring the ticket price increase and parking increase, as well as new sponsorship deals) coming off a year we made 22 million dollars while spending nearly 100 million. This year we came in and started off with a salary of 106, budgeted for another 2-3 as they've said they always do for callup's, and went so far as to say they'd take on salary if they where in the race. Now of course with the Greinke trade, their payroll will end up lower, but the point is they where still willing to spend that money with 30 million in additional revenues, plus massive increases in revenue coming after 2013 when MLB's TV contracts are up. They've already signed a near 6 billion dollar deal with ESPN, and the Fox and TBS deals are expected to blow those out of the water(playoff, World Series and weekly broadcasts), PLUS licensed internet rights that people who are putting their finance degree to much better use than me think in 10 years will change the way baseball is watched. So 30 million coming in next year following a year we should again have record profits, and then a enormous bump in revenue sharing due to the new TV deals following 2013. So it's not about not being able to AFFORD Loe, a guy who himself has been very good posting GO/FO ratios of 2.42/3.28/4.43 while posting a 3.40 ERA over 193 Innings Pitched. He's been a workhorse, and WHEN USED RIGHT, he's been dominant at times and gotten us out of countless big jams. BUT, just because I believe that the gap between big and small/medium market teams are going to close significantly due to everything Bud Selig has been doing since 1994 to help small market teams. MLB is really in it's golden age, and while local TV deals aren't shared, MLB has done a great job with their TV deals and growing the game. So really it comes down to this for me with Loe, Meeks and Cruz. -Cruz is a guy I've always liked, but he's 33 and he STILL has the control issues he's had his whole career. Good pitcher, but he'd be a guy we'd pick up for the next 3 weeks, and lets face it, even WITHOUT the Phillies playing well, chances where very poor we'd catch the Cards with their schedule(though we have gained 13 games on the Pirates in about 25 games). But with the Phillies, you're talking about a guy who's a FA. Loe-He's a nice-nice pitcher. But we need a SU man. I don't think spending 3.5 million or whatever he'll make in arbitration this upcoming year is worth it. I think we non-tender him, and then we offer him 2 million to come back. Meeks-He's a guy who comes with no risk. He's a talented, power arm, who's been to an all-star game, he's dominated out of the pen, and while he does have control problems, Kranitz has proven to me to be a VERY good pitching coach, and year after year after YEAR you see a guy who's been a so-so reliever, or even a good reliever like Meeks who don't break out fully until their in their late 20's, early 30's. I think Meeks could be a staple in our BP. One last thing, K-Rod isn't coming back for 8.5 million dollars, but I would ABSOLUTELY bring him back for 3.5-4 million dollars, even on a two year deal. He's been very good his entire career, his velocity is back up a tick, and with these small sample sizes and the impact a bad outing has on a player, I think people are a little too down on him. I'm more than willing to give him another chance, and I think he and Ax will bounce back next year. Throw out a BP of Axford/Henderson/K-rod/Meeks/Loogy or Parra or DLS/the other DLS and then a slew of other potential candidates, Veras who has good stuff, or perhaps a guy ilke Estrada/Rogers/Thornburg(less likely), Manzanillo(later in the season most likely), Wooten. But I don't believe that you take the entire BP and just totally turn over. I don't see what good that does when you look at each individual player. Kintzler is another guy in consideration.

Now I know he's not exactly Mo, but adding a guy like Evan Meek, a former all-star and a guy who in the three years prior to this year was a VERY good middle reliever. 2.74 ERA 148 ERA+, 1.20 WHIP. Struggled with the walks, but was tough to hit giving up just 114 hits in 148 IP. Throws in the low to mid 90's with a good slider. Spent most of the year in AAA for the Pirates, but they had a pretty dominant bullpen most of the year. He again struggled with walks, but he posted a 2.74 ERA, nearly a K per 9, and 33 H in 46 IP with 41 K's. The walks are troubling obviously, but we've certainly taken bigger chances than this. Seems like a guy we could claim, bring into camp next year and see if he earns a way onto the 25 man for us. The fact that the Pirates are walking away from him is a little bit of a surprise other than it sounds like they needed a spot on the 40 man, but he's a guy I think Kranitz could work with and possibly help lower his walks. If he cut down on his walks, he'd be a great 6th/7th inning type guy. He's also been a pretty GB heavy pitcher prior to a tiny sample size this year, so perhaps he takes the role of Loe if all goes well? Any reason not to consider this? Kinda reminds me of the Todd Coffey type move we made a few years ago and one that worked out great for us in 2008-2009(though he did very little in '08 other than stabilize the pen.

Yeah, I've seen that a couple places as well. I don't know how Fiers delivery relates to his long term health, but I think the point is, good mechanics, bad mechanics, a pitcher is less fragile once they reach 26-28, and handling a pitcher that age is significantly different than one who's 21-22. A Peralta for example, although his injuries aren't much of a concern.

Why does Marcum pretty much have to be on it? I see no reason for him to be on it. If he's pitching like your fifth best pitcher, then I don't care about his status. This team has gotten to where it is on the backs on the young arms, and the big bats(And the pen pitching like they should have been all year long). I'm not ready to hand over a spot to a guy who's looked like the 5th best starter we have by a long shot as of late(unless he gets it going) and more importantly, was AWFUL last year in the playoffs which again, I attribute to the fact that I think it's a lot harder to get by with 87 MPH stuff in the post-season than the regular season. With regard to Rogers, I'm more apt to make him a reliever in the post-season, not a starter. If we made it, I'd go with a Gallardo/Fiers/Estrada/Peralta rotation and with those three after Yo, your game plan has to be to try and get 5-6 GOOD innings out of them, then go to the pen. Rogers, Loe, Henderson, K-Rod, Axford and to lesser degrees....Parra(who is the the most frustrating pitcher on the team with as dominating as he can be if he can just-throw-strike-one). But no, no Marcum. We're playing with house money. Why stop rolling the dice with them and go back to the guy who was a part of getting us into debt, first last years post-season, second this years injury, third his performance since returning, and fourth, c'mon, we get in, we're not winning any world series, but man would it be huge to get Rogers, Peralta, Henderson and this entire team some playoff experiance, and it'd be huge for bringing in players next year. They see that we made our run on the backs of young talented pitchers like Peralta, Rogers, Henderson, guys like Bianchi and moreso Segura, Lucroy and Maldonado and I think we're a much more desirable destination next year. I do suspect that Marcum would get a start, I just don't think he should. By the way, what happened to Tyler Thornburg. I've been paying pretty close attention and haven't heard why he hasn't gotten a start, or at least some BP innings. I know his innings where up, but that's why he was only throwing 4 Innings in Nashville, so he'd be able to throw some up here. I'd also love to see him coming out of the pen throwing 96-97. It'd further that same agenda of doing it with the young guys.

If you go back and look at the way he twisted that ankle(or just remember it as I'm sure most on here have) I thought that was a season ending injury. That looked horrific. The fact that he was back late last year and in the playoffs was impressive. I have no doubt he could have made that injury worse and caused it to leak into this season. I think his slump was a bit more than JUST his ankle though. He was just really off balance and looked like he did at other times when he was slumping, not staying back, leaking out on the inside pitches, and diving out at the off-speed pitches low and away. I think it was likely a combination of the ankle which contributed a great deal, but he also was just struggling. Either way, you're not going to get any excuses out of Weeks. For all we know he tore something in that ankle and played though it. When he came back last year, his power was way down putting up a line of .243/.391/.351/.743. Maybe a bit of a things to come with a poor SLG, a poor BA, but still drawing his walks. He also hit just one HR after coming back, and struggled in the post-season save for two HR's in the Division series, he was terrible going 1 for 18 in the WC round, and not much better the following round. But again, maybe we got the 2010 Weeks back and he'll re-assert himself as a all-star caliber player. He is in the middle of his prime years, and Weeks strikes me as a guy who'll age rather well.

I have never found a way to accurately describe Rickie...until now Yup. That pretty much nails it. Still, I want and expect more from him more consistently despite the fact that I know he's one of the better 2nd basemen in the game.

My verdict hasn't really changed all along. Weeks is a good player. Whether it was a slump or injury-related, it really doesn't change things. I'd expect him to be a good player going forward. My thought all along has been that we should look at trading him when we have an in-house replacement ready. This year probably means that he won't be shopped this offseason, as his value will be low. If Green or Gennett look ready to take over mid-season next year or next offseason, I'd shop him then. If he puts together a healthy and productive 2013, he will help our team a lot and be very marketable after next year. I'm surprised anyone is still expecting Green to ever be ready. I haven't seen anything out of him that makes me think he's more than a career utility infielder. His contract is pretty reasonable for his expected production, so I wouldn't shop him for what I would expect to be a significant downgrade. I wouldn't shop Weeks either(though as you know in particular I've long been a HUGE Weeks fan, though I'm not as alone here as I was most other places) UNLESS Scooter Gennett truly proves himself to be capable of producing the type of numbers in the big leagues he's produced in the minors. I'm far-far from confident he will do so, but we have the luxury of allowing him at least another full year and perhaps another two before we really have to make any sort of decision. Maybe Gennett will end up actually being a Pedroia type player. Heck, his defense has been one of his biggest question marks, and yet he was voted the best defensive 2nd basemen by the Southern League coaches. To me at least that puts to rest him being the liability some scouting reports have had on him. But I'll say two things. First of all, I think you're jumping the gun pretty early on Green. This is a guy who in 120 games last year put up a line of .336/.413/.583 and a OPS of .997 last year in AAA and has career minor league numbers of .289/.370/.452 and .822. He's still just 25, and he's struggled at times with wrist injuries and other small injuries, but he's shown very good power and in my opinion still has good upside. I've already thought of a Mark Loretta type player when I've thought of Green. Green I think has a little more power, and won't hit for the same average, but I think their frames and plate discpline, along with the ability to play 1st/2nd and 3rd(Green can't play SS, though Loretta was never really a great SS). At age 24 Loretta had a minor league line of .289/.350/.381 and a .730 OPS. Though at 25 he certainly performed better in the big leagues than Green has, though he had the luxury of regular at bats on a bad Brewers team, something Green hasn't had since he's been blocked and hasn't gotten his feet underneath him. So I don't think Green's lack of production this year is indicative of his ability. But Weeks ability is that of a superstar. It's just getting increasingly frustrating to watch a player with the potential to be an absolute superstar continually for one reason or another fall short. Since the middle of June he's put up a .842 OPS, and he's obviously been the biggest difference maker IMO offensively during this run. And while he had a superstar year, I think Weeks is kinda at a crossroads. He needs to put together 3-4 seasons like his 2009 truncated season and his 2010 season in which he performed like a true superstar 2nd basemen. Don't get me wrong, his career overall is WELL above average for a 2nd basemen, and now that he's a pretty good defender at 2nd, a line of .251/.351/.430/.781 is more than respectable, and he HAS been underrated, but that's because Brewers fans see a guy capable of hitting .280/.360/.480 with 30 HR's when healthy and they haven't gotten that consistently. I'm in no hurry to move him, and I wouldn't look to do so unless someone offers us a deal at a trade deadline when he's locked in as he is now that is just too good to turn down, and his contract does offer good value IMO. But man...he just turned 29 and we're still hoping he's going to be a superstar. I think that's where the biggest problem comes from and where the ignorant Weeks bashing(Where it exists comes from). Hopefully, as with the rest of this team, his second half will propel him onto a big year next year. Just as with Gomez though, the one thing you can't ever accuse Weeks of being is lazy, or not playing his heart out. He plays the game as hard, as physical and he does it without the chest puffing, "hold me back, hold me back," type of crap that Prince did. I think his leadership is invaluable and I suspect he'll be a Mike Cameron type player later in his career, valued for his clubhouse presence. Though that's neither here nor there right now.

How the hell does this work? Do the owners just "remember?" Like at the owners meeting in December next to the vending machine, does Nolan kinda coughs and says to Mark A, "ahem....you know..Mark...you still owe me that dollar from Sept?" Do they actually send a check for one dollar, or is it just a formality. I just find the idea of guys worth a billion or nearly a billion dollars writing a one dollar check....

First of all, how you become a "proven pitcher?" By PITCHING. I fail to see why Rogers can't become a good pitcher for us, what Fiers has shown that suggests he can't become a good pitcher for us, why you leave Peralta off the list, or Thornburg, or Nelson, Jungman, Burgos(moving forward, not to start the year necessarily, but the guys who are next in line. And all I hear is how we've gutted our farm system for this guy or that guy and that's stopped us from developing their own starting pitching, but you suggest trading for a guy like Hellickson, a guy with 4 years of service time left I believe who's a very-very good pitcher on a contender in the AL East, or Shields who has a couple years left, much less Felix who you're right, is a pipe dream. He's going to cost a LOT more than Greinke, but if you put so little stock into our starting pitching, the strength of our farm system and our young guys, then how could we possibly pull off a trade for...well...really any of them? There are two pitchers I see being worth pursuing, either Edwin Jackson if he is once again undervalued on the Free Agent Market, and to me it's baffling how he's bounced around from team to team and then signed a 1 year deal for 11 million dollars. If he's available for 3 years and 33 million, I'd sure as hell pay for 200 innings a year at a 4.00-ish ERA in a power pitcher. The other of course being...Grienke who I haven't given up on. I really don't see a lot of teams that are going to be bidding on him, or at least be willing bid enough to price him out of our market. Remember, teams are building their teams with that luxury tax in the back of their mind. As for Marcum, I hated that deal, last year he was obviously productive, but what does he really do for us? I hate soft tossers like him in the post-season just as a general rule as hitters tend to chase less and hit guys who nibble as they're more focused and more zoned in. That's an opinion that isn't backed by any quantifiable stat, just a personal preference. Plus, I don't know any good pitcher on the market with more glaring-screaming alarms than Marcum. Terrible mechanics. Average FB-86.6 MPH, TJ surgery already, constant elbow tightness. Lucky for us last year it was before the season started, this year it was during the season. And right now, he's the worst pitcher we're throwing out there. Obviously I don't believe he would be over a full season when healthy, but that was a deal that set the franchise back significantly, and one that I think should be rectified. If he doesn't accept a 1 year 8 million dollar deal, I'd move on. Not to mention, while our offense has been great, you're starting to get into that range where injuries are cropping up more and more. Aram has been healthy, but it should be a concern, Hart's had three injuries in the last two years, Braun's always got something, and Weeks has been healthier, but his past isn't exactly injury free. So we're in a stretch where everyone's been healthy and we've been on fire on offense. That's not including seasons that may be outliers in Lucroy's BA(though I think he's very good), Gomez who I believe is more than capable of repeating this past season and even improving, but this has been much better than in the past, and Maldonado who's never really shown this type of offense. We've gotten more production out of C than anyone likely would have projected. Just off the top of my head, about 15 or so HR's, somewhere around a .300 offense and what, 70-ish RBI's? So the only way I think hitting the FA market is worth it and spending a lot of money is if A-Greinke looks at how we finished, looks at our young pitching and we're competitive in our offer and he comes back, B-Jackson is on the market and still a good value or C-Either Lee or Haren is dumped because of the Hamels deal or because LAA signs Grienke and they don't want to pick up Haren's 15.5 million dollar option. I also think it's foolish to write Rogers off after everything he's come back from, nor do I think anyone expects 200 innings from him. But he's out there still throwing 98 MPH and has shown flashes of great secondary stuff, Peralta obviously has great stuff and you could say the exact same things about him. Fiers has been outstanding. Not sure how you're not seeing a potential #3 in him next year(also not sure where Rogers being a legit #2 has come from). And you still have Narveson who's been throwing already, Estrada, Thornburg and then obviously Gallardo. Why wouldn't we be excited about our starting pitching going into next year? We're developing power arms with legit putout secondary pitches, and we have a couple more that are within a year away potentially we haven't even seen. We FINALLY have the makings of is largely a homegrown rotation and now we're saying, "but we don't have any of these future HOF'ers or Cy Young winners?" Yeah, those guys take time to develop and are pretty hard to come by. Again, I'm still holding out hope Greinke can be re-signed after he hits the market, but if not, I think we've got a really nice foundation. And as I said, I'm not going to throw Rogers out the door just simply because of his injury history. If a guy can work through all that and come back, hell, you have to give him credit for everything he's done and say he's earned a spot in the rotation.