HiAndTight

I couldn't possibly disagree more. I'm not any more encouraged about Kottaras as a catcher as I was coming into the season. And it has nothing to do with him being on my team, it has to do with a fundamental change in a short period of time as to how he approaches the ball. I do appreciate your definitive declaration that he can't possibly turn into a 5 war player. [sarcasm]I'm quite certain a 26 year old player with incredible pure tools has never been a late bloomer and put it together later on than expected.[/sarcasm] The, "sorry," part is beyond condescending. I'm guessing a few years ago you'd have "informed me," with the same condescension that Nelson Cruz(after being put on waivers) would never become a 5 WAR player. Which he did in just 108 games. And it wouldn't take much for Gomez. Again, I'm guessing if he was an everyday player and put up a .285/.330 line with his power potential and SB ability to go on top of his elite CF play, that would place him at a 4-5 WAR player....sorry. I honestly wasn't trying to be condescending nor was I suggesting it is absolutely impossible that Gomez develops into a 5 WAR guy. Almost nothing has a 0% chance of occurring, after all. Despite his young age, it simply remains extremely unlikely. Again, around mid May, we read SO many stories about how previously bad hitters have made a fundamental change in their approach, only to find most go right back to being bad. I hope Gomez is the exception but I doubt it. You can search for anecdotal evidence to the contrary but that doesn't make it any more likely. And your example of Cruz isn't a very good example, anyway (IMO, of course). He put up a 5 WAR season in 2010, sure. It was a great year. But there is a big difference between putting up a 5 WAR season and being a 5 WAR player. He followed that up his great 2010 season with an average 2011 season and hasn't done a whole lot this year, yet, either. He's an above average player no doubt but I don't know if anyone is projecting him to be a 5 WAR guy going forward. There simply aren't that many players out there that do. I've always felt that Gomez had value to the Brewers but it has never had anything to do with his bat. This is the third year in a row that I've heard he may have turned the corner offensively, though. I just don't think pure athleticism translates into good hitting as much as people think it should. You have to admit, "the notion that he could turn into a 5 war player....sorry," comes off as condescending. And again, we're getting off base here, so I'll answer this and then respond to the next post and lets get back to Grienke. My suggestion was he still has the potential to be an 5 WAR player if he can turn him into just a decent hitter. And I don't think .275 or so and .330 or so is really that unrealistic. Should he be able to reach those numbers, I'd assume with his pure power, he'd be able to hit 12-15 and steal a whole lot of bases. I also think it's unlikely. I've started there, and I'll end there. I'm not predicting this will happen. It's entirely possible Gomez goes right back to being the guy who'll swing at the 1st pitch every at bat no matter where it is. The ONLY-THING I'm saying is that this season Gomez has looked different. He's had a different approach and changed the way he approaches his at bats. And if-IF-IF-IF he can continue to do that, he's going to be an extremely valuable player just hitting .275 or so with even a below average or average OBP because of everything else he brings.

That's obviously a very good point badger. Take out Braun and just how much does MLB lose? He's a great guy to be the face of the Brewers, but there are so many stories every year and so many superstars, I don't think the loss of Braun's reputation would or has cost MLB. You still have a ton of great stories this year.

That's a good one. My point..though I'm sure you got it, is that most baseball fans aren't even close as to informed as those of us on here are, so this story wouldn't bring in many viewers. And it's an entertainment network.

Anyway, the point of this thread isn't about Gomez. I wasn't advocating building around Gomez, and I wasn't declaring he WOULD be a 5 war player. Simply pointing out his improved approach this year which has been rather profound to me, not just a hot streak as I'm not looking at his numbers this early in the year, but rather his approach and the way he's actually waiting to get his pitches. What's far more important is the Greinke discussion. So lets steer it back that way. It'll take quite a few major surprises in order for us to make up for his loss. Even if TT ends up being as good as Greinke, highly unlikely, but even if he does, you still need another guy to replace Marcum's production and then a third guy to replace Wolf's. I feel much better about our young guys replacing Marcum and Wolf obviously and building a staff around two guys who are better bets than most to stay healthy and become very good pitchers for a long time than most. I'd rather bet the house and give Greinke twice as much as Marcum than make that smaller, safer bet and give Marcum 4 years 50 million or whatever it is he may get. Marcum doesn't have the stuff obviously, and he is a much higher injury risk.

I couldn't possibly disagree more. I'm not any more encouraged about Kottaras as a catcher as I was coming into the season. And it has nothing to do with him being on my team, it has to do with a fundamental change in a short period of time as to how he approaches the ball. I do appreciate your definitive declaration that he can't possibly turn into a 5 war player. [sarcasm]I'm quite certain a 26 year old player with incredible pure tools has never been a late bloomer and put it together later on than expected.[/sarcasm] The, "sorry," part is beyond condescending. I'm guessing a few years ago you'd have "informed me," with the same condescension that Nelson Cruz(after being put on waivers) would never become a 5 WAR player. Which he did in just 108 games. And it wouldn't take much for Gomez. Again, I'm guessing if he was an everyday player and put up a .285/.330 line with his power potential and SB ability to go on top of his elite CF play, that would place him at a 4-5 WAR player....sorry.

In addition to that, Burgos also retired the final 14 batters he faced. I hadn't realized he performed this well after his pour start. That's certainly encouraging. Nearly 5 perfect innings after 1 2/3 in which he gave up the first 4 earned.

Meh, lets put a little pin in that for a while. He went 6 IP and he struggled out of the gate giving up 4 in the first two innings pitched. For a guy taking the biggest step in the minors, in his first two innings, I'm going to reserve judgement. Nobody thought his .85 ERA and .57 Whip or whatever the absurd numbers were was going to hold up as he moved up, but getting through the next 4 shutout innings and regrouping is encouraging.

Once again, nobody is talking about building AROUND Gomez. I'm talking about building around Greinke, Yo, Braun, Lucroy and then the plethora of young pitchers we've got and guys like Gamel, Green, Schafer, and I'm simply saying lets not write Gomez off quite yet as a guy who can't be a key player.

Absolutely. Not just the #1 priority the Brewers face this year, this is the top priority they've faced in about 10 years.

Well, I'm not talking about giving him Hart or Weeks type money. I'd say if he can put together a decent year this year, I'd give him maybe 4 years 16 million or something. And nobody will promise him a starting job. He'll always have value defensively. And we've got him for a little while longer. If he does become a 5 war player, yeah, I wouldn't re-sign him, but he's not right now. Again, he's still worth a couple million the player he's been.

Thank you. That's interesting to know, but I do also realize it's statistically irrelevant at this point. I understand that. It aligns with what I've seen, but the bottom line is that he's simply looked better. If you were scouting a player, and all you had to go on was this year, you wouldn't say he's got great plate discipline, but you wouldn't say it's a joke like it's been in the past. And while I again realize I'm probably alone on this board or in the vast minority, I'm not saying he's turned any corner or he will be anything. Just that I'm somewhat confident he could still develop and not because of a hot streak, but because of how he's actually playing the game. That's all. Nice to see stats back that up, but it's obviously the middle of May and he's platooned for a good part of that. But even vs righties, he's LOOKED much better. And lets face it, he has the bat speed, he has all 5 tools...well, 4 at least. Cannon for an arm, best speed in the league, great bat speed, a huge arm, and if he shows any sort that 5th tool...again, 5 war potential still IMO.

I want to add just one more thing. I think that Gomez STILL has the potential to be more than "just a guy." And I was the last one last year who would have been saying this, but quite simply, his approach this year has simply changed. And it's not just about him drawing walks, he's not walked significantly more, and I'm not going to even bother to look at how many pitches he's taking this year as opposed to last year. I just know that from the eye test in a very short period of time, he's improved a great deal this year at laying off that off-speed stuff early in counts that got him in a 0-1, 1-2 count consistently last year and has gotten himself into a position this year to be able to get his pitch more often and get the barrel out on the ball so many more times than he has in the past. And I think if he can continue to do that, I think he's going to be a .275/.280 hitter with a .325-.330 OBP and I think that could result in 15 HR's and 40+ SB's at a very high rate of success. Of course I realize the mountain of evidence arguing against me and the tiny stack arguing for me, but this is more about evaluating what I've seen thus far. And if Gomez DOES become that offensive type of player, he's a 5 WAR type player very possibly. And most importantly providing great defense.

I don't think I could agree with you any more. You take that core of players and obviously you'll keep others around, but you keep that core and I believe you can absolutely develop around them with the farm system. In particular on the mound. I've said this until I was blue in the face, but Greinke and Gallardo as a #1 and #2 takes so much pressure off the young cache of pitchers we've got in the stable, many of whom are capable of being #2/#3 type pitchers and with a guy like Thornburg I truly believe could even develop into a legit ace for a 3-4 year stretch. And you've got Scooter Gennett who's quelling the questions about his big league potential every day. And I really like our OF possibilities. I think Caleb Gindl is a guy who's underrated, Logan Schafer is a guy who I honestly see being a 3 WAR player, Gamel I see being the same STILL and I'm absolutely convinced in that. I think what we saw this year, not the end of the year numbers as a 10 day mini slump dropped them to make them look bad, but we saw a good, hard nosed, dedicated player who I think will peak as a 4-4.5 WAR player..... So bottom line, with all the money this team made last year and much-much more importantly the money this team has coming in moving forward, Greinke absolutely has to be signed. If we can run a rotation out there in the near future of Greinke/Yo/Bradley/Thornburg/Fiers with Peralta, Wooten, Jungman, Rogers, Manzanillo, Nelson, Burgos as other options in either the pen or the rotation, we could easily build a rotations that's as good as anyone in the game with two proven vets atop it, and several power arms chomping at the bit to join them soon to follow, not to mention guys like Axford who we control for a while. That's the only way I see this team keeping that window propped open for another 3-4-5 years. We've got some positions players, we can draft position players and find great bargains when it comes to position players. But keeping that type of rotation around for another 5 years is huge....I'm 100 pct fine with 5 years and 115 right now for him. I just see him making a Cy Young run this year which would fall in line with how he pitched the last several months of and to start this year, and if he hits the FA market, there will be probably 12_ teams willing to go 6 or 7 years.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/7929521/mlb-fires-shyam-das-arbitrator-milwaukee-brewers-ryan-braun-case It's actually on ESPN's front page of baseball news. I never can understand the absolute hatred some people have for ESPN. I didn't see your post when I posted mine. To me, it really comes down to this. It's almost popular to...crap on ESPN for lack of a more elegant way of articulating it. This ESPN bashing is just over the top at times. There isn't much of a story there OUTSIDE of the hardcore, obsessive baseball fans which most of us on here are. Honest to god, I worked for the Brewers for a couple years out of college([sarcasm]I was the GM for the Brewers during the 90's and early 2000's....you know, an entry level position for the Brewers at that time[/sarcasm]). Seriously though, I worked there and still know guys who work there who honest to god wouldn't have a clue who Brooks Hall is, who wouldn't know who...hell, honestly don't know who Tyler Thornburg is, or at the very least didn't coming into this year. Who know of a handful of minor league players and that's it. So lets step back and evaluate the target audience. They're not talking to HighAndTight, BrewCrew07(or whatever), Ender,Bruce, Adambr,Endaround Briggs, or the rest of this board where the uninformed consist of those who don't know if Burgos throws 89-90 still or if he's now throwing 91-92. I mean....c'mon, how many people are that hardcore baseball fans? My point is people want more than they're ever going to get from a network that caters to the other 99 pct of fans out there. Heck, this is a board that forms it's own prospect rankings on their own.

It'll get mentions, but most people are going to take it as Braun is more guilty than the MLB being childish. People do this so often. As if it's anti-Brewer. It's not sensational. It's MLB's arbitor who I would venture to guess that 95 pct of baseball fans wouldn't know by name, and that's probably very conservative. So the story now becomes, "MLB fires arbiter who ruled for Braun fired." And there's no more information to discuss. That's essentially it. MLB has that right. There isn't likely to be any dirt coming out as Das is a professional and a respected professional, and he hasn't shown in any way whatsoever that he's lacked professionalism in any way. So write the story? The defending MVP gets suspended for 50 games and then it gets overturned? Yeah, that's the story of the off-season, at least one of the main stories. But people just won't care about this and as such, does ESPN have a responsibility to do anymore than simply report it for a news cycle?

Despite ruling AGAINST them on every single case that we know of. The Players Union should just fire the next couple guys who rule against the player. If you're going to fire a respected guy like Das, who, incidentally is going to be arbitrating another issue that directly impacts the state of Wisconsin with the Saints bounty-gate issue(Hardgrove our FA DE that we signed), then who do you deem worthy? Someone who's just going to go along with you no matter what?

What is Miller even throwing these days? I thought coming out of Michigan....IIRC, he was a guy who could run it up there in the mid 90's..which to me means 90-92 on average throughout the game. But while he had another great start, I honestly think we've got 25 pitchers I've got more confidence in the farm system moving forward. How ugly can a 6 Inning shutout be? Well, when you have 1 K and you're getting the ball in the air more than on the ground with a 4/7 GO/FO ratio....meh, I can't get too interested for a guy several years out of college in Low A. Nelson on the other hand gets ground balls, he I know can dial it up there into the low to mid 90's, and to me I've KINDA gotten a Kameron Loe type fastball with a couple more clicks on it. Just that over the course of a game as a starting pitcher that along can be dominating. Now when you combine that with the fact that he arguably has the best slider in the Brewers system to be able to combat left handers, and that big frame to eat up innings, and he's the guy who's kinda jumped out and surprised me so far this year. I'd written off the three college starters from the last few drafts when talking about Nelson, Miller and Arnett(not that they're the only three, they just kinda represent the trend the Brewers decided they wanted to start going in with the big 6'5-6'6-ish frame to be able to carry a lot of innings. He's an exciting guy right now for me to follow. I've said this over and over, but we have so many guys I think can be REALLY good-good #3-4 type starters. If this team can just get one or two guys who can step up and above and reach that ceiling... Well, that's just what makes following these arms so much fun. You can actually envision a full pitching staff, a plausible playoff staff in these guys. Brooks Hall is a guy I love, the guys everyone else loves so we need not mention them, and then still guys who I think have room to break out. Scarpetta, Rivas to a lesser degree, and just a number of others.

And NOW this thread becomes a viable thread(though still probably about 2 months early). Now he can prove that his video game like numbers are not a mirage and he can prove himself at AA and should he continue to dominate...then this scenario is a lot more likely. I'd still much rather see a guy like Thornburg who actually deserves it and I think is someone who could make a difference, or Peralta, the obvious choice. But this now at least makes sense. I'm just ahead of the curve. I don't agree Thornburg, Peralta, etc. should get the first look. Don't burn their service time. Take a flyer on a guy like Burgos because you have nothing to lose. Now Burgos may pitch a couple months and if he continues his success, he gets called up then. Maybe he's exposed. I never said the Brewers WOULD bring him up quickly, or at all for that matter. I just think they SHOULD. Don't burn service time for the top prospects, bring up guys like Burgos where all you have is upside. If he fails, you have another Cholk or Dillard and you move forward. Don't "burn," their service time when they're ready and we're trying to compete? If there's a chance that a guy like Thornburg could come up and emulate Cal Eldred circa 1992 type run, then why are we worried about service time(especially since we're considering this as in the NEXT guy up, not immediately, so we'd likely be at least into June). You can't play like that. I'd rather burn a half year of service time on Thornburg when he's dominating and we still have a staff capable of winning us playoff series than what? If Greinke was signed for 5 more years, perhaps I'd look at a little differently at this, but if we don't sign him soon, and he continues the year that I thought he'd have last year and think he'll have the rest of this year, he's gone and we're treading water anyway. So I'm not really buying the service time argument for a guy who just isn't on the same level...or even in the same world(Burgos vs Thornburg) while we're still-trying-to-win. It's not like we're talking about the KC Royals. In which case I wouldn't bring up Burgos either. Which brings me back around to the whole...why are we just throwing him out? I mean, that's essentially what you're doing? You're going down the list and picking out the worst pitcher of the real viable options because his service time doesn't matter, and if we break him mentally, it doesn't matter. I don't care if he's 23 years old, he's putting up eye popping numbers, and I don't care that it's "only," in BC where it's pitchers skewed. His numbers transcend those factors they're that eye popping. He's not some guy who tops out at 83 MPH. He's a guy who has a similar fastball to Estrada, and if he can develop similar or better secondary pitches, he can be a pretty valuable pitcher for us. And let me take the service time further...there seems to be this sense that all is lost and it's all about the farm. We're not really off the pace we were at least year, and there isn't a team ahead of us in this division that we can't catch, and while I think the East gets 1 WC, the Phils are old and I certainly think we can compete with the runner up in the West. So if come August, we need help in the BP, or if Thornburg is just off the charts, Bradley is dominating lefties(in AA) and Peralta has a run like he did toward the end of last year, I've got absolutely no problem bringing all 3 of them up and burning some of their service time.

And NOW this thread becomes a viable thread(though still probably about 2 months early). Now he can prove that his video game like numbers are not a mirage and he can prove himself at AA and should he continue to dominate...then this scenario is a lot more likely. I'd still much rather see a guy like Thornburg who actually deserves it and I think is someone who could make a difference, or Peralta, the obvious choice. But this now at least makes sense.

They might be able to keep Greinke and sign Hamilton and pay for it for 1 year, even 2. But lets say with all the factors we have in our favor. The TV and radio revenue(I've heard the TV would be 20 since the deal was signed several years ago...I have no clue how the new radio renewal impacts our bottom line), the 2 dollar plus average raise in ticket prices, the record setting pace we're on in terms of attendance, and the fact that even spending 94 million last year, we made a substantial amount of money according to forbres. Even with all that, the 20 million and the current attendance and ticket increase tops among them, what's the absolute most we could stretch the payroll? 120? I've been saying 110 for next season for years, but we've done even better financially than I could have dreamed. But you still have to look down the road. I'm in favor of signing Greinke because I PERSONALLY don't believe he will break down. But he's a starting pitcher. Chances are at some point in his career he will. Hamilton is an obvious risk, and with offensive freaks like Hamilton you KNOW you're going to pay an extra year in a best case scenario, two years in a more likely one and three years in a normal situation(Prince should have gotten 6 years, Pujols 6 or 7). What in the world happens if you have Hamilton who breaks down with injuries, Greinke has a Tommy John, and in 4 years you're paying Braun near 15 million and potentially paying 45-50 million for Greinke and Hamilton, two guys who could POTENTIALLY be on the DL? The risk to signing Greinke is a calculated one with his easy delivery and the pitchers we have coming up. The risk to signing both is absolute destruction for the Brewers as we put all our eggs in their basket, they get hurt, our team completely folds, our attendance goes from 3-3.5 million to 2 million we're a 65 win team in Braun's prime years and we've dug ourselves a hole that will take years to dig out from. So as fun as it'd be, even if it was realistic to sign Greinke and Hamilton and despite the fact that I do think we could swing it for a year or two or even longer as Weeks, Hart, Wolf, KRod and others come off the payroll, the long term risk is absolutely ruining your franchise and going back to the 60 win days, except this time losing a lot of money. I think Mark A is willing to break even or step a couple steps either way over the red since he's made a few hundred million dollars on the franchise already. I don't think he's going to risk everything to win a WS.

Ah...you'd need someone to replace Greinke as your ace, then you'd need someone to replace Marcum as your #3. Now do we have guys capable? Hell yeah. Thornburg could be a legit ace for a 3-4 year run IMO, Bradley could be a legit #3. I mean, Nelson could be a legit #3/4 starter if he can keep throwing 94 with sink and raking up some K's. But it's highly unlikely. Between TT, Jungman, Bradley and Peralta, leaving Fiers out for the moment as you know he's not more than a 4 or a 5(could be a great #4 or #5 like Narveson, but he's not in that same group) all of them could be #1's and #2's. But in reality that only exists in fantasy worlds and St. Petersburg if you have Matt Moore, David Price, Hellickson, Nieman, etc..etc...and can afford to have Wade David learn in the pen. I truly believe those 4 and then just behind them Nelson and Brooks Hall, a HUUGE favorite of mine are going to provide the best home grown rotation we've had in a loong time, I just don't think you're going to get TWO guys that you can throw up there against other aces and hope they develop into the type of pitchers that you can feel confident winning with. Realistically you need 3 pitchers right now, 3 dominant ones. Gallardo and Greinke gives us the margin for error that we only have to get lucky and get one of the 6 I've mentioned to develop into that upper echelon type pitcher in the next several years. I think that's entirely likely. THAT is how I think we have a chance to stay competitive and win 90+ games a year over the next several years. Hit on ONE pitcher from the farm and develop our next homegrown ace to put with Greinke and Gallardo. And I keep going back to Thornburg as I think he's got just incredible upside. And then Peralta's obviously already right there and nearly ready. Those four and a Fiers/Narveson when he comes back, or Estrada, whoever potentially make a great-great rotation. So, Hamilton's great, but I have such confidence that Gallardo and Greinke are going to buck the trend and are more likely to stay healthy long term with their deliveries than most any other power pitcher in the game that I'd gladly give Grienke a 5 year 110 million dollar extension and I think that'd be worth every penny. Perhaps a option year for a 6th year at 25 million with a 5 million dollar buyout to make it 5/115 guaranteed if that's what it takes. But Greinke's on the cusp of putting together a Cy Young contending season and if we continue to wait, it's not going to matter. While the market is limited to what teams have a spot for Hamilton to play, there is no such limitation for teams when it comes to pitching. Yankees, Sox, Dodgers, Cubs, Royals(darkhorse as they DO have money and they'er just bringing up their young studs), Tigers, Jays, Angels, Rangers....there could be easily 10 teams who enter the Greinke bidding. Hell, the O's also have young offensive talent and an owner who constantly tries to make big free agent splashes and comes up short despite throwing money out there. The Phillies with some contracts coming off the books could make a run. The list is a lot shorter than Hamilton. Which is why I wish the Brewers would simply do what it takes to sign Greinke and work the rest out later. They've got 20 million in TV revenue coming after this year and are even besting last years attendance numbers and made quite a bit of money last year. If they come to the conclusion they need to cut salary, even with Wolf, Marcum, K-Rod and several others coming off the books, they've got areas to free up salary...though I hardly think they need to do that with their current revenues which should easily lead to a 110 million dollar payroll.

I will stake my life savings, my home and everything that I own on the fact that he doesn't get 10 years, and my prediction is he gets 6. Prince got 9 years at 28, not 31 and played every single day(almost literally) his entire career. His missed...off the top of my head, I'd guess less than 15 games in his 6 full years with the Brewers and probably less than 5 or 6 the last 5 years. And Hamilton I DO think will be the exception to the rule. People talk about "what he's done to his body," and he's obviously abused drugs, but there isn't a whole lot of correlation between that and muscle tears or strains which he's struggled with over a short period of time(relatively short) that he was addicted. He just isn't a natural CF'er, and he probably should be a everyday LF'er, shouldn't push his body and try to steal and I think ultimately when he's 40, he'll still be a very good, very solid player. You can list players all you want, but great players tend to stay great longer. And we're talking about 40 being the last year of his deal. A deal I don't think he'll get, but lets assume he does. You sign almost every long term contract with the expectation that you're going to get screwed in the end and you won't get value the last year, even 2-3 years. But you sign it for the up front value. Though...again, I think Hamilton gets 7 years and 175 tops. Injury, age, and drug issues drive it down more tahn I think people are suggesting on here.

Well, I don't really care that he plays 110 games a season. He certainly has proven that he's just an extremely valuable player. A guy that can put up ridiculous numbers. He's at 3.1 WAR this year already. So it's not because of how often he plays. He wins games for you when he does, and our OF depth argues for signing him than against IMO. You have protection. Heck, you move Hart to 1st and you have the same lineup you've had in the last 3-4+ years. And...you have the same pitching. That hasn't worked. I think if we fail to sign Greinke, the Brewers will be in purgatory for the next several years. Right where the Bucks are right now. There are only two great draft picks, the first and the last(it's slightly difference with baseball, but...same idea). You're either trying to win it all or you're looking to rebuild and set back up to win it all. During which time our attendance will likely slip, payroll drop and we'll slowly sink further down. If we sign Greinke, we hit on just a couple of our pitchers, Thornburg, Peralta, Bradley, Jungman...get super lucky and get another ace out of there and maybe a 3 cheap for 6 years, a decent SS in free agency or trade and we're still set up to win moving forward with high attendance and our TV money. I just don't think Hamilton is as safe a bet(which might be the first time I've said that about an OF'ers vs a Pitcher in a long time) for 20 million over the next 5 years. Plus, I think Hamilton is going to get 25 or so million for 6 years, so I think he'll end up way out of our reasonable price range anyway.

I believe Wooten tops out around 92 or so, but has a dominant slider. He's certainly not a traditional closer, but he locates exceptionally well. I think he's got a nice future as a potential 7th inning guy.

Yeah, I don't see any logic in this move whatsoever. First of all, lets not just dismiss him as a part of our team in the future because he's older for HiA ball. He's putting up incredible, elite numbers. Fiers became a pitcher we now consider to be a part of our future in one regard or another, and Burgos has more of a frame that lends itself to adding 1 or 2 MPH to his fastball which would put him around 91-92. With a .87 ERA, and a .65 whip, even in 41 innings pitched, I think he's showing something that suggest me just might be a potential Brewer somewhere down the road. So the "what's there to lose," argument is the same as it is for any other pitcher that's in HiA and not ready. Games for one as he's clearly not ready for the big leagues, AND his confidence. I don't know why that's just getting summarily dismissed. Not every pitcher that contributes in the big leagues is going to be young for every level he pitches at and have a 60-70 fastball. Maybe Burgos has an Estrada like future in him? Maybe he has a higher ceiling. But we won't know until we allow things to play themselves out and BC to Milwaukee certainly isn't it.