DHonks

reilly, that's actually a pretty solid season as he has projected for the kids (most likely Hart).

Hey DHonks, have you seen Stephen Drew yet? yeah, just served him breakfast about 3 hours ago. He looks incredibly patient at the plate, and the ball just explodes off his bat. It's amazing, cause when I first saw him, I shook my head and said "this kid can play SS, hit, and just got like $4 million???" He's not a big kid...I think if he were the type to go cruising for women in Tempe-ASU bars, nobody would believe that he's worth that much or a professional baseball player (of course, he's not that type). But on the field he does amazing things. He's a hard worker, a gifted athlete, and a deeply religious young man.

I'm with Geno here. Throw in that Lee isn't being asked to hit 1st, 2nd, or 3rd. Seriously, what does everyone value most in a cleanup hitter? OBP? OPS? avg? Most of us would rather have a guy who racks up the RBI's (given an opportunity, he succeeds) and homers (especially with men on base). In the 5 spot, you might want more of a guy like Jenks who succeeds when he can feed off other hitters and stay within his skillset (meaning driving the ball to the gaps and to all fields). Lee fits the needs of the team, as nobody else is really qualified to hit cleanup.

It was weird to see Escobar out there in the Brewers traveling gear and wearing ? gulp -- #4! I don?t think he will be wearing that number if he ever makes it to MKE. We were discussing this in the dugout...sacreligious if you ask us. Not a real big crowd; I?d say around 300 people. The weather, however, was perfect. It was probably in the upper 70s with absolutely no wind ? an ideal night for baseball (or anything). I teased the operations guy, because last year they would have claimed that was 700 people. The attendance numbers were really fudged last year. This year they're pretty accurate, which doesn't seem all that impressive. Still, remember that off the 350 or whatever the official number was, 50 were scouts and front-office types, 40-80 were players' friends, family, and girlfriends/wives/women they met in a bar the night before. Phoenix Municipal Stadium is rather nice. Not much different from Maryvale and probably about the same age Actually, I think Muni is something like 30-40 years old. They did a massive renovation of it in 2003, but if you went into the bowels of it vs the other stadiums in the Cactus League, you'd be shocked. Our clubhouse is like 1/3rd the size of most, has no cable/satellite tv, and has minor league lockers (not the spacious ones like most facilities). Pepsi products, which gives this park a decided advantage over Maryvale not to get too political (in a sort of way), but this is a major knock I have on the stadium. The saddest baseball day for me was when the Brewers switched to Pepsi products and I could no longer associate coke and baseball. Now I have to settle for Mtn Dew and baseball. Heck, stadiums with Pepsi products often times drive me to drink beer. I was disappointed to see Hart not play. I wanted to see if he'd improved at 3b, since some have said he couldn't handle soft rollers infront of him (that required he charge the ball), I told out speedsters to bunt to 3b to test him. Crichar3, good to see you came out. These games are fun to watch, as there's lots of offensive fireworks. Unfortunately, the weather should get cooler soon, so the night games won't be anywhere near as fun beginning soon. I think I heard Tues night is supposed to be in the 50s with wind and possible rain.

AAA time can't hurt. He's ready for the bigs, but being in AAA can only help. See Ryan Howard for evidence

Mass, in fairness, our trainer told me that Fielder's lineout nearly took the 1b (Bankston)'s head off, just his glove happened to get in the way. I asked the Javelina trainers about Saenz, and they said they'd never heard of him. So apparently he wasn't coming as of late September. So they have opted not to replace him, and perhaps the 7th Oriole is his replacement. Escobar looks like a little kid, but has a nice strong arm. I was told he speaks decent English.

I'll try to check out the game tonight, but I'll likely be too busy. I can probably at least watch some BP and infield drills.

Brandon Wood is good. 5 hits, 4 homers today. Huge

rluzinski, I don't think anyone in their right mind would advocate a total small ball approach. I think strategies that incorporate small ball and station-to-station mashing are very effective. One area that failed w/the brewers in the early going was the hit-and-run. That's where nearly all of Clark's CS came from. But later in the season with Hardy doing better, we were a much better hit-and-run team. In spring training they broke open a bunch of games with successful hit-and-runs, where the hole created allowed for a groundball single and gave us runners at the corners. Without a runner moving, they would have been gidp.

Espn tracked productive outs for one year, but since they lacked correlation to the good teams, they dropped the stat you mean like how Anaheim led the league in productive outs when the won the Series? And so these bunk stats being dropped be espn...is that why they don't follow QS anymore, even though it's at least an adequate indicator of "keeping the team in the game?" It's always seemed stupid to give away an out when you only have 27 of them Some teams don't view an out as something that's given away, but rather as a tool to be used. The Cardinals use their outs to maximize runs based on game situations. They bunt, they steal, they sacrifice, they squeeze. But they view each strategy as a tool. While teams want to score a runner from second and none out without making an out, they realize that moving the runner to third will increase the chance of accomplishing the ultimate goal--scoring runs. maybe on 0-0 they try to swing away. But when it's 0-2 or 1-2, the batter suddenly has a mission...get the runner to third. If they can also reach, then that's a plus, but that runner needs to be on third.

Al, watching Dana in the early games was a thing of beauty. His first few weeks he might have allowed a baserunner, but he also got some huge strikeouts on his Zito-like curve, and his very good slider. He was a strike-throwing machine consistently hitting 93. But in his last 3 weeks with the Crew he suddenly stopped throwing strikes. He couldn't find the zone with any pitch. But his early stats in the bigs were very solid, with the secondary numbers skewed because of one or two bad outings. De La Rosa looked fantastic. He looked amazing. His breaking balls were sharp and tight. His changeup looked like a thing of beauty. He commanded his 95 mph fastball with the best of them. Unfortunately, this all ended around April 20th. After that he labored heavily in nearly every outing. He had earned a prominant role in the bullpen, then gave it away. He stopped throwing strikes, he didn't come close at all w/his breaking pitches, and he lost his edge. I've heard some seriously think the kid has no desire. Some players like Brady Clark can will their way to a solid big league career. Others like Alex Sanchez pout there way through a career of unfulfilled potential. Right now, De La Rosa is supposedly in the Sanchez category. That can change, but he showed nothing after mid-April to show he belonged in the big leagues, and right now it seems unlikely he'll make our staff in 2006. Great potential, but like Jorge Sosa a few years back, he just might not be good enough to make our staff.

1992casey is right about pitching. Think about how the Cards had Mulder and Carpenter both perform better than any of our starters (Sheets doesn't count, since he played only about 2/3rds of a season). Then they had Morris (coming off of surgery), Marquis, and Suppan perform about as well as our top pitchers, and you can see how they did better.

DHonks, since I look forward to your Arizona Fall League insights and this is the official thread, please fill everybody in on what team you'll be working with, which organizations make up that squad, what your role is, how you balance that with your "real" job, etc. Sure Mass. I'm a student currently, working some part time jobs as I get my teacher's certification (already have my BA). One of those part time jobs is as a clubby in the Fall League for a High School friend of mine. Our club is the Phoenix Desert Dogs--the reigning champions. Last year was my first year, and I had a blast. I came in thinking our team wouldn't be all that good. I knew a few names. For starters, the Phoenix club always has A's players (their spring training facility). Last year we had the Moneyball squad, with Steve Obenchain, Jeremy Brown, John Baker, Omar Quintanilla, Jason Perry, and Huston Street. We also had the Phillies (Ryan Howard, Catcher Carlos Ruiz), Royals (Mark Teahen, Donny Murphy, Wes Wilkerson), Orioles (just one guy on the team), Marlins (Trevor Hutchinson, Randy Messenger, Josh Wilson, Jeff Fulchino, Eric Reed, Jeremy Hermida), and the Angels (Mike Napoli). This squad was mainly older players, complete with a bunch of AAA vets. Through smart play, terrific execution, and great chemistry, this team was able to ride a quick start (5-0, I think) all the way to the championship, where the team got AFL championship rings. Like I said, I didn't think we'd be that good, but you might notice we had around 8 players in the big leagues this year, including the probably AL ROY. This year our squad once again has the A's, along with the Braves, Devil Rays, Dbacks, and Dodgers. We have much bigger prospects, while also having a very young team. Some big names (to name a few) include Loney, Saltalamacchia, LaRoche, Steven Drew, Wade Townsend, Casey Daigle, Kurt Suzuki, Abreu, Miggy Montero, Daric Barton, and Komine. I'm not going to go into detail about our players at this point in time, as I really don't know that much about them as individuals yet. I haven't seen their work ethic, their character traits, heard their stories on Mondays (heard a lot of stories about parties on the weekends), and seen how they genuinely treat their teammates and others. What I can say at this point is that this group appears very courteous and respectful.....oh yeah, and they can rake. Last year I had the chance to talk with Anthony Gwynn a bit, and he was a really nice person. He said he really appreciated all of us fans who want to see him do well, and he's out to justify our faith. Sarfate and Weeks seemed really serious in the clubhouse, while Costello and Housman appeared a barrel of laughs. Their squad had weird chemistry, as everyone kind of kept to themselves, then there were these few Brewers having a blast and lightening the mood. They also had a Brewers reliever (can't remember the name), but our guys were shaking their heads because they couldn't come close to his slider. And of course there's the disclaimer. Remember that this league is very offense-based. Everyone is here to work on some things. Some guys are fighting to earn a 40-man roster spot (significant pay increase), some are fighting to stay in pro-ball, and others are here to continue their rise to prominence. Right now the temperatures are around 100 at the start of the game. The winds have been blowing out to dead right at all 4 parks so far (they're all orientated the same way). For instance last night Repko hit a homer that our RF (Kemp) looked like he had a beat on. Seemed routine until it kept carrying and left the yard. Some stud pitchers are in the league this year...probably more than last year. Just about everyone throws really hard. However, the lineups are a who's who of top hitters from recent drafts. Throughout the league, I can always answer questions about the way the league works. I can answer questions about specific players, especially what I saw last year. In general, I'd like to refrain from critiquing my current players until after the season. And I'll share anything I can that is positive about the Brewers' boys. In the past (all archived here on brewerfan.net) I have described seeing Hardy, Krynzel, Hendrickson, Weeks and others for the first time during this league. For those who hadn't seen them in past years, I commented on Hardy apparently injuring his shoulder on a swing while playing for Team USA, Krynzel's stance, Weeks' defensive potential, Gwynn mashing the ball all over in BP, Hendrickson being almost unhittable due to movement, etc. I realize my opinions are just that...opinions. However, my goal is to give those fans who are thirsty for tidbits some sort of a report on the good things I see when I look at the ballplayers and their potential. It's my goal not to say what they can't do, but to say what they CAN do. But of course the real star of the Fall league isn't even a player in the league...it's a players' wife...Jenny Finch Daigle

Prince likely won't be making his debut till Saturday or maybe even Monday. Our squad had 2 big leaguers who just reported yesterday. I think last year Ryan Howard and Donny Murphy didn't report until the 4th or 5th game. Big leaguers are given 3-5 days to report after leaving their hotels, packing belongings, and driving to AZ

Hardy no longer coming to the league according to milb.com. Alcides Escobar replacing him

rluzinski, it's not absurd. It's the response to the gushing that happened on this site over 3TO. I really like Russell and am intrigued by his ability. He's a guy I'd love to find 400 at bats for, IF he could ever get healthy. Still, the anti-Branyan sentiment seems largely a response to the 3TO gang's bashing of other opinions back in the 1st half and in Spring Training. They became a very vocal and opinionated group. In effect, Branyan, Helms, Cirillo, and Hall have all season been the poster-children for growing tensions, as everyone has a favorite, and everyone will argue both for their man AND against the others. Sometimes these were based on stats, sometimes on first hand observations, and other times based on other factors, such as age, past production, etc.

it's not bad PR. It's a joke to most fans that these kids are willing to hold out to get "an extra $500,000". Most fans support organizations that don't give in to foolishness. And Colby, it'll be interesting. Let's look at some facts. -We know Washburn and Morris have WI connections. -We know that Washburn may not be invited back to the Angels for what he wants. -We know that Morris may be the odd-man out (they have to pay Carpenter, Mulder, and soon Marquis), how much can they possibly invest in their rotation? -I've also heard the two things I posted in the Majors Forum...that Sheets and Burnett are good friends, and Burnett would gladly come to Milwaukee if they are willing to pay him. And Morris lives north of Chicago and doesn't stay in the team hotel when the Cards are in town. -finally, we know Weaver was kicked out of Detroit due in part because of attitude. Another factor was habitual drug usage. So if the Crew wants to spend some money on guys, a) potential free agents have some level of interest in the Brewers if their teams don't want them back, b) it needs to happen quickly so they'll know whether or not to offer arby to Ohka et al, and c) they'll likely have to give up draft picks to do so.

rluzinski, Howard dominated AAA for the Phillies last year and had a solid Fall League, but the Phillies didn't trade Thome to make room for him. I understand it's different, as Thome is vastly superior to Overbay, but it goes to show that Overbay doesn't have to be traded

Maybe we won't have a Type A signing anyway... ja002h, wouldn't you rather have a stud signing than a guy getting a $2 million signing bonus, knowing they may never reach AA?

just a heads up...there's a decent chance the first day or two of games in the AFL are postponed due to Hurricane Otis.

i feel weird saying this, but Drew doesn't appear much of a physical specimen. maybe 6'0". doesn't have huge muscles, and doesn't walk like a speedster. Just my initial observations from the Fall League. I guess I expected him to stand out for what he got paid. Also interesting to note we have Townsend and Drew on the squad

in 2002, the 1st basemen in the playoffs were Snow, T. Martinez, Hatteberg, Mientkiewitz, Spiezio, Giambi, Grace, and J. Franco. In the LCS, Mientkiewitz, Spezio, Snow, and Martinez. In the World Series, Spezio and Snow I remember this, because this shocked me. The typical notion of having power at the corners or "winning teams must have stud 1st basemen" proved wrong this season. How did these teams all thrive with only one powerful 1b among the 8 (Giambi)?

Hi guys, with the Fall League starting up, I wanted to know if the site was going to go ahead with the plan to begin developing scouting reports on all minor leaguers. I can't remember who proposed it, but since I work in the league I should see a number of players play, along with get to know quite a few of them. should I keep a little journal with what I see? thanks

I will say that it is often awkward being someone torn between OPS/stats and what I see/feel. There's a certain part of all games that is based on "this kid is gonna be a star"-type feelings. Sometimes stats don't prove things, and it gets very tiring hearing the arguments between statheads and non-statheads. I wouldn't say that the OPS-folks are the problem. I think they provide a great deal of insight. The problem with the stat is slugging percentage, as many like me simply don't know what a good slugging percentage is. Throw in that two .850 OPS's are not created equally, and you have a stat that--while accurate--is open to criticism. This site used to be about a great dialogue. I don't know if the current tensions are veterans vs veterans, newbies vs newbies, or vets vs newbies. But they are obviously there. Heck, many posts are now like what the off-topic forum was before Brian banned political discussion. I think perhaps the simple solution is for all of us to take a step back, be a bit more polite, try to avoid divisive diction, and to enjoy the rest of the year.

wow, that was a strike to Sanders