Warning Track Power

If he signs for this, you will see him playing 1B for your Milwaukee Brewers next season. No way Attanasio allows Prince to leave Milwaukee if he is willing to sign for a contract like this. You will then see some serious roster manuevering by Melvin and Ash in the weeks leading up to Spring Training, starting with the trades of Wolf and either K-Rod or Hart.

Disagree completely. I'd be all for only having a white home and gray road jersey. I don't like colored jerseys such as the current blue alternates or the gold one. I would prefer to have any alternates be the throwback variety honoring the past i.e. Ball in glove logo home and away or Negro club tributes. Call me old fashioned, but I just prefer the simplicity of the Yankees or Dodgers with generally only wearing 2 jerseys, a home and away.

Good deal for the Angels. Kendrick is a very good player and $8.5M AAV isn't too shabby for a guy who is going to have a certain uptick in his production hitting in front of Pujols. Should be a .290/20-25 HR guy over the life of the contract. I'd still rather have Rickie.

I really disliked them as well but I am of the opinion the Brewers should do away with the gold anyways and go to a more yellowish color. Think University of Michigan (I know) with a little darker shade of yellow.

You're right Casey and I know that is the only reason why he is on there. I just don't agree with it. He was the definition of average in my opinion. I remember Michael Hunt writing an article about potentially retiring Gantner's number a few years back and I was totally put off by the idea. I think the Brewers should hold themselves to a higher standard for retiring a number than average Brewer lifer. Just my opinion.

I'm sorry but having Gantner on there is a joke. Really? I definitely know that I am in the minority here but I wonder if Gantner wasn't from Fond du Lac if he would have made it. Sorry, I just don't see how an average career Brewer is on there when guys like Geoff Jenkins or Jeff Cirillo aren't on there.

I would be interested solely as a PH or as insurance in the event Gamel is hitting .200 in the middle of May. I fear Roenicke would be inclined to start him over Gamel given his veteran grit.

Given that there still appear to be holes to fill on the Brewers bench, I want to know how you guys propose to fill them. I don't believe we are done bringing in players to fill these bench roles, meaning I still think we are going to see some veteran Kotsay-ish types brought in to plug some final holes on the bench. Given Braun's suspension, we are likely going to have to find another OF because I don't see the Brewers 1. Going with Gomez and Nyjer in CF and LF full time and 2. Playing two rookies full time in Gamel at 1B and Gindl/Schafer in LF. Additionally, since we don't have a backup SS, it appears we are going to have to bring in one of those from FA as well. So build your bench Brewers fans. Mine looks something liek this: Bench (Already on Roster) C: George Kottaras (I think he's back. I am not sold yet that Maldonado is more than a better defending Wil Nieves, despite last season's offensive statistics) 1B/2B/3B: Taylor Green. DM seems content to give him a shot, especially after reading Green is going to get time at 1B. I like. OF: Carlos Gomez. No problem here. Perfect fit for this team in a platoon role in CF with Nyjer. That leaves two positions to be filled, SS and another OF. I would like to see the following two signings: SS: Ryan Theriot. He won't be too expensive and can play both middle IF positions. He's not going to set the world on fire, but he won't be playing much with Weeks, Gonzalez and Green ahead of him. Mainly provides depth in the event Green doesn't hit ala Brad Nelson. OF: Hideki Matsui/Kosuke Fukudome. I know it seems like I am cornering the market on former Cubs but we need a capable player to play LF without Braun and a LH stick as a 4th OF once Braun returns. These two guys fit the bill in my opinion. I like the D Fukudome brings and I like the power Matsui still could bring as a PH. Without knowing the financials or what we can realistically afford, a bench of the following looks pretty good to me in 2012: C: Kottaras IF: Green, Theriot OF: Gomez, Matsui

The only way I would consider this is if Pena is signed to play 1B and Gamel goes to LF while Braun is suspended. As soon as Braun returns, Gamel goes to play 1B and Pena becomes a super expensive backup. As this is the most unrealistic scenario I can imagine, I don't think I have interest in Pena. I am a Gamel guy and think we should throw him out there to see what we have. At this point, I'd be far more interested in a RH 1B off the bench to serve as insurance in case Gamel doesn't play to my expectations. Derrek Lee comes to mind. In fact even if Gamel were to play expectations, I'd still be interested in Lee as a PH/backup 1B role.

With Braun out of the lineup, I think it really comes down to who you want in the #3 hole before you can make the rest of the lineup. I only see three candidates, Weeks, Hart and A-Ram. As I believe that Roenicke will want some semblance of familiarity in the lineup based on his decisions of last season, I think he will stick someone in the #3 hole that will be ok to move in the lineup once Braun returns. As A-Ram is the cleanup hitter (I believe) and Hart is kind of whiny about hitting anywhere other than #1 or #2, I think you have to go with Weeks at #3. I also don't believe the Brewers LF is on the roster or in the minors right now if Braun is suspended. However, since we only can work with what is on the roster now, my preferred lineup is: 1. Morgan LF 2. Hart RF 3. Weeks 2B 4. A-Ram 3B 5. Gamel 1B 6. Gonzalez SS 7. Lucroy C 8. Gomez CF I don't understand why Morgan wasn't leading off last year and I really don't believe he will lead off this year, but that is what I prefer. I like the idea of putting Gamel higher in the lineup and am not opposed to him batting 2nd without Braun but I fear Hart will not hit if he isn't #1 or #2 and I don't like that our only two lefties would hit back to back. Once Braun returns, Gamel should see a lot of hittable pitches batting in front of Braun. Liken it to the Cardinals always seeming to put the Jays of the world in the #2 spot when Pujols was there (love saying that in the past tense). When Braun returns, my ideal goes: 1. Morgan CF 2. Gamel 1B 3. Braun LF 4. A-Ram 3B 5. Weeks 2B 6. Hart RF 7. Gonzalez SS 8. Lucroy C

Yuck. That contract is a lot more than I thought it would be too but I guess I can deal with it given his defense doesn't fall off the table this season. I guess we know where Saito's money went.

3 years/$32MM for A-Ram or let's say 3 years/$75MM for the first 3 years of a likely 8 year deal for Prince. Just for a fun comparison, for a 43% of the cost of a likely Prince deal, the Brewers would get (based on 2011 numbers): -68% of the HRs -78% of the RBI -86% of the OBP -88% of the OPS -90% of the SLG -89% of the TB -Better AVG, 1B -Approximately equal H, 2B, 3B, Granted Ramirez is 6 years older than Fielder and is likely to tail off during the contract, all things considered this wasn't the worst option for the Brewers to replace Fielder in the cleanup spot.

And how terrible would this be if it were proven to be true? Let's say Braun had testicular cancer and he was put through the ringer like this for a month without being able to tell his side of the story. Man oh man would ESPN have a gigantic lawsuit on their hands. I doubt this to be true given the fact there has been a report about Braun's people compiling a list of all foods, supplements, etc...that Braun consumed leading up to the positive test. But it is interesting to speculate about the potential ramifications against the "worldwide leader in sports" if true.

Without derailing this topic too much: While I respect his opinion politically, I personally have zero interest about athletes giving their political opinions one way or the other unless they are running for political office. I cringe everytime I hear sports figures or celebrities speaking about politics and/or religion. Kanye West comes to mind from the other side of the spectrum when he spoke about Mr. Bush and Hurrican Katrina. Most times it comes off as offensive to one side. I, for one, just don't want to hear a player from my favorite team run his mouth all season about politics whether I agree with him or not. Back on topic, I would love to add his stick to the lineup for sure because he would an excellent addition to our lineup. He doesn't seem like a bench player though. If I were him I would be looking for a full time gig and not just a 50 game LF starting job and then be a 4th OF.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mor2i3lZHGw/TsWCRyf4LgI/AAAAAAAAAe8/8AVVW7dE2rM/s1600/LatrellSprewell.jpg Couldn't help but think of Milwaukee's own when I read Mrs. Pujols comments.

Disagree strongly with half and agree with the other half. Lee as a power bat and insurance for Gamel is a very good idea. Having Lee in LF for any amount of time would be a terrible idea. With the pitching staff we have, we should theoretically be able to run an OF of Nyjer, Gomez and Hart and be able to win our fair number of games without having a complete black hole in LF. Even if you don't think that OF would be good enough, I'd rather sign a defensive minded LF first or run a Gindl/Schafer out there before acquiring Lee to put in LF.

Second this.

I would like Scott Hairston as the 4th OF, however that means we would only have one LH OF on the team in Nyjer Morgan when Braun returns. LF - Braun CF - Morgan RF - Hart Bench - Gomez, Hairston. Because of this I think it is more likely we target a LH OF to fill in while Braun is out. I for one would be very happy if we signed Hideki Matsui or Kosuke Fukudome to play LF while Braun is out. For 50 starts, i think that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world and each would provide a little pop off the bench after Braun's return. I think I would lean more toward Matsui but either would be ok by me.

I'd take Theriot in a heartbeat solely for this reason. Not sure if I am serious because he is an awful defender. However, every game he plays against us in Miller Park seems like he has a multiple hit game. Sort of reminds me of Aramis in that regard. 2 recent Cubs on our team seems like an interesting prospect. Maybe we can also see what Mike Fontenot is up to.

I haven't yet posted on the Braun PED topic until now but I think one of the more fascinating angles in this whole thing is the two polar extremes of what the end result of this will be: The guilty angle: Braun's positive test was the highest ever recorded since testing began. From what my knowledge is on the subject, that means Braun is the biggest "known" substance abuser in MLB history.A truly sad day for all Brewer fans. If true, how long as he been doing it and what kind of player will we be locked into until 2020 once he returns after the 50 game suspension. The innocent angle: Braun's test was a false positive and he will be cleared of all wrong doing. A truly bittersweet day for all Brewer fans as he will vindicated in our eyes, but unfortunately will have his name forever linked to PEDs or whatever he supposedly tested positive for. What will be fascinating is if he is proven to be innocent and if MLB issues some sort of apology clearing him of all charges.

I think there is a real chance that if Braun is suspended that we will see Aramis at 1B, Casey/Green at 3B and Gamel/Hart in RF/LF.

I personally feel that we as fans are overblowing this about Greinke. I am guilty of this as well but the more I think about it, the less I feel this would stand in the way of Greinke going to a NY or Boston. I do think we will re-sign him but I don't think it will be because of his "issues."

Splitter: Very off topic...but your signature took me back to my childhood. Awesome.

I MISS YUNI ALREADY

Gonzalez it is per Ken Rosenthal