JaNelson52

Alejandro Machado, DFA'd to make roster room for all the players received in the Sexson deal, has cleared waivers and been outrighted to AAA-Indianapolis. In a different move, IF Enrique Cruz was also outrighted to Indy today.

We get some good players, we could kick some butt next year. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/roll.gif Don't know about the rest of you, but that gets my vote as post of the year

Ned Yost is clueless. Utterly clueless. Too bad Glendon Rusch ended up on the DL. I heard Yost wanted to bat him in the leadoff spot in his next start.

Do you guys openly criticize your employers in an arena where they can definitely hear what you said? Bob Uecker and Jim Powell are NOT directly employed by the Brewers...they are employed by Journal Communications, who has the radio broadcast rights to Brewers games. The Brewers could not directly fire either if they wanted to. Not sure what type of work the rest of you do, but if I openly criticized my employer for every bad move they made, I'd be fired. Bob Uecker and Jim Powell are supposed to be broadcasting a baseball game over the radio...they are a part, perhaps the biggest part, of the media that gets out Brewers games to the general public. If they don't paint a true picture of the kinds of things going on out in the field, what does that do to their credibility? Bob and Jim should criticize when the time is right, along with give props when the time is right, because ITS THEIR JOB TO. They are not supposed to be cheerleaders in the booth for the Brewers. Geno does have a point, and I feel its valid. I mean, for the pair in the booth to kinda poke fun at the attendance when the Brewers likely wouldn't have drawn much more on a Monday night is kinda silly...and then to say that the Mets are "losers" is kinda over the top. It may have indeed been in jest, but Jim should know better to not even go there...after all, as it was pointed out before, I believe the Mets have done more in terms of pennants and playoff appearances in the last decade than the Brewers have done in their history. I give a hell of a lot more criticism to the TV pair, which I feel is the WORST TV pair in major league baseball...and I've heard enough of the rest to make that claim very comfortably. Daron Sutton seemingly never shuts his mouth, and I think his next critical word of a Brewers player will be his first this season. Likewise, any good play or good thing done by a Brewer is portrayed by Sutton as some sort of "play of the year" or a play that is gonna win the Brewers the World Series. I just simply can't stand Bill Schroeder, for reasons that would take me much too long to type here. I like Ueck and Jim very much, and for the most part, I think they do a good job. But I think they have been incredibly "soft" in criticism of a team 20+ games under .500.

He had a rough start, but he's been closer to a #3 starter since May 16th of this year. We've won all but two of his starts since then, and when he's in, I feel confident that I'll be reading about a Brewers win the next day. Franklin's not pitching horribly, but whether he started poorly or not, he is still just a half of a win above replacement level...any decent AAA pitcher can be putting up the type of numbers Franklin has this season. The starters statistically ranked in the area of Franklin right now are either bottom of the rotation starters, or vets like Brad Radke and Mike Hampton, who are having bad years. With that the case, its hard to perceive Franklin to be pitching that good, especially a #3 starter level good. Ben Sheets is pitching right now at a #3 starter level. Franklin's BB/K ratio is horrible; he walks about 4.5 guys per nine innings, and strikes out 5.8 per nine. Franklin is what he is; a #5 starter or a swingman-type in the bullpen. For him to fill a role on a team like the Brewers isn't a bad option, as he is cheap and durable. However, to perceive him any higher than that is a mistake.

I think Yost made the right choice in the 9th, it just didn't work out. It just goes to show that it truly really doesn't matter all that much who the "closer" is...an inning of relief is an inning of relief, whether its in the 7th, 8th, or 9th. I would argue that a good middle relief corps - which has to keep the lead between the sixth and eighth innings of each game - is more important than the guy who has to get the final three outs. I think that's why you are seeing guys who certainly have the ability to close games, like Armando Benitez, Mike Williams, and Curtis Leskanic, to name a few, are being acquired to add middle relief depth. Take last night, for example. Houston trailed, 2-1, after six innings, but two innings of perfect middle relief by Dotel and Lidge kept it at 2-1 to give HOU the chance to tie it in the ninth...and another two innings of perfect relief allowed the Astros to take the lead. Those innings by the Astros bullpen were certainly just as, if not more, important than the final inning by Wagner.

Yeah... I mean, look at what we got for a $5 million infielder with almost no power... A guy who will turn out to be a decent #3 starter (Franklin) and one of the best utility players in the majors (Ginter). While I like Keith and think he can be an adequate player in this league, calling him "one of the best utility players in the majors" is a stretch at best at this time. Two players for sure - Brian Buchanan of SD and Tomas Perez of PHI - would certainly rank higher right now. Likewise, as far fas Franklin goes - he is not having a bad season at all, but the guy is gonna be 30 at the beginning of next season, and I think he has already "turned into" what he is gonna be...an adequate #5 starter at best. His season this year is only about a half of a win better than replacement level.

Agreed.....all Helms has to do is make contact and hit it on the ground and he ties the game......but he whiffs on ball four......he has got to be more protective of the plate than that The above statement makes absolutely no sense. All Helms has to do is "make contact"? OK. Does Clark score on a: 1) Tapper back to the mound? 2) A little dribbler in front of home plate? 3) A line drive at someone on the infield? 4) A short pop up to the shallow OF? All four of those scenarios come from "making contact"...yet none of them would have allowed Clark to score from third. Even a ground ball doesn't guarantee Clark scoring, as the Astros infield was pulled in after Clark stole third. Likewise, Im sure hitting a Billy Wagner slider is just as easy as pie, correct? I mean, Wagner has become an elite relief pitcher by accident...

It's good to see Glendon pitching a bit better, but I think it's crazy to think that we can even get a couple of middling prospects for him. While Jamey Wright was not exactly lighting it up (5-13 with a 5-ish ERA) when he was traded last year, he was clearly better than his record indicated, as his numbers added up to being just a shade under replacement level for the season in MIL - and considering how streaky Wright was and how good he was when his stuff was right, Im sure in the Cardinals minds it was worth a LH middle reliever from a cramped bullpen (Matthews) and a couple of low-level at-best prospects to find out. However, even with today's good start, Glendon is still probably a good 25 or so runs under replacement level - and if I were a scout, two decent starts after a season's worth of getting shelled certainly wouldn't make me recommend to my GM do give away even a couple of minor leaguers for him. In addition, Glendon still has about $1.3 million left on his contract this season, and that figure jumps to $1.8 million if you include the $500K buyout after this year. I wouldn't mind paying the rest of his salary to get rid of him, but I highly doubt any contender would give up any prospect of value - which can be the only rationale for paying nearly $2 million to trade a guy - for two months of Glendon Rusch. You can easily buy a couple of mid-level prospects for a couple of million when the guy you are trading has actually been performing well all season, ala Curtis Leskanic. Hard to think that can happen with Rusch.

Richie should have had it, but it's always nice to see Royce doing his best to play himself out of the lineup. Ned Yost will quit as manager before benching Royce Clayton. 150 AB's for Enrique Cruz? Ha! There are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and Royce Clayton at SS, batting eighth, and sucking on a nightly basis.

I said that a month ago and got no debate MB. Just to quelch any possible debate: EY's 2003 fielding stats out of the 12 NL second baseman that qualify: Errors: 10, 12th Fielding %: .964, 12th Range Factor: 4.60, 11th of 12 Zone Rating: .792, 8th of 12 You really can't make a case for EY being better in the field than any other second baseman in the NL. Perhaps the presence of Todd Walker in BOS and Luis Rivas in MIN keep him from being the worst in all of baseball.

Just throwing him a...2-3 year deal worth 2 million per year...he would actually be an upgrade on defense over Clayton (and Clayton was tied for 1st in fielding percentage in the NL this weekend) and his bat (while pathetic to say) would be an improvement. Career numbers Ordonez: .248/.291/.311, 602 OPS Clayton: .256/.311/.371, 682 OPS Not everyone can do magical things like Ordonez at shortstop. Yeah, 2-3 years worth $2 million per for that is "magical". Ordonez is a young guy that plays exciting defense. He's 32 years old. Certainly not "young" at least in baseball standards. He's had eight years to not suck at the plate, and he has failed miserably each year. You give a stopgap a 1-year deal worth about a million bucks...like a John Vander Wal, for example. If Hardy is gonna be ready in another year, why the need to waste a longer term deal? Especially on a player as crappy as Ordonez? He may flash some serious leather, but if you think Rey Ordonez is gonna bring people into the park, well...I want some of whatever you are smokin'. I guarantee you can find a dozen AAAA-types that will play at a fraction of the cost and produce as good or better.

To replace the spot left by Crabtree, Huntsville has picked up Mike Nicolas on waivers from the Padres. From what I have read about him, he seems like a pretty decent prospect, and I wonder why the Padres waived him...perhaps mental/confidence issues or something? Anyway, he sure seems like a pure power pitcher and will probably complement the Huntsville roster nicely.