Playing Catch

Yeah, this was the kind of scenario I was imagining when in a different thread, I suggested they make the 40-man larger.

I think a lot of the negativity is actually boredom. Fans are bored with the trajectory of the team. They want something fresh. This version of the Brewers is a bit stale, due in large part to the injuries. The team needs a jolt. I'm not sure trading Burnes is the jolt they're looking for. This team really needed one of the rookies to take off, one of the starters to be Cy-worthy, one of the DHs to hit some walkoffs, One of the stars to sign an extension. Something. ANYTHING that is remotely exciting. Heck, I think it would be less boring if the Brewers were currently slotted where the Cardinals are. Then everyone would already be excited about bottom-ing out and getting fresh-faced stars-of-the-future. I mentioned this in another thread, but I'm not convinced that the Brewers best option isn't to just let Woody/Burnes walk after 2024. Get one more crack at a playoff run with them leading the charge. It is VERY difficult to get actual, fair value back for 5+ WAR players. Teams sometimes are just better off getting another season from them.

Everyone is entitled to their opinions, and I can absolutely see MLB outcomes for Frelick in line with the Podsedniks of the world, but Frelick hit 11 HRs last season. Podsednik had one season with 10+ HRs in the big leagues and only one season with a 100+ wRC+. I, too, believe Frelick isn't destined to hit 30 bombs, but I wouldn't at all be surprised to see him hit 20+ for 3 or 4 seasons, especially with AmFam's RF porch.

Taylor seems to fit the org's recent profile for top picks. It seems like there are a bunch of high schoolers slotted around the Brewers' pick. There don't seem to be many athletic hitters in the college class (rather, it seems there is an abundance of average athlete sluggers). Makes me think they'll end up with college pitching this year.

Oh man... that's a great point. I should've done the math.

Does anyone else think that MLB should adopt the MiLB "museum" schedule? Mondays are off days, one team, one city for a 6-game series each week? I have given it a lot of thought and think it would be good for every stakeholder. I love the idea of having "Yankees Week," with the ups/downs of winning/losing streaks be even more dramatic. Bullpen messes, 6-man rotations.

The DH position has been a disaster. Not to derail the thread, but there were concerns that the Brewers wouldn't be able to compete at that spot. Well, they aren't at the moment. And the collective, 4+ million guaranteed to Voit and Hiura... ugh. Gotta hope there are at least no holes in that configuration. Ruf/Tellez/Yelich/Contreras DH.

Firstly, I disagree with the notion that Trueblood's article was introducing a political topic. As I read through it, I kept looking for decided bents or otherwise opinionated theses, but in my humble opinion, they did a great job of steering clear of such obvious (and terrifying) hurdles to still address a very real, baseball topic. Kudos. In essence, all buildings and infrastructure within the state belong to the state. We are all but stewards to whatever property exists within legal boundaries. The only question is whether or not the state wishes to have Attanasio, and more correctly, MLB, as stewards of the AmFamClam? Attanasio and MLB really do have ultimate power here, as, at the end of the lease, they are able to go steward a stadium elsewhere. Sell the stadium to the Brewers? Why on earth would the Brewers want to own a property with nothing but diminishing returns, when they can just move elsewhere at the end of the lease? To a municipality that will fund the construction of a $1B facility? I am not advocating, morally, for the state to finance stadium repairs and upgrades, nor do I appreciate Manfred, Attanasio, and MLB to issue vague relocation threats to what has been nothing short of a fantastic, loyal fanbase. But to suggest that the state/municipality has some kind of bargaining stance here is, in my opinion, naive. MLB in MKE can move and play baseball elsewhere. The AmFamClam isn't going anywhere.

My first instinct was a 'B'. But the more I thought about the things that have gone wrong, the more impressive I think it is that they're in first place. A reluctant 'A' for me.

The 40-man is a mess right now, and Urias and Voit will need space soon enough. Robinson and Voit seem like logical DFAs.

I think it was the correct decision to move the draft back until after the college season, but I definitely get impatient this time of year.

Do foul balls count toward exit velocity?

Does Small still mess with hitters' timing with his windup(s), or did the Brewers eliminate that part of his game?

I have all but given up on Small as a significant contributor for the Brewers, but in looking at his numbers, he's probably not that far away from being able to stay on a big league roster for a few years. I mean, he'd probably slot in as a starter for the A's. As Sveum's post above basically lays out, any draft pick that accrues WAR in the big leagues was a successful draft pick.

I think the majority of posters appreciate the multiple "bites-of-the-apple" approach of ownership and the front office. I happen to believe it is the best long-term strategy to try and win a World Series. With that said, I do wonder if taking one-step back for a season would help the team continue to take bites of the apple in future years. Do you think the Brewers would be significantly improved in say, 2025 or 2026 if the Brewers would do a "hard" rebuild which would probably lead to an uncompetitive season, or do you think a "soft" rebuild, trying to remain competitive, would sufficiently improve the competitiveness of '25 and '26 rosters? We all know the scenarios with Woody and Burnes, but would you also want to move guys like Tellez/Urias/Devin? Would you want them to cut payroll and bottom out in order to get a higher draft pick?

In terms of the 40-man, I think it should be increased, in part, because of the 2020 10-day IL (still 15 for pitchers). I have no idea what the actual numbers are, but it sure seems like teams have been more willing to put guys on the IL. Since the Rule V draft is for guys that aren't on the 40-man, it would make sense that so long as guys are on the 40 (and not just the 26-man active roster) they don't have to be returned to their original team. I think this would be good for both players and organizations.

Rule V seems like a vestige of an earlier era. When do minor leaguers earn free agency? It looks like 6 years. And 4 years before being eligible for the Rule V draft (5 for international FAs). So presumably, the point is to provide big league opportunities for players that are "good enough" to be on a big league roster. But the issue is that "good enough" to play for the A's is very different than "good enough" to play for a competitive team. Will Gus go from earning a big league paycheck to a non-40 man minor league paycheck? Maybe the Dodgers should have to continue to pay him a big league salary even if they retain his rights? I dunno. Baseball's service time and roster rules are labrynthine.

I agree that it's unlikely Mitchell returns. I think, though, that we would all agree having his skillset on a playoff roster would be beneficial to a playoff run. That would be fun.

I'm not sure the calculated value vs. subjective value are mutually exclusive. It seems to me that if we imagine likely positive career paths for Joey Wiemer, he would be an extension candidate. I like to believe that good will negotiations can play a role in making that happen (perhaps that's naive). The goal of deriving an additional year of control would be mitigated by a long-term extension, which, presumably would be aided by not playing service time games.

I found myself thinking, "Are we all sure the ship is adrift? Perhaps on the correct tack, but suffering through the doldrums?" - I am as frustrated by the DH fiasco as everyone, but I just "feel" like if Hiura were brought up today, I'd feel like the decision would be closer to knee-jerk, than deliberate. Making the move today would feel good, but I'd fear that it would be to the detriment of Hiura properly habituating to his swing mechanics, to a DH/utility role, to developing needed swashbuckling confidence. If he is as good as we hope he will be, then he'll be a valuable asset for 2 more seasons (or a valuable trade piece). - I happen to think they've handled the rookies pretty well. I think most of us believed that they would require patience and continued development at the MLB level. They may have gone overboard, but they are keeping their heads above water and the captain has eyes on them; they're swimming. In particular due to their contributions to MLB's BEST defense. As in, #1. - Perhaps the Brewers could leverage that defense by finding some cheap pitchers with low HR% and BB% ratios that can stem the tide until Woodruff gets healthy. - In terms of handling prospects, I think they need to stay the course. It's only mid-May. I think that any 40-man roster decisions need to be considered carefully. Ultimately, the Brewers are in first place after a challenging schedule-to-date. I think making any significant decisions in mid-May may just be sailing too close to the wind.

Other than the concern over Hiura and Quero, this was one of the more encouraging nights of the season so far. Saw some life from a lot of exciting young bats. Even Cornielle's start looked (statistically) strong before the grand slam, 8 Ks in 4.1 IP. I think that was the craziest opposite field HR from Chourio yet, which is saying something with all of his opposite field HRs. I'm genuinely curious if anyone can remember a player, at any level, who had so much power to the opposite field corner? It's uncanny.

Relievers are notoriously inconsistent, both month-to-month and season-to-season, so I like that they have the ability to simply call up a hot hand, and bench the cold one. They can use the IL as well with minor "injuries" like blisters or fatigue.

It's just so frustrating. The DH position, perhaps more than any other spot on the roster has been a huge problem. Admittedly, I thought Winker would bounce back. I thought Voit was fine as a PH/part-time bat. I thought Yelich and Contreras would be there to fill in for Winker/Voit. The injuries hurt too, as not having Urias, Mitchell, Taylor and Frelick forced Yelich to LF. The Brewers depth has been tested, and has failed, at least for the DH position. And for the posters that believe that this was all predictable, I would respectfully disagree. It isn't that the roster plan going into the season was expecting the DH platoon to produce All-Star level performance (like the Aguilar/Thames platoon at 1B did for one season). It was just expected to be around league-average; expected to allow Counsell to mix-and-match, play matchups, get everyone involved and stay fresh. I do wonder how much of an impact playing a tough schedule has had. Even now, Adames, Yelich, Winker, Voit, and even Wiemer are ALL performing below their rest-of-season projections on fangraphs.

Sheesh... He really IS dominating at the dish right now. Brewers should bring him up as a full-time DH right now.

Eric Brown Jr. has really calmed down his pre-pitch set up. Wow. It looks pretty normal now.