The stache

Braun nailed that home run. It's a start. I've read a few places that he's starting to hit the ball with some authority. That can't hurt. Maybe get the Luc and Gomez-less offense going just a little bit. It would make losing a little more bearable if we were at least scoring some runs.

I am the biggest baseball/Brewers fan there is. And so far, I haven't watched a single game this season. I was sick opening weekend, and spent the first three days of games sleeping. When I saw how bad they were doing, I just didn't want to watch. I still don't, because these guys don't even seem like they're trying. I don't need to win the World Series. That goes without saying. I'm a Brewers fan. But I do need to see my team look like they give a darn. And from the sounds of it right now, they don't. Our pitching signees, Lohse and Garza, have been a dumpster fire. Our hitters...aren't hitting. And our manager is a bumbling...well, you get the idea. Why would I want to frustrate myself more. My current predicament is frustrating enough. I'll keep watching from a distance. When this team shows signs of being at least a Major League team, I'll watch. But it doesn't look like that's going to happen any time soon.

He hit the ball pretty hard this spring, didn't he, including three home runs. I read in the game thread tonight he hit one that just missed going out. He'll get it going. I don't think he's anywhere near 100% after opening day.

And we'd find a way to screw that up. Sorry, just kidding. A little levity is needed right now in a 2-7 start. It will get better, guys. Some of these guys, Braun and Lucroy included, were raking in the spring. Braun is dinged up,. Yes, I, too, am getting a little tired of seeing these little ticky-tack injuries messing him up. But the odds are he will get healthy soon. And whether it's Braun, or Lucroy, or Ramirez, or Davis...one of these guys will start heating up, and it will carry over. This team has too much talent to continue on like this. The collapse last year was epic, and unforgivable. But remember how the majority of the season was. We might not make the playoffs, but it will be better than it is right now. Chin up, Brewer fans.

I hate to say it, but I think this Brewers team wins 70-73 games. This pitching staff is a major concern for me. I think Lohse will bounce back a little, but he's really showing his age through his first couple of starts. Garza will pitch better, but I don't see him pitching as well as he did last year. I think Peralta is the most stable guy in our rotation, and I have to believe that Jimmy Nelson is going to be better, and more consistent than people expect him to be this first time through as a full time Major League player. The offense is a mess right now. I don't think moving Braun is the answer. Rather, he needs to get it through his head to play smarter. He can't be diving for balls out of his reach, or running into walls. He's become a bit fragile, and we need him on the field. My projections for him this season have been fluctuating for the last month. Now I think he hits between .290 and .300, hits about 25 home runs, and comes close to 100 RBI. I do think he will be closer to the player we are all used to seeing by the end of the season. I also think Jonathan Lucroy will have a great year. He's become the unsung hero of the Brewers, and it's nice to see him getting the recognition he deserves. He's an All Star again this season, and is in the top 10 MVP vote. I have some major concerns about the other guys. Lind has been about the only hot hitter we have right now. Segura will improve over last year. I'd like to see some more consistency from Khris Davis, and I think it comes eventually. I am higher on him than a lot of people here, it seems. The guy may never be a great, or even good outfielder. But he's an extra base machine, so some defensive woes are forgivable. I wouldn't be surprised to see him get 70 extra base hits this year. Carlos Gomez, I have no idea what to expect. Can he keep this run he's been on up, or does he regress? At some point, you have to improve on your fundamentals. You can't get by just on sheer talent and athleticism alone...can you? It occurred to me that I haven't signed up for MLB.tv yet. I might just hold off a while, because the Brewers are playing horribly right now, and I don't need to see that.

Seriously? No offense, but who is going to trade for Ramirez now? Five years ago, teams would have jumped on him. Hell, two or three years ago, they would have, also. But he's injury prone now, and he's said this is most likely his last season. Who is going to trade anybody decent for a less than one year rental of a player that might not even spend that whole year healthy?

Did you even ask?

Or you could attribute that to his thumb injury. To me, it all boils down to his 2012 season. I have to assume MLB was determined to do everything in its power through the CBA to prove he was a PED that year after his suspension was overturned. What does he do? Leads the NL in HR, R, TB and OPS. Now if that season was PEDs driven, then MLB has a more serious problem because they either A. Need to test more or B. Can't detect whatever PEDs these guys are taking. Call it naivety, I tend to believe that MLB is doing everything possible to detect the PEDs users. Back on topic...give me a healthy Braun and, while he may be the .950 guy of 2011 and 2012 given his advancing age, I would not be shocked to see a repeat of his 2010 season where he hit .304 and had 25 HR and 45 doubles. This. Let's see what he can do given the opportunity to play, and stop with the hand wringing.

I guess the way he was smashing the ball this spring was just an illusion.

Yount Molitor Cooper Braun Fielder is 5a. Love Higuera and Sheets, but they don't crack that top 4 or 5. The backlash against Braun is silly. Yes, he screwed up. And yes, the last few years have been sub par per his own excellent standards because of a nagging injury that would derail any great hitter in history, if they had to deal with it. But the first six seasons of his career are one of he greatest first six years by any hitter in the history of Major League Baseball, and to casually gloss over that because of the PED scandal is absurd. Putting Jim Gantner ahead of Ryan Braun...is just humorous on so many levels, I can't think straight because I'm laughing so hard. I was the biggest Jim Gantner fan when he played, because if I were a Major League player, I'd probably have ended up like Gantner. Fairly good hitter, occasional power, occasional speed, very good defender. But nothing to write home about. He was a home grown talent that spent his entire career in Milwaukee. But nothing he ever did approaches anything that Braun has done. His best season was in 1983, and he had a .730 OPS. Braun, who was a shadow of his former self last year, had a .777 OPS. In other words, Braun's worst season smokes Gantner's best. If this is a popularity contest, then fine. Why not put Gorman Thomas on there. He's as big a Brewer now as he's ever been. He's always at the ballpark, always at spring training. I'd love to toss down a few brewskis with Stormin' Gorman. That would be great. But if I'm picking the best player the Brewers have ever had, a list without Ryan Braun is just silly. Even if he did take PEDs for more than that one post season, his natural ability is still better than just about anybody that has ever played for the Brewers, save Yount or Molitor. What, do you guys honestly think that PEDs gave Braun a .312 career average through six seasons? No, his eye, his talent, and his hard work made that happen. Without any PEDs, a healthy Ryan Braun will put up a .300 30 HR 100 RBI season in his sleep. Bank on it. He was smoking the ball this spring. Once this latest little setback goes away, I expect we'll see him smashing the ball all over the field again. Face it, guys. Braun is the preeminent offensive force in Brewers history. You can still be angry at him if you so choose. But to leave him off this list is letting your emotions cloud your judgement.

I think Brandon Drury is the most attractive trade option. At one point the Braves thought he was the replacement for Chipper Jones. One bad season in 2012, and the Braves gave up on him. Since then, he's been outstanding. In 2013, at A/A+ level, he hit .302 with 15 HR and 85 RBI. In 2014, he split time, hitting .300 with 19 HR and 81 RBI in 430 ABs at A Visalia in the California League. Then, in 29 games and 105 ABs at AA Mobile, he hit .295 with 4 HR and 14 RBI. So, .299 with 23 HR and a .872 OPS. He's improved defensively, too (though I didn't think he was that bad when with Atlanta). He has borderline plus arm, and pretty good hands. My question has to do with his range. I need to see him play some this year to be convinced, but the little I've read about him from scouts seems to imply that he can stick at third in the Majors. He's only 22 years old. He's from a baseball family, and an article I've read on AZ Central calls him a "baseball rat", always thinking about the game. He comes in early to take grounders, stays late to hit balls off the tee, talks to coaches, and asks a lot of questions. Plus, he's good friends with Troy Tulowitzki, and Tulo'z work ethic is going to rub off on him. I can't think of many left side infielders I'd rather he emulate. And if he picks up any of Tulo's defensive tendencies, look out. There's nobody in the Brewers system that will be ready to play third at the Major League level within three years. The guy I could see transitioning to third would be Jacob Greenwood. He's going to be blocked by Segura, Arcia and Sardinas. Anyway, Greenwood at 6'5" 190 lbs, has more of a third baseman's body, doesn't he? His power certainly projects correctly for the position. But he's a long way away from being Major League ready. A strong season from Drury, and he could be up at some point in 2015. He can be had, as I think the DBacks are more likely to go with Jake Lamb as their third baseman of the future. But it would cost us to get him.

Thank you, TheCrew07. I'm not looking to infringe on any NFL copyright. I just don't want to lose what I saved if my DVR becomes a paperweight.

Hey guys, I am wondering, if I have copied a Brewers or Packers game on my DVR, which is, of course, in high def, how would I go about transferring that to a Blu Ray disc? I am looking to make a Blu Ray burner purchase, but want to make sure that I am buying what I need. Even if you guys can point me to a tutorial on the site, or off site, on what I need to do, I would greatly appreciate it. There is an old Brewers game from a year ago still on there I'd love to copy. I also have an NFL replay of Super Bowl XLV on there. I have FIOS with a Motorola QIP 7232-2 model. My laptop runs Windows 7 64 bit. It has a pair of HDMI 3.0 inputs, but no fire wire. The HDMI line, I assume, is out to a TV, etc. I guess I would need something like a fire wire to HDMI line from Monoprice, if there is such a thing. Thanks for any help you all can provide in pointing me in the right direction. I would prefer a external Blu Ray burner for my laptop.

I seriously hope we don't spend a metric ton, and trade away prospects, to get Papelbon. I'd rather keep K-Rod, and develop what we have in house. I think Henderson will be ready to assume the closer role soon, and we have guys in house to hold down the fort until he is ready.

I am looking forward to seeing Nelson take that next step, and become a great starter in the Major Leagues. He and Peralta could be a great 1-2 punch atop our rotation for the next ten years. And the days of "the Brewers can't develop front line starters" will be in the past. I know Doug Melvin would love to put that in the past, because that's always been a knock on him. I know I certainly noticed it. I will happily give him props if Nelson steps up like Big Wily has.

Ernie Banks is one of the finest men to ever step on a Major League field. He embodied everything good about the game, and everything gentlemanly about professional sports. I already miss him. Opening Day at Wrigley Field won't ever be the same again.

Upon seeing this a few days ago, my first thought was "Major League Baseball now has its own Roger Goodell". Please, God...no. This is a stupid idea. There's no reason for it, and that the new commish is actually thinking about doing it scares me. What other completely unnecessary changes does he have in store? This smacks of "hey, I'm the new guy, and I want to make a splash." Be a ripple, Rob, and not a wave, at least until a wave is called for. The game is pretty healthy right now. The perception is that steroids, while not eliminated from the game (they never will be), are at least under control for the most part. There are butts in the seats. MLB didn't set a new record last year, but it was one of the best seasons in MLB history for attendance. If it ain't broken, don't fix it. You don't have to do things to justify your job. When something comes up requiring your consideration, baseball will let you know. Until then, be a good umpire. In other words, be invisible.

I would also go on the record and say that while the amount of play I've seen from Arcia has been limited, I think his projections are a bit low, and he could be our #1 prospect. The 55 field rating is way low, if you ask me. They don't make it clear if these ratings are current, or upside. I think his glove upside is 10-15 points higher. He's really smooth, and has outstanding range.

Going strictly by the projected figures from MLB.com Orlando Arcia (2014) hit 45 power 30 run 45 arm 60 field 55 overall 50 (one + tool. two tools average or higher. one tool projects plus) Luis Sardina (2013) hit 50 power 50 run 50 arm 60 field 60 overall 60 (all tools project average or better. two project plus) Sardinas across the boards has a higher upside if you believe Jonathan Mayo. For the record, I am not saying I agree with him, but Sardinas was the #2 ranked prospect for the Rangers headed into 2013, who were the #1 organization in 2012. Arcia was the #2 prospect for the Brewers starting 2014. The Brewers ranked near the bottom in organizational rankings. I think there's a lot of fluidity to prospect rankings. In 2013, Sardinas was ranked ahead of Joey Gallo, who is now one of the top 10 prospects in the game. Again, I'm not saying that I agree with that. I do know that Sardinas got a lot of buzz in the Dallas area. He was a little slow starting off, but caught on pretty quickly. I don't think Sardinas has anywhere near Major League average power potential. He doesn't have the frame for it. He's a stick, 6'1" but 150 pounds, and he doesn't have any projectability with his body type, imo. I think he has a long way to go before he can show he's Major League average as far as his pure hitting tool goes, too. I don't think scouts look at it this way, but for me, the "hit" tool should include several factors. It might be, but should not be, imho, just purely a measure of how well somebody puts the bat on the ball. Hit tool should consider how well somebody reads pitching, and the decisions they make. If two guys both hit .280, but one strikes out 170 times, and the other strikes out 90, who is the better hitter? For me, Major League average (50) hit tool should be a .260 hitter and a .330 OBP. Either metric lowering should adversely affect the rating. And I also think that swing and miss should factor in. If A guy strikes out 170 times a year, they're not a Major League average hitter. I don't care how many home runs they hit. A batter with a 33% whiff rate is terrible. Fondy, I've seen some ratings that ended up being 20 points off in both directions.

C-Montero 1B-Rizzo 2B-Baez SS-Russell 3B-Bryant LF-Almora CF-Fowler RF-Soler It seems a waste to put Almora in left with that arm, but Soler, too, has a gun. I'd move Castro and his $6.85 million salary to get pitching mid season if Russell shows he can take over at short. A couple of these prospects have to miss, don't they? Because if these guys even hit on the low-to-mid range of their capabilities, /shudder. Anybody want to see Brewer pitching going up against Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, Jorge Soler, Addison Russell and Albert Almora? Because I for one sure as hell don't.

I think everybody is really underselling Sardinas. I live in the metroplex, so I see a lot of Ranger minor league baseball. And, I tend to listen to read the Dallas Morning News, which does a good job of covering farm teams. I've known about him for a few years, and I am pretty high on this kid. MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo ranked him as the #76 prospect in all of baseball prior to the 2014 season. In 2013, he ranked him as the second best prospect in the entire Rangers system. Now, Profar had lost his rookie status by then, and Gallo was obviously a little more of an unknown then. But there were still other talented guys in the Rangers system. Rougned Odor, Michael Choice, Jairo Beras, Nick Williams (whose bat I am really, really in love with). I talked to my dad last night, and he told me that we'd gotten two pitchers for Yo. When I looked this morning, and saw that we also got Sardinas, I did a little jig. You guys aren't looking at his stat line carefully enough. No, his OBP wasn't all that hot in 2014. But you guys have to remember that in basically a year's time, he'd moved from high A ball to AAA. On July 31, 2013, he was playing for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, the Rangers' high A class team in the Carolina League. On April 20th, 2014 he was up with the Major League team for three games. Then he moved to AA to play with the Frisco Rough Riders. In his first six games at Frisco, he was 10 for 25. He had an 0-4 and an 0-5, then was back with the Rangers, hitting .286 for 23 games with the Rangers. Then he played 60 games with AAA Round Rock, where he hit .290. Then he went back to the Rangers, where he hit .224 in 17 games. Kind of hard to get settled in when you're ending 2013 at A+. Then, in 2014, you go from A ball to the Majors, down to AA, then back to the Majors, then down to AAA, and back up to the Majors. Outside of the last 17 games, I think he did pretty darned good. I think once he gets a chance to settle in a bit, the OBP will rise, and stabilize. In 2010, as a 17 year old at rookie ball, he hit .311 and had a .363 OBP. In 2011, also rookie ball, he hit .308 with a .367 OBP. In 2012, A ball, he hit .291 with a .346 OBP. In 2013 between high A and AA, he hit .288 with a .340 OBP. He didn't do real well at AA, because he was bouncing around a lot, but at AAA he hit .290 with a .310 OBP. He also stole 32 bases in both 2012 and 2013. The only area I don't see developing is his power, but with his defensive prowess (glove and arm strength), his speed, and his switch hitting ability, I think he adds tremendous value to the 40 man roster. I could, of course, be wrong, and if I am, I will be the first to admit so. But I think the buzz that surrounded him was justified. Let's see. http://imageshack.com/a/img661/5310/NDm3k5.png

6' 185 lbs. Is he done growing? I would like to see him add a little bit of muscle, but not at the expense of speed and flexibility. It's always a trade off, and he doesn't have a very projectable frame. Intriguing prospect. Let's hope he moves with some speed through the upper tiers of the system. Heir apparent to Gomez, maybe?

http://imageshack.com/a/img537/8017/9YxyYb.png Let's hope that Tyrone makes good, and outplays projections. We need some guys that will work the count, and not be such free wingers. I'm going to read this article, and see what they're saying.

The only addition from all these moves the Padres have just made that would excite me as a Padres fan is Myers. This guy was a legit top 10 prospect in baseball. MLB.com has him as the #3 prospect in baseball on their 2012 top 100 prospect archive. I assume that was their year end list. Baseball America ranked him as the #10 prospect to start the 2011 season, #28 to start the 2012 season, and #4 to start the 2013 campaign. http://net54baseball.com/picture.php?albumid=627&pictureid=15478 My 2010 Bowman Chrome Wil Myers prospect auto. I don't know if he hasn't proven anything yet at the Major League level. He won the 2013 AL Rookie of the Year Award, hitting .293 with a .354 OBP and a .478 SLG. In 335 ABs, he had 23 doubles, 13 home runs and 53 RBI. And .831 OPS as a 22 year old rookie is pretty darned good. Now, there were some real things to work on, for sure. 91 strikeouts in under 375 plate appearances is just too many to me. He struck out a bunch in the minors, too, but he made up for it by hitting north of .300 with really easy power. But I felt his splits were really encouraging. He hit .292 against righties, and .293 against lefties. I don't know, I guess I'm irked that a GM who clearly doesn't know what he's doing got Myers. I think this kid is going to be a special hitter. His bat speed is just sick, and while he'll lose some home runs playing at Petco, he'll still get plenty. He'll jack 25-30 out. I think he's a .300 hitter, and he's going to up his walk rate some. I like him at about a .375 OBP. Why aren't we ever the beneficiaries of these stupid trades? Myers could hit 40 home runs playing his home games at Miller Park. Grr. It will be interesting to see how bad the rest of these moves play out, though.

They're adding all sorts of big pieces with question marks, yeah. Myers, Kemp and Upton could be great, or it could be a colossal failure. That's the ultimate in high risk, high reward. I think Wil Myers is going to be a very good player for a long time. But playing at Petco could just kill his power numbers.