The stache

Ryan Braun was my favorite player in 2011 before the whole positive test debacle started. And he's my favorite player still. Why? Because as has already been stated, he has gone out of his way to try and make amends for the terrible mistakes he made. Yes, what he did was stupid, both the taking of something not approved by MLB, and the lying to cover it up. And while I can certainly understand why he did what he did, trying to accelerate the healing of an injury that had been dogging him for the entire season, he still broke the rules. Once that is established, nothing else matters. But Ryan Braun is human like the rest of us. He's not a role model. He's a professional athlete who's paid a lot of money to entertain baseball fans. That's all. I didn't hold him to a higher moral standard before the positive test, and I certainly won't now. He accepted and served the suspension levied by Major League Baseball. His reputation has been tarnished. And, he's lost endorsement money. He also has another season of being booed on the road to look forward to. Yet on top of all of that, he picked up the phone, and called Brewer season ticket holders, and apologized for the mistakes he made. I don't know what more people want. It seems they won't be satisfied until Ryan Braun breaks down on national television crying. Yet, baseball fans around the country are trying to paint Brewer fans as "idiots", or somehow condoning what Ryan Bran did with our standing ovation. They completely miss the point. We are not in any way excusing what he did. We are, however, willing to forgive him. Ryan Braun deserves a chance at redemption. So, excuse me if I don't feel too terrible if I cheer for Ryan Braun. If Tiger fans can cheer for Miguel Cabrera, a man who beat his wife, and was arrested for drunk driving with a blood alcohol level 2.5 x the legal limit, then I can cheer for a man who rubbed a little cream on his calf and lied about it.

Hello, Opening Day win column!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Great play, Scooter! Nice game for the little guy (I say that fully aware I'm about the same size he is).

K Rod had him right where he wanted him at 3-0.

Hmm, does Roenicke like the K Rod match up better than Henderson here??

Happy opening day, everybody. Whew, thank God that was foul. Segura with a nice play in the hole last AB. He looks pretty good, even if the arm is not 100%.

Mark Reynolds and Lyle Overbay are our first basemen? Sigh. God, I really miss Prince Fielder.

Pitchers do throw hard, but I don't know if they're throwing that much harder than they did even ten years ago. I sent a Tweet to Will Carroll asking him what he thinks is primarily responsible for the shocking increase in these season ending injuries. Is it a conditioning issue? Is it a lack of flexibility derived from an increased focus in strength training? Because pitchers today are asked to throw a lot fewer innings than they used to. I know he's kind of a freak of nature, but Nolan Ryan was able to strike out 1,079 players between 1972 and 1974. He threw 942 2/3 innings, and that's with his fastball breaking 100 mph on a fairly consistent basis. Hell, he struck out 301 at age 42, throwing 239 1/3 innings in 1989. He didn't need Tommy John surgery, yet guys that haven;t even made it to the Majors are having this surgery left and right.

His "hyped" AA season was in 2012. That was so long ago, I know. Look, he took a step backwards in 2013 moving from AA to AAA. Some players take a while to adjust. Some players also take a while, shockingly, to adjust from AAA to the Majors. Mike Trout hit .220 with a .672 OPS his first go round in the Majors. Imagine if the Angels had said his minor league showing was "hyped"? And as bad as you think Morris was, he still hit 24 home runs at AAA. The power is there. Can he really be any worse than the guys we have penciled in to compete for first in 2014? We have nothing at the Major League level that remotely catches my fancy. Lyle Overbay is older than Jesus. Juan Francisco, when he connects, can drive the ball out of any park. So, too, can Mark Reynolds. You just have to put up with 250 + strikeouts between them for those 25 home runs. Morris has shown that he is at least capable of playing the position. Are you really going to disqualify him based off of 16 spring training at bats??

Velocity dropping. Inconsistent. His high pitch count often means he can't make it into the 6th or 7th the way a dependable starter should. And then there's the DWI. Really bad judgement. All warning signs. Here's what I'm hoping our rotation will be in 2015: Garza Lohse Peralta Nelson Thornburg And beyond that: Garza Peralta Nelson Thornburg Jungman That's a rotation I could be happy with. If Hellweg can get his control down, he could be a hell of a closer. He's got the nasty factor, and a fastball that intimidates. The job appears to be Henderson's for the near future. But he's 32 by season's end. I'd like to start preparing somebody to take over for him in a few years. We also have Estrada, who is 31 in July, and Will Smith in the mix.

I've had a somewhat mixed bag with my stream on my Roku 2 XS, which was purchased right before the season (and with me not knowing the Roku 3 generation would be coming out like two months later. There was no mention of this made on their site.) I have Verizon FIOS, and run from my router directly into the Roku. I get speeds of up to 100 MBPS. Typically, on speedtest.net, I get about 57-60 MBPS, way, way more than is required to get a constant full 720p stream. Yet occasionally, maybe once or twice a game, I get the blue screen of death, as I call it, when the feed drops. When I do the bandwidth test on MLB.tv, it's all over the place. MLB sometimes struggles to keep up with the bandwidth demands. I'm hoping they've increased their server capabilities for this season. For what we pay, there shouldn't be any freezes. Hell, I don't care if they want to show commercials between innings. Whatever it takes to make sure from the time I log on, until the final out, I can see the game in the definition I expect.

With all apologies to the original poster, this is a pointless discussion. The MVP Award is handed out based on performance in the regular season. The only drug test of Ryan Braun's professional career that has ever shown any abnormality is one taken during the 2011 post season. By the time Game One of the National League Division Series had started, all the MVP votes had already been submitted by the BBWAA. Ryan Braun could have hit 10 home runs against the Diamondbacks, and ran the bases along side a naked Kate Upton, and the ghost of Ted Williams screaming "Ryan Braun is the greatest hitter I have ever seen, and Ty Cobb agrees with me!", and it would have had absolutely zero impact on his chances to win the MVP Award. None. So, his positive drug test taken after a post season game, likewise, should have, and does have, no impact whatsoever on his 2011 NL MVP Award. There is no reason for Ryan Braun to give back his MVP Award. None.

My feelings exactly. He may have had two lost seasons, but in 2010 he was 3rd in the Cy Young pitching in Colorado. He still has #1 upside, and while $12 mil per is a lot of money, you don't win it all without taking some calculated risks. And if he turns out to be the pitcher he was in the second half of last year, the O's have themselves a bargain. If he pans out, and if Dylan Bundy completely recovers from Tommy John surgery (another big if), the Orioles could have themselves a nasty rotation: Kevin Gausman Dylan Bundy Ubaldo Jiminez Chris Tillman (25-10, 3.48 ERA over his last 48 starts across 1.5 seasons. 1.170 WHIP) With the lineup they have, and those four horses, do you want to face them in the post season? I sure as hell wouldn't.

MLB pitching is obviously the creme de la creme, but there's something to be said about Segura's hitting everywhere he's gone. He hit at AA. He won the winter league batting title. And he was one of the best players in the Majors for the first half. Are we really considering that pitchers magically figured him out in the second half? I think his decrease in production in the second half was mainly caused by fatigue. That he only hit one home run in half #2 is telling. He wasn't driving the ball with the same authority. That tells me "worn out." I could be wrong, and I will be the first the admit if I am. But I don't think I am. Even his stolen base success rate plummeted in the second half: Before the AS break: 27 of 31, 87% After the AS break: 17 of 25, 68% Either pitchers and catchers both suddenly figured him out, or, he was exhausted + dinged up. I am inclined to believe the later explanation is more likely.

If I had my way (and maybe it's a good thing I don't ), this would be my lineup: 1. Segura SS 2. Lucroy C 3. Braun RF 4. Ramirez 3B 5. Davis LF 6. Gomez CF 7. Gennett 2B 8. Halton/Reynolds/Francisco/Morris/Overbay 1B 9. P I like Lucroy at #2 because he's a really solid hitter that drives in runs, and he doesn't strike out a lot. With Segura's speed, and Luc's ability to hit to all fields, I think Braun, ARam and Davis will have a lot of RBI opportunities.

Doc, I am about to crash out, as my medications are kicking in. But I will check my messages tonight first thing when I get up, and respond back to you.

Yup, just did. And it turns out my educated theory was on the mark: Besides the 300 games, people need to remember, too, the workouts, the bus rides, the plane trips, the batting practice. Even an elite athlete like a Major League baseball player is going to run on fumes after a while. I like his work ethic, and expect big things from him. I also don't buy the "if we had a Braun or a Fielder type prospect, we wouldn't be so high on Segura" line of thinking. Segura was one of the top prospects in baseball before he ever came to Milwaukee. In 2011, Baseball America had Segura ranked the #57 prospect in baseball. He was #55 in 2012, going up only two spots because of a torn hamstring. Prince Fielder was first ranked #78 in Baseball America's poll in 2003. Fielder was up to 10 in 2004, #15 in 2005, and #11 in 2006. Ryan Braun was first ranked #49 in 2006. He moved up to #26 the next year. Neither Fielder or Braun had a substantial injury that hindered their development. But to say Segura was never a Braun or Fielder-type prospect is patently false.

I remember seeing Robin Yount for the first time in person during a home game at County Stadium in the spring of 1980. I wasn't nine yet, and Yount wasn't a star yet. But the talk about Yount elevating his game to the next level had already begun. He was on fire, hitting in the .340s, and driving the ball with incredible authority. And though I was only a kid, I knew Robin was something special the very first time I watched him play. The way he did, well, everything, was different from the other players on the field. He got to every ball hit within a mile of him. The ball jumped off of his bat. And when he ran the bases, he just seemed quicker than everybody else. Though he was still just a youngster at 24, he had the poise of a star before the label had been affixed to him. He seemed destined for greatness. Far too often nowadays, people try to summarize a baseball player's entire career based on a few numbers. Some dismiss Yount because he didn't put up the eye popping numbers you see in today's game. But that's really a woefully inadequate way of gauging a player's greatness, as it doesn't tell the whole story. For one, the context of the era Yount played in gets lost. No, Robin Yount didn't hit 500 home runs. Or 400. Or even 300. But he could just crush the ball. In 1982, he was the first shortstop in 15 years to have 300 total bases. You don't get 87 extra base hits being a singles hitter. No, he didn't have a .300 lifetime AVG. But from 1977 to 1989, he hit .300. That's a 13 year span. No, he didn't win 12 Gold Gloves like Clemente, or get named to 24 All Star Games like Mays or Aaron. But when a no hitter was on the line with two outs in the ninth, it was Yount, displaying the incredible defense we'd all come to expect, that saved the day, sacrificing his body to make the impossible leaping catch. And as for the All Star vote? Yount wasn't named an All Star in 1989. He just won the MVP. In fact, he wasn't named to the All Star team once between 1984 and 1989, though only six hitters in all of baseball had a higher batting average, or more hits during that span, than Yount. So much for the wisdom of the voting public. But if you look at what Yount did throughout his career, Yount just performed. Year in, year out. In his prime, from 1980 to 1983, he was the best shortstop in baseball. Better than Ripken, and Trammell. And he was on his way to becoming one of the greatest ever to play his position when his shoulder blew apart. I read on non Brewer-centric forums just how little appreciation there is for what Yount came back from. They mention he had shoulder and back problems, but don't seem to get how devastating his injury was. Yount had incredible pull power prior to his injury. People tend to forget that while the Brewers hit a lot of home runs, County Stadium was really a pitcher's park. In 1982, Yount hit 20 of his 29 home runs on the road. In fact, of the 216 home runs the Brewers hit that season, 127 were away from County Stadium. The "Yount never hit more than 29 home runs" line is accurate. But to dismiss Yount is unjust. Yet even with the injuries that could have ended his career, injuries that for a time sapped much of his power, Robin Yount had more hits in the 1980s--1,731--than any other player in the Major Leagues. Not only did he lead the Majors in hits during the 80s, from 1975 to 1989, he had more hits (2,516) than any other Major League player, too. Only Mike Schmidt scored more than Yount's 1,287 runs during that 15 years span. Only George Brett (491) had more doubles than Yount's 467 during that span. Only Willie Wilson (130) and Brett (115) had more triples than Yount's 106. In fact, between 1970 and 1990, only Pete Rose had more hits (2,929) than Yount's 2,747. And between 1970 and 1990, only Mike Schmidt (1,506), Pete Rose (1,486) and Dwight Evans (1,435) scored more runs than Yount's 1,433. And only Schmidt (4,404), George Brett (4,363), Dave Winfield (4,267), Dave Parker (4,222), and Reggie Jackson (4,214) had more total bases than Robin Yount's 4,152 over that 20 year span. What about power and speed? Between 1975 and 1989, three players in all the Major Leagues had more than 200 home runs, and 200 stolen bases: Dave Winfield, Andre Dawson, and Robin Yount. Context. As I mentioned, Robin Yount won an MVP playing shortstop, and another playing center field, two of the three toughest positions in baseball (the other being catcher), something no other Major Leaguer has ever done. In fact, in the 144 year history of Major League Baseball, only three other players have ever won MVPs at two different positions: Stan Musial, Hank Greenberg and Alex Rodriguez. Musial won as an outfielder and first baseman, Greenberg as a first baseman and left fielder, and Rodriguez as a shortstop and third baseman. But we know this already. What kind of Brewer fans would we be if we did not? We also know he had two four hit games in the 1982 World Series. Did you guys know that to this day, not only is Robin Yount the only player in Major League history to have two four-hit games in the same World Series.. ..he is the only player in World Series history to have two four hit games. Period. http://imageshack.com/a/img834/1774/1g47.png There have been 64 4-hit games in World Series history. Yount had four hits in games one and five. He only played one World Series. Except for the 1994 strike shortened season, the World Series has been played every year since 1905. And only Robin Yount has two four-hit games in the World Series. Robin Yount does not get a fair shake as far as the all-time greats go. And while people are fawning all over Derek Jeter as his final season comes up, one must remember that like Jeter, Yount's talents were many. In the history of Major League Baseball, there have been five players with over 3,000 hits, 250 home runs, 250 stolen bases, and 500 doubles: Derek Jeter, Willie Mays, Craig Biggio, Rickey Henderson, and Robin Yount. http://imageshack.com/a/img823/6469/qv7g.png Of those players, only Mays, Yount and Henderson won MVPs. When you delve a little more deeply, Robin Yount is very much deserving of being considered an all-time great.

I'm going to assume you meant: Pretty shocking that ESPN has the lowest projections. ESPN always has, and always will be the most negative when it comes to Braun, or anything to do with sports from Wisconsin. It's completely logical to think a guy that has only hit below .300 in a full season once would hit .273 this season. .310/31/107/25 SB is my projection. .394/.563/.957.

I had it on my Roku 2 XS and loved it for the most part. And any game that was blacked out for me (when the Brewers played at Texas or Houston) was available to watch after the game was done. Full audio overlay, so I could watch and listen to Ueck. I'll be signing up again here pretty soon.

The Braves and the Rays both. If we could add even one man from those two organizations who is influential in developing talent, we'd be well served to do so. Both these teams have an uncanny knack for finding young talent, especially pitching talent.

Over the off-season, much of the baseball reading I've been doing has focused on Jean Segura's second half last year, with one author after another hypothesizing as to why there was such a dramatic drop off in his production. I've read everything from pitchers figuring Segura out as a hitter to Jean's developing a hitch in his swing, or a minor injury that went unreported impacting his effectiveness (which would certainly jive with his being shut down towards the end of the season due to a hamstring issue). One thing I haven't really seen discussed at all, however, might perhaps be the most logical explanation: maybe the guy was just worn out. While I know that this was referenced in passing here on Brewerfan.net last season, I decided to dig through some schedules, and look back at the actual number of games that Segura had played in since the start of the 2012 season. What I found was pretty eye opening. Between April 5, 2012, and July 16, 2013 when the MLB All Star Game was played (a roughly fifteen month period), Jean Segura played in an incredible 300 games. Over the last 54 games of the 2013 season, he hit .241 with a single home run, and 13 RBI. Worst yet, he posted a .583 OPS. But when you look back at the fifteen month period preceding his drop in productivity, the falloff seems easily explainable. Here's a breakdown of the games he played in: 2012 Arkansas Travelers (94 games) April 5, 2012 to July 21, 2012 2012 Anaheim Angels (1 game) July 24, 2012 2012 Huntsville Stars (12 games) July 29, 2012 to August 5, 2012 2012 Milwaukee Brewers (44 games) August 6, 2012 to October 3, 2012 2012 Gigantes Del Cibao (35 games) October 18, 2012 to December 16, 2012 2013 Milwaukee Brewer spring training (21 games) February 23, 2013 to March 30, 2013 2013 Milwaukee Brewers (93 games) April 1, 2013 to July 16, 2013 Even the most finely-tuned professional athlete needs an off-season to rest, and let their body heal up. Segura really never had that. Starting in April of 2012, he reported to the Arkansas Travelers (the Angels' AA affiliate). He played 94 games there before being called up to the Majors for a single game. Then, after being acquired by the Brewers, he was sent to Huntsville, Alabama, where his year continued on with Milwaukee's AA team. There he played 12 games, before being called up to Milwaukee. After a 44 game stint in the Majors, Segura flew to the Dominican Republic, where he played in the Winter League there for another 35 games. This marked an eight month period where Segura was going pretty much full speed. He had a short break before players reported in advance of spring training for the 2013 season. He played in 21 spring training games, then started a 93 game trek leading up to the All Star Game. 300 games in 15 months, not including intra-squad games, batting practices, work outs, etc. 15 months of almost nonstop play, and flying around the country. Jean's last game of the 2013 season came on September 28th. That means by the time spring training starts next week, he should be well rested. And I expect an outstanding, and complete season from our young star.

I think Segura has a lot more upside than Simmons, even considering the incredible defense he provides Atlanta. Simmons can't touch Segura's speed, which is going to be highly disruptive going forward. He can match his power, and I think eventually Segura is going to be pretty strong defensively.

I think Gennett is the least-gifted hitter out of those 8 regulars (save maybe Reynolds), so I don't see any problem with him hitting 8th. The last part of his offensive game that can realistically come around is BB rate, & if anything the #8 spot should give him ample opportunity to take his walks. Unless he takes a major step forward as a hitter in 2014, I definitely don't want to see him ahead of anyone of note in this lineup. I would agree that at least early on, having Gennett in the 8 spot is ideal. I don't expect him to replicate his numbers from last year. If he hits .270 with some extra base pop (doubles and the occasional triple or home run), and gives us some solid, if not spectacular defense, I'd be happy. Give him the chance to see more legit Major League starters, and work on developing his eye at the highest level. If he can up his walk rate even a little bit, then he's got a much better chance of being a long term solution at second. If we get a plus average first baseman in the next year or two, be it Morris, or somebody else we trade for, then I'm ok with Scooter at second.

Whatever the lineup might end up being on opening day, at the very least I can say most assuredly that Yuniesky Betancourt is not going to be in it, and for that, I am eternally grateful! I can't wait to see an outfield of Khris Davis, Carlos Gomez and Ryan Braun all healthy to start the season.