pacopete4

Even before the Yelich trade the Brewers really were/are short on the high impact prospects. To me, we didn’t trade a Braun or Fielder type bat away in Brinson. Maybe a Corey Hart type of he pans out.

Santana / Woodruff / Ortiz + a flyer Do they say no?

It is for some players. Isn't Santana a failed 1B experiment? I like to think Braun could do it without that much trouble...but then again why has it never been attempted before? Makes me wonder. I don’t know this for a fact but I’d be willing to bet Santana never played anything in the IF in his life. And we see what he looks like in the OF. Stiff and unathletic movement for the most part. It’s no wonder the Brewers (and possibly other teams) are not high on him. Comparing that to Braun who has always been very athletic (SS at Miami, 3B early stages of his pro career, and just the eye test) is apples and oranges. Braun could be working out at a facility right now to move to 1B. Who knows. But there’s no reason for me to doubt that he couldn’t make this transition if the Brewers want to go that route.

What sense would it make to trade one of our best prospect pitchers to rid us of Braun to free up playing time for our outfielders but yet obtain Puig, another outfielder? Just doesn’t add up. Oh and Braun isn’t going anywhere. I don't know, there is one team he will go to and they have Joc/Taylor and an expiring Puig in the outfield. If you have a better idea please elaborate because i'm only pondering a better way to keep Santana here for 5 years other than repeat the same talking points over and over again. This Braun 1B talk is folly IMO unless I actually see him taking throws on the 1st base bag. It’s January. How would you see him doing that? Lol First base really is not that hard. Especially for an ex SS/3B who is still pretty athletic. I mean my god, Thames/Aguilar are both very limited over there as it is. And just keeping both is a way better idea than giving away Burnes (just stumped as how you thought this would be a way to solve things). Adding Puig just gives you the same “problem” you have right now. Where would he play?

What sense would it make to trade one of our best prospect pitchers to rid us of Braun to free up playing time for our outfielders but yet obtain Puig, another outfielder? Just doesn’t add up. Oh and Braun isn’t going anywhere.

Is this a change or scheduled? He’s been on their list of players ever since I’ve seen it.

It looks like Santana will be going to Fan Fest.

Lol, sure. Must be why they are looking at all those “TOR” guys presently. Dang you Ryan Braun! Darvish isn’t a Brewer because well, we are the Brewers and he doesn’t want to be there. It’s okay. We will survive. We don't know if that holds true anymore. Lorenzo Cain could have been our one and only FA splash. Most likely true but that’s not because of a lack of money.

We all want to get TOR type pitchers but only some are willing to part ways with what it takes to get it.

Currently I am living and teaching in Iowa near Iowa City. My wife and I want to target a move back to Wisconsin. We are looking at the Madison and Milwaukee areas but also the Appleton/Oshkosh region as well. I teach MS/HS social studies and have coached hockey, baseball and football over the years (more baseball in recent years). Anyone have any insight to what schools to target or areas to target to live? I’ve always been very intrigued about this area to live in. I’m originally from Superior, so waaaaaay up north lol.

I’m pretty sure there was a sequence just like the one you had above against Iowa just before half and we missed and instead of going into half down 1-2 points, we went in down by like 10. And agreed with the rest of your post.

Lol, sure. Must be why they are looking at all those “TOR” guys presently. Dang you Ryan Braun! Darvish isn’t a Brewer because well, we are the Brewers and he doesn’t want to be there. It’s okay. We will survive.

How do you know they are having trouble?

Yep. Some really poor attitudes around here are really going to ruin it. HH19 owes us nothing and could really be sticking his neck out.

Then both of you should be up in arms about the Cain signing. He won’t be worth by year 4-5 either. Brewers bought out highly productive years to basically pay for them now. That’s the MLB. Oh well. It’s a chance they took. We will find out if he can at least be a 2WAR player to make his contact okay the last couple years.

That's what I'm afraid of. It's unreasonable to expect an OPS much above .800 even if he does platoon. That's terrible for a guy who does nothing at replacement level except hit a few long balls. Let's not waste 3 months of crucial pa's before admitting the obvious and realizing he's another Matt Clark/Jason Rogers, as the available evidence overwhelmingly suggests. I'm okay with Braun in RF and Thames/Aguilar at 1b if and only if Santana and Phillips are needed together to fetch a terrific young player at a position of great organizational need. Mejia would work. Aguilar OPS’d .837 overall and .889 vs. LHP last season. Again, you’re selling him short. You need guys who can come off the bench in the NL and deliver. Aguilar did that time and time again last season.

In that senario you are sitting Thames for Phillips. While it could happen at times, it’s highly unlikely if Thames is on the roster.

It’s been overstated so many times that Braun’s contract hurts us. Well it didn’t stop us from adding over $20M to our outfield for years to come a few days ago. Not only that but if 1WAR = $8M, I think Braun will probably do alright in getting the value out of that contract. Also you may want to check out who the Cardinals are paying money to over there in St. Louis. Lol Sure it does. Are you saying if we had the chance to be free and clear of Braun's contract in exchange for not having him anymore, you wouldn't take it? There would be no reason to trade Santana, you would still be loaded in the OF, and you'd have more than enough money to go after Darvish or Arrieta and still have a ton of flexibility to make other moves. Right now, they could probably still make such a move but would be approaching the limit of what they'll probably be willing to spend. Any way you slice it, $20M spent is $20M less in spending power that you have. I am not saying Braun's contract is a disaster, although I disagree that we're going to get the value out of his remaining 3 years and $61M. He's projected for 1.5 WAR in 2018 and that number is certainly trending downward. If they wanted to go get a pitcher, they could go get one. Braun isn’t stopping that just like he didn’t stop the latest two acquisitions. The Brewers knew their financial “spending power” and have a way better idea of what that is than any poster we have. No real debating it anymore. The same people who bag on Braun and his contract have been saying the same things on repeat and yet, here we are, spending. We worry more about pennies around here. It’s cute, but it’s old and tiresome.

It’s been overstated so many times that Braun’s contract hurts us. Well it didn’t stop us from adding over $20M to our outfield for years to come a few days ago. Not only that but if 1WAR = $8M, I think Braun will probably do alright in getting the value out of that contract. Also you may want to check out who the Cardinals are paying money to over there in St. Louis. Lol

I think with the moves happening at the same time it’s hard not to talk about both.

Oh I don’t know. For an extra $20M I think I’d take a shot on year 4 & 5. That’s not much money for the type of player Cain could still possibly be.

How would Vogt not be a lock? Did we acquire a catcher I am not remembering?

I like the outside the box thinking but it feels as though Stearns is trump to target ground ball pitchers. This guy is below league average in that department although it seems like he would be a good pitcher for us. Cheap and controllable too.

To clarify, all he said 2 days ago was that Domingo was going to be traded to an AL team, possibly as soon as tomorrow (yesterday). He never specified that it was definitely going to happen today if not by yesterday. Maybe they will inform Santana at Fan Fest.

You're missing one of the most important variables in the equation. Their pitching staff would clearly benefit from an extra reliever, and if Braun can play 1b, it would be a waste of a roster spot to keep Aguilar. That extra reliever is going to add more value to the team than playing Braun in RF over Phillips and giving Aguilar ~50 starts. Perez's versatility makes him a lock for a roster spot ahead of Aguilar. They had 13 pitchers at times last year and also nearly turned their season around and made the playoffs by using the bullpen all the time in September instead of a traditional 6 inning starter + 2-3 relievers plan for every game. Their rotation is once again not going to give you a ton of innings so it makes sense to use a lot of relievers. I'm confident that's what they're looking for and it's the right move. Using your bullpen a ton in September is something you can do because the rosters expand. Let’s not over think this one too much here. Aguilar played a large role for the Brewers last year and could again next year if certain players are moved. They aren’t carrying 13 pitches all season long.