sveumrules

Brewers welcome the new Padres pitcher with an Encarnacion walk, Ortuno double, and Fielder walk to load the bases with a wild pitch scoring one more. & Paulino walks to load em back up, prompting another pitching change (this one appears to be a position player) trying to get the last two outs.

Back at it top of nine with a Holguin double, Quintana single, and Corobo single adding another run. & now a Jose Anderson bomb has added three more !!! 16-6 Zona Crew lead, still no outs.

Argenis Aparicio on the mound for the eighth and works around a pair of inning opening singles to get the zero with a 6-4-3 DP and a strikeout. Jose Nova had a zero of his own earlier in the fifth when he inherited a Dubanewicz walk, walked the first batter he faced, but then got a strikeout, caught stealing, and pop out to escape the jam.

Padres have tried to chip away at the lead a few times tonight, but Brewers keep adding back on. This time we’ve got an Anderson double, Encarnacion E5, and Ortuno single making it a 12-6 lead top of eight.

Anderson walk, Encarnacion double, Fielder’s choice for an RBI, then another run when Jadyn stole second and there was an error on the throw. Montero’s RBI groundout makes it an 11-4 advantage for the Complex Crew. That RBI groundout from Frederi lowered his early season batting average to .526

Another mini explosion here top of six with an Ortuno walk, Fielder single/E9, Montero single, passed ball, and Paulino triple running it to a 7-3 lead for the Brewers. Ok, make that 8-3 on a Holguin groundout.

Dubanewicz conceded a pair of runs bottom two on a trio of singles and a throwing error, but bounced back for another 1-2-3 (1 K) frame in the third. Score now 4-2 heading to bottom four.

Three up three down one strikeout for Jayden Dubanewicz in the bottom half. Offense back at it again with a leadoff double from Frederi Montero, a wild pitch, and an Engel Paulino single making it a 4-0 ballgame.

Oh man, now we’ve got a two run bomb from Juan Ortuno to make it a three run top of the first.

That didn’t take long. Jose Anderson HBP and SB plus a RBI single from Handelfry Encarnacion gets Zona Crew on the board in the first.

Lineup posted and Quero is indeed in there… Jorge Quintana SS Jeferson Quero C Jose Anderson CF Handelfry Encarnacion RF Juan Ortuno 2B Jadyn Fielder DH Frederi Montero 3B Engel Paulino LF Gery Holguin 1B Jayden Dubanewicz P

Not me. Obviously SGA isn't going anywhere, and don't have much interest in Chet Holmgren with his body type. Jalen Williams is their only young piece I'd have interest in as a headliner. $6.6M next year on the last year of his rookie deal so not sure how that would work with cap stuff. Maybe he could be part of the package as a sign & trade to eat into more of Giannis $54M number? Main salaries they have for matching purposes are Hartenstein ($28.5M), Caruso ($18.2M) and Dort ($17.2M) then its younger guys like Isaiah Joe ($12.3M), Aaron Wiggins ($9.7M), or Cason Wallace ($5.2M), none of whom are really all that exciting to me in a Giannis package. They have a ton of first round picks they could deal, but none of them really project to be valuable picks with high lotto odds. Best ones are probably Philly 2025 protected 1-6 then 1-4 protection for 2026/27, Utah 2026 protected 1-8 or maybe Dallas 2028 swap no protections. Their best deal is probably something like an extended Williams, Hartenstein, Wallace and then whichever four or five first round picks the Bucks think have the most potential value.

Agreed, but that was 2021 deadline so still Stearns.

My personal read on the situation is that Giannis likes Milwaukee, doesn't really want to leave, and would rather be a One Franchise Guy than ask for a trade. If Giannis doesn't explicitly ask to be traded, I don't think the front office or owners will pursue it. None of this will stop the media from trying to will it into existence though.

Because the regular season also happens (and is considerably longer than the postseason). Over the twelve seasons before Attanasio bought the team they had a losing record every year and the 2nd worst record in MLB among non-expansion teams. Over the twenty plus years since they have won the 8th most games in MLB.

You don't think trading peanuts for a Top Two catcher in baseball moved the needle? Extending Chourio so we can keep him beyond his first 5/6 years didn't move the needle either? Tough crowd. Looking at position players since 2023 it's mostly homegrown guys and Yelich/Adames who have provided most of the WAR, but as far as Arnold acquisitions there is Contreras (12.0 WAR) at the top, Joey Ortiz (2.7 WAR) & Blake Perkins (2.6 WAR) in 7th/9th, then guys like Mark Canha (0.9 WAR), Rhys Hoskins (0.8 WAR), Carlos Santana (0.7 WAR), Eric Haase (0.6 WAR), and Jake Bauers (0.5 WAR) who have provided more marginal value. Pitching side is quite a bit more Arnold heavy with Tobias Myers (3.8 rWAR), Colin Rea (3.3 rWAR), Wade Miley (3.3 rWAR), Bryan Hudson (2.6 rWAR), Bryse Wilson (2.3 rWAR), Joel Payamps (2.3 rWAR), Trevor Megill (1.9 rWAR), and Jared Koenig (1.9 rWAR) taking up eight of the nine spots between #4 and #12 and then guys like Elvis Peguero (1.4 rWAR), Aaron Civale (1.3 rWAR), Chad Patrick (1.3 rWAR), Jose Quintana (1.0 rWAR), Julio Teheran (0.8 rWAR), Joe Ross (0.7 rWAR), Enoli Paredes (0.7 rWAR), Jakob Junis (0.6 rWAR), and Nick Mears (0.6 WAR) filling up most of the next dozen spots. Add it all up and on the position player side there are 18 players to put up at least 0.5 WAR with the Brewers since 2023, Arnold acquired eight of those players totaling 20.8 WAR of the 53.0 WAR total. On the pitching side there are 25 players to put up at least 0.5 rWAR with the Brewers since 2023, Arnold acquired 17 of those players totaling 29.8 rWAR of the 55.0 rWAR total. With the negative momentum hanging over the team from the deadline in 2022 to Stearns taking the last year of his contract off at the end of that season (and then again a year later with Counsell's heel turn) it's not hard to imagine a parallel reality where the Brewers have 365 games of mediocrity (or worse) under their belt as of today instead of two runaway Division Titles and 41 games of mediocrity. Leaving Smith unprotected is the only real blemish on his record for me so far, early returns on the Priester trade aren't great but realistically we won't know for a couple two tree years who "won" the trade depending how the prospects/pick progress for BOS and to what extent MIL can develop Priester into a useful SP twixt now and then.

Oliva single, to second on an EMJ walk, to third on an Alfaro GIDP, then home on a Seigler single got them one in the fourth. Then in the fifth it was a Hall double, Herron single, and Dunn HBP that loaded em up for a 2 RBI Oliva double then a 2 RBI Alfaro single to make it 5-2 NASH. Bruce Zimmerman has filled the bulk role with 6 K vs 1 H over four scoreless.

Obviously early still with only about 20% of the total games played compared to last year, ACL just underway and DSL still a bit off, but Brewers affiliates are currently rocking an 81 W - 59 L record good for a .579 W%. Last year, with five of seven affiliates on the right side of .500, they finished 389 W - 320 L (.549 W%). Even more impressive to be doing all that winning with the youngest hitters & pitchers in the Carolina League, 2nd youngest hitters & pitchers in the Midwest League, and the youngest hitters in the Southern League.

Yeah, I figured between his age (27 this year), and having a solid season (3.17 FIP was 15th of 74 Southern Leaguers min. 50 IP) in the closers role he was a lock for the NASH pen. I’m sure the dev team had a more detailed plan for him than “strikeout more walk fewer” but he’s at a 32.7 K% | 5.8 BB% so far versus a 25.9 K% | 8.8 BB% last year.

New guy hasn’t been much better. Walked Marco for another run and now Bitonti has knocked another home with a sac fly. 5-0 Carolina.

RBI fielders choice in Made’s second PA makes it 3-0 Carolina. & he promptly steals second. & now Luis Peña has walked to load the bases for Marco Dinges. Still just one out.

Filippo Di Turi pinch hit for DH Braylon Payne to lead off the Carolina second, something to keep an eye on. He walked, followed by a Demetrio Nadal HBP, two on nobody out for the 7-8-9 hitters.

Make that 23 games with a leadoff walk & stolen bag.

First two starts were rough but he looked more like the 2024 version of Tobias in his last two appearances. See if he can keep that positive momentum going.

Opens the frame with a walk and wild pitch but bounces back with a K, lineout and another K to nail down the 5-2 Zona Crew win.