thumperden

I saw Betty White's "Off Their Rockers" last night. It was a cute elderly person's version of "Jackass". I don't know how long the show will last, but it was fun to watch. Rock on to 100 Betty!

They also signed Travis Ishikawa as 1B competition. I hope he shows something positive with the bat in spring.

Harrumph! I'll pull for the 49ers too but I don't know if I'll watch.

Jericho, I think it speaks more of the posting system than anything else. It's not an optimal system for the Japanese players. It's not designed to be. It completely benefits the Japanese team owners. Money money money!

Was Hawpe injured the last couple years? I thought he had a gun for an arm in right field.

Coincidentally, Brad Hawpe's closest player comparison on www.baseball-reference.com is Corey Hart. Hart made $10,000,000 last year. Hart also is 4 years younger. I don't think it'll take $6,000,000 to sign Hawpe. I'm not saying trade Hart, but there are cheaper and comparable alternatives that could be made as a side note to make room for another guy like Aoki.

So, if Mr. Melvin says he's looking at other outfield options, that doesn't necessarily look like they'll sign him will they? If so, I wonder whom they're looking at. There's plenty of outfield help available, but at what price? Brad Hawpe, for example got $6 million from San Diego last year and had a down year.

This name has not been mentioned so far, perhaps because the expectations of him aren't that high to begin with. Carlos Gomez He's too cocky for the production level, and I'm already on record for saying his shtick has rubbed me raw in the past. He's also been telling anyone who'll listen that he's a power hitter. His time in Milwaukee may not end well.

I saw grass turning green and flies and gnats flying around for two days before yesterday. I hope your apple trees have a chance to come back next year, but that typically requires a long period of dormancy...fingers crossed for you. Also, as a Packer fan, it's a wonderful time to be a true fan isn't it? It's good for business as they say. My band is even playing after the game on Holmgren Way for example. I told myself that I wouldn't follow the Bucks much, but I'm intrigued, especially with Jon Leuer off to early success. I still haven't gone to any spring training games...that's about six weeks away give or take? I'd love to go some year.

Heck yeah, brettac...I remember seeing George Scott on tv as a kid in 1973. Of course, at that age I was thinking to myself, "What's this actor doing playing baseball?" I was 4 yrs.old. That's my first visual memory of the Brewers anyway...a year before Robin Yount's rookie season. So, I'm a diehard from far enough back to remember nearly all the history of the Brewers. I've read the rest I missed. A GREAT season back then would've been 81-81. I'd just like to see this run of relevance continue for as long as possible. Given the financial state, fanbase, of the club etc. it is plausible for this club to remain at least decent for a long time. But, you have to strike when the iron's hot, as they say.

Agreed hawing. Regardless of who is on the roster, I'm a Brewer fan through and through and I stand by them religiously either way and enjoy the process of the season. I just fear the team is going to start to go backwards this year and I have to prepare for that. I just don't want to. I don't expect them to win 96 games next year, but I'm holding out hope that they'll be roughly as competitive for a title. Thanks for your help in that regard. As far as Fielder is concerned, you may be right that there may not be many nemeses left on the plausible list for Prince. Time will tell. Is it spring yet?!

A good yellow mustard color would be good, in case you actually get mustard on your jersey. It'll just blend in better. I speak from experience unfortunately.

Parra has professed his preference to be a reliever when he was still struggling with injuries in the minors, as has been circulated in forums right here on brewerfan.net. He complained about throwing with pain, and to make a long story short, was told by the coaches he has to deal with it like the others have to. That was the first sign I had seen anywhere where he may not be strong mentally. We have since seen his confidence crumble time and time again in the bigs when he gave up long ball after long ball. He offered much promise as a starter, which is why the club kept trying him in that role. It's obvious that his starting days are behind him. I pull for him to have a strong comeback year and hope he has addressed his mental fragility. I can't remember if he throws a cutter but it sure would be nice to have a fastball with some movement on it, regardless of role he has on the team.

Good morning Brewerfan nation. So, now that it is finally winter in Wisconsin, I realized today that I've become spoiled by the relatively good weather up to this point. We get hit with our first snowstorm of the season and the very next morning I realize I already have "spring fever". The issue I have with that is two-fold. 1. I dislike snow and cold, but live in Wisconsin. That's on me. Operators are standing by to take my call. 2. I like to think optimistic thoughts about the beginning of another Brewer season to soothe my soul and to get me through winter until the baseball season begins in earnest. Although, spring training is a nice tide me over until April. However, the Braun and Fielder situations have not concluded to this point and that is waning on my optimism at this point. The cynical, doomsday part of me is expecting the worst case scenario for both; a 50 game suspension and Fielder signs a long-term contract to a nemesis that we see many times over the next X amount of years. The optimistic side hopes and prays that Braun's suspension will be lifted and Fielder signs a 1 year deal here and the Brewers make another run at the World Series. My gut tells me that reality is going to side closer to the worst case scenario and that'll ruin my off-season optimism if/when that happens. I've come to grips long ago about the chances of Fielder coming back. I'm not naive. I just want the suspense to be over...on both fronts.I know I'm not alone in this thought process, from reading others' posts here. The struggle I have at this point is how to rally around these potential negatives and yet have real hope for another outstanding season coming up. I'd like to get your perspective. I just wanted to get this off my chest.

How big is your place recte? Do you serve beer and other adult beverages besides food?

Fair enough CheezWizHead. Why not put him on the 40-man if there's room. He's young enough and may still have potential to battle for a big league job in a couple years.

Is he worth a 40-man roster spot though? At the expense of whom? I don't know. The team surely needs more middle infielders in the minors though.

I would've liked to have seen the study focus on the effect of Japanese players only in respect to ticket sales/revenue. The Japanese effect is more pronounced than, say a Canadian...no offense, eh!

Is this another example of leaked information? The whole "reporting" on the Braun situation is undigestible.

Maybe Mr. Melvin saw Moneyball and was inspired to sign guys like Aoki and Izturis.

The last utility spot on the roster is all I see Ishikawa in the running for, so I don't believe it to be "cliche".

G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB 2009 31 CHC NL 82 342 306 46 97 14 1 15 65 2 1 28 43 0.317 0.389 0.516 0.905 130 158 8 8 0 0 3 2010 32 CHC NL 124 507 465 61 112 21 1 25 83 0 0 34 90 0.241 0.294 0.452 0.745 95 210 10 3 0 5 3 2011 33 CHC NL 149 626 565 80 173 35 1 26 93 1 1 43 69 0.306 0.361 0.51 0.871 136 288 12 10 0 8 5 [/u]

A very nice low-risk depth signing for the Brewers. I really like his glove and will provide spring competition at the very least at first base. He played some right field in the minors too, so he may provide more options to the Brewers as a possible bench player.

I'd say yes please to a Ryan Theriot-type bench player.

What is all this 1st base talk with Ramirez? He hasn't played an inning over there in his career. Also, what does he bring chemistry-wise to the club? I saw lethargy defensively at 3B for years and I don't think that'll wear well with this club and the fans.