RollieTime

Mark may have thought that Braun, Yelich, Phillips, and Santana were going to be productive enough without Cain. I think a lot of people had higher standards for Santana coming off his 30 homer season. I personally was surprised when Cain was signed and didn’t think we exactly needed him either. I think it’s fine for an owner to question a move like that. Even if Mark questioned it at first, he came around to the idea since the Brewers actually pulled it off and signed Cain. I think what they actually did do speaks more than just what was discussed.

Nice pick. He is one that I think could surprise a lot of people this season. I see Burnes having a breakout season this year. We saw how good he could be last season, but I think he is legit and will build off of his successful 2018 with a huge season in 2019. He has ace potential and will be an anchor in our rotation for another 6 years.

I view it as using the unknown (draft picks) that are multiple years away from helping if they ever help at all, to help the big league club get the known commodity, which is a top 3 catcher in baseball right now. The Brewers will have 30+ other picks to find future help. Same thing with Claudio. He is under team control for multiple years and if you can trade a draft pick and get a known MLB contributor for a few years, you take it.

I’ll use the Mets since they are going for it and could use another bullpen arm. Mets receive: RP Corey Knebel Brewers receive: 1B Peter Alonso LHP David Peterson 3B Mark Vientos RHP Junior Santos

It was Forbes’ annual study of MLB team valuations of the Brewers for the 2017 season. They estimated the Brewers’ profits at roughly $67 million. https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/the-yasmani-grandal-signing-shows-why-the-brewers-might-be-the-most-opportunistic-team-in-mlb-these-days/ “Forbes' annual study of MLB team valuations ranked the Brewers 24th in revenue, at $255 million for 2017. Despite that modest revenue stream, Forbes estimates the Brewers' profit at $67 million for that season, the seventh-highest mark in all of baseball.”

To hopefully put some of this payroll debate to rest... Brewers 2017 Numbers Payroll $69 million Attendance was 2.6 million Profits $67 million Payroll + Profits= Break Even at $136 million Brewers 2018 Numbers Payroll $121 million Attendance was 2.8 million. Let’s say an average ticket is $30 for the 200,000 additional tickets sold. That’s another $6 million before taxes. So let’s say that’s $4 million more in profits. Break even was $136 million + $4 million in additional ticket sales= $140 million. Looking at this, their profits in 2018 was probably around $19 million. That’s before the profits from the playoffs. The revenue is between $20-$30 million, but that’s not straight profits. It’s probably fair to say you could tack on another $10 million in profits. $140 million to break even + $10 million in playoffs= $150 million for break even during 2018 season. $150 million-$121 million payroll= $29 million in profits for 2018. I have never thought that Mark was in it just to make profits. I think this shows that he isn’t just padding his pocket book. It’s expected that a business owner would want some type of profit at the end of the year. The Brewers payroll was at $121 million even before Mark knew we would be in the playoffs to get the additional profits. He’s putting as much money into the Brewers that he can and I hope this exercise could maybe give people a better look into what the Brewers could reasonably do this season. I could see them pushing it a little more toward the break even point and stretching the payroll to around $130-$135 million by season’s end, but going beyond that wouldn’t make much sense financially. Of course, he could spill over some profits from this past season and push it to about $145 million tops, but that would be putting them very close to going in the red. As it sits right now, their payroll is around $120 million. They need to leave a little room to make trades during the season to make a push for the playoffs and have payroll space for all the guys shuffling up and down as well. All those guys need to get paid too.

Clayton Andrews is my breakout candidate. He pitched great in Appleton last season and I think that will continue this year. I could see him pitching in AA by the end of the season if all goes well. He could be a fast riser, but I think people might overlook him based on his small 5’6” frame. His plus changeup and plus curveball to go along with his fastball helps him keep hitters off balance. He’s a 3 pitch relief pitcher that can throw all 3 pitches at any time. Plus... He was great in centerfield in college... Who’s to say that he couldn’t be a guy who faces a lefty, goes in the outfield for a hitter or two, and then comes back in to face another lefty? Stearns is always looking for unconventional ways to gain an advantage. Andrews could be one of those guys to give the Brewers a different look (half blue).

Corey Knebel is going to make $5.125 million this season through arbitration with two additional years of control beyond this season. If Knebel pitches at an all-star level again this season, it is reasonable to expect him to get approximately $15-$18 million through arbitration his final two seasons combined before hitting the open market. Knebel is a key contributor to our shutdown bullpen, but is it worth it for the Brewers to pay one bullpen guy around $7 million for the 2020 season? With the contracts top free agent relievers are getting in the free agent market, moving a cheap controllable bullpen arm such as Knebel could fetch a reasonable haul. If the Brewers were to look at trading Knebel, would it be wise to trade him now since he has 3 years of control and is making a fairly reasonable $5 million this season? Should they wait and look to trade him next offseason when he’s more expensive, but with one less year of control? I am curious on where people stand with Knebel in regards to what route the Brewers should go with him. Would you look to trade Knebel now, next offseason, or ride it out with him? Also, if we were to trade him now or next offseason, what could we expect for a return?

Against RHP: CF Cain RF Gamel LF Yelich 3B Shaw C Grandal 1B Aguilar 2B Spangenberg SS Arcia P Against LHP CF Cain LF Braun RF Yelich 1B Aguilar C Grandal 2B Perez 3B Shaw SS Arcia P I wonder if the Brewers will give Shaw a chance to play against lefties early in the year. If not, I feel that Moose is an option to return and play third with Shaw moving over to second against righties. If Moose signs somewhere else, they could bring in a right handed hitting third baseman to platoon with Shaw. Danny Valencia is a solid option to platoon with Shaw and should only cost a couple million. He is a fantastic hitter against lefties.

I’m absolutely overjoyed that Jayme Closs was found alive. I followed the case very closely and always believed that she was still alive. Hopefully Jayme is able to fully recover from this traumatic event. With all of the unconditional love and support that Jayme will get from her family and the Barron community, she will receive the best care needed to help her recover. The reunification of Jayme, her family, and her dog in Barron is going to be something special.

If it’s just a 2B only type I agree, but a guy like Marwin ginzalez would make sense for a multi year deal with his positional versatility. Hiura is no sure thing either so it’s insurance there but he can also play 3B and OF (for if/when Braun/Cain get hurt need days off). He could be our Zobrist. This is where I am. There will be injuries and rest needed for different guys during the season. Gonzalez can start at 2nd and be mostly an everyday guy playing all over the diamond if/when Hiura arrives this season. He is also insurance incase Arcia struggles again this year. Gonzalez seems like a perfect fit.

I wonder if Danny Valencia would be of interest? He would strictly be a platoon guy that mashes lefties. He can play third, first, or right field if need be to get his bat in the lineup. He’s a career .312(!) hitter against lefties with an OPS of .864. He wouldn’t be my top choice, but getting him on a one year $2 million contract to be the platoon guy with Shaw at third could be appealing. He would be an inexpensive option to consider if the Brewers are creeping toward the high end of where they want to start the season payroll at.

Really like this trade. Adding a bullpen guy that can hit 100, a young pitcher in Hill with a solid changeup and slider to go along with his 95 mph fastball, and a very young prospect in Valerio that performed well in his first taste of the Dominican Summer League. I am very intrigued by Valerio and what he accomplished at the age of 17 playing in the DSL. He hit over .300, had an OBP over .400, and hit 3 homeruns. 3 doesn’t sound like much, but this is a 17 year old kid playing against other guys in the 17-22 range. Him driving the ball as well as he does is hopefully from a knack of barreling up the ball. Once he matures and fills out his frame, he could tap into even more power. Valerio has also walked more than he has struck out, which is a huge plus. Having a fielding percentage of nearly 99% at that age is very impressive as well. I think we will be hearing plenty more about this kid and I am excited to follow his progress the next few years through the minor leagues.

Wow, very surprised that we got Grandal on a one year deal. Not being tied into a long term deal is big in that it allows us to have a solid amount of payroll flexibility next offseason. I would think that Thames will be on the move shortly to offset the signing a little bit. If the season goes south, Grandal could easily be moved for a couple prospects midseason. Hopefully we have a long playoff run, but it is a solid option to have if things don’t fall our way. What is the payroll at after signing Grandal?

There is a 100% chance of something happening. Not sure if it will be now or next offseason. He will go somewhere though. If for some reason he doesn’t get moved (which he will), that percent drops to 0%. Things can change quickly. It’s getting pretty wild. You won’t like who’s being mentioned in the trade, but I can’t tell you who it is. And don’t ask for any hints! Things are pretty fluid right now though, check back tonight at 9 for an update Joey.

Maybe the “expert” thought Bumgarner had 3 years of control still

One of the experts on MLB Network believes that a fair trade between the Giants and Brewers would be Madison Bumgarner for Corbin Burnes or Freddy Peralta PLUS Corey Ray...

How about instead of one or the other, we sign both Moustakas and Dozier to one year deals? Injuries will arise and allow plenty of at bats for all the guys. Depending on matchups, who’s hot at the time, and individual performance during the season, there are plenty of creative ways to get certain guys in the lineup. Against lefties, Aguilar is at first with Dozier at second and Moose at third. Against righties, Moose is at third and Shaw slides over to second or first depending on how Aguilar or Dozier has been playing lately. Even Thames could play first if he is still here with Shaw at second and Moose at third. Against lefties: CF Cain 2B Dozier RF Yelich LF Braun 1B Aguilar 3B Moose C Pina SS Arcia P Against righties: CF Cain LF Gamel RF Yelich 2B Shaw 3B Moose 1B Thames C Pina SS Arcia P Dozier could slot into the two hole, removing Thames from the lineup, moving Shaw to first, and sliding Gamel down to 6th in the order if he is hitting well. If you roll out this lineup and a team brings in a lefty, you have Braun to pinch hit and come in to play left or first, Aguilar, Perez to play anywhere, and Dozier. I would feel pretty good about our offense if we pulled this off. Our bench depth would allow us to bring in quality guys for pinch hitting or for double switching at any point in the game. I think it is very realistic to acquire both of them and don’t see either of them receiving multi year offers that will price us out of their market.

Pat Fitzgerald has turned down the interview with the Packers for their head coaching position. Fitzgerald’s agent Bryan Harlan spoke with Chicago Tribune’s Teddy Greenstein and stated that Fitzgerald will not be interviewing for any head coaching position in the NFL.

Makes me wonder if there might be a "wink nod" deal already in place between McDaniels and the Packers. I know many higher ups see McDanials to the Packers as pretty much a foregone conclusion. I think it’s more of he doesn’t want to leave New England unless it’s for another highly successful/high class organization. Coaching Cincinnati isn’t as appealing as being the head coach of arguably the most historic franchise in the game.

Since we haven’t heard much about Kikuchi being of significant interest to the Brewers, is it fair to assume that he will sign here? It’s all quiet on the Brewers front, just the way Stearns likes it until the move is official.

Grandal has never had a below average offensive season and Pina has never had an above average offensive season. I don't necessarily want Grandal but he's a pretty significant upgrade over Pina offensively while still being an above average defender. And Grandal is a year and a half younger to boot. There are better ways to improve the roster than to increase payroll by roughly $14 million for a marginal upgrade at catcher. Ramos was a much better hitter and he signed for much less than Grandal. I don’t see Stearns giving Grandal anything close to what he wants if he wouldn’t even offer a two year deal for Ramos. If we are signing a catcher this offseason, it’ll probably be on a one year deal, maybe with a team option for a second season.

I said this last season and got blasted but the Cubs are already on the decline. They made too many bad deals and traded away all of their minor league system. Their window is 2 or 3 years tops at this point. Their last 2 years have been a disaster, they went from a force for a long time in the NL to a really good team with a short window incredibly fast. They won a world series so it was worth it no matter what and they will be serious players for 2 or 3 more years so if they win another it just makes it even more of a win for them, but the way they built the team has seriously taken its toll on their future. Very true. The Cubs really shortened their competitive window with the trades they did the last few years. The Cubs will be a competitive team the next couple years, but they will begin to decline possibly as early as this season.

I don’t see any reason to lock up any of them long term at this point. If there was one I had to pick, I would say Shaw could get another year or two added on. He is only 28 right now and a solid left handed bat in our lineup. Knebel will become way too expensive for us to sign long term. I don’t see Stearns giving him roughly $10 million per year on a long term deal. Guerra is 34(!) next season already. Davies I personally feel will be traded before reaching free agency. He is a solid mid rotation guy, but not worth what he and Boras will demand from Milwaukee to avoid free agency. Pina will be 32 next year and the Brewers already have him through his age 34 season. I don’t see him getting a long term deal through his mid to late 30’s.

Bucks lead 38-37 at the half after only scoring 8 points in the first quarter. Wow.