Ron Robinsons Beard

Claudio also pitches with his left hand.

I don't see Anderson with a huge chip on his shoulder as a bad thing at all. The guy has proven to be a very good pitcher when he's on. With basically three rookies in the rotation, and a pitcher in Davies who is just as much of an inconsistency and probably more of an injury risk, I think we'll see Anderson making starts probably sooner than later.

I think this is probably way more spot on than any of this Kimbrel talk. Will Smith makes a ton of sense.

Per a Tweet from James Jones, Jordy Nelson is calling it a career. And quite the career it was. One heck of a receiver in his prime. Now hopefully the "Jordy to GB" talk will cease.

Ever since Stearns became GM, he's poured over DFA's and low-level free agents at this time of year, and pretty consistently has turned over the 24th-25th man right before the start of the season. If they see a guy out there and theoretically is better than Thames or Barnes/Williams, they could very well make a move. I don't think that is any indication that Kimbrel is on his way, though. In fact, I would HIGHLY doubt that Kimbrel would immediately be added to the 25-man roster even if he's signed. He may be keeping himself is some sort of shape, but he still missed all of Spring Training. I don't mean to pee in anyone's Cheerios, but we gotta look at this logically. Stearns should’ve kept his mouth shut on this one, if what you say is correct. This team needs a closer that can be counted on, and I’m pretty confident in saying we’re not gonna get that with the waiver wire pick up, why take a chance on this being our Achilles’ heel? Should have kept his mouth shut? I think there is WAY too much being read into what is probably a throw-away quote. With Stearns there is always the possibility of an outside acquisition to the 25-man roster.

Ever since Stearns became GM, he's poured over DFA's and low-level free agents at this time of year, and pretty consistently has turned over the 24th-25th man right before the start of the season. If they see a guy out there and theoretically is better than Thames or Barnes/Williams, they could very well make a move. I don't think that is any indication that Kimbrel is on his way, though. In fact, I would HIGHLY doubt that Kimbrel would immediately be added to the 25-man roster even if he's signed. He may be keeping himself is some sort of shape, but he still missed all of Spring Training. I don't mean to pee in anyone's Cheerios, but we gotta look at this logically. Logically speaking, I don’t think we know the answer to this I mean you could be right with the waiver wire etc. but The timing also makes sense with Kimbrel not wanting to sit any longer And start playing baseball again. Still, I think I can say with 100% certainty that Kimbrel would not be immediately added to the 25-man roster if signed, as you can't just show up and immediately pitch high-leverage big league innings without any sort of spring training. That leads me to believe that Stearns is not referring to Kimbrel.

Ever since Stearns became GM, he's poured over DFA's and low-level free agents at this time of year, and pretty consistently has turned over the 24th-25th man right before the start of the season. If they see a guy out there and theoretically is better than Thames or Barnes/Williams, they could very well make a move. I don't think that is any indication that Kimbrel is on his way, though. In fact, I would HIGHLY doubt that Kimbrel would immediately be added to the 25-man roster even if he's signed. He may be keeping himself is some sort of shape, but he still missed all of Spring Training. I don't mean to pee in anyone's Cheerios, but we gotta look at this logically.

Yeah, Counsell's slide was about as blatant interference as you're going to see. But that was circa 2010, when interference wasn't on the rule books. They might have actually called him for being out of the base line. I think the result would have been the same either way.

Those three young guys are going to be fun to follow this year. Picking up an arm like Perdomo, especially with the dearth of power lefties in the system, was a genius move. I think Sanchez is going to play a big role in the pen this year too.

Yeah, Counsell's slide was about as blatant interference as you're going to see.

JJ's agent posted this over in the minor league thread on Sunday: agent39 Rehab moved up 2 days. Throwing in an extended game 29th. Them well see. Fyi guys

I know this is the optimism thread and I surely am optimistic about the Brewers this year. I do think they had a good off season, but better than last year?? They got Cain and Yelich last year in the off season. Hard to top that! We still have Cain and Yelich. He's not saying this past offseason is better than last year. He's saying this year's team is better than last year's.

Id take aguilars mean of last year for 600k every day! Me too! I had a tough time coming up with an offensive player who wouldn't shine. This offense has the chance to be very, very good.

This thread is always the truest sign that spring has spring! Who needs robins (unless they are of the Yount variety?)

This is a really nice, deep system. I pushed it out to 40, and there are still a bunch of guys who are very intriguing. 1 Keston Hiura, 2B - Will he see MLB this year? Might have to the bat to help down the stretch run. 2 Corey Ray, OF - Another guy who could see MLB time this year, or could be used as a solid trade chip. 3 Tristen Lutz, OF - I think he's the future of the MLB outfield. Him making the majors would coincide nicely with the end of Cain's run. 4 Tyrone Taylor OF - I think he's the first OF called up should the need arise. Solid bat and defense at all 3 OF positions. Good pop too. 5 Aaron Ashby, LHP - This system has a huge need for impact lefties, and Ashby is the best of the small bunch. 6 Zach Brown, RHP - He's going to see MLB time this year at some point I think. 7 Drew Rasmussen, RHP - Under the radar guy could be a quick mover. Great value pick last year, as he's got 1st round talent. 8 Adam Hill, RHP - Trade acquisition (Broxton) is going to make up for the pain of losing Wahl for the year. 9 Jacob Nottingham, C - Big year for him. If he can't solidify himself as the C of the future, it's back to the FA drawing board at that position in 2020. 10 Trey Supak, RHP - Needs to be consistent after a break-out year. Hopefully he sees AAA quick, and it one call away from an MLB job. 11 Joe Gray, OF - Young, super-toolsy OF needs to establish himself as a high-end prospect. 12 Je’Von Ward, OF - Ditto to Gray. Ward has a ton of Monte Harrison potential in him. 13 Brice Turang, SS - Defense is there, but can he hit enough to be a high-end prospect? 14 Noah Zavalos, RHP - Trade acquisition (Santana) profiles as a fun pitcher to follow. 15 Mauricio Dubon, SS - One Moose/Arcia injury from a lot of MLB work. 16 Lucas Erceg, 3B - Huge year at AAA for him. Can he fix the bat? 17 Braden Webb, RHP - Needs to capitalize on great second half of last year. 18 Adrian Houser RHP - Downgraded a bit because of age, but he's got a flamethrower that profiles in the pen well. Looks like he's going to be a starter at San Antonio. Probably first pitcher to be brought up when needed. 19 Bubba Derby, RHP - Big year for Bubba. Time to prove Stearns won the Khris Davis deal. 20 Jake Gatewood, 1B - Hopefully he can make it back from that horrible knee injury and make an impact this year. 21 Troy Stokes Jr., OF - Nice power, but the size and crappy average are scary. 22 Micah Bello, OF - This system is filled with talented OF prospects. Hopefully Bello establishes himself better this year. 23 Trent Grisham, OF - How the mighty have fallen. Grisham needs to improve, or he might be out of the org soon. 24 Jon Olczak, RHP - Solid relief candidate. Fun guy to root for. 25 Cody Ponce, RHP - Underachiever so far, but has the stuff to put it together. 26 Caden Lemons, RHP - Gotta let these young guys fly sometime. Gotta pull the training wheels off. 27 Peyton Henry, C - Really improved his defense last year. Will this year be the offensive breakout? 28 Marcos Diplan, RHP - Saw a lot of Spring Training innings, and looks like a fun future reliever. 29 Mario Feliciano, C - Still young, but hasn't done much of note so far. 30 Wes Wilson, 2B - Nice numbers, but does he have a position where he isn't going to be a liability? 31 Chad McClanahan, 1B/OF - Another young guy who has all the talent in the world, but is treading water. Time to pick it up. 32 Reese Olson, RHP - Later round bonus baby last year. Paid him almost $1/2 million for a reason. 33 Lun Zhao, RHP - Super, duper young but talented. 34 Max McDowell, C - Terrific defense will get him to MLB someday. Will there ever be enough offense to keep him there? 35 Angel Perdomo, LHP - Fun waiver add in the offseason who could end up being a steal. Showed some great stuff in Spring Training. 36 Thomas Jankins, RHP - Pitched really well at the end of the year. Can he capitalize on it? 37 Cam Roegner, LHP - Crafty lefty will be 26 in June. It's time to see him in AAA full time. If he can't be effective, it may be time to move on. 38 Nate Kirby, LHP - The Brewers spent a high pick on him, and he's pretty much been hurt ever since. Already 25. Time to get him in AA, let him start and see what you have. 39 Conor Harber, RHP - Another one of those "maybe" pitchers that looks really good for stretches. Edit: Cut today. D'oh! 40 Jake Hager, SS - I hope he sees time at AAA, but might be tough with Hiura, Dubon, Erceg, Orf and Saladino kicking around.

My 2019 Brewers Predictions: Win-Loss Record: 97-65 Playoffs (Yes, No): Yes, Central Champs Highest Playoff Level Achieved: World Series All-Star Game Representative(s): Yelich, Shaw, Grandal, Hader, Woodruff Offensive Player of the Year: Shaw Starting Pitcher of the Year: Woodruff (18-10, 2.86 ERA) Relief Pitcher of the Year: Hader Most Surprising Player: Braun. I think he starts a little slow, then heats up after the AS break to the tune of an overall .300 AVG, 32 HRs, 100 RBIs. I also think Taylor Williams is going to break out as a high-end leverage-innings reliever this year. Most Disappointing Player: Aguilar. I think he still puts up solid numbers, but ends up leveling off at somewhere between his 2018 first half and second half stats.

I am of the belief that Tyler Saladino and Tyrone Taylor are likely the first ones off the 40 man if a signing/acquisition occurs. Spangenburg is a better hitter than Saladino and can play both INF and OF. I get it with Saladino, but they seem pretty high on Taylor. I would imagine Aaron Wilkerson and maybe Jake Petricka would be lower on the totem pole than Taylor.

Scares me too. Hoping that was just a blip, and JJ will be back throwing his typical mid-90s stuff by mid-April. Perhaps that is overly naive and optimistic, but I'm a big JJ guy and want to see him succeed. Don't sleep on Taylor Williams. Upper 90s heat with great breaking stuff. His trouble has been consistently finding the zone. I'm hoping that coming back healthy and another year removed from TJ surgery will help him with his consistency.

That's where I see things as well regarding Kimbrel. Slow-playing this, if that is what Stearns is doing, is the right course of action I think in this case. It is entirely possible that the Brewers have the only offer out there fort Kimbrel, and he's waiting for the dust to settle this week as far as cuts/injuries/DFAs before deciding what he wants to do. In the end, the Brewers probably make the most sense for Kimbrel, and Kimbrel makes the most sense for the Brewers. But things don't always line up, no matter how many of the dots connect.

I get it ... just saying that there might just be a limit to how much proactiveness they can accomplish.

I don't know ... I think signing the best catcher on the market, then signing the best 3B on the market, only to play him at 2B, is pretty dang proactive for a team that won 96 games and didn't really lose a ton during the offseason.

Of course. There is a pretty big ideological difference though, between Stearns asking Attanasio to stretch the budget, and Attanasio going above Stearns to sign a guy that Stearns advised against due to cost. Of course, this is all hypothetical speculation, though.

Asking that Attanasio go above Stearns' head to sign a reliever I think could be lunacy as well.

Regardless of if the Brewers can afford Kimbrel, it is still in their best interest to assign a value to him, and not exceed that. If he is unwilling to sign for the amount that the Brewers deem he's worth (not what we as fans think he's worth), you move on.

I have three questions. Am I the only one that thinks Brandon Woodruff looks like Jimmy Nelson when he pitches? Who has the most upside of our three young guns? Am I the only one that thinks Freddy is going to throw a no-hitter at some point in the future? 1. No, i think Woodruff and Nelson have a lot of similarities. Nelson has better breaking stuff and is more consistent (before the injury anyway), but he was older too. I think Woodruff breaks out in a big way. 2. Personally I love all three. I'd say Peralta has the highest ceiling, but also the lowest floor. Burnes I think is going to be a consistent #2-3 starter type. 3. That wouldn't surprise me. When he's on, it's tough to square up on him.