long ball

Fielding bible had Yelich at -7 runs defensively based on his arm. (He graded out above average overall due to range). You do make a fair a fair observation that OF arm may be less important in today’s game due to lower OBP and fewer balls in play. For the brewers though, doubling down on run prevention through defense is probably a good route since they don’t really have the payroll space to add TOR starters.

I love Brantley’s bat and I think adding a corner outfielder is an underrated way to improve this position player group for 2019. Brantley isn’t a particularly strong defender. -4 in outs above average and DRS has his arm rated as roughly average in LF. So I’m not thrilled about playing Yelich in RF full time where his arm doesn’t really play. Don’t get me wrong. I’d be excited if they signed Brantley, but it might not be the most effecient way to improve.

I browsed through that post this morning. I didn’t read the write ups but did take note of the contract predictions. Some of them are cringeworthy. When I did the free agent crowdsourcing stuff over at fangraphs I was significantly lower than most of these. Maybe I’m a prisoner of last offseason but some of those are nutty. Outside of like 4 guys I don’t see any contracts of 4+ years I agree that the price tag on Pollock would be very appealing even if it means basically punting on Braun as a primary starter.

That's still another feast-or-famine type of hitter. The Crew's Achilles heel was moving runners over, and making contact. Mazieka could cost as little as a Rule 5 pick. Granted, he would be committed to the 25-man, but if he is a good average hitter, with good OBP skills... it's a huge gain. Admittedly I know nothing about him outside of what I have read in your posts, a quick read of a spotlight post from Baseball Prospectus from this season, and his stats page. His offensive profile is interesting even though he struggled in AA this season, but had a low BABIP. He hasn't played above AA though and his defense isn't strong (per the BP snippet I read). I'm just not sure the Brewers will make a selection in the rule 5 draft much less stick with a rule 5 draftee the full season. It's an interesting name though.

The Fangraphs positional adjustment is factored into that rating. He starts out as a + just for lining up at 2b/SS/3b. Having said that, I think you're making a valid argument. I haven't personally watched Cabrera much nor paid much attention to his defensive ability/athleticism when the Brewers have played the Mets. If he's reasonably athletic and doesn't rack up a ton of errors I could see the Brewers positioning help enough to grade out as a neutral defender.

Personally, I would move on from Schoop unless they're able to negotiate a lower salary. I think they can do better than Schoop on a 1/10 type deal. Jed Lowrie would be my number one target. Has some positional flexibility if/when Hiura comes up in 2019 and beyond. Switch hitter. Played in a ton of games the last couple seasons. Good BB% and K%. Solid defense. He's on the older side so a deal longer than 2 years seems unlikely. Josh Donaldson is also interesting to me. Travis Shaw looked fine at second base in limited action there. I do think if they go with an everyday guy at third base other than Shaw they'll need to find Shaw some PAs at first base which would mean finding a taker for Thames even if it's just to shed salary. Donaldson's calf does make me nervous. If he could be had on a 1/$15 type deal I'd be interested. The Blue Jays traded him in lieu of extending a QO, so I think that offers a little insight to what his perceived cost will be from inside the industry. He's probably their best chance at finding a legit middle of the order impact bat, but definitely comes with the injury risk. Gonzalez would be awesome if they think Hiura will be their everyday second baseman at some point in early 2019. If they're in on Gonzalez they can probably non-tender Perez and go with Saladino or Dubon as the other back up infielder to start the year. Then once Hiura is up Gonzalez is your super sub all over the diamond and gets 500+ PAs. Murphy would be a passable option if they think Hiura is going to be their guy from May on. Start him every day at second base until Hiura is called up and then get him a bunch of PAs at first base. No question he can hit, but he can't run the bases and can't field. Moustakas would be ok because of familiarity. Machado is never going to happen. Kang doesn't even have a work visa approved because of the DUIs in South Korea. The other guys I'm not all that interested in for varying reasons.

I saw someone on twitter yesterday bring up Austin Hedges from SD. SD now has Mejia and they may be open to moving Hedges. Hedges has some things to like. Solid power. great arm. really good overall defense. K% is high and BB% is low so that isn't super inspiring, but the rest of the skills are pretty interesting for a time share type role with Pina.

I don’t think they really wanted to pay him $3m either, but overall that’s a strong point. Outside of payroll considerations, they have just 25 roster spots. Lyles is fine, but offers no flexibility in the last spot of the bullpen. Going to need the tripe A express again in 2019.

This sucks. I was legitimately taken aback when I saw the tweet. With follow up tweets from the Brewers beat writers, it seems like it was a salary thing. Him leaving for more money makes me feel a lot more comfortable than it being a culture or philosophical issue. They’ll find another pitching coach. Hopefully they’re investing in some high speed cameras for Miller Park and Maryvale too.

I'm bored at work so this is pretty much where I'm at: -Non-tender Schoop is the biggest thing -I didn't list trade targets I'm interested in since we don't have a great idea of who will likely be available\ -If they're unable to move the salaries of Anderson and/or Thames I am concerned with their financial flexibility. I don't know how high they'll push the opening day payroll. $110-120m feels about right, but I don't really have any basis other than historically where they've maxed out.

More so that it's difficult to work out 2 major block buster trades with the same team in a 1 year span. I'm sure the Marlins and Brewers discussed, Burnes, Woodruff, Hiura, etc during the Yelich trade. There are likely reasons from both sides why they weren't included in the previous large trade. I'm not saying the Marlins and Brewers will never talk shop again, but I can't see two major trades happening between them right now.

Grandal/Ramos: probably out of the question given where the payroll is at. Realmuto: Prospect/young player cost would be too high. I also don't know if the Marlins would be eager to deal with the Brewers given they probably already got some of their favorite players from the Brewers in the Yelich trade and the early returns on that haven't been great. Luc/Maldy: pass. Not really an upgrade over what they already have in place I voted for Pina + Kratz or Nottingham. Makes the most sense in the context of where they're at payroll wise and they seemingly value defense highly. If they really want an offensive upgrade, Kurt Suzuki on a 1 year deal might be a decent option.

If they do offer arbitration to Schoop I just don't see much payroll space to do much of anything in terms of free agency. That would put the payroll at ~$115m before any other moves. If they keep Schoop they probably need to find a way to move some salary. Thames or Anderson makes most sense since they're both a little redundant on this roster, but their contracts aren't immovable. Knebel possibly as a more darkhorse trade candidate.

0% chance they give Miley a QO and he doesn't warrant one either.

I'm sorta at the point in my "arm chair GM" analysis/wish list of identifying traits that I would target in a player. Lower K%, above average OBP, Good defender, versatile defender, hits high velocity well, makes hard contact at a high rate, etc. I think at this point it's sort of pointless to name specific players since we don't necessarily know who is available outside of players who are already free agents. Even with free agents we don't know what the market will be like. I don't think anyone predicted and off season like last year. That player pool is going to grow after the options are declined/exercised, non-tender deadline, DFAs, etc. Then we will start to hear which players may be available via trade or internationally. Whit Merrifield is a player who has attributes that I like and I think would fit well into this team. That assessment is independent of whether he's available and what the cost of acquisition would be.

it's 50 IP or 45 days of mlb service time (September doesn't count) Per Cot's, Hader had 115 days of mlb service time in 2017. So even removing the 30 days for September he lost rookie status last year.

I'm coming into town for the game tonight. Hopefully Antetokounmpo is good to go tonight. He's listed as questionable with a head contusion. I'm excited to check out the new arena and watch the two best players in the east. EDIT: Giannis is out with a concussion and Kawhi is out for rest. Still an interesting match up to see who can function better without their best player. I'm a little bummed though.

Brantley has an attractive offensive skillset. I’m not sure he fits positionally on the Brewers though without a couple of other moves. I remember him playing first base as a minor leaguer for the Brewers. If the Brewers were interested in doing something at that position he might be an option. I wouldn’t want to commit more than 2 years to him though.

Other than having the quickness to come up on balls in front of him, he has the arm, accuracy, glove at 3B. Shaw looked better at 2B than I would have guessed. Specifically at third, I think Shaw does a really nice job coming in on the ball and making those barehanded plays. That's just my eye test though. I don't think he moves laterally as well as guys like Arrenado, Chapman, Baez, or Rendon though. I don't know if there are publicly available numbers to verify this so I could be wrong.

Would you rather have Hader come in for the 7th inning with a one run lead to face Votto, Gennett, and Suarez or have him come in for the 9th and face a PH, Hamilton, and Peraza? Game situations should dictate how a reliever is used, not "just" because it's the 8th or 8th inning. As you saw, sometimes Hader will pitch the 9th inning. Like game 163 vs the Cubs.

I originally was anti Merrifield, but I've actually come around to the idea. Bring him in as the primary 2b until Hiura is ready then move him into a super sub role where he still gets ~500 PAs/year. I'm sick of Perez and the likes getting so many PAs. Hard to compete with the Dodgers and Cubs when they have significantly better super subs than the Brewers do. Obviously cost of acquisition is a concern with Merrifield, but he's the type of player I'd like the Brewers to add. Lower k rate. Solid on base skills. Good base runner. Solid defender at several positions.

Shaw was just announced as a finalist at 3rd base which is pretty irrelevant since Arrenado will definitely win. I do think Brewers fans tend to underrate Shaw defensively though.

Don't be a slave to the save. Counsell should continue to use Hader when it's most advantageous for the Brewers. Sometimes that will mean 1 inning. Sometimes that will be 2-3 innings. Sometimes the 5th inning. Sometimes the 9th. Honestly, it would be great if they did the same thing with Knebel and JJ next season even though I imagine one of those two will settle into the traditional "closer role" at some point during the regular season.

I wouldn't be surprised if Houser is traded during the off season. Otherwise, he probably has a pretty good chance of making the opening day roster as we saw last year they like to maintain as much depth as possible.

Yeah the only way to keep CC from overplaying Perez is to get rid of him. It’s like when a kid just can’t use a knife yet and ends up doing more harm than good. Perez can be useful, but he’s overused. However, I wouldn’t see Gonzalez as a replacement for Perez until Huiras ready. Gonzslez would make a good super sub but would immediately be the everyday 2B until Huira can be. CC just needs to learn Perez only plays vs LHP until then (hopefully later in 2019) I agree that If they signed Gonzalez he would be the primary 2b until Hiura is ready to take over that role. I'm not sure how aggressive they'll be with promoting Hiura. He was good, but not great after the call up to AA. He could be up as early as late April or he could be up much later in the season. I think Gonzalez probably gets a multi year contract so having a long term plan for him as super sub is what I was getting at.