Joseph Zarr

It appears along with the Baddoo signing, we have a new Minor League signing with a Big League Camp invite: Jones was claimed by the White Sox and spent the majority of his 2025 at Triple-A Charlotte. Verifiable speed merchant: (Full Claim write-up via MLB Trade Rumors HERE)

I guess the only question I have is: But how Baddoo is his MLB output, reallllly?

Really great lil convo. Go straight to the 28:35 minute mark for Minor League Rule 5 discussion. After Rule 5 Master, JJ Cooper (this was his 18th Rule 5 Draft in attendance!) shouts out Hedbert and Zavi he goes straight into his favorite ML Rule 5 pick in one (now) Brewers prospect RHP Cole Phillips. Awesome stuff overall! *HINT: Phillips is rumored to be in line to miss all of 2026!

Now that this is over we can anticipate a bevy of ML FA signings forthcoming. Our inning depth got absolutely pillaged. Spain, Warren, Peterson, and Hedbert played a lot of depth innings last year. Losing the upside of Vire stings.

BTW, I absolutely love the thinking behind taking RHP Cole Phillips. Premium HS draft pick. Elite stuff. Hasn't pitched an inning due to consecutive TJ's. I am sensing a Woodward/Phillips renaissance in 2026.

Seeing the Yankees select Hansel Rincon...I'm hearing they only narrowed in on the player after reading Jim's elaborate and clarifying Transaction posts.

Welcome to Wisconsin Mr. Nick Stanley? It'd be a shame for Nick Stanley to miss out on an inaugural Wilson Warbirds groundbreaking season but a promotion is very much deserved and would be cool to see. It stings to lose Estevez, but seeing Him get an opportunity on the Nationals staff (a staff that also features old Brewer Corey Ray) is truly Sweeeeet.

Well deserved! Awesome to see them get the organization-wide recognition they deserve

All good. Agreed.

I don't think calling him Jeff Janis is an insult. He's a field stretching TE. I simply want the Packers to use him to his strengths and it appears they are starting to do that more frequently. I thought that was his best game as a Packer.

I saw it move after he went to the ground but that was when the ball moved on his body. Perhaps it indeed moved or hit the ground to bounce back to that position? But, yeah, I guess not enough looks at it.

A day after and I'm still in disbelief they overturned Williams INT and Musgrave's grab. Was there any shred of real concrete evidence either ball in fact hit the ground? It's encouraging to see the coaching staff now sending Musgrave on these deeper routes more often. It is his specialty. It is where he can really impact games. That catch was incredible and I still believe that was a catch. Am I just missing it?

Both Made and Pena appear to offer quite a bit more projectable offensive potency than Pratt - especially when we factor in age with the output. According to Ben Badler of Baseball America, scouts are fairly divided on Pratt as a whole and especially when it comes to his bat. His defense, as a whole at SS, is largely considered his calling card to MLB ascendancy and the bat remains a mystery - tho, we do obviously see pull power from time-to-time it just isn't consistent nor is the hard contact consistent in any lasting manner as of now. Could he go the route of Turang in that regard? Sure. How likely that is is unknown. What's funny to me is I came into the 2025 season (and throughout the first 1.5 months) with Pratt as my clear SS #1 in the system. I made some outlandish statements overlooking Made's youth and over focusing on his rough edges and mental mistakes. Not a good look for me but I certainly learned to not look the prospect gift horse in the mouth, so to speak. It's important to remain open to possibilities while also understanding age implications not to mention the immensely long breadth of a baseball season. By season's end ,Made had leapfrogged Pratt for me. He's just a different level of human. IF Made can dial in the erratic throws across the diamond (he absolutely has the arm), he offers an entirely different level of athleticism and agility to the position. He really made some unbelievably athletic plays there as his season progressed. I think it's unrealistic to expect all three of Made/Pena/Pratt to achieve everyday MLB duties. Is it possible? Sure. Is it likely? I think not. I personally think Pena's best position down the line is likely 3B - cannon arm, uber athletic, incredible bat-to-ball profile, while limiting his range responsibilities and hopefully minimizing those uncomfortable moments (I personally don't think defense comes natural to him). Regardless, of the three Made is only the clear 'untouchable' prospect by my eyes. He is a crowned jewel. This being said, thankfully, the Brewers aren't in a position where they need to move on from any of the three. I personally hope they play this out as long as they can to continue discovering what untapped levels of play these talented three can reach. Given the nature of Made's bat, tho, he is on a fast track to the 40-Man. His bat and his switch-hitting profile is on another level and it has actually improved its impact with each successive promotion. He's different in all the best ways.

Always great to beat the Bears. Officials blowing calls repeatedly (what's new?) and refusing to call a single holding call is something. McManus kick off brain farts and execution blunders are a real problem. Touchbacks happen way too frequently. That kick out of bounds after responding with the TD to go up 10 (I think?) was just all sorts of face palm. Anywho, always great to beat the Cubs.

Old friend, OF Ben Gamel, gets another opportunity to try and get back on an MLB roster after an injury filled (albeit impactful) 2025:

RIP Elden Campbell. Man, what a tragic freakish medical event and terminal result. Ugh. I feel for His family and close Ones. I fondly remember watching him on the Lakers and those Hornets squads. Even won a ring with one of those Pistons teams.

The obvious target with this current absolutely electric Bucks backcourt is SF Jalen Johnson of the Hawks. Absolutely not Trae Young - those proposed trades at ESPN were predictably nauseating. You get a Johnson plus one additional young meaningful player and premium draft picks then you are trending toward exciting young basketball. This is Giannis we are talking about. This is not a fore sale for crying out loud. From there, develop the timeline to blow up the FO and coaching staff. New visions to grow a young nucleus. Can not have Horts and Doc in the fold at the draft. At all. As I said previously, I am prepared for the Bucks to absolutely underwhelm.

And so it begins... Or, according to Windy, so it continues... Sighs. It feels like just yesterday our young Buckaroo was just tasting smoothies and frozen yogurt for the first time! As stated above, I fully anticipate the Bucks to absolutely scree the pooch on compensation. Holding iut the slimmest amount of hope they get the sweetheart Mavs Doncic deal. Can not for the life of me, however, believe there is a world whereby the Bucks ship off the Legendary HOF Once in a Lifetime G-Man while keeping a roster with Kooooooooz and Bobby. And, alas, here we are. I got Horts n Haslam all up in muh Bucks life!😅

BUMP: Ponce signs for a 3 yr/$30M USD fully guaranteed contract. Cash in, young man! (31 is indeed young to this middle aged farmer. What a career move for Him!

I would love to know what the SLG and general HR numbers were at Knoxville. First year for the Smokies in that new stadium and recall the announcers repeatedly saying how power hitter unfriendly their new Home stadium was proving to be. Made Burke's power surge there all that more impressive.

TE Luke Musgrave's ability to immediately fall down upon any amount of physical contact is truly a sight to behold. This 'block' is amazing. If he were just a touch more physical...as he is? Man. Just man.

I remember that quite well. I agree on your overall sentiments of the multi-faceted manner of trying to assess an MLB draft and we know the Brewers love strategizing their Bonus Pool monies in real time. It certainly isn't an exact science. When it comes to Payne, specifically, I only want two things for Him next year: (1) Consistent health and GP (2) A comfortable and healthy looking swing I feel like last season was quite challenging to judge objectively and I almost toss it aside. He suffered some truly bizarre and unfortunate injuries. Started out on par with others in that red hit opening month. The injuries piled up. He struggled finding his purest swing throughout by my eyes. If he can stay healthy amd then find that swing identity consistently he's back meaningfully in the LT picture. We have the time given his age and his relative inexperience. And, I personally don't think we have a single reason to doubt his work ethic and commitment - it's a big plus attribute. I'm hoping for bug bounce back performances from both he and Bitonti. Both young men who truly care - and maybe, at times, so much they press and lose themselves. Hopefully with maturity they can fine tune thatz

Agreed. Lara's defense is Turang 2B level but for a much more premium position. He is legitimately a highlight reel on a game-by-game basis. He has just as good an arm as Frelick too. He just turned 21 (11/17) swiped 44 bags. Has a very good OPS for a 20-year-old in the OPS maligned Southern League. Has a very disciplined BB:K ratio. Switch Hits. There is no Brewers world I live in where I don't view Him as, in the very least, a meaningful rotational OF member on the MLB club. AND, we know Pat Murphy absolutely loves Him - and for very good reason. He positively impacts the game in many many ways. With an org placing such an emphasis on plus defense, we could quite easily argue he is the best pure defender in the entire system.

Which also wasn't all that long ago. Amazing time to be a fan of the Brewers organization - definitively, for me at least, just not really solely focused on the MLB team. That's the eye candy high-paying fruit for fans - we all obviously love the MLB Brewers and hope for that World Series opportunity (or opportunities) - but what they are doing on an organizational level is absurdly impressive and simply deserves our admiration and appreciation. They just lost some pitching coaches and coaches who brought their career journeys elsewhere for new opportunities. Will they promote within? Promote within and hire from elsewhere? I expect Arnold and his greater staff to keep humming along with their incredible systems in place - finding more talent to add in to their current and extant mix of managerial and coaching talent. We are in the Golden era as nerds. It is incredible.

Well, he did delete all tweets dating back to 2021 after last night's debacle in Capita(c)l(e). He is listed as an 'NBA Level Athlete' - I don't really visit twitter at all but a small bit during the MiLB season. Did he always list himself this way? I think the NBA higher ups made it quite clear with the way they've manipulated the whistle of Bucks opponents this season: you may not like it but we need you in a bigger market to close your career. All the groundwork was laid by Shams in the off-season. This is blatantly obvious and the NBA knows they have Haslam and Horts to screw anything and everything up beyond Hort's ability to find meaningful fringe FA and UDFA roster additions. SO, given that this certainly appears to be the way this is headed - Bucks paying three coaches and employing the worst HC and coaching staff (very arguably) in the NBA - while completely fumbling Giannis' late years as a Buck driving Him to request a trade, I have to lean on Horts and his general incompetence (certainly his lack of autonomy to execute GM duties - I think we all know he has stayed as long as he has because he is a consummate 'Yes' man fall guy personality). The team I keep hearing that matches up best is Atlanta - their young assets and their draft capital. The obvious headliner would be Jalen Johnson and some premium draft capital. Given this, I can't help but think Horts will do right by his aging superstar and headline around Kennard and Porzingis and a handful of second rounders. Feels on brand. Maybe then sign Glenn to a three year extension to give Him a chance fight for that coveted play-in scenario? Spit balling here. Either way, I'll be extremely happy for Giannis if he can find a workable scenario giving him another chance at rings. This organization never deserved his amazingness but man did we luck out and he gave us fans an unlikely Championship ring - never ever thought I'd see that day in my lifetime - and did he give his heart and Soul as a representative of the city. I fully expect the Bucks and their higher ups to absolutely undoubtedly fumble this entire situation magnificently. Never. Trust. The. Bucks. I have clearly thrown in the towel. 😅 Here I was just hoping and praying we could get Buy-Out Khash back in the fold for a run...Glenn can't even manage that. Good god he is such a tragically bad NBA basketball coach.