Jim French Stepstool
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Everything posted by Jim French Stepstool
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They won't go with Ashby in the pen & DL Hall the only other lefty. Nor should they.
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The bench being what it is, I thought Matos was a slightly better fit for the roster. You can justify Jones if he's at least fundamentally sound but he obviously hasn't been.
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Zerpa gave Ozuna too much credit when he fell behind & walked him, Other than that he wasn't all that bad. Reynolds hits a bouncer to 3B if Rengifo wasn't playing the line, so blame the positioning more than anything else.
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What's NOT bugging you? (2020s edition)
Jim French Stepstool replied to hawing's topic in Off-Topic Forum
Back in the day I would have to talk to Spectrum whenever there was an issue. I hated it. My GF (now wife) was used to spending all day on the phone as an administrative assistant so she would volunteer. Since the account was in my name, they would allow her to talk for me by saying she was calling for her 'elderly father'. She'd go through all the different plans on the phone with the rep, and for effect I'd stand within earshot using an old man voice, yelling stuff like "All I want is Wheel of Fortune, and my sports!!! And House!!!" Good times. -
Yep. The Brewers won 97 games last year, and at one point were 25-28. I don't say that to claim that this team is going to go on to win 97 games. I'm saying it because if THAT group can be under .500 one-third of the way through the season, perhaps the '26 team having one regular torpedoed hours before the first game, another one game later & another one fifteen games in shouldn't be thrown under the bus for being 13-12 after 25 games. It's frustrating that despite the watered-down lineup they could/should have a few more wins. But the next 137 will tell a much greater tale than the first two dozen.
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If they build that kind of a lead then God Bless 'em, I guess. Hopefully that doesn't happen. Right now it would be a tall order for the Brewers to go on any kind of a big run. With the lineup as it is they need to stay as consistent as they can & rely on the run prevention mantra. That's what's been a killer---the back-to-back games earlier this month where they scored a combined 13 runs & lost both, and the game Thursday. Those are the ones you have to put in the win column right now.
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I suspect that if the Cubs had a few key players out with injuries, there would be much foreboding from you regarding their imminent return. But you're right. There probably WILL be injuries going forward. Who knows how some of the teams in the NL Central could be effected this summer? I see a rotation in transition. Harrison & more recently Sproat have done some promising things. But they could be asking too much from Misiorowski at this point in his career. I'd say Peralta would look good there right now, but his numbers w/NY so far don't stack up to what most of our starters have turned in (You could say there's a track record there & he's certainly better than what we have. But then that same track record should also be applied to the Brewers' BP, that what they've done isn't indicative.). It could turn out to be 'one of those years'. I've seen teams (as I'm sure you have) that seem to have very few holes put up a 75-87 type season. And groups that aren't expected to do much win 90+. So we'll see. When I look at the top 5-6 spots in the order & half of it missing, and most of the people filling out the bottom half not coming close to even performing at career norms, I think you look at 13-12 and feel like you've missed some opportunities but things could also be a lot worse. Only 137 to go.
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Things aren't going well. But statistically I doubt the first comment is true (eye test wise, maybe) and the second one isn't even close to being true. Injuries, I know, sound like an excuse. But losing one-fifth of your roster is a lot more impactful here than it is at other places. Maybe not if you're talking role guys or bottom half of the order, but: .869. .795. .770. Those are the three OPS #s from last year missing from this lineup. Among the regulars only Brice Turang had a higher one. Fifty-nine HRs. Well over 200 RBI. Throw in a starter & a reliever on the IL. You can say everyone has injuries. But the people they're missing, you can't just absorb it & not miss a beat unless you're one of maybe five or six organizations. And these all happened AFTER they broke camp (except Preister). I'm giving them until people get back & get settled in.
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It's all marketing. I don't like them either, but we're either A) stuck with them or B) they'll be a part of a promotion like Burn the Wisco Jersey Night. All adult fans get a collector Sal Frelick butane lighter. Five or six lucky fans get to go on the field & help ignite the pile of laundry. But probably A. I'm not even putting this in blue. I'd like to see it.
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Promotion Speculation - 2026
Jim French Stepstool replied to Ro Mueller's topic in Brewers Minor League Talk
Two more hits tonight, two ribbies, two runs scored, two walks drawn. -
I don't know how many times over the years that the Brewers were about to face an elite pitcher & an announcer---usually Bill Schroeder---talks about how you need to be aggressive early, you can't get to two strikes, this guy doesn't walk many, blah blah blah. And often it results in said elite pitcher being able to go into the 7th or deeper because of a very tidy pitch count. It's hard to do vs a guy like Skenes, but you absolutely have to figure out a way to lay off the splitter. Hard to do? Yep. But we did a poor job of even attempting it early in the game. The flip side is, he was given every borderline strike in the first 4 innings which makes it even tougher, so I guess it boils down to a 'one of those days' situation. Much better ABs vs Skubal yesterday from the neck up, from the 3rd inning on. Considering the competition I thought Blacks' ABs looked pretty good for a 1st time in the lineup. I know he was victimized by poor defense in his last frame but It looked to me like there were a lot of very, very comfortable ABs vs Drohan. He looks to me like someone who can't get away with so-so command & absolutely HAS to locate.
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Black isn't the greatest fit for the roster since the only place you can semi-trust his glove is at 1B & you already have a LHH there in Bauers. He'll share DH with Sanchez, PR & maybe PH. I'm a little surprised Matos was removed. Not that they'll miss him terribly, but IMO he's a bit better fit than Jones at this time.
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Pretty good call. Hopefully with fewer picks though😁. Maybe Sorgi can knock off Ohio State in the years to come & get revenge for the choke hold on his dad.
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I understand his 40 time is 4.67, which is about avg for an NFL QB. And he's not small--6'4" & a little over 200lb. So ideally someone who can beat you with his arm & feet; pretty important in todays' game.
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I like the bunting because A: They're pretty good at it and B: Forcing people to honor it creates some tougher angles for an INF. I think at times it's gotten into opponents' heads. Keep that up; keep going deep into counts. It's a different kind of pressure than what you can apply when you aren't down 3 bats. Do what you can. Nothing earth-shattering but I think some secondary bats are slowly returning to norm. Rengifo is 4 for his last 15 w/only one K. Frelick 5-14; Hamilton is 6 for his last 12. Even Matos is 3 for his last 11. And Perkins' ABs look much better.
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The previous pitcher (Flores) was all over the place, and on at least two occasions a member of the training staff came out to check on a possible injury. He said he was OK, continued, kept falling behind hitters, then was finally removed with the 1-1 count after walking three. Injured? Or just allergic to the strike zone? Anyway yeah, Fowler was very impressive.
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Apologies if you're referring to something else, but in the 8th Zerpa retired the first man he faced, then had two LHH scheduled. One was hitting over .300 for the season & the other had two hits earlier in the game. So maybe you want to go to a RHP to keep Jahmai Jones on the bench & keep Colt Keith in the game? In that case there are 30 managers in MLB who would love to borrow your crystal ball because I doubt anyone who wants to keep their job would do that. Like someone said in a game thread the other day, not everything has to be someones' fault. Or are you kvetching about something else?
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Big picture, IMO Collins won't be missed much and if he's missed at all right now it's due to an OF who hasn't seen the field yet, and an OF-DH who hasn't played in about 10 days. Mears would be nice as another RHP for the 5th-6th-7th, but if you don't have Zerpa then Ashby's arm might REALLY fall off from overuse.
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My point is, it turned out to be a non-factor today. Skubal had nothing to do with them losing the game. You got to the late innings with a lead, and at that point the mismatch re the two starting pitchers was officially a wash. A couple of failures from your bigger guns, but overall I applaud their approach vs a very tough customer. And I applaud Sproat for righting the ship after a rocky first 4-5 hitters. But sure, you'd always like to avoid an ace if you can.
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.........And another addition. Isaac Riddle, an 18 year-old, 6'8" forward from---you guessed it---Australia. He's mostly played at the 16U & 17U level there, and some tape actually exists. What I've seen is he's got some athleticism & craftiness around the hoop, good feet & hands, can catch, pass & handle the ball pretty well, and has very nice court vision & ability to run the floor. I also saw a need for much more strength & good weight, and virtually all his points came from within 5-10 feet. That might mean he has no outside shot, but it could also mean he had no need to use it in games as the highlights I've seen were against not-so-good competition. Definitely a project, but one that I'm sure cost little to nothing. Worth it as a 5th big this coming year. One roster spot left (if they choose to fill it), and they'd love to use it for Davion Hannah, the Milwaukee kid who decided to leave Alabama.
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I don't know about sending him w/a 3-0 count. I'm not saying it's a bad idea, but the downside is it's a strike but not in a spot Contreras is looking for, he takes it & you make the 2nd out w/the runner still at 3rd. Or a swing and miss, same result. Don't get me wrong. There's logic behind sending Turang. But with less than 2 outs & Contreras hitting I think they felt less reason to get 'cute'. Bottom line, you had Contreras at the plate with one out 1st & 3rd, and Turang with one out bases loaded & came up empty both times.
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I missed much of the game, but one thing this dispels is the "Woe is me, Skubal & Skenes back-to-back" nonsense. The matchup today, if the baseball gods offer you a one run lead in the 8th you take it every time. And in many other matchups too for that matter. What you need to lean on right now, the run prevention, failed late. I guess you could say the randomness of baseball that sometimes rears its' head did so today. A 3 run rally fueled by hits from Rengifo, Matos, Perkins, Ortiz, & Hamilton, otherwise known to some as "The DFA Quintet". Then a chance to add on short-circuited by arguably your best hitter so far this season.
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Wisconsin has added another HS recruit for the 26-27 season by getting a commitment from Josh Manchester of Mount Horeb HS. He's a 6'2"-6'3" off-guard who averaged over 30PPG his SR year playing against smaller school competition. Manchester received some attention but no offers from high-major schools. He had offers from UWGB, Siena, Northern Illinois & East Tennessee State. While he definitely can shoot the ball, the consensus from rectuitnicks is that he's, at best, a stretch to contribute at a level like the B10--release point, speed & overall athleticism are question marks. But he is one of these kids who bleeds cardinal & white and I think the hope is that he can learn to defend, show a work ethic & be the rarest of breeds nowadays---someone who may stick around and after 2 or 3 years actually be ready to contribute, while still being in the program. He's worth a shot, especially since they have (I think) two spots still available if someone else in the portal becomes a possibility.
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That 1-6 is no joke. Not an organizational filler in the group, either.
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I've done this before, and it's very rudimentary in this analytics-based world but I've found it fun: I'll look at a prospects' total numbers in pro ball after he's reached what amounts to more-or-less a full MLB season in games played/PAs. Luis Pena is now there. He's OPSing .857 with a .381 OBP. A total of 180 base hits including 35 doubles, 13 triples & 11 HRs. 107 RBI. Oh, and he's stolen 89 bases. Jesus Made is given much more prospect love & rightfully so. And I realize the #s include a healthy dose of rookie ball. But save for a blip when getting a taste of high-A last year Pena has been consistently remarkable. It looks like it'll be a challenge to get him a place at the table AFA promotion is concerned but at his age it isn't a catastrophe if he stays at Wisconsin for the foreseeable future.
