Jim Goulart

With no official Link Report in place yet, this thread seems as good as any for some exciting news, courtesy of David Weiser and his starsboxscore.com website. David has summarized all the news we've provided here re: the Stars, as well as included other stadium tidbits and such. Check out his site. The Stars will not be on the radio, by the way. All games will be webcast only. (We had mentioned this previously this offseason -- Jim.) Fortunately, there will be some upgrades, if you have internet access........ There will be a game summary page (Gameday), just like the MLB teams do for their games, that will include a graphic showing where each pitch is thrown in relation to the batter, his current stats, photo, and other sugary treats. Look -- it's the same template the MLB uses and all 10 teams in the Southern League have agreed to hire someone to run this feature live for fans. So this is great if you can't attend the games. You can listen and watch the graphics live and have an MLB feel for a minor league game. That's great news -- this was in place at the AAA level last season, and now we'll have it at AA. Not sure if we'll be seeing it in the Florida State, Midwest, or Pioneer Leagues this season. But if our friends in the various front offices wish to let us know, prior to the start of the regular season, please contact me at my jgoulart@brewerfan.net address. One of the things Bud Selig does not get enough credit for is the incredible things happening with MLBAM (MLB Advanced Media), not to mention its apparent profitability, which is reported to be extensive. Just twenty years until I'll be that guy retired to Space Coast Stadium plugging in the Gameday data http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif -- what a great gig for a retiree or college student.

Initially I thought no nicknames should be included. I was under the impression that "Rocky" Roquet's first name is probably Richard or something, but no, it's really Rocky. That's pretty impressive. Will Startup is a pretty darn good baseball name -- if he was Bill Startup or Billy Startup, no, but Will -- I didn't have a problem with that.

From Brett Pollock via Buck Rogers: Buck, one last report from spring training...I had the opportunity to watch both the Stars and Sounds Monday at the Indians complex in Goodyear, which is nestled at the base of the Rockies and adjacent to a huge area where older passenger planes are being converted into cargo planes. It was another gorgeous day, not a cloud in the bright blue sky, and very windy again, which definitely helped a few balls gain some distance and also played havoc with what looked to be a few fairly routine pop ups. Stefan Wilson was the offensive hero for the Stars clubbing two home runs and driving in what turned out to be the go-ahead run in a seven-run sixth inning rally. Brent Krause added a two-out, three-run double during the uprising on a hanging breaking ball. Mike Jones, David Welch and David Johnson all pitched for the Sounds, who lost on a walk-off three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth. Former Stars' outfielder Brendan Katin hit two home runs, including a line drive shot to right-center field that just missed hitting the scoreboard, which is fairly ironic given that most minor league fields at the spring training complexes do not have a scoreboard. Cole Gillespie, Lo Cain and former Stars' utility man Johnny Raburn were all in action in the triple-A game but former Stars' outfielders Matt LaPorta and Michael Brantley were not there, as they joined the Indians for their game against the White Sox. I had dinner with Don Money again, along with Sandy and Mike Guerrero (Sandy's brother and the Brevard County Manatees Manager) and we watched some of the World Baseball Classic. It was a fun trip and good to see some baseball up close and in person..looking forward to the start of the season in two weeks and seeing a great turnout for Opening Day, the first home stand and throughout the entire season. Adios from Phoenix...

Today the Brewers face the Dodgers again in spring action. Nashville and Huntsville will play at home, while Brevard and Wisconsin travel to Glendale. All game times are 1 pm local starts. Well, it's disheartening to see another classic line from the biggest dollar latin signee the Brewers ever made, Rolando Pascual. Brendan Katin and Steffan Wilson just have insane raw power. -- Jim

Helena dropped a lead late to Mahoning Valley and went on to lose 5-3. Seth Lintz started and struck out four in his two innings of work. Andres Martinez and Orton Rodriguez had two hits each for the Brewers. R H E Mahoning Valley 5 5 2 Helena 3 7 1 HELENA AB R H BI Abreu 4 0 1 0 Dedrick 4 0 0 0 Chirinos 4 0 1 0 Arias 4 1 1 0 Requena 4 1 0 0 Robulack 3 0 0 0 Martinez 4 1 2 1 Rodriguez 3 0 2 2 Barrini 4 0 0 0 2B: Chirinos, Martinez 3B: Rodriguez Bitmap IP H R ER BB SO TP Lintz 2 1 0 0 1 4 36 Bitmap Lasker 2 1 1 1 0 1 27 Bitmap Wawrzasek 2 1 0 0 0 3 31 Bitmap Manzanillo 1.2 1 2 2 2 0 36 Bitmap Pascual 0.2 1 2 2 4 1 26

Lake County hung on to beat Wisconsin, 6-5. The Timber Rattlers loaded the bases with one out in the ninth, but the rally was squelched by a double play. Jake Odorizzi was solid in his two innings of work, striking out four hitters and not allowing a baserunner. Mike Marseco had three hits to lead Wisconsin. R H E Lake County 6 9 2 Wisconsin 5 11 4 WISCONSIN AB R H BI Miller 4 0 1 1 Duran 3 1 0 0 Zarraga 1 0 1 1 Lawrie 4 0 1 2 Kjeldgaard 5 0 1 0 Dennis 4 0 0 0 Delaney 4 0 0 0 Roberts 2 0 1 0 Kemp 2 2 2 0 Marseco 4 2 3 0 McPhearson 3 0 1 1 2B: Lawrie, Kemp IP H R ER BB SO TP Ohlmann 1.2 4 2 1 0 3 35 Arnold 1 2 1 1 1 1 16 Odorizzi 2 0 0 0 0 4 31 Krestalude 2.1 2 2 2 1 1 34 Jeffers 2 1 1 0 2 2 42

Brevard County edged Kinston, 7-6. Caleb Gindl had three hits, including a game-winning RBI double for the Manatees. Andy Bouchie and Michael Vass had two hits apiece. Adrian Rosario picked up the win in relief. R H E Kinston 6 11 2 Brevard County 7 12 2 BREVARD CO AB R H BI Haydel 5 0 0 0 Schafer 4 1 1 0 Gindl 5 1 3 1 Bouchie 3 1 2 2 Alfonso 1 0 0 0 Wheeler 4 0 1 0 Miranda 4 0 0 0 Chapman 3 2 1 1 Vass 4 1 2 1 Paciorek 3 1 1 0 Vasquez 3 0 1 2 2B: Gindl 2, Paciorek 3B: Bouchie, Chapman Bitmap Bitmap IP H R ER BB SO TP Bitmap Meadows 2.1 6 3 3 1 0 53 Mercedes 2 2 2 1 2 1 43 Ritchie 1.1 2 1 1 2 1 30 Willinsky 1.2 0 0 0 0 3 17 Rosario 1 1 0 0 2 1 25

Huntsville defeated Akron, 12-4. Josh Butler started and threw three scoreless innings. Steffan Wilson continues to be red-hot this spring by posting a 4-for-5 day and pounding his third and fourth home runs of the spring. Brent Krause added three RBIs and J.R. Hopf and Yohannis Perez had multi-hit games. R H E Huntsville 12 13 0 Akron 4 8 0 HUNTSVILLE AB R H BI Ash 4 0 0 0 Justis 4 1 1 1 Lucroy 4 1 1 0 Rangel 1 0 0 0 Wilson 5 3 4 4 Caufield 4 1 2 0 Fermaint 4 1 0 1 Krause 5 1 1 3 Hopf 3 3 2 1 Perez 3 1 2 2 2B: Wilson, Krause, Justis, Hopf 2, Perez HR: Wilson 2 IP H R ER BB SO TP Butler 3 1 0 0 0 3 34 Hinton 1 1 1 1 0 2 18 Baron 2 3 2 2 0 1 39 Axford 2 2 1 1 0 2 36 Wooten 1 1 0 0 0 1 18

Monday's action: Nashville dropped a slugfest to Columbus, 13-10. Sandy Nin picked up the loss by allowing a three-run home run in the ninth with two outs. Brendan Katin enjoyed a two-home run day on the offensive side. Cole Gillespie continued his solid spring with another 2-4 day. R H E Nashville 10 11 4 Columbus 13 16 2 NASHVILLE AB R H BI Parejo 3 1 2 1 Farris 4 2 0 0 Gillespie 4 2 2 1 Katin 5 2 2 5 Thorman 4 0 0 1 Raburn 4 1 2 0 Brewer 3 2 1 0 Maldonado 4 0 2 2 De La Rosa 4 0 0 0 2B: Gillespie, Brewer, Maldonado 2 3B: Parejo HR: Katin 2 SF: Parejo, Thorman Bitmap Bitmap Bitmap IP H R ER BB SO TP Welch 3 5 2 2 1 0 44 Bateman 1.1 5 3 3 1 0 36 Jones 2 2 1 1 0 1 30 Johnson 1 2 3 1 0 1 27 Nin 1 2 3 3 1 0 17

"Voice of the Stars" Brett Pollock is in Maryvale this week and is sending notes to Huntsville GM Buck Rogers: Saturday's game: (Mat) Gamel made two nice fielding plays in the 7th on grounders hit by Torri Hunter and Juan Rivera; (Alcides) Escobar made a sensational diving grab of a ground ball that looked like a base hit and turned it into the final out in the 8th to keep the game tied at 3; in the 8th, the Brewers infield was composed of all former Stars: Vinny Rottino at 1B, Hernan Iribarren at 2nd; Escobar at SS and Gamel at 3rd, they were joined by Carlos Corporan behind the plate and Tony Gwynn in CF. Gorgeous day here...I'll drop you a line from Maryvale tomorrow. Sunday's game: Alcides Escobar started a 6-4-3 double play to end the 7th inning in spectacular fashion, sliding to his right to field a ground ball on the backhand, which he followed with a backhand toss to Hernan Iribarren, who threw to first to complete the twin-killing. Escobar's play drew a lot of "wow's" and "I'd sure like to see that again on replay" throughout the press box. Myself and all Stars' fans who have watched him for the last year and a half have come to expect plays like that and will have fond memories of him when he is doing that on a regular basis in the big leagues. There were a lot of Giants fans at the game and they got the "let's go Giants" chant going in that 7th inning which spurred the Brewers fans to counter with a "let's go Brewers" chant and the dueling exhortations gave the back and forth game a little added flavor. In the 8th inning, the Brewers' defensive alignment featured Escobar, Iribarren, Mat Gamel, Vinny Rottino catching and Brad Nelson in RF. Nelson continued his impressive spring with a long home run to right-center field against Bobby Howry. Former Stars' 2B Rickie Weeks hit a bomb off of SF starter Jonathan Sanchez in the 3rd inning after former Stars' P Carlos Villanueva drew a leadoff walk. Brae Wright, who led the SL in innings pitched last year, has undergone Tommy John surgery and will miss the 2009 season. Had a nice conversation with new manager Bob Miscik and had dinner with Don Money. Beautiful but extremely windy day Sunday..I'll check in from Goodyear tomorrow after the Stars and Sounds meet the Indians double and triple-A teams.

Gameday Audio Link for MLB Subscribers (Will it be the audio from the FSN feed?) Same link for MLB.TV subscribers Box Score / Gameday Link Media Notes Link includes the following -- ON THE MOUND: Also scheduled to pitch this afternoon (subject to change) is LHP Mitch Stetter, RHP Jorge Julio and LHP Lindsay Gulin. MINOR DETAILS: Joining the team today from minor-league camp is INF Adam Heether (#88), OF Erik Komatsu (#91), OF Adam Stern (#90), RHP Steve Bray (#75), RHP Mike Burns (#99) and RHP Juan Sandoval (#84). CF Tony Gwynn Jr. 2B Craig Counsell 3B Bill Hall RF Brad Nelson C Mike Rivera 1B Mike Lamb LF Chris Duffy SS Alcides Escobar RHP Yovani Gallardo

The Brewers officially returned LHP Sam Narron to minor league camp this past weekend.

The Brewers farm teams face the Indians Monday. Nashville and Huntsville will be at Goodyear, while Brevard County, Wisconsin, and Helena play at home.

Cedar Rapids edged Wisconsin, 9-8. Wisconsin's seven errors played a large role in the close loss. The T-Rats offense was solid, pounding out 14 hits. Michael Vass collected three hits, while Erik Miller, Brett Lawrie, and Derrick Alfonso each had two. R H E Wisconsin 8 14 7 Cedar Rapids 9 8 0 WISCONSIN AB R H BI Miller 5 1 2 2 Komatsu 0 0 0 0 Duran 4 0 1 0 Lawrie 6 0 2 1 Vass 5 1 3 0 Dennis 5 0 0 0 Trejo 4 2 1 0 Delaney 2 2 1 1 Marseco 2 0 1 1 Alfonso 2 2 2 2 Kjeldgaard 2 0 0 0 Kemp 2 0 1 1 Roberts 2 0 0 0 2B: Miller, Trejo, Marseco 3B: Delaney, Alfonso IP H R ER BB SO TP Merklinger 2.1 4 3 2 2 2 47 Nieves 2.2 2 3 2 2 4 40 Rapoza 2 2 2 1 1 1 40 McEwen 2 0 1 0 0 1 31

Brevard County downed Rancho Cucamonga by the score of 7-4. Steffan Wilson hit his second homer in as many days and Stephen Chapman added a two-run dinger to pace the Manatees. Sergio Miranda, Juan Sanchez, and Caleb Gindl each collected two hits. Reed Dickert and Curtis Pasma held the Quakes scoreless in the last three innings to preserve the victory. R H E Brevard County 7 12 2 Rancho Cucamonga 4 9 1 BREVARD CO AB R H BI Haydel 4 1 1 0 Schafer 5 0 1 0 Gindl 4 1 2 1 Wilson 4 1 2 2 Wheeler 4 0 0 0 Bouchie 2 2 1 0 Chapman 3 1 1 2 Miranda 3 1 2 1 Vasquez 2 0 0 0 Zarraga 1 0 0 0 Sanchez 3 0 2 1 George 2 0 0 0 2B: Gindl, Miranda, Bouchie HR: Wilson, Chapman Bitmap Bitmap IP H R ER BB SO TP Bitmap Holliman 3 4 1 1 2 3 52 Wahpepah 0.2 2 2 2 1 0 29 Bowman 2 1 1 1 2 1 28 Dickert 1 1 0 0 0 0 18 Pasma 2 1 0 0 2 0 27

Huntsville and Arkansas tied, 6-6. Shane Justis had two more hits to keep his spring batting average at .500. Chuckie Caufield added two hits, including a double, and also scored a run and knocked in a run. Rafael Lluberes and Derek Miller had scoreless appearances out of the bullpen. R H E Arkansas 6 10 1 Huntsville 6 10 3 HUNTSVILLE AB R H BI Farris 5 1 0 0 Justis 4 1 2 1 Caufield 3 1 2 1 Errecart 2 0 1 0 Hopf 2 0 0 0 Krause 4 0 1 1 Fermaint 3 1 1 0 Whiteside 2 1 1 0 Maldonado 2 1 1 0 Paciorek 3 0 1 1 BraunS 2 0 0 0 2B: Caufield, Fermaint 3B: Paciorek IP H R ER BB SO TP Ginter 3 1 1 0 0 1 38 Green 2 4 2 2 1 3 54 Lluberes 2 0 0 0 0 1 26 MillerD 1 1 0 0 0 1 14 McClendon 1 4 3 3 0 2 33

Nashville defeated Salt Lake, 10-4, on Sunday. The Sounds offense was powered by Scott Thorman's three-hit day, including a three-run home run. Johnny Raburn added a three-run home run of his own. Cole Gillespie doubled, tripled, and scored twice. Brendan Katin drew three walks and scored three times. Jeff Suppan picked up the win with R.J. Swindle and Ryan Houston posting scoreless relief outings. R H E Salt Lake 4 10 3 Nashville 10 9 0 NASHVILLE AB R H BI Cain 3 0 0 0 Heether 2 0 0 0 Abreu 1 1 1 0 Gillespie 3 2 2 1 De La Rosa 1 0 0 0 Katin 1 3 0 0 Thorman 4 2 3 4 Raburn 3 1 1 3 Lucroy 2 0 1 0 Stern 3 1 1 0 Perez 3 0 0 0 Ash 3 0 0 1 2B: Gillespie, Abreu 3B: Gillespie HR: Thorman, Raburn Bitmap Bitmap Bitmap IP H R ER BB SO TP Suppan 5.1 8 4 4 2 5 85 Swindle 1.2 0 0 0 0 1 15 Houston 2 2 0 0 0 3 29

Zelous Wheeler and Maverick Lasker advance to the Sweet 16, thanks to your help! Zelous should smoke Dusty Napoleon next round, despite being a lower seed, but let's not take that for granted. And sorry Callix Crabbe, but we have to vote for the current Brewer in that matchup, so let's go Maverick! (Isn't it too bad Maverick never got to pitch in High Desert? Think about it...) Don't let our kids down, they could meet in the final. Vote here!

Game thread later, but before you head out today, set your DVR, 3:00 PM on FSN.

There are so many Brewer top prospect lists available this time of year, this one's done better than most: Milwaukee Brewers Top-15 Prospects of 2009, No's 1 - 5 Milwaukee Brewers Top-15 Prospects of 2009, No's 6 - 15 As far as BP having the Brewers at 15, given the severe dearth of starting pitching prospects at the upper levels behind Jeremy Jeffress, 15 is actually a bit of a gift, if anything. 15's about right.

Laying Down the Lawrie Brett's new blog for MLB.com....

Couple of quick points -- We are hearing that this deal was extremely minor in nature -- it's not like the Brewers took the $25,000 they did not spend to get Lou Palmisano back and spent it on Sergio Miranda. It was, in effect, nearly a "courtesy" transaction, as in the $1 territory conceptually. A few years back, the Brewers were in need of a AA arm, and after putting the word out, "acquired" RHP Gerrit Simpson from the Rockies, who actually posted decent numbers in Huntsville for one and a half seasons. The Miranda deal was along those lines. I think what happend here was a combination of the initial post from our NorthSideSox friend being in a Tony Gwynn thread, rather than one of its own. Obviously, we here at Brewerfan knew nothing of Miranda, and while NorthSide accentuated his positives, it's apparent he wasn't in the White Sox plans. There's no way that without any prompting, this sort of acquisition makes it on to the Journal-Sentinel, certainly not in print. It just doesn't, and folks should not be expressing displeasure in that regard. But that doesn't excuse Tom's somewhat snotty tone in simply getting back to an individual who took the time to email him. There's a long line of players with extremely unheralded beginnings who became factors on the big league level -- players who were undrafted like Mike Adams and Joe Thatcher, and grabbing Mark DiFelice out of independent ball. Haudricourt was nowhere in sight on the day of the DiFelice acquisition in late January '07, but we were, so take pride and have fun that you were on top of that one before he was. Personally, I think it's pretty cool the way we learned about the Miranda acquisition. Can't remember being notified quite like that before...

The Helena team faced the Skagit Valley Cardinals (WA) and came away with a 5-4 victory. Joan Abreu (we'll have to learn more about that name, my media guide should arrive this week) and Orton Rodriguez each collected three hits for the Brewers. Jake Odorizzi and Damon Krestalude each tossed two scoreless innings. R H E Skagit Valley 4 7 3 Brewers 5 13 0 BREWERS AB R H BI Abreu 4 1 3 0 Dedrick 5 0 1 0 Ramos 4 1 1 1 Arias 4 1 1 1 Garcia 2 1 1 0 Robulack 1 0 0 0 Rodriguez 4 0 3 1 Barrini 5 0 2 0 Martinez 4 1 0 0 Chirinos 4 0 1 0 2B: Arias SF: Rodriguez Bitmap IP H R ER BB SO TP Bitmap Odorizzi 2 1 0 0 2 4 41 Bitmap Billings 2 3 2 1 0 2 36 Bitmap Krestalude 2 0 0 0 0 1 19 Bitmap Bucci 2 2 2 2 2 2 44 Bitmap Morales 1 1 0 0 0 0 8

Wisconsin dropped its spring opener, 8-2, to the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Cody Scarpetta was the bright spot on the pitching side, tossing 2.2 innings of scoreless relief. Erik Miller collected two hits, including a double, to lead the Timber Rattlers offense. R H E Wisconsin 2 9 2 Cedar Rapids 8 11 0 WISCONSIN AB R H BI MillerE 5 1 2 0 Marseco 3 0 1 0 Sanchez 2 1 1 0 Lawrie 4 0 1 0 Komatsu 2 0 0 0 Vass 2 0 1 0 Kjeldgaard 1 0 0 0 Trejo 2 0 0 0 Dennis 3 0 1 1 Delaney 2 0 0 0 Duran 2 0 1 0 Roberts 1 0 1 0 Kemp 2 0 0 0 McPhearson 3 0 0 0 Alfonso 1 0 0 0 2B: MillerE IP H R ER BB SO TP Peralta 2 7 5 5 0 2 45 Scarpetta 2.2 0 0 0 2 1 49 Arnold 0.2 0 0 0 1 0 8 Jeffers 0.1 3 3 3 4 0 38 McEwen 1.1 1 0 0 0 1 21

Brevard County traveled to Tempe to face the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes and came away with a 4-1 victory. Andrew Bouchie hit a solo home run and Miguel Vasquez hit a two-run triple to fuel the Manatees. The Manatees bullpen worked seven innings and allowed only two hits. R H E Brevard County 4 5 1 Rancho Cucamonga 1 5 1 BREVARD CO AB R H BI Haydel 4 0 0 0 Wheeler 3 0 0 0 Gindl 3 0 1 0 Wilson 4 1 1 0 Chapman 4 0 0 0 Bouchie 2 2 1 1 Vasquez 3 1 1 2 Zarraga 3 0 0 1 George 2 0 1 0 Miranda 1 0 0 0 2B: Gindl 3B: Vasquez HR: Bouchie Bitmap Bitmap IP H R ER BB SO TP Bitmap Anundsen 2 3 1 1 1 0 30 Luetge 2 0 0 0 1 0 33 Meadows 2 0 0 0 1 2 35 Pasma 2 2 0 0 0 4 30 Wooten 1 0 0 0 0 2 13