Jim Goulart

Link to our Trading Post thread for the Nashville EBAY jersey sale

LINK Mitch Stetter looks to have a lengthy career, that might be the best of the lot value-wise. All with $75 starting bids...

Prospective Sounds owners reach deal with Metro Nashville Business Journal The prospective owners of the Nashville Sounds have reached an agreement with the mayor's office for the lease of Greer Stadium. The amended lease, which was agreed upon Wednesday, has been filed with the Metropolitan Clerk's Office and will be considered at a specially called meeting of Metro Council at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Council Chamber of the Metropolitan Courthouse. The amended lease includes a five-year term with a five-year option and a minimum $1.75 million investment into Greer Stadium by MFP, the firm buying the Sounds. The deal is contingent on approval by the league and MFP closing the sale of the team. MFP is comprised of partners Frank Ward, Masahiro Honzawa and Steve Posner. The three managed U.S. operations of Tokyo-based Hiro Real Estate Co., owned by the Honzawa family, before forming their own firm earlier this year. MFP announced plans to buy the Sounds in October after the Nashville Sounds Baseball Club and its general partner, Amerisports Companies, failed to reach agreement with Metro Government on a number of issues, including the lease and upgrades to Greer Stadium and plans to build a new stadium downtown. With the Sounds' lease on Greer Stadium set to expire at the end of the month, Mayor Karl Dean called the special meeting of council to ensure MFP has time to make improvements to the stadium before the start of baseball season in April. "Through this lease agreement, the prospective new owners have demonstrated their commitment to improving the stadium and providing an experience at Greer worthy of Nashville's baseball fans," Dean says in a press release. "The lease changes represent no additional financial commitment from the city while ensuring the longevity of baseball in Nashville." The resolution must also be considered by the Budget and Finance Committee and the Parks Committee ahead of Tuesday's council's meeting.

Sickels' list is out -- Escobar really needs the 1/2 grade bump up, and like we learned over time, it's Mat with one "t", John. Taylor Green at 14? Anyway, always fun to see perspectives from outside Brewer fandom...

Greer lease extension deal nearly complete Metro Finance Director Richard Riebeling told the executive committee that negotiations to extend the Greer Stadium lease agreement with the prospective new Nashville Sounds ownership group are progressing and a deal could be complete as early as today. According to Riebeling, the deal includes the new ownership group's commitment to put up to $2 million into renovations at Greer.

WSSP Audio with Todd Coffey

Several quotes from Steve Moss in this report...

Baseball America reports that the Brewers have signed an outfielder named Juan Barrini. We'll learn more when the media guide is out in the spring.

Noted minor league blogger and author John Sickels will have his Brewer list out in a day or two, and he's encouraging discussion now -- His Prospect Grades and What They Mean

From Newsday: Mike Cameron could come from Milwaukee in a trade, to provide centerfield more of a veteran presence. But the Yankees and Brewers haven't come close to agreeing on terms of a deal there. The Yankees won't include Ian Kennedy in a Cameron trade. Only mentioned for the Kennedy blurb, which I believe is new...

Speculative Brewer - Mariner possibilities discussed here, including a Brad Nelson mention.

Boston Globe summary of all teams' situations notes the following in the San Diego section: Watch Milwaukee as a dark horse for Peavy, and the Angels as well. And yes, that's about as concrete as rainwater, but it's a mention.

As a Brewer fan in Massachusetts, I had already glommed on to the Brewers, when, at age 15 in '78, I listened to that 14K game vs. the Yankees via transister radio in my bedroom. A Rhode Island station carried all Yankee games (and still does), and those AL East battles vs. NY and Boston were my only "real" chance to follow my adopted team live. I can remember that 14K audio very vividly, thanks for the memory, Moose. That '78 season was a blast, thanks to Moose, Mike Caldwell, and so many others... ...Your online namesake

Former Brewer farmhands Callix Crabbe and Chris Woodward are the latest to sign minor league deals with Jack Z.'s Seattle organization.

How about you discuss? That's why this thread is here... Congrats on your 2nd Brewer 40-man member (Luis Pena). Please list your other 40-man roster players across baseball. OK, for discussion. How's your French? Is this Alex's first formal representation? Let's say any individual member of the Brewer organization approached you and wanted you to represent him. Is that an automatic for you, or do you do your own background checks and such to see if the relationship is a good match? What would be a possible reason you would not agree to represent a potential client? I would imagine you would need to discuss short-term and long-term goals and philosophies with the potential client. Dustin Pedroia is taking a lot of heat for signing a team-friendly extension with Boston, leaving perhaps as much as $30 million on the table over the life of the deal (if he had gone year-to-year). I imagine his agent will hear from the Gene Orza's and such about deflating future value of other superstar contracts. Should you be fortunate enough to represent a client of that ilk in the future, what are your thoughts on the Scott Boras year-to-year maximize everything via arbitration vs. the Evan Longoria / Ryan Braun / Pedroia signings? The Longoria signing was ridiculously premature, wasn't it?

Link while active, text follows: Sounds call up a new manager Ex-MLB star spent past four seasons with AA Huntsville By Maurice Patton THE TENNESSEAN Longtime major-league third baseman Don Money has been named manager of the Sounds for the 2009 season, the Milwaukee Brewers announced Wednesday. Money spent the previous four seasons as manager at Huntsville - the Brewers' Class AA affiliate - after Frank Kremblas was elevated to the Sounds' helm for the 2005 season. Kremblas, the third-winningest manager in Sounds history, was released by the Brewers at the end of the 2008 season. "I'm very happy to be there," Money said by telephone from his home in New Jersey. "Being in Double-A the last four years, we've had a lot of good talent. Most of the players that will probably be in Nashville, I've had at Huntsville. I know what to expect of the players, although the league will be new." Brewers officials expect Money to lead with an on-the-field style that is similar to that of Kremblas. "I think Don, on the field, will probably not be all that much different from Frank," Milwaukee Assistant General Manager Gord Ash said. "Off the field, he's a little more old-school in terms of his expectations of players from a discipline point of view. I think that's probably going to be one of his greatest challenges. "Triple-A is a situation where players are either unhappy because they've not gone up or unhappy because they've just come down. There are not a lot of happy players there. Trying to maintain the focus and direction is something he's going to need to do. Clearly he's done that in the lower minor leagues. In Triple-A, it takes a little more finesse." Joining the 61-year-old Money on the Sounds coaching staff will be ex-major leaguer Chris Bosio, as pitching coach, and former Huntsville hitting coach Sandy Guerrero, who will serve in the same role with the Sounds. Bosio will replace Stan Kyles, who will serve as the Brewers' bullpen coach under new Manager Ken Macha, and Guerrero replaces Harry Spilman, who was let go along with Kremblas. Jeff Paxson will return for his fifth year as the team's athletic trainer, and strength and conditioning coach Tom Reynolds is set to come back for a second season. Money, a four-time American League All-Star during his 16-year career with the Phillies and Brewers, was named Milwaukee's most valuable player in 1974 and '77. He has compiled a career managerial record of 829-842 over 13 seasons. He leaves Huntsville as the winningest manager in franchise history with 275 victories. "He's done a nice job in the lower levels of our development system and he obviously had a good season at Huntsville," Ash said of Money, who led the Stars to a 73-67 finish in 2008. "The players will be graduating and we felt it important that the staff do so as well. "The focus is clearly on developing players, but developing staff is part of this process as well. For those guys to move up, I think, is pretty good." The Sounds are scheduled to open the 2009 season on April 9 against New Orleans at Greer Stadium.

Link while active, text follows: Appleton's Matt Erickson hopes he's a hit in new job as Timber Rattlers hitting coach By Brett Christopherson Post-Crescent staff writer If September's union between the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers and Milwaukee Brewers was a grand slam, then consider Wednesday's announcement a bases-clearing triple. Just months after inking a four-year player development pact to serve as the Brewers' low-Class A minor league affiliate, the Rattlers have learned a familiar face will be hanging out in their dugout in the upcoming season. Former Appleton West standout Matt Erickson has been pegged to join the Midwest League club as its hitting coach to complete a 2009 field staff that also includes manager Jeff Isom, pitching coach Chris Hook, trainer Aaron Hoback and strength and conditioning specialist Jake Marx, a Menasha native. "Obviously, growing up in Appleton, I've watched the Appleton Foxes play and I'm familiar with the administration that runs the Timber Rattlers right now," Erickson said. "I was excited about the news with the Brewers deciding to come to Appleton, and now that I get to be part of that, it's definitely a win-win situation." The 33-year-old Erickson played in 11 professional seasons as an infielder and appeared in four big league games with the Brewers in 2004. His lone hit in six career at-bats came against Chicago Cubs ace and future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux. He was originally selected by the Florida Marlins in the seventh round of the 1997 June draft after playing collegiately at the University of Arkansas. "This is good for a bunch of reasons," Rattlers president Rob Zerjav said. "Matt, being a local guy, is a neat story for him and us. But on top of it, he and I have a good relationship and to know one of the coaches personally definitely helps with the familiarity of everything. It makes for an even smoother transition." Added Brewers director of player development Reid Nichols: "We weren't going to hire someone just because he was from Appleton. He brings a lot to the table. He's a student of the game. He comes from a baseball family. It's just the intangibles I feel he brings. "He doesn't jump right in and try to change anybody. He observes. He's smart on how he talks to the players. He just fit well with what we're trying to accomplish with the Brewers." Erickson, a 1994 Appleton West graduate who was coached at the prep level by his father, Bruce, retired as a player in April and had since moved back to Appleton with his wife, Julie, and their 4-year-old son, Maddox. The couple is also expecting another child. He is employed as a national Nike sales rep, a position he plans on keeping - part time during the baseball season and full time during the off-season - as he transitions into his first professional coaching gig. Erickson said he had other pro coaching offers in recent years but opted to hold off until playing the game was completely out of his system. "I know for sure my playing days are over," said Erickson, who was in spring training this past season with Arizona and then signed with Philadelphia in April before calling it a career. "And I'm looking forward to being involved in the game of baseball while at the same time being able to stay close to home and family, which is important." Isom skippered West Virginia, the Brewers' previous low-Class A affiliate, in 2007 and '08 and guided the Power to the South Atlantic League Championship Series in each season. Marx, a 2001 Menasha High School graduate, will be entering his fourth season with the Brewers. Milwaukee also announced former big league hurler and Combined Locks resident Chris Bosio will serve as the pitching coach at its Triple-A affiliate in Nashville, Tenn. Bosio, who spent seven of his 11 major league seasons with the Brewers, was the pitching coach last season at Double-A Chattanooga, Tenn., a Cincinnati Reds affiliate. He also coached at Lawrence University (2006-07) and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh (2004-05). Among Bosio's other coaching duties included a stint as the pitching coach for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2003. "I'm very excited for the opportunity to be working with the Brewers' Triple-A club and helping the club I signed with in 1982," Bosio said. "They have a number of very good-looking prospects, not only position-wise but with the pitchers, too. "My job is to get guys ready for the big league club. That's my challenge, and I'm looking forward to it."

Link while active, text follows: Miscik named Stars manager Money promoted as manager at Brewers' Triple-A Nashville By MARK McCARTER Huntsville Times Sports Staff, mark.mccarter@htimes.com For three years, Bob Miscik thought he had retired from baseball. He was teaching science to teenagers and helping coach a high school team in Venice, Fla. But, he said, "I couldn't stay away from pro baseball." Miscik, with 28 years in the game as a player, manager or instructor, has been named manager of the Double-A Huntsville Stars. Miscik, a 50-year-old native of Pittsburgh, replaces Don Money, who was promoted to the Milwaukee Brewers' Triple-A Nashville team. Money managed the Stars four seasons, guiding them twice into the Southern League championship series and being named as the SL Manager of the Year in 2007. Sandy Guerrero, the longtime hitting coach of the Stars, will be Nashville's hitting coach. Other staff additions Joining Miscik in Huntsville are pitching coach John Curtis, 60, a former Red Sox No. 1 pick and a pitcher in the majors for 15 years, and Jim Lett, 57, a longtime manager in the Cincinnati system and a coach in the majors with the Reds, Dodgers and Pirates. Chris Hook, last year's pitching coach in Huntsville, will be at the Brewers' new Single-A club in Appleton, Wisc. Miscik makes his home in Venice, Fla., where he is close friends with former Stars pitching coach Fred Dabney. Along with teaching science at Venice High his first year and Venice Middle School the last two, he also assisted head coach Craig Faulkner, who had played for Miscik in the minors, with the Venice High baseball team, which won the 2007 Class 5A Florida state title. Though he attended several major league games during his three-year hiatus, Miscik saw only one minor league game. Ironically, it involved the Brevard County Manatees, the Brewers' Single-A team, on which many of his 2009 Stars played. Miscik spent seven years as a player in the Pirates' organization, then two years with the Angels' Triple-A team. In 1990, current Milwaukee general manager Doug Melvin hired Miscik to coach in Baltimore's minor-league system, where he managed five years. Miscik followed Melvin to the Rangers, where he spent seven years as field coordinator. He held the same post for the Reds in 2005. Money enjoyed Huntsville Money replaces Frank Kremblas as the Nashville manager. "It's a good move for me in terms of stature, I guess," Money said. "But it was good to be there in Huntsville. I liked that league and we made some good friends there."

We won't copy and paste it all here, as the Journal Sentinel link should remain active through next year. Tom Haudricourt summarized all the moves in very good detail, as I'm sure Adam McCalvy will soon, if not already. We'll see if we can learn a bit about some of the new names that may be interesting during the overnight and beyond. We'll close the 2008 coaching thread and will post future updates here.

Roving pitching coordinator Jim Rooney is moving to the amateur scouting department, as Adam McCalvy details here.

Link while active, text follows: A real changeup Manatees pitching coach captures grappling title in fun, dangerous sport BY JIM CAWLEY FLORIDA TODAY Depending on the situation, Brevard County Manatees pitching coach Fred Dabney might put his arm around a player, back away from him or get in his face. But that's nothing compared to what he might do to an opponent. Making the unusual transition from the diamond to the ring in the offseason, Dabney, who turned 41 on Nov. 20, entered and won the first mixed martial arts-style event of his career on Oct. 25. The 6-foot-3, 230-pound lefthander claimed the intermediate heavyweight division title at a North American Grappling Association (NAGA) event at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. "People think I'm kind of crazy that my fun is trying to tap people out and submit people," said Dabney, whose two tournament wins came by way of a triangle choke submission, a type of figure-four chokehold created by encircling the opponent's head and one of his arms with your legs. For Dabney's boss, Milwaukee Brewers farm director Reid Nichols, it's more a concern for his employee's well-being. "Fred's a very active person and he needs an outlet -- this grappling thing helps him keep things in check," said Nichols, who played eight major-league seasons with the Red Sox, White Sox and Expos. "I'm glad he's found something he likes to do. I just hope he's doing everything he can to make sure he's safe." It was Dabney's opponents who needed protection at the NAGA event. The first match against Kevin Ritter began as "a struggle of strength and will," according to Dabney. With the score 0-0 and heading deep into the five-minute round, the match turned when Dabney was able to maneuver from the guard position and finish with the triangle choke. The title match lasted only about a minute. Dabney landed a flying arm bar against Rob Akyan, who then muscled out of it. But that set up Akyan for Dabney's submission of choice. "I was really surprised," said Dabney, who was forced to bypass the beginner division because he's a blue belt in Jiu-Jitsu. Dabney currently trains four to five times a week at SRQ Jiu-Jitsu in Sarasota, about a 1/2-hour drive from his offseason home in Venice. He had no previous wrestling experience and is limited to training during baseball's short offseason. Still, his success didn't surprise SRQ owner John Kennedy, a retired police officer and Jiu-Jitsu black belt who has worked with Dabney for about a year. "I knew he'd do well -- other people believed he would, too," Kennedy said of Dabney. "And now he's back in the gym, and he's better because he's got his confidence." That confidence, along with experience, are characteristics Dabney displays daily at the ballpark. A pitching coach in Brevard County since 2005, Dabney pitched 3 1/2 years at the Triple-A level with the White Sox, Indians and Cubs. He also played in Taiwan for one season. "That's the best thing -- his experiences have led him to be a great teacher," said Manatees lefthander Bobby Bramhall, who had a team-high 106 strikeouts last season. "You understand his message and his teaching." Though Bramhall (5-foot-10, 170 pounds) is giving up about 5 inches and 60 pounds to Dabney, the 23-year-old hurler claims the intimidation factor doesn't really come into play. "It could," Bramhall said. "But if you know Fred . . . he's more of a communicator; he's a listener. At the same time, he gets real fired up. I think he handles it in a way that's best for each player." Dabney admits he treats players differently, using varying methods of motivation. But there's one universal rule for anyone who wants to pitch on his staff -- be on time. "I'm tough," Dabney said. "There's a few rules I don't sway on -- like being late. If they're late, they know they're going to be seeing me. And there are plenty of emotions attached to that burly frame. "I'm very, very emotional," Dabney said. "Sometimes it gets me into trouble with the umpires. But I didn't get thrown out of a game this year -- and that's the first time in my career." Dabney's next ring appearance could come on Jan. 24-25 at the NAGA World Cup, which also is being held at Florida Atlantic. If he decides to enter that event, it will have to be in the advanced division, Kennedy said, due to his victories at the intermediate level. After that, it would be quite some time before Dabney's next potential bout, as spring training begins in February. "It's just a hobby," Dabney said of his fighting career. "I love coaching -- that's my first passion. I love being on the field. This is just something to pass the time and keep me active. It's my personality. I'm not afraid to mix it up." Fred Dabney, bottom below, the pitching coach for the Brevard County Manatees during the summer, trains four to five days a week with John Gettle at SRQ Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in Sarasota. (Photo by Kharli Rose, for FLORIDA TODAY) http://cmsimg.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A9&Date=20081203&Category=SPORTS&ArtNo=812030322&Ref=AR&Profile=1002&MaxW=550&MaxH=650&title=0

From this Star-Ledger article: According to a person familiar with the Milwaukee Brewers' plans who asked not to be named since he is not authorized to speak for the team, the Brewers have been talking to free-agent center fielders in case they trade Cameron. The Yankees have an interest and are not on Cameron's limited no-trade list. Not a known issue, if there is a limited no-trade list. The bigger note (I hesitate to say "news") is the on-going CF discussions, which means a trade of Cameron would not make Corey Hart the defacto center fielder, for those thinking in that regard. Also, that would seem to indicate that Melky Cabrera would not necessarily be part of any Cameron-to-NY trade. But who jumps out at you among the free agent outfielders that could play CF, particularly left-handed ones? Seems like this report could be a bunch of nothing...

Adam McCalvy's report on this signing contains one error: Thorman also has some experience as an outfielder, as does the Brewers' incumbent Triple-A first baseman, Brad Nelson. Like Thorman was before Monday, Nelson is a six-year Minor League free agent. Brad is on the Brewers' 40-man roster and is out of options, meaning he has to make the Brewers out of spring training otherwise be traded or waived. But he's not a free agent.

In Maryvale, there's big league spring training camp and minor league camp. Everyone on the 40-man roster is automatically in big league camp, which has nicer amenities. The Brewers will sign higher profile minor league free agents by enticing them with an "NRI" (a non-roster invite) to big league camp. Once exhibition games begin, some minor league campers will be asked to big league camp for the day, to participate in exhibition games as backups.

Click on the video link under the story byline to see Cody Scarpetta briefly discussing his 40-man addition.