1e Corbeau

Mat Gamel flirted with .400 and accumulated a good amount of SLG at AA for a large part of a season. That is one memorable performance at AA or above that is in this territory, IMO.

If Callis is accurate about the $10k, that’s $187,000 under slot. Is anyone tracking the bonus dollars? It would interesting to see how much money the Brewers might have for some of the later round HS draftees. The total pick values are listed here: https://amp.mlb.com/269930084-2018-mlb-draft-bonus-pools-pick-values.amp.html

That is some old-school-battlekow-level allusion.

Considering it's going to be a six-team league, I'd imagine/hope you wouldn't have to go more than a weekend or two without the main BTN covering a Badger hockey game. NBCSN seems to concentrate on ECAC and Hockey East games and I've seen a few UMN games on FSW, too. Are the PBS replays still in SD?

I think it's fair to say that money from TV is the driving factor for this major swing in realignment. But, alleging that this doesn't preserve tradition discounts the details in the B1G expansion. It's about contiguous states to form new geographic rivalries; moreover, it's about academic tradition. Penn State, Nebraska, Maryland, Rutgers: all of them are AAU members and classified as RU/VH (research university/very high; formerly "Research 1") by Carnegie. In short, these are the best of the best schools academically. This isn't meant to slight Marquette or DePaul. They're both very good institutions with lots of great programs, faculty, etc. But they are not in the same league as the B1G members. Literally. Plus, the vast majority of B1G schools are public flagships. Also: football, as mentioned above. The B1G will look to Virginia, UNC, maybe Kansas, as they fit the academic profile. It'll be interesting to see what happens to the non-football schools.

1 Segura 2 Thornburg 3 Peralta 4 Nelson 5 Hellweg 6 Peña, A. 7 Morris 8 Gennett 9 Jungmann 10 Roache 11 Coulter 12 Haniger 13 Bradley 14 Schafer 15 Taylor 16 Rogers, M. 17 McFarland 18 Arcia 19 Lopez 20 Burgos 21 Kh Davis 22 Garfield 23 Gindl 24 Ke Davis 25 Rivera, Y. 26 Rizzo 27 Gagnon 28 Manzanillo 29 Mittelstaedt 30 Ozuna 31 Magnifico 32 Heckathorn 33 Walla 34 Quintana 35 Peña, J. 36 Ortega 37 Rivera, E. 38 Reed 39 Ramirez 40 Prince 41 Arnett 42 McMahan 43 Stang 44 Zarraga 45 Wagner 46 Hall 47 Sanchez 48 Marzec 49 Walker 50 Lorenzo (51 Rogers, J.)

I can't remember the details, but there are age/level requirements for players sent to the AFL. Thus, while there might be one spot for a player below AA, there's no way that Coulter, Taylor, Haniger, Roache all get sent. I could definitely see Roache or Haniger, if there is an injury exception. Otherwise, it should be Bucci, as Tedaldtada mentioned, due to his lack of innings. Nelson I could see, too. I have to believe the guys not on the 40-man who will be Rule V eligible will receive serious consideration: both Khris and Kentrail, Heckathorn, Halton, and maybe, if they can bump him to AA soon, Arnett (gasp!). A long shot, sure, as I don't think anyone would risk carrying him on a 25-man for a season. Hunter Morris deserves it if he wants to go. Manzanillo might need some work. Hellweg and Pena might be in the mix, depending on their innings. TJ Mittelstaedt is my dark horse position pick; Eric Arnett, meaning he gets a bump to AA soon, is my pitcher.

Per Stars' Media Relations Director Jill Cacic, Hellweg topped out at 98, presumably on the stadium gun, tonight.

Considering Cafardo is the source, I highly doubt there's anything to this "rumor". He seems to make thins up to fill column inches on a regular basis, IMO. As others have mentioned, this only makes sense as part of another move (3-team deal). Shoppach is 32 and a FA after the season. He's only caught and DHed in his career. So a Clancy-type move is even more unlikely than normal (such a Luc to 1B, Shoppach and Maldy at C, Hart traded), since Shoppach is a rental.

IMO, I'd take the Angels over the Braves if those were the offers. Richards has a nice mix of pitches (mid-90s FB w/ sink, two other potential plus offerings in a slider and a fading change, so pitches to be effective against RH and LH batters) and Segura seems a better bat/D combo than Pastornicky. In fact, I'd consider Richards + Segura/Cowart/Cron for Greinke as a good haul, maybe toss in KRod (if they overvalue him enough) to see if they bite on adding two of the slash players or Bourjos (who I'm not necessarily enamored with) or Taylor Lindsay. For the Rangers, it's gotta be Olt and an arm. Prospects are still prospects and age 24 season in AA is still age 24 season in AA. Greinke has a higher probability of MLB success given that he's had it and continues to do it, so expecting two chances at prospects succeeding (hedging your bets) is reasonable and prudent. Olt's K-rates could be exploited as the pitching gets better at executing and the Texas League effect is normalized. I would love to get Olt, but he's not Profar or Dylan Bundy. Martin Perez would be great, but I'd think about Neil Ramirez or Cody Buckel.

I agree that you don't want to limit your options in any potential transaction, but: 1. This is likely DM speak. As mentioned, most believe he plays it "close to the vest." 2. The FO continuously scouts other orgs, so they probably had a good idea of what they'd like in return wrt how they value Greinke. 3. Per Cot's, Greinke can block a trade to 15 clubs this year. Since, DM just traded for him 19 months ago, he probably has at least a good feel on where Greinke wouldn't go. 4. Teams clearly out of the race are very unlikely to want to take on a rental player. I would imagine that, based on those alone, you're looking at 3-8 teams with intent and resources. As far as a history of DM limiting trade partners (Lawrie?), what documented evidence is there, and that? This always seems like a "grass is greener" view that doesn't take into context the complexities and motivations of a network of 30 teams, their owners and FOs, and thousands of players and contractual obligations. I'm not trying to single anyone out, as I like armchairing it as well, but just because there was a rumor of Hart for Beachy or Fielder for Cain, etc., does not mean those were actual possibilities. FWIW, I hope we can extend him, and the 6/$125 figure being put out by Michaels (whom I don't really trust) seems to be a more than fair offer with no discount.

Isn't the surgery actually a solution to the lack of options? I might be (or probably am) way off in my understanding of MLB's opaque and convoluted roster rules, but can't the Brewers now simply move Scarpetta to the 60 day DL and, once he's ready to pitch again, send him on a extraordinarily long rehab assignment? Sure, that means he'll be drawing the MLB minimum salary, but it's a creative way to keep him around without eating a 25-man spot.

Rosiak seems to be the only one reporting this. I'm guessing he's right, though on a meaningless technicality. From reading the Darvish news this morning, it appears that the process is: NPB team posts player for bid; bids are places by MLB teams; bid period closes; NPB team decides if it will accept high bid; NPB team informs MLB Commissioner's Office of acceptance/declination of bid; MLB team is informed of decision. Sometimes, the name of MLB team and/or bid amount is leaked before the official declaration is made from NPB team to MLB offices. That hasn't been the case with Darvish, but it appears to be the case with Aoki. Yakult has released that the Brewers have won with a $2.5M bid from Milwaukee and they're accepting the bid, giving Milwaukee 30-days from when they're notified by the Commissioner's Office to negotiate with Aoki/Balelo. Japan Times: Swallows accept high bid for Aoki WaPo: Milwaukee Brewers win right to negotiate with Japanese outfielder Norichika Aoki Safe to say, I think, the Brewers have won the bid process, and Yakult is accepting. The Brewers are just waiting for formal notification from the Commissioner's Office in order to begin the 30-day negotiating window. It'll be interesting to see how the Brewers value/evaluate Aoki, though I imagine DM et al. will be typically cryptic and opaque with public comments on how they view Aoki during the negotiating process. As far as signing, I think it's a good thing that Braun's agent is representing Aoki. It'd be great is Aoki's fringe-average arm (per Wikipedia and posts in this thread) could play in CF, as it sounds like his range and instincts are top-notch. His LH BA skills (not necessarily OBP, as that appears somewhat driven by his BA) would be a great asset sandwiched in the 2-hole between Weeks and Braun, especially with Rickie's speed. He sprays the ball to all fields and is adept at putting it on the ground, especially the left side.

I'll go with Stetter, who is almost back from injury and just had a kid ($440,000 major league salary would certainly be helpful, even if the move might not), and Brock Kjeldgaard, who has a bit of upside in his power bat, but certainly isn't a "top" prospect. My dream scenario, ignoring the media bytes, would be Mercedes and Pacual—just to get something for our IFA bonus babies http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

Not saying I necessarily think it is legit, but I appreciate the fact that he is reflecting on the repurcussions of going public without organizational confirmation. He's being honest, it might appear. And he didn't report it as names being exchanged because that is not what he is asserting he has learned. He's writing he's learned it's done. And when are deals not officially announced a few days after the rumors are confirmed? They need time for physicals, medical records, mlb approval, and to notify players, at least—potentially time to set parameters for an extension.

Edit: Seems too good to be true on outset... Extremely high sell on Esky and Cain. Not the upside of the ridiculous rumored requests from the Jays and Nats,but 17 years of control on a top SS prospect, a pitcher with a few MLB innings and a 101 -mph FB, and a CF with above average D who hit .300+ and might steal 40 in a season—and they've all shown they belong in the MLB when given the chance—is pretty valuable.

Jim Callis (I think) addressed this via twitter a few days ago [sorry, no link]. It seems that education packages can range from simply covering 4 years of tuition to living expenses, extra semesters, and, I would imagine, different caps on how much tuition will be covered, etc. I'd love to know more about this, too, though!

No formal announcement http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif But, that 9% hit in attendance will likely have effect on the overall payroll. And, it could get worse than a 9% drop if the Brewers don't seriously make a play towards .500 ball, I would think. Still, I was thinking closer to $90 million for next year before the attendance drop, precipitating a situation where the Brewers do keep Fielder for a last push before he walks. But, with Attanasio admitting FA pitching signing doesn't work well (especially for the Brewers) and the increasing candidness with which Melvin and Attanasio have addressed our lack of pitching, I now am leaning towards that rhetoric preparing fans for a Prince for pitching trade for next season. Payroll-wise, subtracting Prince, Davis, and Counsell puts the Brewers slightly under $60 M, assuming Rickie gets $4 M in arbitration/settled contract. That number includes holding onto Coffey at about $2.75 M (est.), which he may not get. With that as my parameter, I'd love to see Rickie offered a 4/$31 M (5-7-9-10) extension, or something near that. Ideally, we'd use that approximate $20+ M to make a push for Cliff Lee, allowing Prince to be moved for high-ceiling SPing that might be a few years away. We'd have a Lee-Gallardo-Wolf-(2 of Parra/Narveson/Butler/Rivas/Peralta/Rogers) rotation, plus the possibility of a wave of pitching (#2-#3) arriving in 2012 with Scarpetta (2011, since he'll be out of options sooner), Odorizzi, Hecky, maybe Arnett. If Lee is not realistic (it probably isn't, but we do have that $20+ M available), then it's Fielder getting incorporated into a trade that either returns MLB-ready #2-#3 pitching or #1-#2 with a high salary (for his current team's budget). Possibilities, for the latter would be: 1. Shields (Tampa might go for a Fielder swap, and Shields has been getting poor results on his usually solid peripherals) 2. Cain (if Bumgarner has a breakout year) MLB-ready guys on teams that might want to go "all-in" with Prince next year (extra pieces going back and forth in these, too) 1. W. Davis (shoulder problem alert! and we should get more back than just Davis) 2. Bumgarner 3. Pineda (doubtful Jack Z would give up 6 years of Pineda for one of Prince, but you might be able to exchange pieces to make it work..) Otherwise, you could flip Prince for prospects that allow the Brewers to move redundant prospects to someone not looking for a $15 M 1B/DH with a year of control remaining. Some possibilities: 1. Greinke (KC would want prospects, possibly OF, 2B, SP; I'd love to see if they'd move a Gordon [buy low] or Kila Ka'aihue as part of that deal!) 2. Nolasco (FLA would take whatever, as long as it's high upside, I'm guessing: 1 of our top 5 [Odorizzi, Hecky, Ke. Davis, Gamel] plus a top 20 guy) 3. Pineda (You could flip Lawrie perhaps, which might be less painful with a Weeks extension and with Hart under control through 2013) Ideally, I'd love to see us land Greinke or Shields. Granted those are two very different packages (TB might want Fielder, KC no way). I'm hoping we move McGehee before the bottom drops out. Otherwise, if Lawrie can play an average 3B, he'd be my only untouchable other than Braun and Yo.

While the at-bats/playing time is still an issue, I know the service time question comes up seemingly every year. I *believe* that September callups only count for one day of service time, regardless of the length of the callup.

I could agree with that, if the only way to acquire "prospects" was via trade. Fortunately, you can still draft well, which we do for bats. The pitching track record has been subpar, but I have a bit more faith with Rogers on the comeback trail and the progress of Odorizzi, Hecky, Scarpetta, and Peralta (who was an International FA--yet another way to acquire talent). I'd also like to distinguish between "prospects" and minor leaguers. The former have a chance to be starters in the MLB, the latter are warm bodies with a long shot to contribute. If I'm not offered the former, I'm not dealing quality MLB starters who are under contract for another year.

In my opinion, Beckham has to be in, as I don't think CWS has those high-upside arms in their system. Hudson is not a high-upside arm, to me. I'm assuming it'll be Dunn, too, especially since Rosenthal has been given conflicting reports on the Yankees being back in/out on Dunn. Posturing through the media to get the Nats to pull the trigger on the CWS deal. Same as the CWS might keep Jackson for themselves talk.

Scarpetta would have to be promoted to AA before Sunday (8/1) to be eligible for the AFL, correct? I would imagine Peralta may get consideration, depending on his innings increase from last year.

I'm wishfully thinking about Prince to CWS re-heating, too. Cowley's most recent tweet: Jackson, to me, isn't a "considerably better" piece. Dunn likely is. Prince certainly is, but if it doesn't involve Beckham, whom KW has apparently told is not going anywhere, I hope it isn't Prince. Maybe Prince + McGehee + Bush for Beckham + Hudson/Jackson + Vicideo + more? That's bold, for sure. Also, MLBTR had a blurb in regards to Beckham being off the table, in which the Mariners were listed as very interested in him. Maybe flip Beckham for Pineda? Pipe dreams, but fun to pass the time...

The Rangers seem like the most ideal partner, as they have quite a few intriguing arms at various levels. Plus, the fact that they will almost certainly have to have the Brewers pick up the remainder of Fielder's 2010 contract will increase our bounty substantially. That's exactly how SF got Main, by picking up Molina's deal. The Rangers way overpaid in talent on that, I think, just to save on the cash. Same could be said for the Lee deal, as he is a rental. It'd be interesting to see if the Rangers could find a buyer for the franchise, as, if they could they would have Fielder under contract. Otherwise, they'll have to sell him in the offseason, likely for less if their monetary situation doesn't become more fluid.

So would most Brewers' fans, but Lilly is historically much better than Bush and adding a prospect to the deal doesn't add value for the Phillies, as they want to upgrade and win now. They're looking for quality, not quantity, I imagine.