rickh150

Gamel playing OF at AAA after All-Star Break= Why not? Do those games count against the Brewers? Gamel playing OF in Milwaukee after All-Star Break= His defense at 3B isn't great either, remember. I'll agree that it would be a dramatic and unneeded change in the middle of a playoff push since McGehee probably would be the better option out there. Still, someone should tell him to buy an OF glove.

Heether up, and Gamel down to play the outfield might be the best idea now, giving Gamel daily ABs.

Could Gamel to the outfield be a possibility if Hart is traded soon or this offseason/? Also, Cameron is probably out after this year as well. In my opinion, do this for the following reasons: 1. He is a liability at 3B, ala Braun. 2. If Hart/Cameron is gone soon/next year, we have no suitable replacements in our system. 3. This move would free up the infield for McGehee, Hardy, Escobar, and Weeks/Counsell. My take is that the Brewers are going to send Gamel down at the All-Star break, unless Hart is traded. Either way, Gamel should try the outfield. If it fits him half as much as Braun, I'll take my chances.

Thank you, Tsack! Great info!!!!

...............1st and 3rd with one out............ routine flyball hit to left and caught......... the runner from 3rd tags and scores easily....however, the man on 1st believes the ball will be a base hit and gets easily doubled up trying to get back to first base.........the run scores before the 1st baseman catches the ball at first for the final out of the inning...........Does the run count? This situation recently happened in an MLB exhibition game this spring. I think I saw it on Baseball Tonight. I remember that the umps initially got the call wrong and then two or three innings later changed it( yes, changed it like 45 minutes later) putting the run up or taking it down from the scoreboard. Sadly, I cannot remember. This situation occured in a recent softball game in the area as well, and the ump did not count the run. Can anyone help me out?

Weeks has done well this year at the plate. That is keeping him in the line-up, not his glove, and definitely not his ability to turn two. I'm a little shocked at some of the comments. I gave Weeks praise and pointed out an obvious concern, yet some want me to say that all is well with Rickie and nothing in his game should change. Also, Gantner didn't sling it over. He threw it over with his normal technique. Slinging refers to the way the ball is released upward from his hand, actually lower than a side-arm. Weeks does this consistently flat-footed and stiff-legged. Big concern.

We are pulling for Rickie Weeks, especially these days. We hope he is the answer at the top of the order, and in large part has done average to above average work at the plate this year. Even last year his OBP was respectable. What worries me about him being our 2B is his turning two ability. Particularly, the way he throws a side-armed, off your back foot, wildish in the dirt, where's it going to go throw, while on the bag, is troublesome. I don't know why this isn't mentioned by Schroeder,Uecker, or someone at least once a week. Normal 2B throw the ball over the top and step into the throw for accuracy and to get the ball to first faster. I'm interested in hearing if Randolph has been helping him with this problem. Although Weeks hasn't been terrible in the field this year or last, he is at the bottom of the barrel at turning two. My opininon is that he should be taken out of every close game that the Brewers are winning in the late innings until he corrects this crucial part of being a major league second baseman. Somewhere, Gantner knows what I'm talking about.

Gotta keep Ueck's call current- it helps to hear it after giving up 10 runs to the Giants

I agree that better revenue sharing would be ideal. Yet, is that realistic. Would half of major league baseball teams(or the number of teams over the revenue mean) be willing to share more than they currently do? I think that that is much more difficult than making a stricter tax on basically the Yankees and a couple other teams. With a stricter tax, install a soft salary "cap" basement for the players union, and I believe competetive balance would improve somewhat. Go for small steps first. Avoid another 1994.

Brewers fans like Attanasio. He has been more than a good owner for the Brewers. He's been great. Think of all that he's done so far: Raised the payroll by more than half.... Poured money into improving Miller Park by leaps and bounds... Brought the team into the community.... Surrounded youth on the field with veterans..... Got to the playoffs. However, all these positives aside, he might be biting off more than he can chew with this whole salary cap business. It's not going to happen. The salary cap was issue #1 and #2 of the sorrowful 1994 no World Series season. Players were not going for it regardless of how much money was not coming into their pockets for the short- term. Long-term, they knew what their best interests were. Now, just like then, many owners would love to have a structure in place to curb spending and allow for more competetive balance, yet the players in 2009 like money just as much as players in 1994. It's not going to happen in 2011 or anytime soon after. So is there another route to the bakery, another winding street through the valley, another passageway to grandma's house? I think so. Right now, as I understand it, the threshhold for luxury tax is at approximately $180 million(has increased yearly). Over the past 4 years, only a few teams have gone over it including these if not a couple more: Yankees(every year), Red Sox, and Tigers(one year?). The problem with this system is two-fold. The threshhold continues to increase yearly, and the % teams pay for being over the threshhold is only 40%(based on 2007 info). For every dollar the Yanks are over, only $.40 is given back. With the Yankees splurge this winter, I believe now is the time to start talking about change to the luxury tax system. First keep the threshold down or limit its increase. Also, and more than anything, increase the % to 80%. Small market and big market teams could agree with this, I believe. Hey, if the tax doesn't affect most teams, what would they care? Also, players not called Yankees wouldn't mind this either. Players would say spend if you want Yanks, but the more you spend over the cap the more my team gets. This being said, a soft salary basement should also be in place with the proposed changes. Teams that are financially helped with luxury taxes need to spend and not keep this cash. If a team doesn't or can't spend $50 million, let's say, a season, draft picks are taken away for the first offense and harsher penalties for the second. Overall, like our beloved owner said, "The system is broken." The sooner we stop talking about salary cap and begin talking about harsher rules with luxury taxes and a soft salary basement, the better.

Still the best call I might have ever heard............well, maybe "Milwaukee, you have a World Series!" is better.

I thought I read about this on the Brewers website last week. Any chance that anyone has seen it? Is it being sold at Miller Park?

Uecker continues to amaze.

Wow! Everytime I hear it. Wow!

Love that call!!!!!!!

I see he is becoming a FA. Was he hurt in Boston or has his production fallen way off? He was pretty good for a while. If Prince is traded, would he be a candidate for 1B?

Falling under the topic of Brewer problems not talked about, Fielder straying from the base needs to be corrected by coaches. On many of the bunts that are fielded by the pitcher, catcher, or 3B, Fielder needlessly keeps coming to the plate. This seems harmless to many, I suppose, but all it does is increase the difficulty of the play to be made at first with Weeks chugging over to cover the base. Most recently, on a chopping bunt by the Mets' Reyes in front of the plate, Fielder needlessly continued charging the play instead of retreating to the bag. This made Weeks have to beat Reyes to the bag, something he should have done but didn't.Still, if Fielder would stay tighter to the bag, tougher plays become routine.

Let CC pitch on Thurs. in game 1 against Philly Skip Manny for a start. Sounds very logical and smart. CC would open the Cubs series on regular rest in Chicago.

My suggestion of Will Call would mean a rehaul of the system for Cubs games. Instead of having a few windows for Will Call, most windows would be Will Call with each ticket holder assigned in advance what window number to pick them up. If that still is not reasonable or undoable, make just the Field level ticket holders have to pick tickets up at Will Call with proper ID. Good tickets should be going to Brewer fans, come on people. For all those trying to ease their conscious of selling tickets to Cub fans, I'm sorry, but many are never going to agree with you. Like most, I don't care if you sell all your other game tickets to Cardinal, Twins, or Astros fans, but not Cubs tickets to the Cubbies fans. Their proximity to Milwaukee and the fact that many of the fans are either drunk, rude, or obnoxious by tearing down the Brewers and their fans rather than just cheering for their own team, is way too much to just endure. Oh yeah, aren't we in a pennant race with them? Will Call for Field level tickets is a legitimate resolution for scalping on the secondary market. Charging double to Illinois residents is another-bleed em broke I say. Begin selling Cubs tickets at the box office during the home opener series could be another. Brewers fans would eat these up during the excitement of baseball beginning. Would these alterations be perfect? Absolutely not. Wisconsin Cub fans( I hate puting those two words together) wouldn't have to pay double. Cub fans could rule the second and third decks by Brewer fans still selling their tickets. Will Call lines could still be long. But hey, it would be a start.

Playoff tickets The Cardinals have a limited ticket program from a radio sponsor in which fans may buy 2 tickets for $11.50(1150 AM), random spots, for every home game. It's called First Pitch tickets. You pick your tickets up right before the game at aWill Call spot(you sign up for the right to get them early in the morning) with a shown driver's license. Thus, scalping/ reselling cannot be done. If the Brewers would use the Will Call for roughly half of playoff seats, the lure to resell them simply wouldn't even be there. Only the person who bought the tickets could get the tickets day of game with valid driver's license/ID. For Brewer season ticket holders, the seats would have to stay in the family or transferred to other season ticket holders looking for seats. Not a perfect idea, but I'm hoping for a system that would surely get Brewer fans in the stadium and leave Cub fans out. Regular season tickets 1.Charge Illinois fans double the price of regular, keeping Wisconsin price at regular, not marquee pricing- Driver's license required 2.Cub tickets are not on sale when individual seats are. Make them available at the stadium on Sat. night game only by box office, then later put them online/by phone; this should get Brewer fans more seats- hey, I looked for some just lately for the end of the season and couldn't get any. I'm guessing other Brewer fans have similar problems. 3.Big one- Will Call for season ticket holders. Either ya take the seats, or the Brewers will be flexible and refund you your money, making the seats available for past group leaders or local businesses at Will Call. No selling out to Ebay or Cub fans 4.Be proactive in getting seats to Brewers fans; hey, if I had a call in February and the Brewers were selling seats to me by phone, I'd probably take four; that being said I know I still could do the same on the first day seats go on sale, but I'd like to see the Brewers ticket office be take charge on this, view it as a challenge to get Brewers fans in the building. Finally, we all know that the Brewers could have easily sold out all four Cubs games with just Brewer fans and would have if given the chance. Concludin give Cub fans credit for travelling, give Brewers fans no credit for selling out, and keep asking the Brewers ticket sales team to cater to Brewers fans. We'll show up.

You're probably right, bball, but maybe it could be done with the number of ticket windows at the stadium, if every window was done for Will Call and each ticket buyer would be assigned a window. Yet, you're probably right. I just don't like the idea of Brewer fans scalping their seats; if they don't know better, make it tough for them to sell.

As Brewer fans, we usually complain about this a couple times a year. To remain sane over Cub games at Miller Park, I keep three things in mind. Although some of the truth is hard to take, it does seem to ease my mind: 1. Give Cubs fans credit for traveling with their team, although half our jerks and drunks 2. Give Brewer fans no credit for selling their Cub tickets to Cub fans, directly or indirectly 3. Tell Brewers management( I have with letter(s)) that a better plan needs to be made for Cubs games. Brewer fans would fill the place on their own if let Some of my ideas include: - having the Brewers be proactive getting seats to faithful Brewers groups who have gone to other Brewers games over the years, using Will Call for all Cubs games on the day of game- this would hurt the resale of tickets big time on EBAy, etc., like others have said with the 4 game strip, making Illinois residents pay double of Wisconsin residents

Why he is playing consistently with Durham on the team is another questionable move. Even when he gets a hit, he'll find a way to get out on the base pads.

Nate, include the lefty stats, could ya? I'll compromise with you- Weeks can bat against righties and Dillon faces the lefties. Actually, right now in the season, that seems pretty fair- Weeks would play over half the games and Dillon would finally get some regular playing time.

Weeks is one of our worst hitters now, not only in average but also lately. He is a defensive liability with better options to replace him. Moving him down in the order, sure. Moving him out of the order if he doesn't get it together after 4 months of baseball on a play-off hoping team, yes. Dillon, on the other hand, hasn't gotten a chance to play everyday. He isn't great in range at 2B, but can turn two and do the routine stuff. Batting wise, the kid takes many balls, sees many pitches, and hits the ball hard. I don't know why he isn't playing more. If Hall sits for over half the games for Branyan, Weeks should be sitting a couple more times a week for Dillon.