adambr2

Somewhat of a surprise to me, I thought Guerra was going to make it and I thought Gallardo had a better than 50/50 chance. I think the Yo move is a pretty good sign for Hoover and Taylor Williams. Drake is also going to make it unless they find someone else in other team's cuts. Knebel Hader Albers Jeffress Barnes Hoover Williams Drake

I wouldn't mind getting McHugh, but one of the 'connect the dots' proposals I saw from a writer involved Santana going back to Houston. I wouldn't be interested at that price unless there were notable pieces coming back with McHugh.

If Thames continues to hit like he did in spring training, I think he will lose his starting role vs righties very quickly to Braun. I wouldn't pencil him for 110 starts just yet. I just don't put a lot into ST numbers. Thames had a pretty mediocre spring last season and then looked like an MVP in April. He hits righty pitching quite well. He should just never face LHP. I know if Braun can swing a good bat, we're going to want him in there every day, but the fact of the matter is that it is definitely in our best interests long-term to not overwork him, even when he's hot. We know what he can do when he's healthy. We also know he's extremely fragile. 2 maintenance days a week at times would not be surprising. That's still 110 starts for Braun or about 500 PAs. I know that seems light, but if that means he stays 100% all year, I'd much rather go that route than having ailments pop up and having to either DL him or play through it ineffectively. Remember that game last year where Braun was clearly back in the lineup injured and lollipopped every throw in from LF? There's no reason to have that ever happen this year. We have the depth to avoid it. There aren't any Kirk Nieuwenhuis' types filling in the OF now.

Wheeler is exactly the kind of high risk/reward starter that I'd love to take a shot on if it was cheap. He's supposedly healthy but struggling. Maybe DJ could fix this, I don't know, but he's got a much higher ceiling than his career performances indicates. I'd be fine with shipping the Mets any of Broxton, Perez, or Aguilar. He's also controlled for 2019 if he were to figure it out -- perhaps 2020 too if he spends enough time down in AAA this year. However, I agree with Joseph in that they probably would rather just keep Wheeler down at AAA rather than sell him cheap.

Verlander was hesitant to even waive his no-trade clause to go to Houston. Think it would have taken a pretty miracle pitch on the part of DS to get him here.

Not sure how the organization views Hader going forward. But I'd feel pretty uncomfortable with this year's pen if he wasn't in it.

I think if anything this confirms that Thames isn't going to be left out in the cold. He's on the probably 110 start side of the split.

Yeah this is pretty much in line with what the expectation was. Recently we were figuring on 50 or so starts at 1st which i would guess is roughly in line with the number of lefty starters faced per year.

This was posted by 'cheeseandcorn' on Brewcrewball, and he gave me the go-ahead to share it here as well. I know similar references has been shared but I thought this was a really good one. It's got different tabs for both pitching and position prospects and for a quick reference contains about as much information on a prospect as one could ask for. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1IUxxTwCFVLxpNHmsAM3tG5XyNShW3PlL4eqnZOG-P10/edit?usp=sharing

This one is a very tough one to answer for me because we just don't know what was really available. Signing Darvish instead of Cain seems reasonable, but I don't believe Darvish ever really wanted to come here so I have no idea how much we would have had to beat the Cubs' offer by to land him. I wouldn't have wanted us to go 6/150 guaranteed on Darvish. Same with Santana for Salazar. I probably would have done it, but I really have no idea if that was even available. A trade for Archer centered around Santana would have been great, but I'm betting the Rays weren't that interested in Santana and preferred a prospect heavy package. To me, it's been kind of a fascinating off-season because I think moreso than before any other year, I just have no idea what to expect. My instincts say our rotation isn't good enough and our roster construction sucks, but I also thought we'd win 70-75 games last year, so I'm pretty convinced these guys know how to run a baseball team better than I would. It's quite a defining off-season for Stearns. I think it's possible that the fears of some end up justified, we win 75 games, and Stearns ends up rightfully second guessed for this off-season. I also think it's possible that some combination of Woodruff/Suter/Guerra/Miley/Burnes work out well at 4/5, Nelson comes back strong, the roster construction allows for the perfect timeshare all around in terms of everyone getting ABs and enough time off to stay 100%, we win 90 games, and Stearns is not only vindicated but ends up as a trailblazer for other GMs in how strongly they emphasize bench and rest. We'll find out soon enough. Either way, I'm excited for the season to begin.

Like most fans, when the news of Yelich and Cain came in almost simultaneously, I thought, "Ok, there's more to come, these are just 2 steps in the master plan here." I'm more than a bit surprised to see that apparently wasn't the case. I think the theory that perhaps they had other moves lined up that didn't work out is pretty plausible. If so, however, it's not a very good look. Yelich and Cain were big investments in terms of both prospects and capital. If you're going to invest that heavily into your strongest position as part of a larger plan, you had better be certain that the other steps of your larger plan are going to pan out. Yelich is pretty easy to justify as a standalone long and short term move independent of any other move. The 80M investment into a nearly 32 year old outfielder is much harder to wrap my head around without questioning whether or not that was supposed to be accompanied by another move that never happened.

If Drake is going to make this roster they need to be having a conversation about his usage. He should only face lefties unless the game is an absolute blowout and he's just eating up innings. Counsell far too often rolled the dice with Drake against righties last year and usually paid for it.

Well, I can understand why the guy who has to cut the checks wouldn't be fine with that. 25M for one year of Alex Cobb? More than double what Lynn got?

Look, I don't pretend to know what makes Davies so much better on the road, but perhaps more than any other MLB starter he has very extreme away/home splits for both his career and recent history and is basically an ace on the road and a bad #5 at home. Setting it up for the first time opening the season on the road, just pitch Davies in the opening series on the road. Come on, Craig.

There's still plenty of ways to cheat the system to stay under the threshold. The Giants' deal with Tony Watson is proof of that.

Someone brought up Nick Ramirez the other day. With the crap we've thrown out the last couple years to try to retire lefties, it's hard to understand what more he needs to do for at least a shot.

Drake is going to make the roster, isn't he?

Tyler Webb is the guy on the 40 man roster that you totally forget is on the 40 man roster. But yeah I'd probably rather have Webb than Drake, for whatever that's worth.

Nope, but Jose Capellan unfortunately is, who was previously mentioned in this thread.

The 8 spot comes up more often with two out and none on more than any other spot in the order, except third. It's worth about ten runs a year to swap them, but that assumes the team uses an optimal lineup otherwise. So bat the pitcher 3rd.

1) Hiura - I had a difficult time choosing between Hiura and Burnes for 1, and I really look at them as 1A and 1B. Ultimately I gave the edge to Hiura based on an elite hit tool which could make him a very high level player. 2) Burnes - Far exceeding his draft position by this point, Burnes has destroyed minor league hitters at a rate not seen by a Brewer farmhand in a long, long time. 3) Phillips - He's been frankly buried on the OF depth chart and become forgotten with the Yelich and Cain acqusitions, and frankly, it's undeserved. People seem to have forgotten this was a top 50 prospect and the headliner prospect of the Gomez deal which also brought in Hader and Santana. Phillips did everything we could have hoped at the MLB level last year. He's more than a 4th OF prospect. 4) Woodruff - Much like Burnes, Woodruff has a recent history of minor league dominance. While his MLB results have been a mixed bag, he's deserving of a rotation spot at the MLB level. 5) Ortiz - He's arguably got a higher ceiling that Burnes. He didn't dominate in 2017, but he didn't disappoint, either. Why he's largely been forgotten is a bit of a mystery to me. 6) Peralta - His pitching dominance was only surpassed by Burnes last season, and his extension to the plate has resulted in eye-popping strikeout numbers that indicate future late inning reliever if he doesn't stay in the rotation. 7) Lutz - Unsurprisingly dominant in early play in Rookie ball, it's worth noting that many Brewer scouts wouldn't have been disappointed to see him taken ahead of Hiura in 2017. 8) Grisham - Grisham's OBP makes me more optimistic on him than some are, although his hit tools have yet to show much. Bear in mind he's always been very young for his levels. Still a valuable prospect. 9) Erceg - After a blistering start in rookie ball, came back down to earth a bit last year with everyone else in the Mudcat lineup. Still, this ranking reflects a lot more of what I think of the guys above him and not a knock on Erceg. 10) Williams - Bullpen prospects rarely get much love, but Williams' upside as a possible future late inning reliever sooner rather than later is too high for me to keep him out of the top 10. 11) Ray - It's undoubtedly a make or break year for the Louisville college prospect, and you'd certainly like to see the bat having developed further by this point than it has. 12) Ponce - Extremely good numbers after a promotion to Biloxi in late 2017, albeit in just 3 starts. If things break right for him, he could be the Corbin Burnes we're talking about at this time next year. 13) Gatewood - Bat started to show signs of the upside the organization hoped for when they took him in the Competitive Balance Round in 2014. Still just 22, a breakout 2018 would surprise no one. 14) Dubon - While the ceiling isn't particularly high, the floor is a speedy slicked glove middle infielder which should at minimum give Dubon a future on an MLB bench. 15) Medeiros - While still a marked improvement from his 2016 campaign, Medeiros' 2017 was a combination of dominance mixed in at other times with extreme struggles. There's still Josh Hader upside in this arm, but the clock is ticking. The Brewers may be forced to decide much earlier than Hader whether Kodi's future is in a rotation or pen. 16) Feliciano - Early on, looked like the next great Brewer catching prospect in 2017 before the bat came crashing back down to earth. Still just a teenager and young for Appleton last year, the bat will come back around, making Feliciano a potentially special prospect if he can stick at catcher. 17) Houser - While not ticketed for the MLB bullpen early on, early signs on the injury return front have been very encouraging for Houser. They may be careful with him for a bit, but seeing him in the Brewer pen in 2018 wouldn't be a surprise. 18) Carmona - While his young age may remind some of the Gilbert Lara signing, Carmona's bat impressed in the DSL. Though years away, the tools are there to become a well-rounded MLB prospect and move up this list quickly. 19) Diplan - Diplan was nearing top 100 status before a nightmarish season for the Mudcats. The club still thought enough of him to protect him for the Rule 5, and if he can fix his mechanics, he still could have a future as a late inning reliever -- or perhaps still make it as a starter. 20) Nottingham - By most accounts, while his bat still lagged behind expectations, Jacob showed a much better feel behind the plate in 2017 and took some significant strides as a defender. Another addition to the 40 man roster, he showed some good things in Spring Training and still may be viewed as a future backstop in Milwaukee. 21) Bickford - Bickford's complete tumble from any organizational rankings is a bit inexplicable to me, considering his 2017 was lost due to suspension and injury, not ineffectiveness. If his velocity returns, there's still a lot to like here. 22) Supak - This is lower than I'd like to rank Supak, who was one of the more consistent starters in the system for the first half of 2017. He's got a nice pitch mix, decent fastball velocity, and could very well find himself pitching for the Shuckers sometime this season. 23) Lemons - Caden is a bit of a project, but could end up being one of the better starting pitching prospects in the system when it's all said and done. His frame and mid 90's fastball were enticing enough for the Brewers to invest, and we'll get his first real taste of what's to come at this level in 2018. 24) Lopez - The former top 100 prospect continues the theme of starting prospects in the Brewer system who may be better suited for the pen. Whether it was simply a matter of the Colorado Springs air making him ineffective and snowballing into a loss of confidence or something else, he still has the stuff to provide yet another intriguing pen option if he can't develop into a potential MLB starter. 25) Harrison, KJ - While older and further developed than his counterpart Feliciano, Harrison also projects as a bat first catcher. He may have even more question marks for remaining behind the plate than Feliciano, but his bat, as shown in Helena, may develop into a strong enough tool to make him a formidable prospect at any position he winds up at. 26) Stokes - While I'm not as high on Stokes as most others in part admittedly due to his undersized frame, I can see the intrigue. The power has developed into a better tool than I think anyone could have anticipated from his stature, and he's an asset on the bases too, a player who does a little bit of everything quite well. 27) Brown - Still yet another potential late inning option in the near future, the Brewers still for now will give him a chance to develop in the rotation. Either way, he's one to keep an eye on as a more advanced college arm that could advance through the system quickly. 28) Ernesto - Just 17 years old, Ernesto seems to be a bit overlooked despite the near $2M dollar investment from the organization. A toolsy switch-hitting outfielder, it's far too early to project where Ernesto could end up in the outfield, but the athleticism is there for a fast high caliber defender who can hit for power and average. 29) Kirby - Despite having just a few innings of pro ball thrown, Kirby's upside is intriguing enough to me to keep him among my top 30. One can only hope that he's finally healthy enough to start showing flashes of the dominant lefty that the Brewers hoped for when they drafted him in 2015 if he can stay healthy and harness his control. 30) Rodriguez - Like Ernesto, Rodriguez is one of the newest prizes from the international scouting team. While possessing some similar tools to Ernesto, and being a switch hitter as well, Rodriguez is a bit undersized -- no surprise for a prospect who just turned 17. Still, the Brewers like his polish and track record at his very young age.

Absolute clunker by Suter tonight. If Miley is out for awhile, I'd just let him walk, DL Logan, keep Suter as a long man/lefty, and give the last 2 spots to Woodruff and Guerra.

The sad thing is when I saw this bumped I thought "Ray King. Is he still around? Seems unlikely but maybe he is." Then I looked him up and realized he hasn't pitched in a decade. They told me time would fly the older I got, but I never realized how much.

I'm assuming this has to be a joke/sarcasm/tongue in cheek/whatever we are calling it these days, but man it is getting harder to pick up on nowadays.

Me too, but I'm thinking they'll keep someone who profiles as a lefty specialist, and if that's not Logan, Drake would be the only other.