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MNBrew

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Everything posted by MNBrew

  1. MNBrew
    But the unfortunate part is of all the guys who could make a difference - none of them will fall to us in the waivers. Our chance was in July. So don't get your hopes up on us being able to acquire someone. Papelbon has cleared waivers and Amaro has stated he'd include cash in a deal. Despite that he admits there's zero interest in him. Declining velocity and his abrasive personality are serious concerns. Despite that I'd still like more help. Thanks. I meant there have to be some guys out there who are available -- in other words, who've cleared waivers -- but you'd have to have inferred that since I didn't include those words in my original post. Maybe it's not an apt comparison, but K-Rod had had character (and legal) issues (brought on himself) in New York and his performance had declined, but coming to the Brewers gave him a new lease on his baseball life and he responded accordingly. I'm not saying Papelbon, if acquired, would duplicate that smooth transition, but you have to wonder if he's okay when winning but can't handle a losing situation and it brings out the worst in him. . . . Still a concern, regardless, but possibilities do exist. All that said, if there's a upper-end available reliever, and for a better price than Papelbon, I'd hope Melvin could pull off a deal. Papelbon's a guy whose status happens to have been found out, that's all.
  2. MNBrew
    While the offense has had its ups and downs, IMO the bullpen is the main area for improvement and I have to think there are guys out there who can make enough of a difference in terms of making the postseason and succeeding in it that I think Melvin probably needs to pull the trigger. Papelbon is one guy who I think could be that kind of difference maker. . . . When the Brewers traded for K-Rod originally and made him the 8th inning guy, all the previous late-inning strength got moved an inning earlier and our BP was that much tougher. Papelbon's got a big contract for this year & beyond, but Rickie Weeks' contract is off the books next year and, in the meantime, Papelbon could provide K-Rod vintage 2011 strength & depth that the team has lost with Henderson & Thornburg out for the duration and the rest of the bullpen proving lately it's not so invincible (meaning they ARE vincible, right? I always thought that was a weird word... anyway...).
  3. MNBrew
    Because he made an error last night? I don't think so. The occasional error will happen even with the best players, preposterous as that seems with so many people's expectations so high, media coverage so high, and patience/tolerance consequently so low. Gomez has made a couple dumb errors (whether called an error or not) in CF recently, but I don't think it means he's increasingly a defensive liability in CF.
  4. MNBrew
    I think it's incredibly obvious that the thumb injury is the answer to the power issue. No one was tested more than Braun in 2012, and his numbers all-around were as good or better than in his MVP year of 2011. Once the thumb thing came into play, everything changed. He's still pretty darn productive, just not with the HRs. In these days of tabloid journalism, self-righteous or haughty mistrust, and all-or-nothing perceptions by many across society, I think it's important to keep in mind that there's not a one of us that can pretend to know exactly how painful his thumb issue actually is or the extent to which it's affecting his game (though the extent to which he's hitting the ball to the right half of the diamond does make for a rather obvious suggestion). I'm not saying the thumb issue is everything, as, for instance, his chase rate is quite lousy by his prior standards, but I do think it's the key issue.
  5. MNBrew
    Never mind. Glendon Rusch is worth forgetting. And I found the easy link on baseball-reference.com: http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/MIL/uniform-numbers.shtml
  6. MNBrew
    I'm stumped (or having a brain cramp). Who the heck is that? Doesn't look like Capuano & I can't find an all-time Brewers numerical roster anywhere.
  7. MNBrew
    I'm not convinced Aramis Ramirez is going elsewhere b/c his numbers are solid, the Brewers can exercise their option, and the Brewers -- and the majority of other MLB teams -- don't have better options in the pipeline. Even if Ramirez misses a month of next year, I'd take his production at 3B and at his salary over Chase Headley's numbers & contract in a heartbeat and not think twice about it.
  8. MNBrew
    Bingo. I've long said that your 4th OF and your 5th IF need to be guys with whom you're comfortable as long-stretch everyday starters. That makes for solid depth when everyone's healthy and NOT so much trouble when someone gets hurt. I've liked Schafer for 5 years or more, and he's still an excellent defender w/ good speed, but Parra's a significant upgrade over him on lots of levels including defense.
  9. MNBrew
    Since they didn't bring him in to be an everyday starter (unless there's an injury), what else is there and what else did you think the Brewers needed in him?
  10. MNBrew
    No way does this put Braun or Davis at all at 1B. Parra's the 4th OF who can also start and not embarrass himself, plus he's a serious defensive upgrade over Davis in LF (Gold Gloves in '11 & '13). I still really like Logan Schafer but in 1.5 years his bat hasn't adjusted to coming off the bench. Schafer's still a decent asset but now as the 5th OF. Haniger seems like a substantial price to pay, but you have to give up something of value to get something of value, so while I'm a little wary of giving him up, I'm still okay with the deal.
  11. MNBrew
    Assuming Lee's healthy, I'd be inclined to trade Gallardo for him and ask the Phillies to eat the entire difference on the balance of the two contracts. Heck, giving up someone of Gallardo's ilk could also net us something else solid in return. I know Gallardo can be really good. But most of the time he's pretty average anymore. He doesn't often go beyond 6 IP and doesn't have nearly the K rate or track record. He usually seems more likely to give up 4-5 runs in 6 IP than 1 run in 7 IP. The days of Gallardo as "ace" are gone and to me he's a guy w/ #2SP ceiling who usually pitches more like a #3 or #4.
  12. MNBrew
    Toronto it is: http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2014/04/blue-jays-to-sign-juan-francisco.html
  13. MNBrew
    Parmalee was actually outrighted to AAA. I've watched him long enough up here in Twins Territory to know that I don't want to see the Brewers try to convince themselves that he'd be worth acquiring.
  14. MNBrew
    I agree . . . but I also don't. It's cherry-picking, but I see Thornburg's role & value like Estrada's a few years ago: Become solid out of the bullpen, then be on hand already to start when there's an injury. Before anyone gets too miffed about Thornburg, keep in mind that the Twins did this w/ Johan Santana for 2 if not 3 seasons before they figured out that he should be in the Opening Day rotation . . . even though he was strong in the rotation the couple 1/2 seasons he had as a starter.
  15. MNBrew
    Yeah, but if the main starters actually play well, the guys we hope aren't getting many ABs probably won't be, then. . . . which would be the best scenario given who'll make the roster. (Sorry, kind of a circular statement, but it made great sense in my head before I typed it.)
  16. MNBrew
    That's four guys hitting 6-7-8, and we know Overbay doesn't have the HR bat the others do, so it's pretty obvious he's talking that HR quantity at 1B between Reynolds & Overbay together.
  17. MNBrew
    Braun in the OF = average-to-plus defense. Braun at a corner IF spot has a track record that you don't want to perpetuate. I get the logic of "if it helps us vastly improve another facet of the team" thinking, but I still disagree with the notion of Braun at 1B being anything of a "plus" move.
  18. MNBrew
    Taylor Green was DFA'd because doing so could free a roster spot with reasonable certainty that he wouldn't be claimed on account of his surgery. Keeping him in the organization that way is a smart way to add depth with a known quantity who has twice been the team's Minor League Position Player of the Year. He may not be a future all-star, but he's proved at times he can be very solid. He has had some decent stretches (nothing stellar, but still decent), made good contact, had some good ABs, and, assuming he's healthy, sizes up better both offensively and defensively than Overbay currently does. I'm all over Mr. Southpaw's proposed plan. He's the best backup-or-maybe-starting 3B of the lot (after Ramirez) and can also play 1B, 2B, plus the corner OF spots in a pinch.
  19. MNBrew
    I still don't get any fascination with Smoak. He's just not a better alternative at 1B than anyone MIL already has and may well be significantly worse (at least Reynolds and Overbay have had MLB success over a considerable period!). Smoak's had a plenty of time to prove himself worthy and he's just not enough of a hitter to merit coveting, let alone trading anything better than what the Brewers sent to the Mets for K-Rod.
  20. MNBrew
    Yeah, I'm totally with you on the Thornburg-for-Davis stuff. However, JDLR put up a lovely 8.60 ERA in 2006 up 'til he was traded (18G, 30 IP), and he was truly showing no signs of putting it together in his 3rd MLB season. Heck, his WHIP over his 3 partial seasons in MIL was 1.92 with nearly identical -- and awful -- K:9 & BB:9 rates (7.4 & 7.0, respectively). And he pretty much stunk in KC, too, and his 1st year in Colorado was only passably on a Braden Looper level. It took 'til 2009 - his 6th year in MLB - for him to have a respectable season, and his 16-9 record was still accompanied by a very Dave-Bush-in-a-good-year ERA of 4.38.
  21. MNBrew
    I don't remember where I read it (a JSOnline story is most likely), but I recall Melvin stating that he won't keep all 3 of Reynolds, Overbay, & Juan Francisco. So if Francisco is the loser in the 1B derby, his 40-man spot would open up and presumably go to either Reynolds or Overbay.
  22. MNBrew
    No, he meant the value of veteran players. Many here don't like things like intangibles because they aren't measurable. But those intangibles are real and they are meaningful. It's not relying on those players. It's a matter of younger players gaining from what those veterans are willing to give in addition to what the younger players are already gaining from their coaches. My teachers and eventually my administrators have helped me a lot in my career. But none were able to help me in the same way -- qualitatively or quantitatively -- as a colleague who proved to be the most incredible mentor. My line of work is not anything remotely close to professional sports, but the analogy holds very true.
  23. MNBrew
    I think this is a pretty typical number of invitees right now, and they don't typically add more guys en masse later than now. I wouldn't be surprised if a nearly-guaranteed BP arm is eventually added as an NRI but under the working assumption that they'll open a 40-man spot for him closer to Opening Day.
  24. MNBrew
    Both Overbay & Reynolds are NRIs, which means one or both making the Opening Day roster isn't automatic. It seems quite likely now, but if they make a move for a bona fide MLB 1B onto the 40-man who's better than those two guys, you've got to figure he'll end up on the 25-man over both Overbay & Reynolds. . . . .And if a similar option presents itself later, releasing one or both of those guys is NOT a major blow to the budget.
  25. MNBrew
    Overbay and Reynolds are bad but they're likely better than what we got from 1B last year. It'd be almost impossible not to be. Thanks, trwi7. That was my point -- not that they're necessarily good, but they're much better than JF21 & Yuni B. And Gennett showed a very respectable glove when he was up.
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