djoctagone

assuming braun is suspended for fifty games, his suspension would end when manny ramirez's suspension would end (assuming manny is signed to a major league contract by opening day). how would that benefit the brewers?

i realise this is an older thread, but when i saw the reports of jeff suppan becoming the 20th non-roster invitee for the padres, i recalled starting this thread. glad to see that the brewers are keeping their non-roster invitee list to a reasonable number with just 14 players--and notably keeping verterans corey patterson and seth mcclung out of big league camp. according to the twins' website, they have 25 non-roster invitees this year. 25!

some player (active or retired) should encourage greinke to seek out representation from a renowned attorney named hope springs. even better . . . have business cards printed up that read "hope springs: attorney" and give one to greinke.

deep down, i feel better with mat gamel as the 2012 first baseman than with matt laporta as the 2012 first baseman.

deep down, i wish he'd spell his first name with two t's.

the brewers' brass might deem that eric farris and newcomer jeff bianchi aren't both worth keeping on the 40-man roster and try to outright one of them. it'd be an easier decision to make if they both primarily played the same position, but the former is a second baseman and the latter is a shortstop. two teams have already tried to outright jeff bianchi this offseason and he's been claimed each time by another team.

quite true, as outlined in this thread. . . it's going to be tough for a corey patterson, brooks conrad or travis ishikawa making the big league club when cesar izturis seems to have the inside-track on a 40-man (and 25-man) roster spot.

as reported on twitter. curious if he has an opt-out clause. he will not be in big league camp. welcome back, corey.

i see this as a good thing for teams needing a "rental" player down the stretch that are willing to take on additional payroll. forfeiting teams know that they're not going to be able to get any draft picks for a player worth less than $12 million a year (because they likely wouldn't offer arbitration to that player), so it becomes a means to shed payroll, and usually in such deals, the return is a low-level prospect or two. look no further than what the brewers had to give up to get k-rod from the mets. the acquiring team gets nothing more than a rental for a few months (or more, depending on postseason progress). slight advantage to the acquiring team in that (i believe) they'd still have an exclusive negotiating period with the free agent after the world series, and they certainly would have exclusivity in negotiating a contract extension before the season ended. granted, when a player is just months away from going on the open market, he's likely going to wait to entertain offers from all 30 teams. because the acquiring team only gets a very short-term benefit, the other team should be getting less in a trade. you won't be seeing clubs engaging in many 2-for-1, 3-for-1 and 4-for-1 deals during the season any more. this bodes well for the acquiring team in that they don't need to trade away as valuable of prospect(s) just to get a "rental" player.

it's being discussed here, but a braun suspension increases the chances of a player out of minor league options staying with the organization. also, i took a look at the schedule, and while april puts the brewers in some places where away games could be canceled and rescheduled later (notably chicago and st. louis), the brewers will spend most of may in ballparks with roofs or warmer/drier climates. this bodes well in that the brewers' anticipated 51st game played could very well be the 51st game currently on the schedule (which is 31 may at dodger stadium--the last day of a road trip).

Excellent. i can't take credit for it. i borrowed it from the then-gm of the nationals, when they dealt with a player of theirs with an assumed name.

the player to be named later . . . literally.

a casual observer has no idea to whom you are referring. quoting responsibly (either using the quote function or editing the quote by placing the player's name in parentheses after the generic pronoun "he") goes a long way.

if it's izturis and conrad, somebody else might to have to lose a spot on the 40-man roster . . . i say "might" because if braun's suspended, a spot opens up (albeit briefly).

six years. pretty risky. but the average annual value of approximately $10 million per year isn't horrible. but that's only if you forget about the $51.7 million finder's fee . . .

yes. if manny parra doesn't make the team (and is healthy), he would have to be outrighted off the 40-man roster. given the likely need for a left-handed pitcher in the bullpen, and given that the brewers just don't seem ready to give up on manny parra, i consider him a lock to make the team.

it should be noted that because tim dillard has been outrighted once before, he has the right to refuse the minor league assignment if outrighted again and become a free agent. should be the same with frankie de la cruz . . . he obviously was outrighted at some point in his career because he was on a major league roster but was on a minor league contract with the brewers when his contract was purchased last year.

with today's signing of norichika aoki to (presumably) a major league contract, the brewers' 40-man roster is full. actually, it's at 40 plus a suspended player (mark rogers) whose suspension is expected to last only through the first eight games in april. after his suspension ends, rogers will be added back to the 40-man roster. we hope it doesn't come to this, but if ryan braun is suspended, then a roster spot opens up (but only for the duration of his suspension). this thread serves to project how the brewers' 40-man roster will shake out before and during spring training. barring the addition of any other players via trade or free agency, here's what we can expect: --two pitchers have to make the club if they are to remain on the 40-man roster: tim dillard and frankie de la cruz. they are out of minor league options, and would have to be outrighted to the minor leagues. knock on wood, but let's hope that the other pitchers ahead of dillard and de la cruz will be healthy and be better fits for the big league club. removing them opens up two spots. --mat gamel makes the club. if he doesn't, he has to be outrighted off the 40-man and any team can claim him. --cesar izturis has an opt-out clause in his contract if he is not added to the 40-man roster by 30 march. this fills one spot. --george kottaras is on a non-guaranteed deal and could be cut before the conclusion of spring training, with minor financial ramifications for the team. if his replacement is martin maldonado, then a 40-man spot opens up. but if his replacement is a player on a minor league contract (such as mike rivera), that replacement takes kottaras' spot. --we've yet to get an injury update on rhp santo manzanillo since his car accident. it's possible (but unlikely) that the brewers would call him up but then place him on the 60-day disabled list to open up a spot on the 40-man roster. my prediction? the brewers break camp with 39 players on their roster, cutting dillard and de la cruz and adding izturis. they keep that 40th spot open for mark rogers--whom they then option to the minor leagues, burning his final option.

the brewers get an 8th inning guy and a 9th inning guy for less than what they've paid in the past for one 9th inning guy (beating gagne's $10 million for sure, possibly less than what the brewers paid hoffman in each of his two seasons?)

reports are that k-rod avoided an arbitration hearing with the brewers by agreeing to a one-year deal.

congrats to craig counsell . . . who will be a brewer (sort of) in 2012.

tim dillard and frankie de la cruz are both out of minor league options. if they don't make the club out of spring training, they have to be outrighted off the 40-man roster. dillard for sure could declare free agency, as he's been outrighted before. i'm not sure about de la cruz. i certainly hope that there are other pitchers healthy enough to make the club ahead of dillard and de la cruz, so the brewers will have two spots open up (barring any trades for major leaguers). we'll also know soon enough whether not ryan braun gets suspended. that (unfortuntely) would open up another 40-man roster spot (albeit briefly). likewise, we have an open spot due to the suspended mark rogers, but we'll have to have a spot available when his suspension ends after the eighth game in april (rogers can be optioned if you missed the announcement).

bianchi was added to the royals' 40-man roster following the 2009 season and has one minor league option remaining. great ss depth on the major league roster.

tweeted by jon morosi. stats

soooooo . . . if they're minor league deals but with an invitation to major league spring training, should the topic appear in the major league forum?