True CryM

First, Mike McClendon. His numbers in relief were fantastic all year. Multiple innings, high pressure situations, strike outs and being able to do it on back to back occasions. If nothing else, he's proof positive that if you're dominating, you'll get an opportunity with the big league club. Between Axford, McClendon, Kam Loe (a sneaky great pick up by Melvin) and depending if Braddock goes back to starting, the Brewers have a strong core of young reliable relievers. It'll be nice to see money spent elsewhere. Second, the Fullerton guys - Komatsu and Khris Davis. I think the reports on Komatsu's defense are a bit misleading. He's not D'Vontrey Richardson skills wise, but he will make every play - a natural outfielder. Davis has tailed off lately, but he's been great for the majority of the year. I'd like to see him get more of an opportunity in the field as he's much more athletic than Morris. Both have all the qualities you'd expect coming from a top collegiate program.

That being said, it's much harder for a 1st round pick to improve his draft status after three years than it is to go back to school. Guaranteed money is something you don't pass on in sports.

Please. Yeah, he leaned his head over the plate. And his back. Just because something's been happening for 100+ years, doesn't make it a good thing.

I haven't seen him pitch, but it's been noted by others that his velocity has not been what was advertised on draft day. Instead of the mid/low 90's, he's been throwing mid/high 80's. Kevin Goldstein had a writeup on a game of his. I believe he said Arnett was throwing hard, but not locating and that he was visibly frustrated thoughout the game. On the surface it seems like quite a few things are contributing to his poor results. Lack of velocity, poor control and the weight of being a first round pick. Who knows. His last outing was decent. Maybe he'll turn it around.

Looks like he gave up a home run, though. At least one was earned, right?

I thought McKelvie was a 5-tooler with plus speed and a plus arm. Any rationale behind the move to first?

I can't speak to anyone elses reasons, but mine are simple. I think as Lawrie matures and continues to fill out, he's going to lack the ideal quickness for 2nd base, but will have plenty to play 3rd. On top of that, from what I've seen, he's got soft hands and a very strong arm. I understand 3B is one of the hardest positions to play, but the biggest reason guys are moved from 3B or SS is the arm strength needed, something I don't believe is an issue with Lawrie. Not to mention, it's easily debatable that 2nd base is more difficult to play than 3rd given the intricacies involved in turning two, and the additional ground they have to cover. I'm not sure how much more Lawrie is going to fill out. He's already has a thick frame with definition. IMO, teaching Lawrie a new position (which I consider to be harder than 2b) is more difficult than predicting him to lose quickness.

Weeks is one of the worst fielding 2b in the majors. The scouts that said he wouldn't be able to play there have been right so far. If Escobar is allotted the same amount of slack as Rickie, then he'll eclipse what ever Weeks has done in a matter of months. Those two aren't even close defensively.

The Brewers organization apparently believes this not to be an issue with Gindl and Kentrail Davis being all of 5'8".

Dykstra with a dinger tonight. His average is slowly creeping up towards .300. Hopefully he can "defy the odds" as a 20-year old and shove it in Goldstein's face.

It's not as if he's quitting baseball. And in the case of Brewer, it's not like he was in 2-week hitting slump. He was bad for the majority of 4 seasons. Maybe football was the right route after all. It's extremely shortsighted to call Angel a quitter when maybe he's doing what the organization should have done a long time ago. Also, the entire developmental side of the Brewer's organization needs to be looked at very closely. How many guys continue to be absolute butchers in the field? How many guys are playing out of position but continue to played there? How many pitchers are actually getting better? How many of the guys on the big league club act like they've never been taught the basic fundamentals of the game? As much as this is a change for Angel, it's also an indictment of the entire system. Edit: I keep thinking about my playing career and can't imagine the idea of requesting to change positions. That takes an unbelievable amount of guts, but you have to be absolutely broken down to do that. If he was the one to suggest it, then he must have been hung up on the difficulties of catching for quite some time. I wish him all the best of luck and will root for him harder more than ever. 2nd Edit: I don't know if it's better or worse that we, the fans, know that it was Angel's decision to switch positions. In all honesty, I think I'd much rather hear that Gord spearheaded the move and discussed it with Angel.

That's pretty interesting. As you said, there's a number of signable players, and since Gibson indicated that the Brewers were one of the top teams looking to draft him, maybe they've planned to meet his offer all along. I imagine this one will go down to the wire.

Really surprised Jesse Hahn still isn't drafted.

Jesse Hahn still on the board.

Pitt going to overslot again with Cole?