2010 Automatic Outs

01 Corey Hart
02 Carlos Gomez
03 Alicides Escobar
04 Jason Kendall
05 Pitcher

So it's all in for pitching and defense next year? If so, better get some pitching.

Back (Sorta)

It's not that I haven't paid attention to the Brewers, it's just that the team has become so frustratingly mediocre that it's not fun any longer. For much of the past three months I've said to myself "Who's blowing it now?" when I check the score. Unfortunately, it's been many.

In any case, a few major life events of this modest grain elevator manager have passed and I may contribute more to this site. Obviously the Brewers were limited in their moves this year, and just as I predicted out of spring training, this was going to be a buffer year before they officially "go for it" once again next season.

The glaring need is a starter who pitches innings ... and there's a few of them out there. I'm certain once the pain of the revolving door of starters and relievers is over this season, the team position will be clear to us all.

As for the Cardinals ... I don't know how they do it.

No Moves, Whew

Although I'm going to suffer through another series of Claudio Vargas 5th inning blow ups, I'm pleased the Brewers didn't make any major moves ... their certainly were a bunch of silly ones this time around.

It would have been nice to get a pitcher who would be sticking around through next season, the real season the Brewers should be building for. However, nothing major is good, this off season needs to be spent addressing the pitching and/or conditioning of the arms here already.

Also, no need to ever worry about Cincy as long as Dusty Baker is there ... though you should already know that.

Tough Day for Suppan

5.1 IP, 10 R, 10 H, 4 BB vs. the worst team in the league

The Hold Steady

It's increasingly difficult to watch the Brewers lurch their way through the season, so I think the only winning move re: the trade deadline is not to play.

Recall that prior to the season, the predictions and regression analysis all spotted the team to hover around .500 through the season unless a handful of hitters have career years. Fielder is obviously on that pace, Weeks was until the injury, but Braun, Hardy, and Hart have diminished numbers compared to this point last year. The rotation is fraying and the bullpen has been hit or miss … I don't think this is going to be the year.

I recommend putting on a brave face for the rest of the season and let the Cubs & Cardinals, who have obviously sold the farm for success this season. Both teams seem to be snakebitten with injuries, so I'm not suggesting the Brewers are entirely out of playoff picture, but drastically overpaying for a starting pitcher for two months of service (or a season + two months in Halladay's case) does not appear to be a smart strategy. 90 wins could win the division, but the moment the Cards or Cubs figure it out, it will be 95.

The Brewers can get more worth from Gamel, Escobar, Hardy, or Weeks in the offseason (the Phillies did the right thing in rejecting the Jays' proposal). With a little luck, the Brewers can spin the excess hitters for solid, if unspectacular, starters and cajole Parra to get his head on straight. I think signing a starting pitcher is within the realm of possibility. Here are the pitchers available by trade or signing after the season if things stay static the next week:

Halladay (one year left on deal w/ Toronto)
Peavy (returned from injury, signed through 2012)
Bedard (injured, FA after this season)
Cliff Lee (FA)
Webb (FA)
Doug Davis (FA)
Harden (FA, if you can stomach it)
Millwood (FA)
Penny (FA)

That's a lot of pitchers seemingly available after 2009. Sign/trade for one of these guys, and that's a solid rotation, fuse new middle relievers in and that's a very good lineup for 2010 … but only if the urge to make moves is tamped down this week.

A Quick One

Rough one today, but at least the Brewers one two of three from the Mets ... thus adding to their misery.

Just wanted to post this image drawn by Robert Ullman ... no doubt you've seen his work before, but he has an excellent blog where he offers up doodles, finished products, and whatever he wants. Check it out and support his work ... yesterday he drew one about some other state legend Brent or something.

A Starting Pitcher Appears

Clearly the lucid dream of choice for die-hard Milwaukee Brewers fans has been the pick-up of either Jake Peavy or Erik Bedard to round out the rotation. That has fallen out of favor due to injuries to the two and void left in its wake … I refuse to believe Doug Davis, Jarrod Washburn, or Brad Penny would provide much of a difference. The face they're being mentioned as the next tier of available pitchers means they'll also be too costly.

I haven't noticed anything in Brewersdom about a pitcher hiding in front of our eyes for the past few years … Ian Snell. Thanks to this FanGraphs post, it became clear that Snell has worn out his welcome in Pittsburgh and the feeling is mutual. I don't know the Pirates' inclination to trade within the division (this deal may have soured them forever), but Melvin could make a case for Snell and hope for the best with the "change of scenery" qualifier that works about half the time.

As Dave Cameron at FanGraphs writes, Snell has a FIP of 4.56 … which means he's pitched much better than his ERA indicates. Snell has had his ups and downs in the majors, but sports a decent K rate, doesn't walk a ton, and he isn't injury prone. Not to mention his contract is not cumbersome.

With the current starting rotation woes, I think Snell could plug a hole and pitch six every five games. Pittsburgh appears to be looking for volume players, so perhaps a player stuck at AAA and another from the low minors could do the trick. Of course, many other teams probably have the same idea.

You Know…

Al's Ramblings is fun when he talks about the Brewers.

Is Interleague Over Yet? Can I Come Out?

In the halcyon days of the bottom dwelling Brewers, I thought interleague matchups were cool and a nice break from routine. I even went to the first Brewers' interleague game at Miller Park and got a nifty certificate.

Of course, I was oblivious to the ramifications of interleague until the Brewers started competing for something real. Now I loathe interleague because it gives an unfair advantage for some teams when a game or two difference means you're the outside looking in when it comes to playoff time.

I mused about this last year about how unfair it was for the Brewers to play in Boston whereas the Cubs had lighter interleague matchups, I just wish the schedule was more equitable so that one can measure teams appropriately against one another without qualifying it with "well, they had to play the Yankees and Red Sox, while this other team played the Royals twice and Baltimore."

This comes on the heels of getting smoked by the Twins, the overall poor performance by any NL team against any AL team (except the Indians), and the clogging of I-94 with Twins fans during my afternoon drive home from the grain elevator, and maybe the heat. Still, I think interleague has been played out and a sense of fairness needs to be restored to teams competing for a playoff spot.

I understand the appeal of interleague and the "super rivalry" (any Brewers fan will tell you their super rival is the White Sox and their loathsome fans), and MLB trots out the gimmicks early in the season to get casual fans excited. I, however, am through with interleague, no matter how fun it is not seeing Jeff Suppan hit.

Elsewhere…

Justin Morneau always brings oppressive heat, and Francisco Liriano looks like Jorge de la Rosa.

Fun Fact

Ryan Braun has been in the majors exactly two years and four days.