Round ‘em Up: Saturday

UPDATE 07-12-08 12:45pm - The big news for BrewersNation is officially going down on Monday.  Be sure to tune in!

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Sorry about the lack of a game wrap last night. We had some bad storms, and I lost my internet connection for the night. High winds knocked down some trees in the area. Nothing too bad though. I made the trek to the library to write the Round ‘em Up this morning. You can’t say I’m not dedicated…

Not as bad as last night’s game, at least. The defense was absolutely horrendous, and I’m not including Mike Cameron’s error when he lost the ball in the lights. That happens to everyone a couple times in Miller Park. The errors and wild pitches single handedly cost the Brewers the win last night. Not to mention the fact that Josh Fogg dominated the Crew again. Pitchers that are able to use our aggressiveness against us seem to absolutely dominate us. There were a ridiculous amount of weak pop ups last night.

New day today. New game. Brewers win tonight.

• Morineko from Brew Crew Ball made an interesting observation about Seth McClung, who will take the hill tonight against the Milwaukee Brewers. The big right-hander seems to put together better starts when he is outdoors. He doesn’t like when Miller Park is closed, and he certainly doesn’t like domes (perhaps this is why he never pitched well in Tampa Bay). I think this is more of a statistical anomaly than anything, but we’ll test the theory tonight.
• Jim Powell has a Brewers Roundtable posted with himself, Anthony Witrado, and Adam McCalvy. I think he must have listened to the podcast Pete put together and got the idea for himself. If only I were that naive and egotistical.
• Right Field Bleachers has a great recap of the Player To Be Named Later (PTBNL) situation with the CC Sabathia trade. Will it be Michael Brantley or Taylor Green? This situation will probably not be played out until the end of the minor league season. Perhaps Cleveland is simply trying to see who ends the season on a higher note? Either that, or they are waiting for Brantley to come back from his injured ankle to scout him.
• Team Wisconsin says the Brewers should ditch the retro uniforms. First, the Brewers never seem to win when wearing them. Agreed. Second, the Brewers organization needs to stop dwelling on something that happened a quarter of a century ago. I actually agree with this point a lot. Let this team create their own image. Let them have their own legacy. Stop tying them down by comparing them to the ‘82 Brewers. They will never be the same team, nor should they be.
• Pete from Brewers Fanatics says Dave Bush is starting to step up for the Brewers. I will wait until he puts together a good start on the road before I sing his praises too loudly. Bush teases me with these gems at home, but he cannot duplicate it on the road.
• Jonathan Lucroy has done nothing but impress in Brevard County. He came in with high expectations because of his performance down in West Virginia. Needless to say, the young catcher did not disappoint. The article even says his defense has looked pretty good behind the plate. It is not mentioned as much as his offense, so I suspect is not up to par as of yet. He has time though.
• The Texas Rangers should look to the Milwaukee Brewers as a guide for rebuilding their franchise. At least, that is what the Star Telegram says in a recent article. It’s nice to see Jack Zduriencik, Doug Melvin, and Mark Attanasio get some credit for the fine job they have done in Milwaukee. I have never experienced such Brewers fever since I’ve been alive. (A tip of the cap to Team Wisconsin for that one.)
• Dugout Central asks which ten prospects have the highest chance of being dealt before the deadline? None of the ten are Brewers prospects, but it’s nice to have an idea of the trade landscape before late July comes along. Or maybe it’s just me that likes to track other teams’ prospects…
• Jason Bay is one of the hottest names on the trading block this July. He has returned to his All-Star form in Pittsburgh, and other teams are taking notice. Sports Illustrated reports that the Arizona Diamondbacks and St. Louis Cardinals are seriously interested in the left fielder. I suspect Pittsburgh would much rather trade Xavier Nady, as Bay is under contract through the ‘09 season.
• Speaking of the Pirates, they shipped Craig Wilson to Seattle for a PTBNL. I highly doubt that PTBNL situation is nearly as frustrating and exciting as the one in Milwaukee. They also swapped a couple minor leaguers with Cleveland.
• The Brew Town Beat is reporting that Ryan Braun has been placed on the 60-day DL. That is, Ryan Z. Braun, the relief pitcher from the Kansas City Royals, is on the DL. Way to make my heart skip a beat.
• This is not about the Brewers, or baseball even, but most Brewers fans are de facto Packers fans. Chuckie Hacks has a very refreshing perspective on the Brett Favre situation in Green Bay. I completely agree. Favre has handled this situation very poorly and completely expected to be welcomed back to the Packers with open arms. It hurt his pride when the Pack didn’t roll out the red carpet and welcome him back like a mom with her kid who comes home from college. You retired, Brett. The Packers started to build their team around Aaron Rodgers. You kind of threw a big wrench in the gears when you said you wanted to come back.There is one thing lost in the situation. The Green Bay Packers just motivated Brett to succeed this season by playing hard to get. I would not be surprised if Brett goes to Baltimore or Tampa Bay and rejuvenates the team. I’m still telling myself Brett doesn’t have the heart to go to Minnesota.

  I don’t want to start a comment thread about the Packers, but I thought Packers fans needed to read this post by Chuckie Hacks.

Bush fantasti-K against the Rox

Obviously, the game was not on TV today, so I was not able to watch it.  I did listen to it and see the highlights, however.  Here is the extended boxscore, if you are curious.

With all the attention on CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets (and rightly so), Dave Bush went out and gave a performance to remember.  It’s too bad that the game was not televised for anyone to see it.  The right-hander went 8 innings strong and struck out 13 batters.  And you thought Big Ben was impressive yesterday.

I was surprised Yost let Bush go 120+ pitches, but with the All-Star Break coming up, it should not be a problem.  Bushie had fantastic control this afternoon.  For the second start in a row, he did not walk a batter.  That is absolutely key for someone like Bush.  The strikeouts are just an added plus.  He has made an extremely strong push for the final spot in the rotation once Jeff Suppan comes back from the DL.  In his last two outings combined, Bush has gone 16 innings and only given up one earned run.

Dave Bush is notoriously a slow starter.  In his career, he has had an ERA above 5.00 in April and May.  When the weather heats up, however, so does Bush.  That is what we have seen this season as well.  He had a 3.65 ERA last month, and those numbers have only improved in July.  It looks as if the best option for Milwaukee is to move Seth McClung to the bullpen and give the ball to Bush every fifth day.  The ‘pen sure could use some help, considering how well Guillermo Mota has been pitching.

Speaking of Mota, Ned Yost says his mechanics are off.  He is “collapsing his back side,” which is causing his pitches to have little or no movement.  Mota and Mike Maddux are working extremely hard on correcting this fault.  Apparently, they corrected this before the season started, and Mota simply reverted back to his old ways.  I may simply be hard-headed, but I believe a part of it has to do with his reluctance to throw his change-up.  I will not beat that comment to death again though.  Hopefully, Maddux and Yost can get that situation worked out quickly because Mota has been absolutely brutal in the past two months.  The only question I have is: Why did it take 2 months for Maddux and Yost to notice this if they corrected it before?

Back to the game.  The offense came out to play today after getting embarrassed last night by Glendon Rusch.  Perhaps they all read everything being said about them last night, as the Crew walked four times today.  Not great, but certainly not bad.  J.J. Hardy and Corey Hart both hit home runs this afternoon.  Hart made the All-Star Game, by the way.  If you all have not seen the team mob him during the press conference, you should check it out.  Hart’s daughter got a good part of it too.  Congratulations, Corey.  You definitely deserve it!

Someone that deserves some ink is Gabe Kapler.  He produced again this afternoon, going 3-4 with three doubles and two RBI.  The comeback story is never-ending it seems.  I would love for Ned Yost to give Kapler more at-bats, but those at-bats are difficult to find.  Mike Cameron has been swinging the bat better as of late, and his defense is top-notch.  Did you see a couple of the plays he made last night?  He rarely makes a false step in center field and almost always takes a direct path to the ball.  It is an joy to watch him in the field.  Gabe provides the team with a more than capable fourth outfielder though, and that is extremely valuable.

Records: Brewers (51-41); Rockies (39-54)

Hero of the Game: Dave Bush

How can you go eight innings, give up only three hits, surrender zero earned runs, strike out 13, not walk a batter, and not get the Hero of the Game?  The only thing I would like to see is Dave have one of these performances on the road.  He always has been lights out at home, but has consistently struggled on the road.  He will need to deliver in his first road start after the All-Star Break to cement his status as Milwaukee’s #5 starter.

Goat of the Game: FSN North

Why was this game not on TV?  I understand the team does not have a contract to televise every game, but a game like this should never be only shown on tape delay.  Mark Attanasio should get a deal to televise all 162 games in the works.

On Tap

LHP Manny Parra will look to get the Brewers on a winning streak before the All-Star Break.  The Brewers will go up against RHP Josh Fogg, which is slightly concerning.  Yes, Josh Fogg is terrible, but he also went five innings and only gave up one earned run earlier in 2008 against the Brewers.  As Aaron said, the Crew has a way of making soft-tossing control pitchers look like aces.  Let’s hope the Brewers are patient at the plate and take their walks.  The game will start at 7:05pm CT.

Round ‘em Up: Wednesday

Those are a couple of pictures I got of CC Sabathia during his pre-game warmup. They’re not very big on here, but program I’m using doesn’t let it get much bigger.

The atmosphere inside Miller Park was absolutely electric last night, and the Brewers did not disappoint. The Crew sent the fans home happy with a 7-3 victory over the suddenly hot Colorado Rockies.

In the first inning, Ryan Braun launched a 430′ home run into the left field bleachers. The guy behind me one row and two guys to the left caught the ball. I was about three feet away from getting my glove on it. How awesome would that have been? Oh well. Another day, another time, maybe.

Let’s get into the news.

• Jim Powell says CC Sabathia delivered in a big way last night. The “Sabathia era” is now in motion, no matter how short of a time it would be. He has some audio from Sabathia himself, Doug Melvin, and the in-game audio from last night. In Sabathia’s post-game comments, he said he was overly excited and tried to overthrow a bunch of his pitches. I agree with that completely. It’s understandable that he was trying to impress the Miller Park crowd that gave him two or three standing ovations before even throwing a pitch.
• In some other trade news, Ken Rosenthal from FOX Sports is reporting that Milwaukee is showing interest in San Francisco’s second baseman Ray Durham and lefty reliever Jack Taschner. Durham makes a lot of sense for the Brewers, as Rickie Weeks is struggling again to find his swing. Taschner, on the other hand, is a little bit of a mystery to me. Mitch Stetter has better stuff than Jack, and Mitch is much younger. I would much rather Doug Melvin target someone like Jon Rauch from Washington. That would also deepen the bullpen past this season.
• Milwaukee finally signs second-round draft pick RHP Seth Lintz. There was a bit of confusion last month, as a report had been leaked that Lintz had signed with the Crew when he hadn’t. That’s all inconsequential at this point. The young man went 9-0 with a 0.57 ERA in high school down in Tennessee last season. That’s not too bad. He will report to AZL Brewers very soon.
• Driving home from the game last night, I turned on ESPN radio to see if the Cubs won or lost last night. After learning that they pulled out a win, I found out they traded for Rich Harden from the As. What?! That was quick! Chicago gave up Sean Gallagher, Matt Murton, Eric Patterson, and minor-league catcher Josh Donaldson. The Cubs also received reliever Chad Gaudin to ease the load on Carlos Marmol. Not many Brewers fans are going to admit this after the big Sabathia trade, but this move by the Cubs hurts. I really thought they were going to be stuck with A.J. Burnett. By giving up Gallagher, however, their starting pitching depth is extremely thin. They cannot afford for Harden to get injured, and that is obviously no guarantee.
• I never thought I would write this in 2008, but FOX Sports’ Dayn Perry actually wrote something positive about the NL Central. In fact, he even says good things about the Brewers! I’ll give you a second to catch your breath. He still gives the edge to the Cubs down the stretch, and it is very hard not to. Perry is right about something else, too. This is going to be a fun ride to the end of the season.
• How did the Brewers react to the Rich Harden acquisition? Exactly as they should. Ned Yost couldn’t care less, and Doug Melvin loves the competition. The article also quotes Mark Attanasio saying that Doug Melvin is going to be looking for another piece before the trade deadline. Don’t get too excited though. Milwaukee simply cannot afford another big-name player. Their payroll is extremely high right now, and their is no room on the roster to add someone.
• The Brew Town Beat is reporting that MLB.com contributor for Milwaukee said on the radio this morning that the back-end of the rotation will be a platoon once Jeff Suppan returns from the DL. Seth McClung is going to pitch on the road, and Dave Bush will take the ball at home. The statistics would argue that is a perfect solution, but I think McClung should move to the bullpen. It is extremely unlikely they will both be able to stay fresh pitching every 10th day or so. Give the ball to Bush every fifth and move McClung to the ‘pen. His control has improved greatly and could thrive in a late-inning role.
• In-Between Hops takes a look at the Home Run Derby swing curse. It has long been suspected that the Home Run Derby messes up a player’s swing for the second half. Case and point, Bobby Abreu. This post, however, says it is a myth and gives some convincing statistics to back it up. Let’s hope Ryan Braun doesn’t come back from the All-Star Break trying to hit a home run every at-bat. Prince Fielder already does that.
• Chuckie Hacks has an update on Derrick Turnbow in case you forgot about him.
• Dugout Central hands out the mid-season Cy Young awards for both the NL and the AL. The clear-cut favorites are Edinson Volquez for the National League and Cliff Lee for the American League. There are others in the discussion, however. I just don’t understand how the article cannot even mention Ben Sheets in the Cy Young mix. That 10-2 record with a 2.77 ERA not doing it for you? Yes, Volquez has been better, but give Sheets his due. Mention him in the discussion.

Round ‘em Up: Sunday

UPDATE 07-06-08 6:05pm - Tom Haudricourt says the deal is done. The Milwaukee Brewers and Cleveland Indians have agreed on a deal to send C.C. Sabathia to the Brewers. The word is the package is Matt LaPorta and two-lower level prospects. It does not include Lorenzo Cain, as he has been sent to class-AA to fill the void left by LaPorta.

Welcome to Milwaukee, Mr. Sabathia.

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UPDATE 07-06-08 3:38 pm - The first reports of the deal being finalized.

Castrovance is a beat reporter for the Indians for MLB.com. It may have some good credibility.

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Prince Fielder and the Milwaukee Brewers no doubt partied a little bit last night, celebrating their walk-off victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Let’s hope the team doesn’t come out and lay an egg against Zach Duke today. Am I the only one that feels like we’ve faced the exact same pitcher three days in a row now?

• Over at Brew Crew Ball, roguejim posts an article that says Milwaukee is interested in doing a Greg Maddux for Tony Gwynn Jr. swap. His numbers are average and would probably inflate away from the pitcher-friendly park down in San Diego. This says nothing about his full no-trade clause, however. Even if the teams agree, Maddux can veto the trade. With his brother in Milwaukee, he probably would not knock it down though.
• The Brew Town Beat addresses this Maddux deal and hopes Doug Melvin gets it done, as well as the C.C. Sabathia deal. I really don’t think Maddux is an upgrade over any of our pitchers though. At least, not a big enough difference to warrant giving away TGJ for a rental. Is Maddux really that much better than Dave Bush? My gut reaction is to say yes, just because Bush is painful to watch sometimes, but Bush has the potential to do what he did last night quite often. Seth McClung has been very solid in the back-end of the rotation. Do we really need Maddux and Sabathia? My guess is that Melvin is kicking the tires in case the Sabathia deal falls through.
• Jim Powell talks about the Sabathia trade rumors. He says that Taylor Green is better than most people are giving him credit for. Powell also makes a good argument that Yovani Gallardo’s injury probably cost us Matt LaPorta and Green if this deal gets done. If Yo hadn’t gotten injured, Milwaukee most likely would not be searching for a high-priced starter right now. Ah, what if’s.
• Over at Let’s Go Tribe, many fans are hoping Cleveland GM Mark Shapiro can get both Matt LaPorta and Alcides Escobar in the deal. I think if they add Rafael Perez to the deal, they might have a shot at the two blue-chip prospects. It’s always interesting to see what other teams feel their players are worth. Naturally, some think C.C. Sabathia should garner the team some obnoxious bounty, but that is unlikely to happen.
• Some have speculated that Tampa Bay is a major player in the Sabathia sweepstakes. That now seems unlikely, as they are preparing to put forth a competitive offer for Brian Fuentes from Colorado. It will take one solid piece for them to get the Colorado closer, and everyone knows Tampa’s farm system is stacked. The Rays won’t have much competition if they truly want Fuentes.
• THonline.com has an article on Nic Ungs from the Huntsville Stars. He lost his mother to cancer recently, which has given him extra motivation when on the mound. The right-hander has pitched brilliantly in Huntsville the last couple weeks after struggling with Nashville to start the season.
• Bill Chuck from Baseball Digest Daily gives out his mid-season awards. Nobody from the Crew makes the list, but Ben Sheets gets an honorable mention for the NL Cy Young. It will be interesting to see if Edinson Volquez can keep up his unbelievable season. That Volquez/Hamilton deal this off-season has worked pretty well for both teams, no?
• Again away from Milwaukee, the Seattle Mariners are trying to prove that a managerial change mid-season does not spell disaster for the team. They have gone 10-5 since the switch, and their once-inept offense is now producing. Don’t look for that to last, however.
• Chipper Jones has been struggling at the plate as of late. As you can see by the probability chart, his odds of hitting .400 for the season is the lowest it has been for a couple weeks. Perhaps he should just get his average over the .400 mark then get injured and shelved on the DL for the season. That would cement it.

Prince reigns over Pittsburgh

Prince Fielder may be struggling at the plate, but sure saved the Brewers tonight with timely hitting in the bottom of the ninth inning.

In a 1-1 game in the bottom of the ninth, Rickie Weeks battled back from a 0-2 count to draw a huge walk to start the frame. That turned out to be a huge boost for the team.

J.J. Hardy then sacrificed his 16-game hitting streak by laying down a sac bunt to move Rickie to second base. Pittsburgh reliever Tyler Yates chose to next intentionally walk Ryan Braun to get to a struggling Prince Fielder and to set up the double play.

Brewers fans rose to their feet in support of their Prince. Yates started him off with a couple fastballs on the outside part of the plate to head in the count 0-2. The right-hander then tried to make Prince chase a ball at his eyes. Prince appeared to be too eager at the plate and almost obliged. Now down 1-2, I thought Yates was going to bury a ball in the dirt, as Prince showed he wanted to swing at everything. Instead, he tried to sneak an outside fastball by the big lefty. It didn’t work. Prince served a line drive to left-center field that scored Rickie from second. 2-1 Brewers. Ball game.

Milwaukee got an absolute gem of a start from right-hander Dave Bush. He changed speeds beautifully all day, and his curveball stayed down in the zone all day. Bushie had fantastic control this evening, especially on the outside corner. I’m not sure how often it has happened all season, but he did not walk an opposing batter all game, while striking out six.

It turned out that Dave Bush needed to pitch well tonight, as Paul Maholm also spun a gem on the mound. Besides a nice opposite field home run from Mike Cameron, Pittsburgh’s left-hander went eight innings without surrendering another run. His curveball and change-up fooled Milwaukee hitters all evening. Tonight’s game was the epitome of a pitcher’s duel.

Even Eric Gagne threw the ball well, pitching the top of the ninth without giving up a run. He gave up a hit and struck out one. While his velocity has gone way down since injuring his shoulder, the command has been a thousand times better. His change-up has been absolutely nasty for him, falling right through the zone and fooling opposing batters. The command on his fastball has been much better. He has been able to work the corners much more effectively than before his stint on the DL.

The lack of velocity will be a hindrance of Gagne, but the better control may land the former closer 8th inning duties. If he is able to keep up the fine performances, I wouldn’t mind that at all. Don’t worry, that’s not a self-fulfilling prophecy at all.

There is some news on the C.C. Sabathia trade front.

Tom Haudricourt reports that Doug Melvin is waiting for a response from the Indians on their trade proposal. All signs point to the package being Matt LaPorta/Taylor Green/Lorenzo Cain. The Indians will probably wait until Monday or Tuesday before deciding on anything. They could perhaps ask for more in return, but nothing new seems likely to occur before Monday.

ESPN.com’s Buster Olney says that the Indians are fielding other offers from the Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Philadelphia Phillies.

Tampa seems more focused on a right-handed outfielder and probably lacks the motivation to make a strong offer for Sabathia. If they do decide to make a play, however, Milwaukee may be on the outside looking in. Tampa has an incredible farm system and can outplay the Brewers. They will test the waters, but most likely will look elsewhere.

The Dodgers need a shortstop, but could change gears and hone in on the left-hander. They should have enough to get the deal done. It all depends on the motivation and the transparency of their proposal. Olney says Los Angeles has a tendency to balk at proposals. They will say one player is available, then back off and say he’s not.

Most likely, the Philadelphia Phillies will be the toughest opponent if they choose to be aggressive. Their farm system does not have as many offensive five-star prospects, but they could offer more players to get the deal done. I have heard that Philadelphia prefers Erik Bedard though.

Records: Brewers (48-39); Pirates (40-46)

Hero of the Game: Prince Fielder

The award could easily go to Dave Bush for his gem of a performance, but I came away from the game very impressed with Fielder’s resilience in the ninth inning. He has fought his swing the past couple weeks, but the big guy came up big to win the game. After trying a little too hard on the first three pitches, the fourth pitch from Tyler Yates turned out to be the charm. He didn’t overswing and took the ball where it was pitched. A great win for the Brewers.

Goat of the Game: Jason Kendall

Jason just didn’t look comfortable at the plate tonight. He did call a superb game for Dave Bush this evening, but he went 0-3 at the plate. The catcher doesn’t really deserve the Goat. Sorry, Jason.

On Tap

RHP Jeff Suppan will battle LHP Zach Duke in the series finale at Miller Park. The Crew looks to sweep the Pirates and continue their fine play. The game starts at 1:05pm CT on FSN North.

Bush struggles as Brewers are snake bitten

Brewers fans enjoyed the Dave Bush affectionately known as “Cy Bush” the past couple starts.  His fine performances did not carry over to Monday night, however.

Dave Bush returned to form, giving up multiple runs in the first and fifth innings.  That is vintage Dave Bush if I ever saw it.

He gave up a double and a triple in the first, which ended up costing the Crew two runs.  It sacrificed all of the momentum gained in the top of the first.  J.J. Hardy looked very comfortable at the plate again tonight.  He plated Rickie Weeks with a double to start the game, and later scored on a Prince Fielder single to right.  All seemed right in the world in the top of the first.

The Brewers right-hander must have decided that Milwaukee’s 2-0 lead was just too good to be true.  After giving back those 2 runs, things calmed down until the fifth.  Both Bush and Doug Davis appeared to have found a groove.

That groove ended for Milwaukee in the fifth, however.  Dave Bush strikes again.  He gives up three more runs to the slumping D’Backs order, and Milwaukee was never able to recover.  Doug Davis consistently kept the Brewers hitters off-balance after the first inning, and Milwaukee struck out a lot against the Diamondback relievers.

The offense could not bail out Dave Bush, but I cannot help but think the Crew could have pulled out the win had Dave been able to quiet the D’Backs in the first inning.  Should have, would have, could have, though.  That doesn’t put any tallies in the win column.  I do wish, however, that Dave Bush could do that more consistently.

Records: Brewers (44-38 ); Diamondbacks (42-41)

Hero of the Game: J.J. Hardy

J.J. started off the game right with a double that scored Rickie Weeks.  The Brewers shortstop has looked much more comfortable at the plate in the past week or so, and he showed that tonight.  He followed up that first inning double with a 3-5 night, adding another double to his stat line.  If J.J. can heat up in the second spot with Rickie getting on base ahead of him, this Brewers offense would be downright scary.

Goat of the Game: Dave Bush

You need to figure out those first inning woes.  That’s all that needs to be said.  Figure it out, or you’ll be on the outside looking in after the trade deadline.

The second Goat of the Game goes to Ryan Braun.  He has looked downright awful at the plate the past couple games, and it continued tonight.  Striking out twice and grounding into a double play, Ryan seemed to kill any momentum the offense tried to get going.

On Tap

Jeff Suppan has scuffled a bit in his past couple outings.  He will look to turn that around Tuesday night against the future hall-of-famer, Randy Johnson.  Randy shut down the Crew pretty easily until the late innings in his last start in Milwaukee.  The game starts at 8:40pm CT.  This is a big game for Milwaukee.  The squad needs a big win.

Small Ball, Sheets Win the Night

The polar opposite of the night before where all seven of the Brewers’ runs came courtesy of the home run ball, the Brewers put their faith in timely hitting, smart base running, and another solid, albeit short, outing from Ben Sheets. The victory last night, 5-4, guaranteed another series win for the Crew and the win over the Blue Jays meant the Brewers are sitting on a three game win streak.

Sheets, who threw six innings, was relieved by Carlos Villanueva, who quickly gave up two hits and a run in 2/3 of an inning of work. The relief pitching was more troubling when Guillermo Mota came in to work the eight. Showing a troubling pattern of alternating strong appearances with downright scary appearances, Mota brought out his Halloween game allowing three hits, a walk, and a run in only 23 pitches.

Salomon Torres to the rescue. Torres showed up in the eight inning with two outs, escaped unscathed and proceeded to record his ninth save of the season the next inning.

Besides a little solo home run love from Russell Branyan in the second and Mike Cameron in the sixth it was the small ball that propelled the Crew to the win. The key inning was the bottom of the fourth, with the game tied at ones, when Corey Hart lead of with a ground rule double. Hart would then be put over to third by Branyan’s sac fly. On the ensuing play Cameron rolled what amounted to a swing bunt back to the Jay’s pitcher Shaun Marcum. Hart, on a dead sprint from third, beat the fielder’s choice throw at home and Cam was safe at first (he should have made it to second as the catcher spiked the ball after Hart was safe).

Cam stole second, advanced to third on Jason Kendall’s single, and scored on a squeeze play. Squeeze plays have been notoriously bad for the Brewers this year with either the batter or runner missing the calls on multiple occasions leaving runners for dead, but this one played out perfectly, if not a bit unmethodically (if that’s a word). Sheets put down a great bunt, catcher Gregg Zaun looked Cameron back to third and threw Sheets out at first. That was when Cam broke for home scoring without even having to slide.

Sheets working from the mound look good in the opening frame striking out two, but unraveled a bit as the game went on. Sheets walked for batters, tossed two wild pitches, and gave up several hard hits. Yost lifted Sheets for a pinch hitter in the sixth, a call that I second guess.

Records: Brewers (38-33), Blue Jays (35-38 )

Hero of the Game: Mike Cameron

I’ve been harping on Cameron a bit lately, but last night he epitomized an all around solid baseball player. He mixed small ball with the powerball scoring Hart on his (very) small ball and scoring himself with a solo homer later in the game. But it was his smart base running to sneak a run in from third in the fourth that gets the big kudos. The box score 1-for-4 doesn’t show how intelligent one is on the base paths to try to take home plate on a bunt, hold, then break for the base, and beat the tag with some great speed. Good work, Cam.

Goat(s) of the Game: Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder

Both the big men in the line up had “oh fer” nights. RB and PF came to the plate and left empty all four times and racked up two Ks each. The plate discipline is looking a bit shaky guys… work it out.

On Tap:

David Bush (2-7, 5.37) takes on AJ Burnett (6-6, 4.90) in the matinée wrap up of this Interleague series. Which Bush will show up? Game time 1:05 CT on FSN.

By: Dan Wiersema

Bats Support Sheets’ Outing

An up-and-down afternoon for Ben Sheets was held up by another home run barrage from the Milwaukee Brewers bats. Corey Hart, feeling right at home in the lead-off spot, Prince Fielder, Mike Cameron all connected for long balls in a monster second inning to lift Ben through his start.

From early on Sheets was having trouble with his curveball. The power curve that usually slams down on opposing hitters was hanging up in the zone allowing the Astros to feast on some early chances. With the curveball looking shaky Miguel Tejeda launched a fastball into the stands for a early Houston lead. Fielder evened the match with a solo shot of his own. Cameron put the Brewers ahead with a solo home run of his own; a lead the Crew would not surrender. Hart continued his power binge smashing a three-run home run.

Sheets struggled over the next two innings giving up an RBI single to Michael Bourn in the second and a solo home run to Darin Erstad in the third. Sheets looked out of sorts. His curveball wasn’t dropping and he seemed to be taking much longer in between pitches. Normally, Sheets works very quickly from the stretch, but this afternoon he was pacing about the mound instead of setting and pitching right away.

Whatever problems he had early on, Sheets put the Astros on lock-down like a prison warden after a riot. He retired Houston in order in the fourth and fifth innings. In the sixth and seventh innings, Sheets found his payoff pitch curveball. He dropped the hammer on Hunter Pence in the sixth and Tejeda and Lance Berkman in the seventh. Sheets finished the afternoon with a season-high nine strikeouts, with six of those coming in his last four innings of work.

Some poor glove work by Fielder in the eight made the game interesting, setting up a two-run Mark Loretta home run, but the gap between the Brewers and Houston was restored in the ninth with super-sub Gabe Kapler solo shot and an RBI single from Ryan Braun.

Records: Brewers (35-31), Astros (33-34)

Hero of the Game: Corey Hart

I LOVE this guy. I wrote yesterday that his two home runs should silence any critics of a previously soft bat and another home run today, one that put the Crew on top and gave Sheets the breathing room he needed to get comfortable, should put those critics six feet under. Hart even managed to make improvements on his defense with a great foul ball catch in the I-can’t-remember-inning.

Another point I wanted to make is that Hart’s success with the long ball has been parallel to the Brewers success as a team in the home run category. The Crew launched 10 home runs in the Houston series, including nine in the last two games. Over the last 12 games the Brewers have put 25 ball into the stands.

Goat of the Game: Lance Berkman

Its nice to put Jerk-man in this spot after his performance from Friday night. Berkman was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts against Ben Sheets, including the one in the seventh where he looked like a total chump going after Sheets’ dirt ball. Not to mention he playfully hugged Fielder when trying to run out the third strike in said dirt. No one touches Princey.

On Tap: Dave Bush (2-6, 5.85 ERA) hits the mound against Minnesota’s Kevin Slowley (2-6, 5.26 ERA) in the opener of the Brewers’ nine-game homestand against the Twins, Blue Jays, and Orioles.

By: Dan Wiersema

What’s wrong with Dave Bush?

After coming over from Toronto in the Lyle Overbay deal, Dave Bush tantalized Brewers fans with 200+ innings and a 12-11 record. His ERA was a respectable 4.41. The Milwaukee organization thought Dave was going to be a big part of their future plans.

Since 2006, however, Dave has largely disappointed. Thus far in 2008, he has posted a 2-6 record with a 5.85 ERA. So what’s wrong?

Bush still has above-average stuff on the mound. He has a high-80s, low-90s fastball that has a lot of two-seam movement. When it’s going right, that pitch has a little sink to it going away from left-handed hitters. Dave’s curveball has always been his out-pitch, but it has always been inconsistent. It used to be a big, looping curve. This year, however, it is much harder with tighter movement. He has an average change-up and cutter. He’s even been playing with a slider. The slider is not a good pitch at this point though.

If it’s not his stuff, then what is it? The obvious problem is the first inning. Opposing teams have been able to jump all over Dave Bush before he’s had a chance to settle in. In the first, opposing hitters are hitting a gaudy .319 BA with a .407 on-base percentage. His walk rate is fairly high in the first inning, and Dave has a tendency to fall behind hitters when he nibbles at the corners.

The main reason Dave has struggled in the first has been the home run ball. Out of the 15 home runs he’s given up this season, 5 have come in the first inning. Nothing takes the wind out of a pitcher like giving up a first inning bomb. After falling behind hitters in the first, Dave has no choice but to come right down the middle with a fastball. Big league hitters will not miss those very often.

If Dave can get through the first inning, he settles in nicely. That is, until the sixth inning. Throughout his big league career, the sixth inning has been Dave’s bugaboo. The numbers look a lot like those from the first. He’s letting opposing hitters bat .375 with a .417 on-base percentage. Dave is not walking as many batters later in the games, but he’s allowing more extra-base hits. His fastball loses a lot of movement, and he largely abandons his curveball in the later innings.

Dave Bush also needs to pound the strike zone more often. The right-hander is only getting ahead of the opposing hitter at a 54% clip. Obviously, this puts him at a big disadvantage, having to work from behind to every other batter. By comparison, Ben Sheets gets a first pitch strike 56% of the time. That doesn’t seem like much, but how about this? Benny falls behind 2-0 to only 14% of opposing hitters. Dave, on the other hand, falls behind 2-0 against 23% of hitters he faces. Start after start, those numbers add up to a big difference in ERA and opposing batting average.

What is more amazing is that when Dave gets ahead in the count 0-1, opposing hitters are hitting .429 on that next pitch! Shouldn’t he be in the driver’s seat in that situation? It certainly seems like the numbers should be the exact opposite. It could be a statistical anomaly, but it suggests that Dave is losing concentration after getting ahead in the count. Perhaps he’s not expecting the opposing hitters to swing after falling behind. Perhaps he’s just thrown a string of bad pitches on an 0-1 count. Whatever the reason, Dave Bush needs to turn this trend around, or he’ll never be successful in the big leagues. A pitcher simply cannot rely on falling behind 1-0 to get big league hitters out.

There is one more issue when Dave Bush is on the mound. If he’s pitching at home, he’s been above-average with a 3.45 ERA in five starts. When he is on the road, however, Dave is putting up a monstrous 8.10 ERA and an 0-5 record. Perhaps Dave Bush is a large reason the Brewers are struggling on the road this season.

The home-road splits are not a statistical anomaly in 2008. Dave has a track record of scuffling on the road and succeeding at home. In 2007, he posted a 6.14 ERA, compared to a 4.26 ERA at home. In 2006, Bush had a 5.38 ERA on the road and a 3.53 ERA at home. This is more than a trend. It’s almost a rule for Dave Bush.

What does this mean?

Although the numbers suggest Ned Yost should start Bush at home and sit him on the road, that does not make logistical sense. Milwaukee cannot survive with a four-man rotation away from Miller Park. It must be a psychological issue for Dave Bush when he’s on the mound on the road. It is much easier said than done to simply get past the problem and pitch more effectively if it’s in his head. Something has to change though, that’s for certain.

As for getting ahead of hitters, Dave needs to pound the strike zone, but it needs to get the ball on the corners a bit more. Bush’s control has been a big problem for him. He’s either missing over the heart of the plate when he gets ahead in the count 0-1, or he’s losing batters completely and walking them. There seems to be no in-between for Dave.

In conclusion, Dave Bush simply needs to pitch better. He must control his pitches on the corners and not fall behind hitters so often. Perhaps his fastball has too much movement in towards right-handers, so it catches the heart of the plate more often than not. Dave still has a chance to be a big part of Milwaukee’s future, but he has some major issues to work out on the mound. The Milwaukee Brewers would greatly benefit from a successful Dave Bush.

Subs sparkle against ‘Stros

Fans at sold out Miller Park were a little disappointed when arriving at their seats in the ballpark.  Every person received a Ryan Braun bobblehead at today’s game, but the excitement may have faded away rather quickly after reading the starting lineup for Milwaukee.

After securing the series win last night, Ned Yost chose to give five starters a day off this afternoon.  Players that usually warm the bench during the week got to start together.  Russell Branyan, Mike Rivera, Craig Counsell, Joe Dillon, and Gabe Kapler got the start for the suddenly surging Brewers.  They did not disappoint the fans.

The excitement quickly returned to Miller Park after Houston starter Shawn Chacon got chased out of the game after only completing one inning.  The right-hander struck out Joe Dillon and Gabe Kapler to start the game.  Things got ugly for the Astros after that.

Chacon hit Ryan Braun and walked Prince Fielder.  Corey Hart then beat out a broken-bat single to short.  While Lance Berkman couldn’t believe Corey was called safe on the play (Corey should have been out, by the way), Braun never stopped running from second base and scored without a throw.  1-1 tie.

Russell Branyan coaxed another walk out of Chacon, and the bases were loaded for Mike Rivera.  The seldom-used backstop then got a fastball right on the wrist.  Trainers checked Rivera’s wrist as he walked to first base, and Prince Fielder walked across home plate.  2-1 Brewers.

Fans have been cooling on Craig Counsell for his lack of offense, but the veteran shortstop put it into another gear today.  Counsell took the first pitch he saw and roped it into the right field gap for a two-RBI double.  4-1 Brewers.

That first inning opened the floodgates for the Brewers offense.  In the fourth inning, the Crew put up six runs, and it easily could have been many more.  Ryan Braun, who hit a laser over the right field wall earlier in the inning, came up with the bases loaded and two outs.  He got a little overanxious at the plate and bounced an easy ground ball to Miguel Tejada at short.

Russell Branyan continued his fine play for the Brewers.  He clobbered a two-run home run to the opposite field in the fourth inning.  Getting on base has not been a problem for Russell since his call-up a week ago.  In today’s game, the third baseman homered and walked, while striking out once.  He did hit a laser-like line drive to center his final at-bat, but it was right at Michael Bourn.  The offense looked goooood today.

After pitching seven innings of two-run baseball in his last outing, Dave Bush looked for a little consistency on the mound.  He gave up a solo home run to Mark Loretta in the first inning, and things weren’t looking up for Bush early in the game.

The offense must have sparked a fire in Bush after the first inning, as he settled in nicely to pitch another seven innings of solid, one-run baseball.  Ned Yost had to have been pleased with Bush’s outing today.  We all know that the Brewers manager loves Bush’s “bulldog mentality” on the mound, but fans love it when that turns into production during games.  Dave is pounding the strike zone more often in his last two starts, and he’s utilizing his cut fastball more.  His curveball is not nearly as slow and loopy, but has developed into a sharper curve.  That mechanical adjustment has turned into better command of the pitch.

Break out the brooms, Brewers fans!  The Milwaukee Brewers successfully repaid the favor to the Houston Astros and swept the slumping ‘Stros.  This has turned into a fine homestand for the Crew.

I would also like to point out that the Brewers hitters looked extremely good at the plate tonight.  I don’t mean they pounded out 10 hits and scored 10 runs.  They played with much better plate discipline tonight.  Shawn Chacon threw 40 pitches in the first inning.  Jack Cassel followed with 26 pitches in the second inning.  Brewers hitters were battling back from 0-2 and 1-2 counts to get it to 3-2.  I don’t believe it’s a coincidence that the Brewers scored 10 runs through four innings when the Brewers were taking a lot of pitches.  The plate discipline was lost later in the game as players lost their focus a bit.  I hope that doesn’t translate to tomorrow’s game.

Records: Brewers (29-28 ); Astros (30-28 )

Hero of the Game: Milwaukee’s bench players

If you include Russell Branyan in this group, Milwaukee’s bench players went 8-19.  That’s a cool .500 batting average for this afternoon’s game.  The group also accounted for one home run and seven RBIs in the game.  It gets better.  They were hit by two pitches and drew four walks during the game.  Ned Yost couldn’t have drawn it up any better before the game.  A good team can be made a great team because of it’s bench.  The Brewers are not a great team, but they are playing like it at the moment.

Goat of the Game: Shawn Chacon

Shawn struck out the first two batters of the game.  He then hit Ryan Braun and absolutely imploded on the mound.  His final line: 1.0 IP, 2 hits, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 K and an error trying to pickoff Braun at first.  Chacon lost his composure on the mound, and the Brewers hitters capitalized in a big way.

On Tap

RHP Jeff Suppan will take on ex-Brewer LHP Doug Davis, as the Brewers welcome the Arizona Diamondbacks to town tomorrow.  The first pitch will be at 7:05pm CT.  This series will be difficult for the Crew, as Arizona is a very fine baseball team.  The team cannot get comfortable after sweeping the Astros.  Momentum can turn very quickly in baseball.

Brewers win one Hall of a game

Sorry…you’ll have to excuse the pun. Punning can be quite fun sometimes, but I digress.

After complaining about his demotion to a platoon role, Bill Hall gave fans a night to remember in Milwaukee. Billy came off the bench in the bottom of the ninth and delivered a clutch base hit to right. He got second base on a sacrifice bunt and had a beautiful steal of third to get in scoring position. Mike Cameron then hit a sacrifice fly to left field, which scored Billy for the winning run. Then, pandemonium in Milwaukee.

Now, I am not going to change my opinion about Bill Hall needing to be restricted to a platoon role, but tonight does prove that Billy can be quite a contributor to the team. I would love to see Bill return to his 2006 form. I would gladly be the first to admit that I was wrong and embrace Bill Hall for the player he has the potential to be. Potentiality and actuality are two different things, however.

I do not wish to dampen the joy from tonight’s win, but I do not believe Bill Hall proved he deserves to start everyday because of his heroics tonight. After all, Russell Branyan did a fine job tonight, going 1-3 with a walk. That’s a .500 OBP if you’re keeping track at home. I understand Bill is not happy, but if that anger gets channeled into Brewers wins, I’m all for it.

How about Dave Bush tonight! After struggling out of the gate and giving up two home runs in the first two innings, he pitches five straight scoreless frames to keep the Brewers in the game. The right-hander pounded the strike zone tonight, which is a very welcome sign. Milwaukee needs more outings like this from the former 12-game winner.

Struggling Brewers had a night against the Braves this evening. JJ Hardy was consistent all around and went 3-4. Perhaps the security of Jason Kendall behind him has a little something to do with that. Julian Tavarez may have not been a Brewer when he struggled this season, but he made his Milwaukee debut in a fine fashion tonight. He sat down the Braves in order in the eighth inning. Tavarez will need to put together a few more scoreless frames before I will believe he’s found his form, however.

Huge win for the Milwaukee Brewers tonight. A tip of the cap to you, Bill Hall. I may have bashed you in the past few days, but you deserve all the praise you have gotten after tonight’s game. Well done.

Records: Brewers (25-27); Braves (28-24)

Hero of the Game: Dave Bush

I had a sinking feeling in my gut after watching Dave give up two home runs in the first two innings. All signs pointed to the right-hander struggling through another outing and me pounding my fist in frustration all night. Instead of imploding after the second inning, however, Dave showed extreme maturity and resilience on the mound to pitch through the seventh without giving up anymore runs. With Braves starter Tim Hudson showing pretty good stuff tonight and frustrating the Brewers with runners in scoring position, Dave needed to keep the Braves off the board to keep Milwaukee in the game. He did that. Perhaps that’s the “bulldog mentality” Ned Yost keeps raving about. A tip of the cap to you too, Dave Bush. Well done tonight.

Goat of the Game: Jason Kendall

Jason went 0-4 tonight and left five Brewers on the basepaths. I thought he called a great game for Dave Bush and really helped him get through the game after giving up the two long balls early. It was just a rough night for Jason at the dish.

On Tap

RHP Jeff Suppan will take the mound against rookie LHP Jo-Jo Reyes. The Crew looks to secure the series win tomorrow night against the Braves starting at 7:05pm CT.

Bush Gets Bashed, Pirates Avoid Sweep

Having secured the first road-series win against the Pirates since 2006 the brooms were out, but another rough outing by Dave Bush left the home team Bucs off the hook.  The embattled starter, switching spots with Jeff Suppan in the rotation, gave up six runs between the fourth and fifth innings to blow open a close game.  Final score: Pirates 8, Brewers 4.

Stranding runners was a huge problem for the Crew last night again as they left 14 runners on base.  Cory Hart had a solo shot in the fourth inning to give the Brewers a 1-0, but the lead was short lived as a flawless Bush imploded.

Pirates pitcher Tom Gorzelanny had a high pitch count early in the game, but the Brewers continued to get him out of jams as they couldn’t capitalize.

Bush had back-to-back massive collapses in the fourth and fifth innings, surrendering a two-run shot to Jason Bay and five total hits for four runs.  The fifth was just as bad at the hot-hitting Nate McLouth got his third hit of the evening (4-for-4 for the night), a throwing error by Prince Fielder, and a Xavier Nady solo homer scored runs for the Bucs.

The Brewers comeback came short as Gabe Kapler scored Bill Hall on a RBI pinch-hit single in the sixth and Joe Dillon also scored JJ Hardy on a pitch-hit RBI single in the seventh. Rickie Weeks hit another homer to save face for the Brewers in the eight.  More stranded runners in both theses innings were bad news for the Brew Crew.

The game was pushed out of reach by a seventh in two run tally by the Pirates against Brewer’s reliever Zach Johnson whose bad seventh was softened by a 1-2-3 eighth.

Records: Brewers (22-25), Pirates (22-25)

Hero of the Game: Dave Bush, Innings 1 through 3

Bush was lights out for the first three innings giving up only one hit and retiring eight straight after giving up that hit.  The defense backed him up solidly, too.  Bush sprayed a variety of ground outs and flyouts to his teammates providing effective cover for a struggling offense in the final game of the series. Like a abused wife in a Lifetime Channel movie I was thinking this time would be different, but…

Goat of the Game:  Dave Bush, Innings 4 and 5

He just never fails to disappoint.  Just when all was well in the world, Bush drops a bomb on us.  These two innings were a disaster.  Whatever Bush has early in games he certainly throws it all away later in games.  The pitches that were outs innings 1 through 3 were dropping for hits all over the field.  I can’t say right now, but Villanueva versus Bush is like choosing between the lesser of two evils because Bush has now given up 10 homers compared to V-Dub’s 12.

On Tap:  Jeff Suppan (2-3) opens the series against the Washington National’s Odalis Perez (1-4) in DC.  The Brewers hope to win the road series against the struggling Nats in order to save face on this troublesome road trip and start next week’s home stand on the right foot (ha! stand! foot! hilarious!).  First pitch: 6:05pm.

By: Dan Wiersema

Two more for Braun in Brewers win

Ryan Braun told anyone who would listen in Houston that he was on the verge of getting on a major hot streak.  He sounded like a player who hoped to get on a hot streak more than anything.

It turns out that Ryan did not lie.  Braun hit two more solo home runs today off of Cardinals starter, Adam Wainwright.  Both were shots to left field, and he set the pace for a balanced Brewers offensive attack.  How often have I gotten to type that this season?  Not very…

The Crew got its third straight quality start, as right-hander Dave Bush went six strong innings.  The struggling Bush got his first win of the season, only giving up one run and striking out one.  In the first inning, it was clear that Bushie had his good stuff.  Normally hitting 87-88mph on the gun, Dave came out firing fastballs in the 90-92mph range.  He gave up a home run to Rick Ankiel on a hanging curveball in the top of the first inning, but Bush shut the Cards down after that.

I was slightly surprised to see Dave pulled after only six innings.  His pitch count was at a manageable 92 pitches.  Ned Yost must have wanted Bush to feel good about his outing, so he pulled him before anything bad could have happened.  That, and Ned saw a prime opportunity to get Eric Gagne some work in a pressure-free situation.

Eric did get in two innings of work, but it did not go as well as planned.  His command still alluded him with his fastball and change-up…basically all his pitches.  He induced a double play to get out of the seventh unscathed, but he gave up a run in the eighth after Skip Schumaker laced a single to right that scored Cesar Izturis.  Eric may need a little more work than previously thought before regaining the closer role.

Mitch Stetter entered the game in the ninth inning and made it interesting.  Mitch walked four out of the six batters he faced, and he left the contest with the bases loaded.  Ned Yost then called upon Guillermo Mota to finish off the game.  It worked out, as Guillermo struck out Ankiel to end the game.

The Brewers broke it open in the third inning.  Corey Hart delivered a two-RBI single with two outs, and two more scored when Bill Hall reached on an error.  Billy later homered off Wainwright for his eighth long ball of the season.

Records: Brewers (19-19); Cardinals (23-17)

Hero of the Game: Ryan Braun

What can you say about a player that had back-to-back multiple home run games?  He’s obviously found a comfort zone at the plate.  Ryan even took a walk in the game.  That is only his seventh free pass of the season.  All Brewers fans would like to see that number climb, especially in front of Prince Fielder.  Ryan finished the day two for three, even though he looked to be safe on his final at-bat.  His batting average is now .288.  Last year’s Rookie of the Year has finally found his stroke at the plate.  It is fun to watch him hit the ball when he’s on a tear like this.

Goat of the Game: Prince Fielder

You will not see this name here very often this year.  Prince had a game to forget this evening.  He struck out with the bases loaded in the third inning.  That could have potentially killed the Crew, but Corey Hart picked up his teammate with that two-out single to score two runs.  Prince looks utterly lost at the plate right now.  He’s trying to hit a home run on every pitch, and he’s trying to pull every ball he sees.  The big guy needs to slow down a bit at the plate and take a couple pitches the other way.  Home runs will come in bunches for Prince.  The Brewers simply need a few base hits from him now.

On Tap

Carlos Villanueva and the Milwaukee Brewers will welcome the Los Angeles Dodgers to Miller Park tomorrow.  Villy will look to give the Crew its fourth straight quality start.  He will take on the hard-throwing Brad Penny in Game 1 at 7:05pm CT.

Brewing up another road loss

The Brewers treated fans to a standard game this season.  The offense scuffles, and Dave Bush implodes in the sixth inning for a Milwaukee loss.

Dave rejoined the rotation today, and he gave us a “Dave Bush special” against the Fish.  The offense showed signs of life in the top of the sixth inning.  Rickie Weeks clobbered a 430ft+ home run to climb back to a one-run deficit.  The hitting continued with Mike Cameron socking an opposite field single to follow.  The Crew was unable to scrape together another run in the top of the sixth, but the offense began to awaken.

Bush then trots out onto the mound to keep the deficit at one.  The momentum had clearly swung into Milwaukee’s favor.  Dave simply needed to maintain that momentum by getting out of the inning unscathed.  Instead, the right-hander gives up a two-run bomb to Jorge Cantu and a solo shot to Dan Uggla.  I’m glad Dave Bush knows what maintaining momentum means for the team.

The offense was unable to muster up another run in the remainder of the game.  I am not implying that Dave Bush was the cause of our inept offensive attack tonight, but he certainly deflated the team in the bottom of the sixth when he increased Florida’s lead to four runs.

Also during the sixth inning, Bill Hall stepped up to the plate with a 3-2 count, two outs, and two men on base.  He battled nicely to get the count full after falling behind.  I felt a big hit was coming for the Crew.  Bill simply needed to get on base.  Someone forgot to tell Bill that.  Instead of taking ball four, which was a fastball in the dirt, Hall swung for the fences and stranded two runners.  Ryan Braun also swung out of his shoes during the sixth with two strikes against him.  Apparently, the whole “shorten up with two strikes” comment did not apply in this situation.

Yes, the offense is struggling.  Players are pressing.  They are trying to break out of the slump with one big swing.  Hall, Braun, and Prince Fielder are all trying to hit a home run with every swing.  They are not trying to take it to the opposite field.  Hall’s head is coming off the ball before the bat is even through the strike zone.  In short, the offense needs to settle down and pound out a few singles before the big flies come. 

Records:  Brewers (16-17); Marlins (19-14)

Hero of the Game:  Rickie Weeks

This is not because Rickie hit an absolute bomb in the top of the sixth inning.  He’s done that four other times this season.  What Rickie has not done consistently this season is stay back on the ball and deliver it to center field with power.  That changed today.  Rickie smoked a line drive to center field today.  It looked to be a double until Alfredo Amezaga made the second of his two great catches in the outfield.  Weeks appeared to be much more comfortable at the plate this evening than he has in a long time.  Perhaps this is a sign that he is about to break out of his slump?  See…I’m still trying to be optimistic…

Goat of the Game:  Dave Bush

Read my little rant above to find out.  Hint: the bottom of the sixth inning.

On Tap

Carlos Villanueva will try to get the Brewers off this five game losing streak tomorrow in the series finale against the Fish.  The Brewers will go up against Mark Hendrickson.  I just want a win.  Please….

Brewers will scour trade market for pitching

I will be unable to get to a computer the entire day today, so I will not be able to write a Round ‘em Up this morning.  I apologize.  Instead, I thought I would start a thread that would discuss our sudden need in the starting rotation.

Tom Haudricourt says that the Crew will keep an eye out for starting pitching on the trade market.  It makes no sense to make the move right now, as teams would make Milwaukee overpay significantly for a starter (remember the Scott Linebrink deal?).  That does not mean that Doug Melvin will not scour the trade market.

Do you think we even need to trade for a starting pitcher?  Will Dave Bush and Jeff Weaver be able to make up for the loss of Yovani Gallardo?  What if Ben Sheets gets injured?

I have a couple thoughts.  I do not want to trade for a starting pitcher if we do not have to.  The Brewers cannot overpay at the trade deadline for a rental player, like they did last season.  They have Jeff Weaver and Chris Narveson in the minors, and I believe they can do well enough to warrant not trading for someone.

If they do trade for someone, however, I would trade Mat Gamel or a prospect like that for a starting pitcher.  Mat is mashing in Double-A, but his defense is so bad that he may not fit anywhere but on an AL team.  He would most likely not be enough by himself, but the Crew cannot mortgage the future like they did last season.  We’ll see what they will do, but I hope they do not make a trade.  I suspect they will because Doug Melvin seems to be in an extreme win-now mode, but he will wait for the deal he wants.

What would you like to see happen?

Pitching staff loses Gallardo, Turnbow

I’m gone all morning, I get home, and I miss some major news this morning.  I have some awful news, and some good or bad news…depending on your point of view.

Yesterday, Yovani Gallardo looked to have injured his knee severely.  He and Ned Yost insisted he was fine, and he even went back out the next inning to pitch.  Disaster seemed to have been averted, and BrewersNation breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Hold your breath again, Brewers fans.  Yovani had a test on his knee today, and it did not bring good news.  He has torn his ACL, and he will be out the rest of the season.  The team is saying that he may be able to come back late in 2008.  There’s no way that can happen, however.

Yo had been pitching very well so far in 2008.  He was 0-0 with a 1.80 ERA, and he looked to have found his comfort zone in the rotation.  This injury is terrible news for the Milwaukee Brewers.  Dave Bush has been called up to fill Yovani’s spot in the rotation, but the talent disparity between the two pitchers is huge.  The pitching staff just got worse today.

In addition to losing Yovani Gallardo, the Milwaukee Brewers designated Derrick Turnbow for assignment and call up Joe Dillon to the big league roster.

Derrick has an electric arm, but he cannot find the strike zone lately to save his life.  At least, to save his big league job.  He looked to have found something last week when he recorded a save in the place of Eric Gagne.  Since then, however, he has looked lost on the mound in his last two outings, and Doug Melvin was almost forced to make this move.

The Brewers have 10 days to trade him, release him, or send him to the minors.  Derrick has the right to reject the move to Triple-A Nashville, but he would have to forfeit his $3.2M salary.  There is probably no way any team would trade for Turnbow at this point because of his huge salary, and he will most likely not accept the move to Nashville.  Therefore, Derrick Turnbow may be a free agent in 10 days.  Joe Dillon will be in uniform tonight in Houston.

That’s a lot of news to digest in about a five minute timespan.  Goodness gracious…

Bush vs. Parra debate

Dave Bush has been sent down to Triple-A now that Yovani Gallardo is back in the roation and Ben Sheets is fully healthy.  We have been speculating for weeks that Bush may be traded, but the Brewers opted to simply send him to the minors to work some of the kinks out.  Good.  Fine.  Moving on.

Not so fast.  Many people believe that Manny Parra should have been sent to Nashville instead of Bush.  I personally believe that Parra saved his job in the big leagues with his outing yesterday, so I understand that line of thinking.

Brewers Bar believes that Parra should have gotten sent down because he cannot go deep into games.  Citing the bullpen’s heavy workload, Jesse asserts that it would be better to have Bush go six or seven innings and give up a run or two more than stick with Parra who will tax our bullpen.  Parra certainly has better stuff than does Bush.  That does not mean he should stay in the bigs, however.

In-Between Hops, however, argues that people are reading too much into Parra’s short outings.  Fans and critics are saying that he simply cannot go six or seven innings.  Scott Segrin disagrees.  Parra can go deeper into games, but Ned Yost and the Brewers are trying to save his arm and pull him before he throws too many pitches.  Parra has thrown the fewest pitches per game (only 90 pitches/game), so perhaps there is some truth to that.

I believe Brewers Bar has the more persuasive argument here.  Ned Yost and the Brewers are almost certainly attempting to limit the number of pitches Manny Parra is throwing, but it does make our bullpen work harder.  After Manny went 5.1 innings, David Riske, Guillermo Mota, Mitch Stetter, Derrick Turnbow, and Eric Gagne all worked.  Because it went to extra innings, so did Seth McClung.  That is a lot of relievers to be in every five days.  Dave Bush does not have the ceiling that Parra has, but he does have the durability that Parra lacks.  That is huge for the Crew’s ‘pen right now.

Before you accuse me of having the same type of “Bush-love” that Ned has for Dave Bush, let me explain a little more.  Dave Bush actually has given up three fewer hits in one inning less of work.  Parra has walked one more batter than Bush as well.  Bush does have problems with giving up the long ball, however.  In one less start, he has given up three more home runs than Parra.  This does raise a red flag, but one must notice that Dave has pitched 22.2 innings in four starts.  Manny has pitched 23.2 innings in five starts.  That may seem innocuous this early in the season, but it will multiply throughout the rest of the season.

Finally, I would like to suggest that Manny would be a great fit as a long man in the bullpen.  It would keep his pitch count and innings down, while allowing him to enjoy success early in his pitch counts.  In his first 25 pitches, Parra allows opposing hitters to hit a measly .160.  In his next 25 pitches, he only gives up an opposing batting average of .260.  As a long reliever, most of his work would be in these areas.

Once Parra gets above the 50 pitch mark, however, things go downhill very quickly.  Between pitch number 51 and pitch 75, opposing hitters are hitting a fine .357, with an on-base percentage at .406.  His effectiveness dwindles significantly the further he gets into the game.  Between pitches 76 and 100, hitters are batting a staggering .563!  If Parra were the long man in the ‘pen, the Brewers would be able to utilize his strengths.  He is young, so these numbers are bound to get better, but he is most effective pitching only three to four innings at a time.

Dave Bush is not as flashy as Manny Parra, but he eats plenty of innings.  He is certainly more frustrating than Parra, but he is a solid number five starter in the rotation.  Placing Manny as the long man in the bullpen would allow Manny to gain big league experience, while still making a spot start or two along the way.  This, of course, would mean that the Brewers would have to get rid of one of the other arms in the bullpen.  That would be a whole different argument.  All in all, it is a positive thing for the Milwaukee Brewers that there are more major league caliber players than positions on the roster.  Depth is key to a division title.

Bush optioned to Nashville

Manny Parra saved his big league job today with his outing.  He pitched 5.1 innings of two-run ball, and that may have been the outing he needed to beat out Dave Bush in the race for the last spot in the rotation.

Tom Haudricourt reports that Dave Bush has cleared waivers and is on his way to Triple-A Nashville, who could really use some quality pitching right now.  This move clears room for Mike Cameron who will make his debut in a Brewers uniform Tuesday night against the Chicago Cubs.

I was initially surprised that Dave Bush was able to clear waivers.  His 0-3 start with a 6.75 ERA will not impress anyone, but he has a live arm and is still relatively young.  I figured that some team would swoop in and snatch him away from the Crew.

I did not realize that there is a “gentleman’s agreement” between major league GMs to not pick up players off of waivers that still have options left.  This would only complicate the process, as the Brewers could have simply chosen to place him back on the major league squad to block the move.  Players that have three years of major league experience must clear waivers in order to get sent down to Triple-A, but Dave still had a minor league option left.

I am excited to see Mike Cameron in a Brewers uniform.  Hopefully, he’ll be able to inject some life into this lethargic Brewers offense.  I was unable to watch the game today, but I understand that the Brewers were again unable to hit with runners in scoring position.  I was ready to write a recap of the game, but I unfortunately was unable to watch it.  Look for one following Tuesday’s game.  I apologize for the lack of posting after games, but I have been terribly busy lately.  I’m doing what I can for right now.

What do you think?  Should Dave have gotten sent down?

Cardinals beat listless Brewers

This game was not enjoyable to watch at all.

The Brewers offense did not show up in any facet of the game, and the Brewers pitchers were unable to put away innings after getting two outs.

In a very important outing for Dave Bush, he performed like he always does.  He struggled early, settled down for a bit and pitched well, then blew up in the fifth inning.  Normally it is the sixth inning where Dave blows up, but he decided to try it a little early this game.

David Riske did not do much better.  He snagged a come-backer off the bat of Cesar Izturis to get two outs in the inning.  Instead of putting Skip Schumaker away, however, David threw a fastball right down the center of the plate.  Skip pounded it down the right field line for a two-out, RBI double.

Derrick Turnbow came into the game in the bottom of the eighth inning to keep the game manageable.  He did not do that, to say the least.  The Cardinals scored two runs off Turnbow to stretch the lead to 6-1.  Turnbow has been extremely reluctant to throw his curveball, and his command has been spotty at best.  He does not look dominant at all.

The bats did nothing.  Prince Fielder walked four times, and Corey Hart went 2-3.  Besides a single from Joe Dillon, nothing else happened.  Literally.  It was boring.

Records: Brewers (8-5); Cardinals (10-4)

Hero of the Game: Corey Hart

Corey kept his hot bat going after the off-day yesterday, finishing 2-3 and collecting the only RBI for the Brewers.  That’s it.  Like I said, boring.

Goat of the Game: Bill Hall

This award could go to any pitcher that took the mound today, save Brian Shouse.  Yet I felt that Billy played exceptionally poorly today.  He had two strikeouts and grounded into two double plays.  That is not the protection Prince Fielder needs behind him.  Bill was a rally killer today, and I think it is a matter of days before we see Corey Hart move ahead of Hall.  Billy has the power stroke going, but he is lacking everything else.  It was a rough day for Bill, but he was not alone.

On Tap

The Milwaukee Brewers will take on the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 2 of the series.  Carlos Villanueva will match up against Adam Wainwright.  Unfortunately, the game will not be on FSN North.  You will need to be in the Milwaukee area to see the game on TV.  I am not.  The game will start at 7:00pm CT.  GO CREW!!!  We need this game.

Brewers sign Jeff Weaver?

UPDATE 04-15-08 5:30pm - Tom Haudricourt is now saying that the deal is official.  Weaver will have the opportunity to make close to $4-5M if he hits all the incentives, which is highly unlikely.  Not because he is a bad pitcher, but because it will logistically be difficult with such a deep rotation.

There will be an “out” clause, however.  He can search for another team in July if he has not made it to the big league squad at that point.  It sounds a lot like Abraham Nunez’s contract.

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Tom Haudricourt is reporting that the Milwaukee Brewers have signed Jeff Weaver to an incentive-laden minor league deal. This is obviously completely unexpected, especially since Brewers fans have spent the past couple days discussing the Brewers excess starting pitching.

Still, this is certainly a risk-free move for Doug Melvin. Weaver should be sent to Triple-A for a good month and a half to get stretched out and get his pitch-count up. I’m not sure if he will make the big leagues at any point this season, but it is very nice to have a veteran starting pitcher available down the stretch. Perhaps Melvin is hoping that Weaver and Mike Maddux hit it off to create some of the magic Weaver had in the 2006 playoffs for the Cardinals.

What does this mean for Dave Bush? There are a couple of possibilities. First, this could mean that Doug Melvin will be freely shopping the right-hander to many teams. Hopefully, Dave will pitch well tonight, as it could increase his value on the trade market. Trading Bush seemed like a distinct possibility before the Brewers signed Jeff Weaver. Perhaps Melvin cannot find a trading partner for Bush. Unlikely.

What is another distinct possibility is that the Brewers plan on trying to clear Dave Bush through waivers. The management obviously knows that this is extremely unlikely, so they signed someone to replace Dave in the minors. Not to mention Weaver will cost significantly less than Bush will. Have the Brewers already resigned to losing Bush, and have they already found his replacement in Jeff Weaver?

Reds pound Brewers to end winning streak

The Brewers may have taken the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning, but they certainly wasted little time in giving it back to the Cincinnati Reds.

Starter Dave Bush gave up five runs, only four of them earned, but he gave up three key runs in the top of the sixth.  Bush did not have very good stuff today, in my opinion.  He needs to keep his walk rate down, as he walked three more batters today.  His fastball got up in the zone.  I thought his curveball was fine, but why would any of the Cincinnati Reds swing at a curveball when they know they can get a belt-high fastball later in the count?

The bullpen did not help, either.  David Riske came in and had zero control of his fastball.  It was very straight and over the plate.  I was confused as to why he did not want to throw his splitter very much, but he must have not had a very good feel for it today.  He escaped the inning without giving up an earned run, but it does not mean he pitched well.

Derrick Turnbow displayed his characteristically wild command.  He walked Ken Griffey Jr. to start the inning, and Adam Dunn parked a home run just over the outstretched arm of Gabe Gross.  Actually, Gross should have had that ball, but that is a different story.  Seth McClung came in to mop up the game for the Crew in the eighth and ninth innings.  Instead of keeping the score manageable, Seth gave up five earned runs and walked three batters in two innings.  I understand momentum can be a big thing in baseball, but it was amazing how poorly everyone threw the ball once Bush started to struggle.

At the plate, all was fairly quiet.  Ryan Braun and Bill Hall both hit solo shots to continue their hitting ways.  Jason Kendall and Corey Hart had two hits a piece, but no one else got a hit in the game.  Dave Bush did in the fifth inning, but no other Brewer position player tallied a hit in the game.  With that said, the game was not out of reach until the bullpen blew up.

Poor games like this will inevitably happen.  The Crew started the season in great shape, and fans are kidding themselves if they think that a blowout was not going to happen this month.  The important thing is that the Brewers rally around Carlos Villanueva tomorrow and score a third-straight series win.

Records: Brewers (6-2); Reds (5-4)

Hero of the Game: Bill Hall

Billy hit another home run in the bottom of the ninth to put his season total up to four.  He is seeing the ball pretty well, and he has his power stroke back.  That is not the main reason for naming him the hero of the game.  I’ve been incredibly impressed with his defense this season.  Brian Anderson mentioned that Billy is making one highlight-caliber play per game at the hot corner.  I agree.  He has made the Brewers defense immensely better.  He made a very nice play on Ryan Freel, I believe it was.  He ranged to his right, picked the ball cleanly with his glove, spun, and fired a perfect ball to Prince Fielder over at first.  That play is not easy.  It certainly looked like it was though.

Goat of the Game: David Bush

David.  You simply cannot, I repeat cannot, come into the game in the top of the sixth and give away the lead your team just stole in the bottom of the fifth.  The momentum had begun to swing towards Milwaukee, and the bats looked like they were about ready to break out in a big way.  Instead of building on that momentum, Bush imploded and lost a