SB Nation - Seth McClung

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:28:20 -0000

by Tony Gutierrez - AP

John Lackey is not a future Brewer.

Some things to read while cleaning your spit valve.

The Rookie of the Year awards will be announced in a few hours, but Casey McGehee isn't sitting by his phone waiting for a call. He seems to understand that he's a long shot at best for the award. He finished eighth in the SBN balloting for the award.

I keep expecting to hear an announcement, but instead we have more reports that their might be an announcement someday: Doug Melvin has been in contact with Gregg Clifton, who represents Mark Mulder, about signing a deal to attempt to resurrect his career. The Brewers still seem like the most likely candidate to sign him, but it's not done yet.

Melvin has also been in touch with Tigers' GM Dave Dombrowski about the possibility of acquiring Edwin Jackson, but said the Tigers are "in charge of that one," and "they'll identify which clubs are matches and they'll call them." Clearly, Melvin is hard at work on this one.

Over the weekend, I put together a hypothetical deal that would put Jackson and Curtis Granderson in Milwaukee and Casey McGehee and Carlos Gomez in Detroit. Roughly 31% of voters think I'm an idiot for suggesting it, but by virtue of making an offer I might be one step ahead of the front office. By the way, at least one AL Exec doesn't think the Tigers are looking to move Granderson. Evan Brunell of The Hardball Times suggested a Gamel-for-Jackson swap, but said the Tigers would need to add more to their side.

Elsewhere on the hot stove:

Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic thinks the Brewers will end up with Rich Harden. (h/t Baseball Musings) Rumors about Harden seem to be coming from everywhere but the front office.
MLB Daily Dish thinks the Brewers will sign Doug Davis, and Mike Cameron will sign with the Cubs.
Walkoff Walk wants to know why Cameron isn't drawing more attention from pundits this offseason.
The Brewers may have competition for Jarrod Washburn: Aaron Gleeman notes that the Twins have expressed interest.
Still think the Brewers will make a run at John Lackey this offseason? Then here's some disheartening news: Lackey turned down $72 million from the Angels, which is almost certainly more than the Brewers would consider (or should consider) offering him.

In the wake of the recent decision to decline Braden Looper's option for 2010, Rob Neyer painted a picture of the Brewers' situation that's mostly gloom and doom. Similarly, Fire Doug Melvin wonders if the Brewers have missed their window.

Meanwhile, Adam Thompson of the Sheboygan Press thinks the Brewers have already made themselves better this offseason. That's as good a reason as any to stop paying attention to Adam Thompson of the Sheboygan Press.

I'd like the Brewers to improve the team a little more before I even start thinking about it, but when you're ready to start looking ahead to 2010, CHONE projections are out.

How'd you spend your weekend? Doesn't matter. Ryan Braun one-upped you by spending his weekend at actress Jessica Lowndes' birthday party. Oh, and Seth McClung spent his promoting a charity basketball tournament.

Only one transaction to report today, but it might be significant to some:

Rays: Signed R.J. Swindle to a minor league deal.

In a somewhat surprising move, former Brewer Marquis Grissom is parting ways with the Nationals. 2009 was Grissom's first season as first base coach for the Nats. As of a few weeks ago, he was giving quotes about being excited about coming back, so I'm not sure what happened.

If you're looking to learn more about Sabermetrics today and have some time to kill, Intro to Sabermetrics 101 has a primer on Linear Weights.

Or, if you're looking to help refine a new stat, In-Between Hops is working on a replacement for the Quality Start. Not surprisingly, 51 pitchers ranked ahead of the first Brewer in his new stat in 2009.

No Brewer birthdays today, but happy belated birthday to 2009 Timber Rattler Efrain Nieves, who turned 20 yesterday.

A quick programming note: I'm out for at least the rest of the day today, as I'm headed back to the dentist to see if we can't figure out some complications related to having my wisdom teeth removed a week ago. Depending on what I find out today, I'd say I'm probably questionable for tomorrow: I'm still in enough pain today that it's difficult to focus. Let this be a lesson to you, young readers: If your wisdom teeth don't hurt, leave them alone. I've been significantly more miserable for the last week than I ever was before I had them removed.

Drink up.

Weekend Mug 11/15

Fatter than Joey — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 06:50:01 -0000

by Pat Sullivan - AP

This dude hates Spaghettio's, and hates that you love them.

View full size photo »

Hello Kids!

I see your Regular Dad has dropped you off at your Weekend Dad's doorstep. Apparently Mr. Fancypants has better things to do, than keeping you kids up to date about the Milwaukee Brewers this weekend. I have no idea what happened to your Regular Dad, one can only guess... in any case, let me turn off the Carmen Electra workout tape, put on some fresh sweatpants, open up a can of Spaghettio's and tell you all about the Brewers.

One thing my therapist encourages me to do every morning, is to google Ned Yost, and then reassure myself that Ned Yost, or his evil offspring, Ned Yost IV, can no longer hurt me. I thought it was interesting that this quote from Ned Yost, was produced by the google engine.

The Atlanta Braves were in last place for years and years before I got there.

The fact that Yost didn't make the finalist stage, and that the Astros eventually hired Brad Mills, is probably evidence that someone in Houston can muster up enough brain activity to fog a mirror, contrary to previous reports of a flatlining front office.

Doug Melvin showed his own mirror fogging prowess by declining the option on Brewer souvenir generator Braden Looper. The Brewers will have to pay Looper $1M for the opportunity to decline his option, however they will save $5.5M in salary for 2010, and probably another $400K in lost baseballs. Looper is a type B free agent now, and while the Brewers could offer Looper arbitration, it is unlikely, since Looper stands to make as much money in the arbitration process as his declined option would have provided.

Bleacher Report thinks Melvin did the right thing in declining Looper's option, however argues that unless the Brewers dump Jeff Suppan, the Brewers will still suck at pitching.
Along the same lines, Rob Neyer snips TH, and rips Looper, and wonders why Melvin just can't DFA Bush, Parra and Suppan. (TH story)
FireDougMelvin.com reminds us, that while we put new Hefty bags on the windows on our double-wide by releasing Looper, we are still living in the trailer park.
Quick! Name the only 4 pitchers in the history of MLB that were able to give up 39 or more homeruns in under 200 IP. (Answer: Jose Lima 48/196.1; Eric Milton 40/186.1; Shawn Boskie 40/189.1; Braden Looper 39/194.2)
Quote from Braden Looper:

"I tried the best I can to get the ball down because that's my whole game"

In other Brewer News:

The Brewers passed on RyDo to get CarGo.
Former Brewer draftpick Andrew Bailey, went from TJ surgery to potential ROY winner
Is Edwin Jackson a good fit? Is he worth a Mat Gamel?
I did not know Ken Macha was 1st cousins with Hal Newhouser, I am guessing through marriage.
Deputy Braun is opening a grill, and scored his 2nd Silver Slugger award
Ben Sheets is awaiting offers from all 30 MLB teams.
Mark Mulder and Doug Melvin are talking
Seth McClung was interviewed about Twittering, and is generous with his High School.
Eric Gagne wants to pitch in MLB again... as a starter... he developed a cutter, which apparently is helping his batted balls adhere to the laws of physics.
What's dumber than signing Doug Davis? Answer: Getting into a bidding war for Doug Davis

In other MLB news:

Jack Wilson signed a 2 year deal with the Mariners. The Fielding Bible says Wilson is the best fielding SS in MLB. The Home & Garden Bible says Wilson is an above replacement yard gnome.
RJ Swindle signed a minor league deal with the Rays.
Justin Huber has a weekend dad in Japan
Carl Crawford is pissed beyond belief
Rafael Betancourt needs a new Regular Dad

Your Regular Dad is always making you take quizzes, where you have to do math, and are required to spell names correctly. What is wrong with him? -- Weekend Daddy just wants you to match up these Weekend Grannies with the crimes they committed, isn't that more fun?

This is generally the place in the Mug where Regular Dad generally wishes some (but usually not all) former Brewers a Happy Birthday. Instead of doing that, why don't we join the greatest Brewer of all-time, Sixto Lezcano, in wishing young Jimmy Salladay a happy birthday.

A gathering of Angels appeared above my head
They sang to me this song of hope and this is what they said:
Weekend Dad is greater than Regular Dad

The Weekend Linkfest!

NoahJ — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 12:00:47 -0000

Some things to read while being a real man or while putting up your holiday decorations.

I would like to preface this by kind of letting everyone know what is going on. As KL posted friday, Morineko, FtJ and I will be your new weekend editors. What that means is we will be hanging around and posting a weekend news post to keep things alive on the weekends. KL asked us to "make it our own" and do what we'd like with the post. I, personally, will probably be following the same basic format as the Frosty Mugs, though I can't speak on whether the other two will be doing anything radically different. Hopefully we can get it so it is nearly as active on Saturday and Sunday as it is Monday-Friday. If there is anything you would like somewhat different, at least from me, feel free to voice whatever is on your mind.

And if you are arriving late today, be sure to check out Jordan's and Jeff's excellent-as-always posts below this one. Both posts relate to the JJ Hardy/Carlos Gomez trade, about which I have an abundance of articles, so let's get right into the bulletpoints for that:

The Bucky Channel likes the trade. However, they also think Gomez should lead off, which is probably a bad idea.
Wisconsin's Sports Tap also is a fan of the trade, and gives a pretty good look at what this means for the Brewers.
Carlos Gomez says that he'll hit in Milwaukee with a full time job
The Official Site has an article about Alcides Escobar, along with Hardy's thoughts on the player Escobar is and will be.
Casa De Machado says their good-bye to JJ and also thinks that Corey Hart will be traded with Jody Gerut taking over in right field.
Milwaukee's Own Brew Crew Fans likes the trade and likens Carlos Gomez to another player with what seems to be a similar skillset, Michael Bourn
Miller Park Drunk has a big roundup of what various places are saying about the trade.

Tom H also sees the Bourn comparison. I have also seen/heard comparisons to Jose Reyes in various places as well.

There are other links, but there is nothing really to differ them from the rest. Most people either like the trade or are at least OK with it. I only saw a couple places where the author hated the trade.

In other news, it sounds like Mark Mulder will probably be a Brewer sooner than later. We;ve been hearing that for a while, but I haven't heard of any displeasure about the Brewers taking that risk. As long as there is no big guaranteed contract, I don't really know how you could be upset with that.

Baseball Daily Digest has a very good article up about new Brewers pitching coach Rick Peterson, his time in Oakland, and his work with their "big three". It's definitely worth a read.

The Arizona Fall League's Rising Stars game was yesterday, and the only Brewer, Mark Rogers, didn't get a chance to pitch in the game. Here is the gameday with the boxscore.

Roguejim has a fanpost about pertinent off season dates. Circling the Bases has an even more complete list full of offseason dates.

Circling the Bases also says that the Phillies will be in the market for a third basemen to replace Pedro Feliz. Would they have any pitching the Brewers could get for McGehee or Gamel?

Several different sites have been ranking the New York Yankees World Series winners. I will link to the Hardball Times version because they have links to several others if you are interested.

Other than all that, I just have a few quick, interesting links:

If you don't like ESPN, Brewed Sports gives you another reason to dislike the World Leader.

BizofBaseball makes the case against implementing a salary cap in baseball.

In Cuba, there was a case where the Umpires using instant replay might still have led to the wrong decision.

And I don't know what the holiday was, but the city of New York had some sort of parade. Something to do with the Yankees I think? I don't know, Jay-Z was there, so I am guessing it must have been important.

That's about it. Unless of course you want to sign Seth McClung up for some anger management classes.

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:57:28 -0000

More photos » by Pat Sullivan - AP

J.J. Hardy will most likely be traded this offseason, but no matter what Buster Olney says, he's almost certainly not going to be non-tendered.

Browse more photos »

Some things to read while getting new cufflinks.

So, with the World Series possibly one day away from being over, we're quickly closing in on hot stove season. Let's start today's rumor roundup with J.J. Hardy. Buster Olney thinks the Brewers could non-tender Hardy, but Al and I both agree that the concept is sheer lunacy. The logic behind it (as cited on MLB Trade Rumors) is beyond flawed:

Olney writes that the Red Sox inquired about Hardy at the deadline, but balked when the Brewers asked for excellent prospects in return. Olney wonders if this is a sign of things to come, and if no market for Hardy develops, would the Brewers be better off non-tendering the former All-Star?

So let me get this straight: The Brewers turned down an offer from the Red Sox because it wasn't enough. If nothing else develops, instead of returning to the Red Sox and asking for the same offer, Olney thinks the Brewers could let Hardy walk for free? On what planet does that make sense?

Roguejim also has a look at Hardy's trade value, and MLB Trade Rumors has a look at other shortstops that could be available via trade.

Elsewhere on the (hypothetical) market, we have Mat Gamel. MLB Trade Rumors has him listed among third basemen who could be on the move this offseason. The Nashville Sounds' website has an article from Baseball America with Gamel's reaction to a tough season offensively.

Until Jarrod Washburn either becomes a Brewer or signs somewhere else, his name is most likely going to keep coming up. Keep Turning Up the Heat! has a look at Washburn's recent performance and would accept a one year deal for him, but also notes that the 2010 Brewers are probably in trouble if Washburn is their biggest acquisition.

Meanwhile, Mike Cameron's name continues to come up in connection to other teams: The Cub Reporter has a look at Cameron as a potential fit in Wrigley in 2010, but doesn't think the two sides are a match.

As they suggested they would, the Brewers have found another job in the organization for former interim pitching coach Chris Bosio. He'll serve as the team's advance scout next season (FanShot).

Jonathan Lucroy is off to a hot start in the AFL, as he hit his second home run on Friday. Tom H. also got a positive review from a scout who recently saw Lucroy play for Peoria. Lucroy is probably a candidate to represent the Brewers when rosters are announced later today for the Rising Stars Game, which will be played on Saturday and broadcast live on MLB Network.

For more on Lucroy, the rest of the Brewers in the AFL and Alcides Escobar's season debut weekend in Venezuela, be sure to check out today's Fall/Winter League Update.

Elsewhere in the minors, I may have committed a Twitter foul. Yesterday afternoon I made a joke about the somewhat unexciting nature of Eric Arnett's recent Twitter activity, and today his account has been removed. Hopefully I'm not responsible for that. Meanwhile, Seth McClung has a picture of his daughter's Halloween costume.

Yet again, we have less-than-encouraging news about the depth of prospects in the Brewer organization, at least defensively: Alex Pedicini of The Hardball Times has the top four minor leaguers at each position, ranked by Total Zone, and there's not a single Brewer prospect among the 28 players listed.

Around baseball:

Astros: Declined their option for 2010 on Doug Brocail, and re-signed Geoff Blum to a one year deal worth $1.5 million.
Giants: Re-signed Freddy Sanchez to a two year deal worth $12 million, and declined their 2010 option on Noah Lowry. They also removed pitchers Justin Miller and Kelvin Pichardo from the 40-man roster. Miller is expected to become a free agent.
Indians: Removed pitchers Mike Gosling and Scott Lewis and infielder Niuman Romero from their 40-man roster.

Did Robin Yount use a corked bat? A game used Robin Yount bat with cork in it is up for auction, leading to discussion regarding the possibility. There's also a strong possibility the bat was corked sometime after it left Yount's possession. I'm reluctant to believe Yount corked the bat, for a simple reason: If Yount knew the bat was corked, he most likely also knew that someone would be able to figure out it had been tampered with. Why, then, would he ever give that bat away? That's like giving your autograph on the back of a steroid prescription.

Could John Maine be a reclamation candidate for Rick Peterson in 2010? Amazin' Avenue suggests he's a candidate to be non-tendered, but concludes the Mets should bring him back.

Baseball Analysts has an interesting look at pitchers' velocity and how it changes as the season goes along, broken down by several demographics. Most of the data isn't exceptionally surprising, but the difference in pitch speed between April and the rest of the season is pretty striking. (h/t Beyond the Box Score)

I'll admit it: I'm having a hard time getting excited for or paying much attention to the World Series. I have yet to sit through an entire game, and I've fallen asleep before the end of both games 3 and 4. Yet somehow, I don't feel as bad now that I know that Jon Heyman caught writers playing Scrabble and solitaire on their computers during Game 3.

Among the five candidates (Lopes, Royster, Yost, Sveum and Macha), I think you can make a solid case that Jerry Royster was easily the worst Brewer manager of the 2000's, even among a pretty bad field of contenders. With that said, his stuff apparently works in Korea, where he has led the Lotte Giants to back-to-back postseason appearances and signed a $600,000 contract extension over the weekend.

If you're hanging around the site tomorrow afternoon, you may notice some minor changes in the site as part of the visual refresh of the SB Nation platform. The changes will be minor, but will also be step one in a project to improve the load time of sites, which should be good news for everyone.

On this day in 1974, the Brewers acquired Hank Aaron from Atlanta for outfielder Dave May and minor league pitcher Roger Alexander. Aaron would go on to hit .232/.326/.360 in his final two seasons as a Brewer, make the 1975 All Star team and hit 22 home runs.

Happy birthday today to:

Taylor Green, 2009 Huntsville Star and current Brewer representative in the Arizona Fall League, who turns 23.
2007-09 Nashville Sound Lindsay Gulin, who turns 33.
Paul Ridgon, who made 27 starts as a 2000-2001 Brewer after coming over from the Indians in the Bob Wickman-Richie Sexson deal, and turns 34.
Paul Hartzell who appeared in four games for the '84 Brewers and turns 56.

Oh, and the Phoenix Desert Dogs ate mac and cheese after Friday's AFL contest. I don't know if they used this recipe.

Drink up.

The Brewers, Twitter and You

KLSnow — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:00:38 -0000

Whether it's just a fad or a new mainstay in social media, Twitter is probably one of the more polarizing services on the Internet. For some, it's an everyday must-check. For others, it's a joke, and its consistent users something to ridicule.

For the uninitiated, Twitter is a social networking service that allows you to send 140 character-or-less "tweets," and subscribe to and follow the tweets of others. At its basic level, it's a tool for feeding people a lot of information they didn't need to know or don't care about (like the results of one's recent trip to the bathroom), but some people use it for more than that, thankfully.

For Brew Crew Ball (@BrewCrewBall), Twitter is a great way to spread the word about new content, interact with Brewer fans and occasionally make fun of the Bucks. I use the BCB Twitter to follow several official Brewer sources, journalists following the team and other Brewer bloggers and fans. It's frequently entertaining, and occasionally a source of breaking news I would not have immediately found elsewhere.

So, if you're thinking of starting a Twitter account, follow the jump for 46 Twitterers (and my recipe blog) to follow to get yourself started. And if you already use Twitter, here's a list of people to be sure you're following:

Official Brewers

@Brewers: The team's official Twitter.
@BrewerAsh: Brewers Assistant GM Gord Ash
@Brewercom: Tyler Barnes, Brewers VP of Communications
@BrewCharities: Brewer Charities Inc., the official charity arm of the Brewers
@RickPeterson3P: Brewer pitching coach Rick Peterson
@73_MC: Seth McClung
@BradenLooper (Inactive since August)

Brewer Minor League affiliates and minor leaguers:

Journalists covering the Brewers

@AdamMcCalvy: Adam McCalvy, MLB.com
@CFly: Colin Fly, Associated Press
@Haudricourt: Tom Haudricourt, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

National journalists and bloggers worth noting

@BaseballAmerica
@Baseball_ref: Baseball Reference
@BenBadler: Ben Badler of Baseball America
@D_A_Cameron Dave Cameron of FanGraphs/USS Mariner
@jh_moore Jack Moore of FanGraphs/Beyond the Box Score
@Jay_Jaffe Jay Jaffe of Baseball Prospectus
@Jaysonst: Jayson Stark of ESPN
@JPosnanski: Joe Posnanski of Sports Illustrated and joeposnanski.com
@SI_JonHeyman: Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated
@JonathanMayoB3: Jonathan Mayo of MILB.com
@KeithLaw Keith Law of ESPN
@MLBTradeRumors
@RobNeyer: Rob Neyer of ESPN
@Trenni: Trenni Kusnierek of MLB Network
@Wezen_ball

Other Brewer twitterers/bloggers (with blog name, if it's not obvious)

@BrewCrewBabe
@BrewTownBeat
@CreamCityCrushrs
@DWalshMKE: Dan Walsh of the Daily Drink
@jdondlinger: Jason Dondlinger of View From Bernie's Chalet
@MillerParkDrunk
@MillerParkNorth: Mark Lange of Wisconsin Sports Tap
@poonix: SgtClueLs of Fire Doug Melvin
@SconnieSports
@SheffieldsHouse
@SportsBubbler
@untuckem

Members of the BCB Family:

If I missed someone, let me know.

Thanks, and feel free to RT!

Wednesday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 14:03:58 -0000

More photos » by Julie Jacobson - AP

Dear front office: Please don't acquire Gary Matthews Jr., unless the Angels are willing to eat his salary AND take on Jeff Suppan's. Sincerely, Everyone

Browse more photos »

Some things to read while getting a new backpack.

So apparently Gary Matthews Jr. wants out of Anaheim, and some Brewer fans (including Al) think he could be a good fit in center field next season, if the Angels agree to pay most of his salary. Meanwhile, Angels management is somewhere hoping and praying that there's one general manager left in baseball who thinks Matthews can be a productive major leaguer next season. Dave Cameron of FanGraphs notes that Matthews has been worth -$5.3 million in salary over the last three seasons. And while he was a pretty good defender at one point, TotalZone ranked him as the fourth worst defender in all of baseball last season. And he's 35 years old. On the scale of center fielders, Matthews is much closer to Corey Patterson than Mike Cameron.

The Milwaukee chapter of the BBWAA has unveiled their postseason awards, with Prince Fielder and Yovani Gallardo surprising no one by taking home Team MVP and Pitcher of the Year honors, respectively. Trevor Hoffman was named top newcomer, Todd Coffey was named Unsung Hero and Craig Counsell won the "Good Guy" award, which may be renamed for him when he retires. Mike Cameron also received two community service awards: one from the team and one from the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Congratulations to all of them.

Speaking of Mike Cameron, he's one of two Brewers among the top 6 free agents by WAR. Cameron ranks sixth with 4.3 WAR, a couple spots down from Felipe Lopez, who is fourth with 4.6.

Josh Butler has a new blog post from the AFL. Today's topics include night games, strep throat and his repertoire. Butler has been home for a few days with strep but still expects to make his scheduled start today.

Unless another package of stuff shows up on my doorstep, today is your last chance to enter the Bring Back Seth McClung contest. As of this writing, 401 people have signed up. I'll draw seven winners from the group at 5 pm today.

There had previously been speculation that Doug Melvin could consider leaving the Brewers to become president of the Blue Jays. You can lay that rumor to rest: Interim President Paul Beeston has been given the full time job. Elsewhere around baseball:

Astros: Signed former Red Sox bench coach Brad Mills to be their new manager.
Rays: Signed Gabe Kapler to a one year deal for slightly more than $1 million.

As you may have heard, Mark McGwire is coming out of hiding to return to the Cardinals as hitting coach. Lookout Landing speculates on how his first meeting with Skip Schumaker might go.

Speaking of Lookout Landing, they spent the evening last night watching a winter league game in Venezuela, and have some observations on the experience.

Side note: Lookout Landing also has a link to free live broadcasts of VWL games, but when I clicked on it the first thing I got was a box asking for permission to connect to my Facebook account. Don't fall for it.

Still looking for a replacement for Jason Kendall? MLB Trade Rumors has a list of catchers that may be available via trade. Most of them aren't too exciting, but it's possible all of them would be better than Kendall next season.

So this is how the other half lives: As part of the McCourt divorce, Jamie McCourt has submitted a list of her monthly living expenses, which includes over $30,000 (per month) for clothing and accessories, over $1000 for wine, and $533 per month for a birthday party. Apparently when you're that wealthy, you get a birthday every month. Who knew?

Speaking of birthdays, happy birthday to:

Braden Looper, who turns 35.
Lenny Harris who spent 2002 as a Brewer and turns 45.
Mark Knudson, who appeared in 106 games as a Brewer in the late 80's and early 90's, and turns 49.
And Bob Melvin, who served as Phil Garner's bench coach and turns 48.

Staying on the subject of birthdays, Wezen-ball has compiled a calendar of Top Birthday WARs. So if you've ever wanted to know the best player born on your birthday, there you go. Mine is Joe Judge, who racked up 43.7 WAR playing first base for the Washington Senators from 1915 to 1932.

That's all I have for you today, unless you're someone in need of a list of unacceptable Halloween candy.

Drink up.

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:46:19 -0000

More photos » by Al Behrman - AP

Keith Law says the Brewers spent too much on Trevor Hoffman.

Browse more photos »

Some things to read while the tables are turned.

View From Bernie's Chalet has the transcript of a recent chat with Keith Law over at ESPN where he touched on several Brewer-related topics, but the most notable was probably Trevor Hoffman. He thinks the Brewers made a mistake bringing Hoffman back at the price they're paying, and that it will handicap their efforts to improve the team elsewhere.

Admittedly, $8 million is a lot to pay a reliever, but it's possible there's a perception benefit from having an elite closer. When the Brewers announced the Hoffman signing, Doug Melvin suggested free agent pitchers may be more likely to sign with a club with an established closer. I have no idea if it's true, but I suppose it's possible. And if Hoffman pitches a full, effective season as a Brewer and notches his 600th save, it's possible he'll pay for himself in publicity and marketing.

Elsewhere on the pitching front, rumors continue to swirl around the possibility that the Brewers could have interest in Mark Mulder. Mulder probably can't be depended upon for significant innings, but bringing a pitcher of his caliber into the fold on a cheap deal to see what he can do is almost always a good idea.

Mulder, of course, pitched under Rick Peterson in Oakland. Mets Merized recently conducted an interview with Peterson, and has audio clips of some of Peterson's thoughts on developing prospects and pitch counts. (h/t Rob Neyer)

Although unlikely, it's still possible Peterson could spend 2010 helping Ben Sheets return to form. Sheets, who had his high school number retired this weekend, is throwing off flat ground and expects to pitch in the majors next season. Jorge Says No! wonders what he'll get on the open market.

If Jeff Suppan was on the market this offseason, he likely wouldn't command much at all. Suppan was the winner of Brew City Sports' Hendy Award, which will look great on his mantle next to a photocopy of the $12.5 million paycheck he'll take home next season.

Hopefully this will be the only career parallel between Suppan and Ryan Braun: Braun is opening a restaurant in Lake Geneva. Braun is also giving away autographed baseballs to the first 100 fans to spend at least $150 on Remetee clothing at Solis in Las Vegas. If you stop by in January, there might still be some left.

We won't know the actual results until sometime after the World Series, but Baseball Digest Daily had Prince Fielder third in their balloting for NL MVP, and Braun fifth.

The JS has a note on Jonathan Lucroy's early performance in the AFL, which has been pretty impressive. He's only racked up 19 at bats, though, so it's probably a little early to get too excited. Tom H. also mentions "poor starts" from both Lorenzo Cain and Taylor Green. Both are hitting under .250 but have OBPs of .364 and .400, respectively (in 50 combined ABs). We have more on all three prospects and the rest of the Brewer winter leaguers in today's Fall/Winter League Update.

Around baseball:

Cubs: Removed utilityman Bobby Scales from their 40-man roster.
Indians: Hired Manny Acta as their new manager.
Mets: Removed catcher Robinson Cancel, shortstops Wilson Valdez and Argenis Reyes and pitcher Carlos Muniz from their 40-man roster.
Padres: Are expected to name former Red Sox Assistant GM Jed Hoyer as their new GM.

After two searches and interviews involving over a dozen candidates, the Indians and Astros both settled on Acta as the best candidate to manage their teams next season. The Indians, however, were willing to offer a three-year deal with an option for a fourth, and the Astros were only willing to offer two years. Houston is reportedly considering Red Sox bench coach Brad Mills and former Astros and Brewers manager Phil Garner.

So, the World Series matchup is set. I guess I'll be rooting for the Phillies out of sheer anti-Yankee bias and some form of vague NL pride. Rob Neyer notes that it'd be nice if the games started earlier, so they won't drag on past midnight, but that seems unlikely. Meanwhile, the new Yankee Stadium didn't even make it through its first season without some structural concerns: cracks in pedestrian ramps have already started to appear. The concrete was poured by a local firm that had previously been banned from doing city work because of suspected ties to organized crime.

The ALCS wasn't actually decided until late last night, but apparently the result was already known, as MLB.com started selling AL Champion Yankees gear well before the final out was recorded. This has drawn a lot of backlash but maybe we're looking at it the wrong way: Maybe MLB should start selling World Series gear for every team in Spring Training.

The Florida Winter Baseball League opens play this week with teams in four cities, composed mainly of low-level minor leaguers. I haven't checked the rosters for Brewers yet, but a successful, competitive winter league based in Florida could be a huge development for American minor leaguers who want to play winter ball but either don't speak Spanish or simply don't want to spend the winter in Latin America.

If you'd like to read more about life in the Arizona Fall League but your attention span is really short, then you're the perfect candidate to follow Scottsdale Scorpions Clubhouse Manager Chad Chiffin on Twitter.

While some minor leaguers head off to winter ball, one major leaguer will spend the offseason in Washington: Pirates pitcher Ross Ohlendorf is spending the offseason on an internship with the Department of Agriculture.

Last week I mentioned the continuing debate on John Lannan, who has posted effective ERAs for two seasons without many of the peripheral stats one would expect from a successful pitcher. Nick Steiner of The Hardball Times has Part 2 of his look at Lannan, looking primarily at pitch sequencing. Steiner concludes that luck is the most likely option.

I'm going to be late for Gorman's vet appointment if I don't wrap this up asap, so here's what I have left:

Minor leaguer Shawn Haviland on the importance of throwing two of the first three pitches for strikes.
Recondite Baseball on hitters who hit .300 but had short careers anyway.

Happy birthday today to Rafael Novoa, who pitched 56 innings for the 1993 Brewers and turns 42 today, and to Mark Sweeney, who appeared in 119 games for the 2000-2001 Brewers and turns 40.

Also, a posthumous happy birthday to Gus Polidor, who would have turned 48 today.

That's all I've got for you today, unless you want to see a Jose Valentin autograph or win one from Miguel Tejada.

And if you'd like to win something autographed by Seth McClung, don't forget to enter the Bring Back Seth McClung contest.

Drink up.

Wednesday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:40:04 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

I'm hoping we'll have a picture of Rick Peterson without a Mets hat soon.

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Some things to read while earning your cat-holding privileges.

The Brewers made Rick Peterson's hiring official yesterday, and he immediately turned his sights to Yovani Gallardo and Manny Parra.

Peterson also tweeted about his new gig, and was welcomed into the fold by Seth McClung (more on McClung later today). Miller Park Drunk also welcomed Peterson, and started him off with a cheat sheet on Brewer pitchers.

Now, perhaps the Brewers will get started on the task of acquiring some pitchers for Peterson to coach. Dave Cameron of USS Mariner has the Brewers trading J.J. Hardy to the M's for Brandon Morrow, and Matthew Pouliot of Circling the Bases has a hypothetical trade sending Prince Fielder to the Red Sox for Jacoby Ellsbury and Michael Bowden. Meanwhile, over in Speculationville, Roguejim wonders if J.J. Hardy might be a fit for the Pirates.

Could Jody Gerut end up as a bargaining chip in a trade? Amazin' Avenue lists him as a player who may be undervalued this winter due to a low BABIP in 2009. Gerut posted a .230/.279/.376 line last season, but hit a much more respectable .272/.341/.447 in August and September.

Wherever pitching help might come from, there doesn't appear to be much of it on the horizon in the minors. Baseball America has their final minor league pitching leaderboards up, and the only Brewer mentioned (Evan Frederickson) is among the leaders in a category you don't want to lead (walks allowed). Frederickson, a sandwich pick in the 2008 draft, walked 82 batters in 97.1 innings for Wisconsin this season, and has posted a 5.22 ERA in the minors.

Perhaps Josh Butler will be the exception, though: After playing all over the minors and in the majors this season, Butler is blogging from the AFL (FanShot) His first post covers his wild season, AFL teammates, food and weather.

We've covered the list of reasons why Felipe Lopez should be offered arbitration and the opportunity to return, but Miller Park Drunk has the counterpoint: the list of reasons why Lopez doesn't fit into the Brewers' plans and will almost certainly not be back.

Around baseball:

Braves: Pitchers Buddy Carlyle, Jorge Campillo and Vladimir Nunez have been removed from the 40-man roster and will become free agents. (h/t Rowland's Office)
Mets: Released reliever Ken Takahashi.
Pirates: Reliever Chris Bootcheck rejected an outright assignment and is now a free agent.

Because of the arbitrary nature of the cutoff line for Super 2 players, there's good news for the Diamondbacks and bad news for the Giants today. Slugger Mark Reynolds fell three days short of the service time required to be a Super 2, will not be arbitration eligible and will remain under team control for four more seasons. Tim Lincecum, on the other hand, was over the cutoff by about a week and will be arbitration eligible this offseason.

Three managerial vacancies remain, but at least one team has eliminated Ned Yost from contention: The Indians are believed to be conducting second interviews with four candidates, but Yost is not one of them. Manny Acta is the only finalist for the Indians' job that is also a candidate for the Astros' job.

Over the last few seasons, baseball has shifted heavily toward emphasizing young players and prospects, but here's a reminder on the importance of not looking too far ahead: Lookout Landing has a list of 44 players who appeared for the Mariners in 2008. Less than two full years later, only ten of them are still with the organization. Things can change pretty fast.

Livan Hernandez spent the end of the 2009 season with the Nationals, and despite the fact that he's long past the prime of his career, he'll likely be looking for work again this offseason, because he needs the paycheck. Hernandez reportedly has serious financial issues that could lead to the foreclosure of his home in Miami.

Unfortunately, despite the fact that the postseason has had some pretty exciting games and interesting storylines, the top story once again is terrible umpiring, and a call Big League Stew is calling "the worst call of all time." I keep hoping that maybe, someday, Major League Baseball will be shamed into action on this issue, and do something to either correct inept umpires or put effective umpires in their place. It's likely a pipe dream.

I've spent a fair amount of time lately discussing the Arizona Fall League, partly because there's not much baseball being played lately but also because I find it fascinating. If you're having a hard time getting into it, maybe you should check out Geoff Young's look back at the 2001 AFL, which featured a bunch of future productive major leaguers...and Bill Hall.

Speaking of prospects and development, Derrick Goold has a nice conversation starter about age as it relates to prospects, and when one becomes too old to be considered one (h/t BBTF). In last year's Community Prospect Rankings, we ranked a couple of older players (Brad Nelson and Tim Dillard), and I'm guessing Adam Heether might sneak into this year's list as well.

Finally, this link isn't really baseball related, but I'm dropping it in today because I think it's important, and if you or someone you know coaches youth or high school sports I hope you'll read it: Driveline Mechanics has a look at overtraining in high school sports and its consequences.

Happy birthday today to Gabe Gross, who posted a .797 OPS over 2+ seasons as a Brewer and turns 30 today, and to Franklin Stubbs, who was virtually worthless as a Brewer and turns 49.

Drink up.

Monday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:59:52 -0000

More photos » by Ron Schwane - AP

Facial expression aside, Zach Greinke would look great as a Brewer. That doesn't mean it'll happen, though.

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Some things to read while never getting on an airplane again.

Tom Haudricourt says an announcement is imminent on the hiring of Rick Peterson as the new Brewer pitching coach. Is anyone else as unsure about this as I am? I know Peterson is highly regarded and all that, but the concept of one more guy coming in to tinker with the deliveries of the young pitchers makes me shudder. If Peterson announces a plan to overhaul Yovani Gallardo's delivery, someone may have to come pull me away from the ledge.

Meanwhile, Bryan Price, who also interviewed for the position, has accepted the same job with the Reds. So, if Peterson isn't the pick after all, the search will likely go back to the drawing board. The Pirates filled their pitching coach vacancy internally, promoting AAA pitching coach (and former Brewer) Ray Searage.

Somehow, an unlikely story from an unlikely source got legs this weekend and ran all over the blogosphere. As noted in Rumorville, at least one person thought the Brewers might be close to a deal to acquire Zach Greinke from the Royals. For once, I'm completely with Tom H. on this one. I read over 300 baseball sites daily but Bleacher Report isn't one of them, and "rumors" like this one are exactly why.

Elsewhere on the hot stove, Roguejim made the case for retaining Felipe Lopez, and View From Bernie's Chalet video-blogged on the possibility of retaining Mike Cameron.

Meanwhile, no one seems to be making the case for retaining Jason Kendall, even though Baseball Reflections ranked him fifth among free agent catchers. The $4.25 million Kendall made in 2009 was the ninth highest catcher salary in all of baseball last season.

Tristarscoop had a note over the weekend on athletes and Twitter, wondering if Seth McClung has hurt his chances of returning by taking that route and being as honest as he's been with the fans. McClung responded in three parts, and I'm glad to see he doesn't appear to plan on changing anytime soon.

Speaking of McClung, you have until 5 pm today to join the Bring Back Seth McClung Facebook group to be eligible to win a baseball autographed by the group's namesake. As I write this, 324 members have joined. Will you be 325?

Over at Cute Sports, Tristarscoop also picked up on a nice story involving Craig Counsell and a Special Olympian.

Around baseball:

Cubs: Released So Taguchi.
D-Backs: Brandon Webb doesn't expect to sign a long term extension this winter, and could be a free agent following next season.
Dodgers: Declined Will Ohman's option for 2010.

It's widely accepted that the Brewers are pretty lucky to have Mark Attanasio as an owner, and perhaps we should be even more grateful given the mess developing in Los Angeles. True Blue LA has a great read chronicling the history of Dodger ownership. Even if you don't read the whole thing, check out the link for the first picture: Even Tommy Lasorda looks disgusted while sitting next to the McCourts.

Speaking of ownership trouble: Go check your checkbook. If you've got $525-$550 million to spare, you could own the Texas Rangers.

Two weeks ago, I mentioned some speculation that the Brewers could deal J.J. Hardy to the Nationals for John Lannan, sparking a debate in the comments on Lannan's abilities and the difference between a productive starter and a smoke-and-mirrors laden disaster-in-waiting. That debate continues elsewhere, as Jack Moore looks at Lannan's low BABIP over at FanGraphs, and Nick Steiner of The Hardball Times launched an effort to attempt to explain it.

Speaking of disasters-in-waiting, postseason umpiring continues to be a major topic of conversation this October. Aaron Gleeman notes that at least a dozen umpires, including some of baseball's longest tenured, were unavailable for the postseason due to injury issues, but also nails it with this point:

In theory even MLB's non-elite umpires should be capable of doing their job at an acceptable level, so regardless of injuries and workload restrictions Bud Selig and company still need to address the issues that we've seen so far.

The last two candidates are set to interview today for the Astros' managerial vacancy, but Jorge Says No! has gone ahead and handicapped the field. He thinks Manny Acta is both the most deserving candidate and the one most likely to get the job. The best thing we can do is continue to hope for Ned Yost.

Sports media is filled with complaints about whiny, overpaid athletes and whatnot, but it's worth noting that many minor league baseball players are still taking home significantly substandard wages while trying to earn their way to the big leagues. Minor league veteran Garrett Broshuis has a look at living conditions in the minor leagues, and the sacrifices some players make to keep the dream alive.

On this day in 1982, the Cardinals beat the Brewers 13-1 in Game 6 of the World Series.

Happy birthday today to Marc Newfield, who played for the Brewers in 1996, 1997 and 1998 and turns 37, and Horacio Estrada, who appeared in eleven games for the Crew in 1999 and 2000 and turns 34. Both were out of the big leagues for good after their age 25 season, and both are still younger than Craig Counsell, David Weathers and Trevor Hoffman.

I know we all have more time on our hands during the offseason, but if you're as big of a nerd as I am you'll spend that time building a Katamari.

Drink up.

Tuesday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:12:28 -0000

More photos » by Charles Rex Arbogast - AP

Prince Fielder, seen here checking under his jersey for another jersey, will likely be offered a long term contract by the Brewers this offseason, according to Jon Heyman.

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Some things to read while learning your costume's limitations.

Two more names have surfaced in the search for a new pitching coach: Former Arizona pitching coach Bryan Price and former Rays pitching coach Chuck Hernandez have both reportedly interviewed for the position this week (FanShot). Rick Peterson still appears to be the favorite, but Hernandez has worked with Macha before, and that fact seems to carry some weight for some reason.

It's widely accepted that Albert Pujols will win the NL MVP, but where will Prince Fielder finish? David Gassko of The Hardball Times has developed a system to predict the BBWAA's voting, and it predicts a third place finish for Fielder, behind Pujols and Ryan Howard. Meanwhile, Jon Heyman thinks the Brewers will attempt to sign Fielder to a long term deal this offseason.

USA Today has ranked the "shock wave" celebration following Fielder's walk-off home run on September 6 as one of their top ten highlights of the 2009 season. Certainly, it's a moment we'll remember for quite some time.

This is earlier than I normally do birthdays, but happy birthday to Trevor Hoffman, who turns 42 today. As Adam McCalvy notes, Hoffman will become the second oldest player in franchise history with his first appearance in 2010, and could pass Hank Aaron for first place by appearing in a game anytime after June.

Speaking of pitchers who should return next season, there's a new reason to join the Bring Back Seth McClung Facebook group. McClung has agreed to give an autographed ball to one randomly selected member of the group, to be chosen on Monday. Membership of the group more than doubled yesterday, but clearly we can do better. If you haven't joined yet, now is the time.

R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs has a look at Felipe Lopez, who is riding a career year into free agency for the second time. Anderson notes the differences between Lopez's 2005 and 2009 seasons.

We're just a few hours away from the start of the Arizona Fall League, as the Peoria Javelinas take on Ian Kennedy and the Surprise Rafters at 1:35 Central time today. Adam McCalvy has a preview of the AFL, complete with a link to this PDF of everything you ever wanted to know about the league, and this definition of a Javelina:

Here's something you won't find in that PDF: A javelina, according to the Arizona Game and Fish Department, is also known as a peccary, a medium-sized mammal that looks a bit like a pig. A terrifying, crazed pig.

Here are some other notes on the AFL:

As far as I know, none of the Brewer beat reporters will be in Arizona covering the AFL, but the Javelinas also feature prospects from the Seattle Mariners, and Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times will be in Arizona following them.
If Baker's coverage and ours aren't enough for you, you can also follow the AFL on Twitter.

Of course, the AFL isn't the only place where baseball is being played right now. The Nashville Sounds' website has a note on the 2009 Sounds playing winter ball in Venezuela. Hernan Iribarren's Cardenales de Lara defeated Adam Heether's Leones del Caracas last night, 7-1. Iribarren went 1-for-4 with a double and scored a run, while Heether went 0-for-3 with a walk.

Need a mental tune-up this morning? NoahJ wants to know how fast you can name the 39 players who appeared in a game for the Brewers this season. I did it with about four and a half minutes to spare, if you need a record to shoot for.

Oh, and if you haven't yet, you're running out of time to cast your ballot in Tangotiger's Fan Scouting Report. Even if you've already cast a ballot, you can stop by to rate some of the players that have recently been added, including Alcides Escobar.

If you've done both of those things and you're still looking for something to do, perhaps you should find a job? The Brewers are hiring an HR Coordinator.

Baseball America's Minor League Transactions include the first wave of players to become minor league free agents this offseason, and there's a bunch of former Brewers among them: Greg Aquino, R.J. Swindle, Glendon Rusch, R.A. Dickey and Joe Dillon. Also noted: The Brewers re-signed minor league free agents Jim Henderson (RP) and Patrick Arlis (C), but allowed Chris Duffy to become a free agent.

Elsewhere in the marketplace:

Intro to Sabermetrics 101 has a look at Carl Pavano, and why advanced metrics would imply he was better than his conventional numbers showed in 2009.
Jorge Says No! wonders if Jason Marquis' offseason asking price will go down now that he struggled down the stretch and had his start skipped in the NLDS last night.

Continuing their open search process, the Astros have released the names of the ten candidates for their vacant managerial position, and the list includes two former Brewer managers: Ned Yost, as expected, and Phil Garner, who would be entering his second tour of duty managing the team. Garner reportedly called to advocate for Bob Melvin, who coached under him in Milwaukee, but ended up as a candidate himself. The Astros, by the way, are not considering Willie Randolph.

It was a bittersweet moment at TBS headquarters last night, as the end of the final NLDS series meant they'll only get 13 of a possible 20 Division Series broadcasts, but that didn't keep them from celebrating the elimination of the last small market team. Of course, Hass Avocado is the true winner.

I wasn't exactly cheering on the Dodgers over the weekend, but when they won I was happy to see Mark Loretta playing a part in it. Loretta languished for years on some pretty terrible Brewer teams, so it's nice to see karma catching up with him.

I mentioned Trevor Hoffman's birthday above, but today birthday wishes also go out to Damian Miller, who turns 40.

Drink up.