SB Nation User Blog: Brew Angel

Buy Jason Kendall's House! Only $7.3M!

Brew Angel — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 19:57:23 -0000

Buy Jason Kendall's House! Only $7.3M!

Scroll down a bit past the entertainment-industry fluff, and you'll see that the Brewers' catcher is unloading his house in Manhattan Beach.

Who to cheer for in today's game?

Brew Angel — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 15:43:42 -0000

I'm torn. I can't decide whether or not I want the White Sox to win today.

Don't get me wrong: I hate the White Sox. I hate A.J. I hate Ozzie G. I love O.C., but I hate the rest of their team. But at the same time, I want another crack at them, and I think if we meet them in the ALCS we'll pound them. Our starting pitching is better than 2005. Theirs is worse. Our lineup is more potent that 2005. Theirs is worse. A.J. still can't throw out baserunners. As long as Doug Eddings isn't umpiring, I think we would beat them in 5.

I realize that they'd need to get past the Rays (and I like Joe Maddon/Percy/Gabe Gross/Grant Balfour), and we're (rightfully) focused on the other Sux team first, but if you could work your will to arrange the matchups you wanted, would you rather the Halos play the White Sox, Twins, or Rays in the ALCS?

Juggling the Rotation

Brew Angel — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:54:14 -0000

After an abyssmal last couple of series against the Mets & Padres (mainly due to the lack of offense), we're looking at two key series against the Phillies & Cubs, sandwiched between six games against the Reds. Should Ned consider making an adjustment to the rotation to ensure that our best pitchers throw against the teams we're battling for the playoffs?

Right now, we're scheduled to throw Bush, Suppan, & CC against the Reds this week. With no rest days between now and the 15th, that means CC will miss the Phillies series. CC and Sheets are aligned nicely to throw against the Cubs on the 16th & 17th, and again on the 27th & 28th to close out the season. (With one start each in between against the Reds (CC) and Pirates (Ben)).

But here's a crazy idea: With the bullpen reinforced with September call-ups, why not throw a spot-starter (McClung?) against the Reds in the day game on Wednesday this week? This has the effect of giving the primary rotation a rest day, and then you're putting your best starters out there against the Phillies. CC and Ben would pitch on the 11th & 12th., and would then come up again on the 17th & 18th (Cubs). The drawback is that Ben doesn't line up to pitch against the Cubs in the last series, but he WOULD be available on the 29th or 30th if we wind up in a wild-card tie (not to mention he'd be well-rested for game 1 of the playoffs). Alternatively, with the rest day on the 15th, CC and Bencould go against the Cubs on the 16th & 17th on normal rest, and the rest of the rotation lines up as before, with the two of them closing out the season on the 27th & 28th. The bottom line is that if you use a spot starter this week on the 10th, you're essentially creating a rest day for the rotation this week and putting your best starters in the higher-leverage games against the Brewers closest playoff competitor.

What do you think?

Poll

Should the Brewers use a spot-starter against the Reds to line up the rotation against the Phillies?

Yes. We need to put our best pitchers on the mound in Philly.

5 votes

No. The rotation is currently aligned to face the Cubs later. Leave it alone.

12 votes

Dude, that's brilliant! That's why Ned will never do it....

10 votes

Heretic! How dare you question the mighty Yost!

3 votes

30 votes | Poll has closed

CC house-hunting in SoCal

Brew Angel — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:41:53 -0000

CC house-hunting in SoCal

Mainly a story about the Brewers, but it may be of interest to those speculating about Sabathia's future team.

Latest SI ranking has Brewers #3

Brew Angel — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 17:50:05 -0000

Latest SI ranking has Brewers #3

Yes, it's only July, and they're just "Power Rankings," but it's still good to see the Crew getting their due.

'Course, the Halos are #1.

Some days, it's good to be me!

More ridiculous power rankings

Brew Angel — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:51:36 -0000

More ridiculous power rankings

13? Seriously? Hello!?! Best record in baseball? Oh, wait, it's based on a computer simulation:

if = RedSox
then
= 1

Boy, that was easy.

IRS files tax lien against Prince

Brew Angel — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 17:25:56 -0000

IRS files tax lien against Prince

Courtesy of the Detroit News.

http://info.detnews.com/2008/0617taxlien.pdf

WTE looking for work

Brew Angel — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 21:09:31 -0000

WTE looking for work

Too bad he didn't insist on a 2-year contract with Seattle.

Questions for an Expat's first trip to Miller Park

Brew Angel — Wed, 14 May 2008 23:46:07 -0000

I'll be making my first trip back to Wisconsin since 2000 in late June,
and I'm planning to take my wife & 4-year-old son to the Brewers/Orioles
game on Friday the 20th. (It's the only game that fits in the family
travel schedule). I went to plenty of games at County Stadium before
moving to SoCal in 1998, but this will be my first visit to Miller Park.
Personally, I'd be happy sitting in the Uecker seats with a couple of
brats, a bag of peanuts, and a six-pack of Miller Lite, but I need some
insider information to ensure that the family enjoys the game as much as
me!

So here are some questions, in no particular order of importance:

Seats: My son loves Ryan Braun (who doesn't, besides Cardinal/Cub
fans?), so much so that at spring training this year he kept asking me
to point out where Ryan Braun was on the field. ("Daddy, where's Ryan
Braun now?" Thankfully we were sitting on the left-field side in
Maryvale so he could see the Brauntasaurus.) So I'm planning to get
left-field box seats, either field- or loge-level. Recommendations? Is
the view significantly better at the field level, or is it more a
question of what row you're in? (i.e. If the choice is between the 4th
row loge or 26th row field, which would you choose?)

Tickets: Is there an option other than StubHub or ordering direct from
the Brewers' website? (I don't necessarily have a problem with StubHub
or the website, I'm just wondering if there are other options.)

Driving/Parking: I'm planning to pay for preferred parking in advance.
Worth it? And since we'll be driving up from (-shudder-) Chicago the
day of the game, is there a good approach coming up I-94 that can help
avoid some of the game-time traffic?

Food: We'll be gorging on brats, naturally, but is there a particular
concession stand along the left-field side that has better food than the
others?

Kids: The Li'l Dude has been to about 20 Angels games, a couple of
Dodger games, and some Cactus League games. He's okay for about 3
innings, then he needs to be entertained. The Miller Park section of
the Brewers' website mentions a Kids' Playland near Bernie's clubhouse,
but I can't find any specifics as to kid-type activities. The Angels
have a "Family Fun Pavilion" with T-ball, ring-toss, and other games for
the kiddies. Is the Kids Playland similar?

Souvenirs: I have my vintage Brewers jersey. The Li'l Dude already has his Brewers cap and Ryan Braun T-shirt to wear to the game, but he's still growing. Which store at the Stadium stocks the widest range of kid-sized merchandise? Do any of them stock a variety of womens' styles for the wife?

I appreciate any answers/thoughts/recommendations you might have!

Spring Training Trip Report (Cross-posted from Halos Heaven)

Brew Angel — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 19:39:56 -0000

If you don't want to read my long, boring, semi-snarky diary regarding this weekend's trip to Arizona, then move right along. There's nothing else to see here. And there isn't much genuine baseball insight, either, since I had to spend the entire trip riding herd on a preschooler. That tends to detract from one's ability to monitor the pitch-by-pitch action.

Still here? Okay then. Now that my son is old enough to sit through six innings of baseball without having a meltdown, I decided to take him to see his beloved Angels up close. As you may have figured out from my nom de guerre (Brew Angel on Halos Heaven), I'm an Angels & Brewers fan -- so I scheduled this trip to see both teams as soon as the spring training schedule was released.

We flew out from LAX Saturday morning, picked up the rental car at the airport, and headed straight to Tempe Diablo stadium. The game was a sellout, since the Cubbies were the designated victim and their fans are masochists. And ugly. And stupid. We were seated in the 4th row down the right-field line, and the Li'l Dude, wearing his Angels #27 shirt, spent most of his time staring at Vlad, who was standing in RF about 25m away. "Daddy, is dat Big Vladdy?" "Yes, buddy, that's him." "Dat's awesome!"

I was surprised, and pleased, to be seated next to an entire family of Brewers fans who had come out from Wisconsin. I asked if they were there to scout tomorrow's opponent. They were very friendly and we agreed that we could be united in our dislike of the Cubs and their ugly, stupid fans.

As far as the game itself, Torii Hunter obviously came up big with his 2B, HR, and 4 RBI. Vlad's first-inning flyout to CF would likely have been off the wall or out of the park in Anaheim. (It went to the warning track right in front of the 420ft sign.) One bad note: Howie Kendrick's first inning error was ugly. From my position I couldn't exactly see if it took a bad hop, but it sure looked ugly. Jered Weaver looked good for his abbreviated start. He got a nice round of applause as he trotted out to right after the 2nd inning. (Torii got an even bigger round of applause later when he and the bulk of the starters came out after the 4th or 5th.)

I should also report that the Cubs fans in attendance cheered like they had won the World Series when they hit their 2-run homer. Which cut the lead to 6-2. In a spring training game. I guess since no living Cub fan remembers winning a World Series, they're a little out of practice. And ugly. And stupid.

After the game we headed to our hotel so the Li'l Dude could play in the swimming pool. I won't waste your time with any more details except to say that I saw a sizeable contingent of fat & fugly Fremont fans at the hotel. (Note for BCB readers: Angels fans refer to Oakland as "Choakland" or "Fremont.")

Sunday we drove out to Maryvale for the Brewers/Angels. This game was not a sellout, which, coupled with the lower temperature (mid-70s) and no Cubs fans, made for a more pleasant ballpark experience. (It might also have been the Klement's Bratwurst and Miller beer, as opposed to the Budweiser they serve in Tempe.)

We went to the Brewers' team store when we got into the stadium. Displaying the pandering skills of a junior New York Senator, Li'l Dude immediately pulled off his Angels hat and handed it to me, picked up a Brewers hat, and put it on his head. "Daddy, I want dis!" I bought him a Ryan Braun shirt to match it. So he was decked out in Brewers gear, and I was wearing Angels gear with my old Brewers jersey over it. We got a few comments, but all good-natured.

We were seated in the 4th row behind the Angels dugout, but moved back about 10 rows to be in the shade. I chatted with a retiree/snowbird from Wisconsin who lives in Tempe during the winter, and told me he was both a Brewers and Angels fan. With no Vladdy to watch, Li'l Dude kept asking me to point out Ryan Braun in LF.

As far as Sunday's game goes, what is there to say? The Angels didn't bring most of their starters along. Juan Rivera looked good in his first two ABs, and his 2B was a nice stroke straight into the gap. Garland pitched well, keeping the ball down and inducing groundouts. Prince Fielder made an amazing play on Nate Haynes' groundout. It looked like a double down the line, but Prince leaped at the ball, knocked it down, and picked it up to make the play. I honestly didn't think Prince could move that fast. He appeared to shrug off the HBP from Bootcheck, but looked a little ticked when he got hit the second time. Bonilla didn't look good pitching for the Angels. Cappy didn't look good pitching for the Brewers. (And I like Cappy. He's a Blue Devil.) Abraham Nunez got the clutch hit. (I don't think that will happen very often this year outside of Nashville, so I hope he enjoyed his moment.)

Oh, yeah, Jason Kendall still sucks. I liked it much better when he was a Cub. It had a certain ugly/stupid/overpaid symmetry to it.

At the end of the 6th inning, I saw the sausages lining up in right field. I pointed them out to Li'l Dude, who kept asking me last year to take him to a Brewers game so he could see the Sausage races. He picked Guido to win. I chose Brett Wurst. At the gun, Brett surged to the front, with Frankie close behind. At the line, it was a dead heat, and the announcer proclaimed a tie between the Brat and the Frankfurter. Cinco, Guido, and Stache (sp?) brought up the rear. On our way out later, the friendly Klements folks were giving away pictures of the sausages, so we got Brett Wurst's autograph.

We headed back to the airport, dropped off the car, and were back home in LA by 7:00. Pretty good weekend.