As was mentioned in today's Frosty Mug, the BP C'mon Back Club free ticket promotion has returned so seven fill-ups of eight gallons of gas yields you one free ticket to see the Brewers through the middle of August.

Now I was underemployed and poor for much of the 2009 and 2010 seasons so I fancy myself to be a bit of an expert on scoring free or reduced seats to see the Crew. Of the last two dozen games I've attended, I've probably only paid face value for one, maybe two. There's no seat too cheap--no view too obstructed that I won't go there as long as I go there for free.

High on experience and low on class, here are my tested and true techniques for making the most of the BP C'mon Back Club program:

1. You should buy your gas in increments of eight gallons. Never, ever, under any circumstance is it acceptable to fill your tank up at 14 gallons. My wife, too, knows that if she does this, she should expect complaining.
   

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Thanks to Steve for sharing this incredibly sad, but uplifting personal story about this season. - KL

A title like that, I suppose, merits prose better than what you're about to read. Nevertheless, I hope you'll tolerate this very personal reflection on this season.

I told my wife last night that I suspect a guy's favorite season of baseball should take place when he's 10 or 12 years old rather than 27. But regardless of how this season ends--with a World Series title, an ugly sweep at the hands of the D-Backs, or anything in between--I had more fun this year than I ever have watching baseball.

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I typically don't like ESPN's Mike and Mike in the morning, but today they were discussing revenue sharing with Jayson Stark and claimed that small market teams are starting out with anywhere from $80 to $100 million in revenue sharing--so using the small market team defense is no excuse for not paying players.

I have a hard time believing this is true. Mark A certainly seems aggressive enough that I'd doubt he'd max out payroll at $90 million if he were already starting with $80 mil before a single ticket is sold.

There must be some nuance here that I'm missing. Can anybody help?

Local ESPN Radio here in Madison (The Heller and Murphy show) had a rousing discussion yesterday on who is the most valuable Brewer. Not a bad topic. You've got Braun. Sheets. An entire sub-topic of whether CC is eligible for his half a season. I suppose if you really wanted to, you could make a case for Hart or Fielder or Hardy.

Sounds like a pretty interesting discussion, right?

Wrong.

The host proceeds to make his MVP case for....wait for it...wait for it...

Jason Kendall.

I kid you not. Braun was barely mentioned in the discussion. Because, you know, Kendall is solely responsible for every out the Brewer pitching staff has recorded this season. Except, perhaps, for when Torres is on the mound, because he got heavy MVP consideration, too.

Thankfully, the fill-in co-host mentioned that he's not too sure a guy batting .250 with one home run is the most valuable Brewer, but this is an hour of my life that I cannot reclaim. Though, if there is ever a KUG HoF, I hope this segment is recovered and immediately enshrined.

Again, no link yet, but the press conference is on the radio broadcast. Hart was speaking to the media, and the rest of the team just found out and rushed into the press room yelling and screaming. Pretty neat to hear.

I'm glad we'll have three of our own ensuring that game 7 of the World Series (if necessary) is at Miller Park.

Congrats, Corey--I hope you bring your sunglasses. Kudos to everybody who spent the week voting for him.

No link yet (add one when you find it), but ESPN Radio Madison is reporting that Suppan is heading to the DL with elbow pain.

As crappy as he's been, hopefully this isn't serious. There's still a few dollars invested in him the next couple years.

Excuse me while I break out my tinfoil hat, but I hope this is just a break for him--much like I suspect Gagne's stint on the DL was an effort to give him a break to get things straight while he figured things out.

[UPDATE] link

I was wondering if anybody's been to Great American Ballpark. I'm heading to Cincy for work in a couple weeks, and I'm hoping to check out a game or three. Any recommendations?

The only ballparks I've visited are Miller, County Stadium, Wrigley, and New Comiskey. What's neat about GABP.

On my blog, I'm writing up reviews of stadiums (from any sport), so I'd especially appreciate any particular points of interest or recommendations that I can check out.

Thanks!

UPDATE: Fox Sports has confirmed: http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8141962/Brewers-give-young-star-Braun-long-term-deal

ESPN Radio here in Madison just reported that Ryan Braun has agreed to a 7-year extension. No news from the media yet. All I could find was this vague link from brewers.com reporting a major press conference. I'm sure updates will be posted when available. No word yet on money...

This certainly would be a huge move. It will also be interesting to see how it affects negotiations with Sheets, Fielder, Hart, etc.

The ranting and raving of a Brewers fan and lunatic with a limited baseball knowledge:

Time to clean house. Get rid of Yost. Get rid of Sveum (Thank goodness that guy isn't a school crossing guard!). Take it on the chin and can Gagne. We lost Sheets' start, so now we've got four more games of starter pitcher lines of 5 1/3 IP, 4 ER, 109 pitches.

You all know baseball a lot better than I do. What could we get for Sheets realistically? Could we pull some top level pitching prospects so that next year's rotation isn't total crap in the 2-5 slots? Might a contender in need of a back-of-the-rotation starter take Suppan off our hands at the deadline?

If we could ditch these guys, couldn't we start '09 with Braun, Fielder, Hart, and Gallardo as the core along with some serious pocket change to go on a bender when free agency comes around?

Also, can we put Bill Hall down? I don't mean put him down as in insult him. Or put him down as in send him down to the minors. I mean put him to sleep. He makes me on a Friday afternoon with baseball on the radio look productive.

Lastly, F the cubs.

Rant over. I'm sorry for wasting your time and page space, but I feel better.

I think we all knew this was coming, but Turnbow has been DFA'd. I'm sad because I have always liked Turnbow, but it will be nice to be able to utilize the full 25-man roster.  Hopefully he will accept the assignment and work things out in triple A. If not, fare thee well T-Bow.

Here's a link from the Madison Cap Times: http://www.madison.com/tct/mad/breaking_news/284393

Usually, I have a rule of thumb to not start worrying about stats until May 1. I'm having a bit of a hard time doing that this year, however, with six of our regular starters batting .231 or worse.

Mendoza--I mean Weeks--can't get on base. Braun looks like he's having the dreaded sophomore slump. Hall's had some big hits but has been dreadful at times.

Now our ace is looking fragile (again), our #4-5 starters couldn't reach the 7th inning if their lives depended on it, and our $10 million closer has given up home runs to blow three ugly, ugly save attempts.

I recognize this is both irrational and emotional, so I apologize for that.

You all know far more about this great sport than I do. Who are you concerned about? And who will be fine?

Gwynn-Hoffman at-bat article.

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Greetings!

My name is Steve. I've been lurking here since early last season. I love the site, and I finally decided to register. I have a question about the statistical approach to the game.

I'd always been a "small-ball" bunting/stealing/moving runners over type of fan until I read Moneyball two years ago. Now I've been convinced that the statistical analysis approach is the most logical, but I can't help but to feel it's taken some of the fun out of baseball for me. Learning that the playoffs are just a "crapshoot" has dampened my love of the postseason, and finding out that there are no "clutch" players, just "lucky" players was a rude awakening, too. Even going to games leaves me disappointed knowing that an individual game's outcome is merely the product of luck and that only over the 162-game stretch does one develop a true evaluation of a team's talent.

In the end, the crack of the bat, the smell of the grass, and the taste of the sausages will always bring me back to the ballpark, but I was just wondering if anybody else here has grappled with these sorts of issues.

I'm sorry to have rambled on for so long, but I respect the depth of your knowledge and passion here and am deeply interested in your opinions.