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March 2009 - Posts
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All this talk about Casey McGehee and how he needs to make this team can be put to rest. Ken Macha informed Mike Lamb this morning that he will not make the 25-man roster. Lamb can either accept an assignment to Nashville or choose free agency in hopes of catching on with another big league club. The Milwaukee Brewers opted to award McGehee for his fantastic Spring Training. He is batting .370 with six home runs, including a walk-off shot yesterday against the Seattle Mariners. The decision to keep McGehee on the 25-man roster was more than just about his Cactus League statistics, however. He will be the only right-handed bat on the bench, other than Mike Rivera, which gives Ken Macha more versatility late in games. The former Cubs prospect can handle third, second, and first base, but will also serve as the team's third catcher. Versatility is the name of the game off the bench, and McGehee gives the Brewers more of it -- as well as more potential. Mike Lamb is a little upset about being cut. "Then, when I got to spring training, I started going into games in
the seventh and eighth inning. And I went almost a week without playing
third. It just wasn’t adding up.
"I wasn’t totally shocked but I never dreamed I’d get released
again. I don’t think I merited that. I thought I played decent enough.
My batting average wasn’t that great but I certainly don’t think I was
overmatched."
While Lamb may not have been overmatched, he did not provide the Brewers with anything that Casey McGehee did not. He could have potentially given the Brewers a "veteran presence," but with Craig Counsell, Jason Kendall, Jeff Suppan, Trevor Hoffman, and Mike Cameron, Milwaukee's youngsters have a myriad of mentors to choose from. Mike could potentially accept an assignment to Triple-A Nashville, but that seems unlikely. He would be buried in the roster behind Mat Gamel. At 33-years old, Lamb views himself as a major league player and will accept a major league offer somewhere. A team like the Mariners or Nationals could potentially use Lamb off the bench. The White Sox or even the Cubs are an option, now that Corey Koskie has retired from baseball. Ken Macha said that it was just too difficult to keep McGehee off the squad. "It's a matter of what can this guy do for the team," said Macha.
"He can be a third catcher. He's a pretty good defender. He has shown
he can hit for power. There's a whole bunch of things that add up to
what he brings to the table.
"It's hard to say, 'Have a great spring and make the team,' and have a spring like he has and not make the team."
With the McGehee decision as precedent, could the Brewers keep Chris Duffy and Brad Nelson over Tony Gwynn Jr., who is out of options? Asked if Duffy and Nelson fit the same bill as McGehee as having great
springs and deserving to make the club, Macha said, "I'd probably say
that's the case. But they're not on yet."
Tony has a pretty good chance of slipping through the cracks on the waiver wire, so the Brewers could still have him in the organization. It would be Gwynn's fourth straight season in Triple-A. His numbers have progressively slipped, which has severely hindered his prospect-status and his likelihood at making it to the bigs and sticking.
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Monday's Action Nashville 5, Albuquerque 0 RHP Tim Dillard: 4.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K LHP Chris Narveson: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K 2B Adam Heether: 3-3, 2B, 2 RBI, R OF Adam Stern: 2-4, RBI, R Huntsville 2, Chattanooga 5 RHP Jeremy Jeffress: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K RHP Mike Jones: 2.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 1 K OF Derrick McPhearson: 1-2, 1B, RBI Brevard County 10, Inland Empire 7 RHP Amaury Rivas: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K RHP Rob Wooten: 2.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K OF Logan Schafer: 2-5, 2 RBI, R 2B Eric Farris: 2-4, 3B, RBI, R CF Lee Haydel: 3-4, 3 RBI, 2 R Wisconsin 11, Great Lakes 7 LHP Evan Frederickson: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 5 BB, 1 K RHP Nick Tyson: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K OF Juan Sanchez: 3-5, 2 2B, RBI, 3 R OF Chris Dennis: 2-5, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI, R 3B John Delaney: 2-5, 3B, 2 RBI, R Thoughts Although Evan Frederickson kept the Great Lake Loons off the board through three innings, he still walked five batters. I did not like the Frederickson selection in last year's draft at the beginning, mostly because he has no control and had a sudden spike in velocity. The two do not mesh together very often. The southpaw from the University of San Francisco has a lot to prove in 2009. Jeremy Jeffress had a decent, if unspectacular, outing for the Stars. He still is averaging about a strikeout per inning, but the walk rate is still a bit higher than the organization would like. The Brewers are going to ride Jeffress' arm as long as possible in the starting rotation. I am starting to have doubts, however, that his changeup can develop into a league-average pitch. That may make the young man better suited for the back-end of the bullpen. That would also, of course, be a huge disappointment for someone of Jeremy's potential. I was happy to see Chris Dennis performing well for the Timber Rattlers. The powerful outfielder should begin the 2009 season with the T-Rats, which should give him the chance to display his power against better pitching. Chris must make more consistent contact with the ball, but when he does hit the ball, it goes a mile.
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For those of you who haven't sated your baseball fix yet, tonight's Cactus League game between the Brewers and Padres is to be televised on FSN Wisconsin. The game starts at 9:05 CST, and I'm assuming the FSN crew will have a pre-game show to warm up for the season. The last time I saw this up on the Brewers website, I couldn't find the game, so keep an eye out and don't forget to set your DVRs if you don't want a late night.
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I got out and swung the club yesterday for the first time since last fall.
Unfortunately, I now have an oblique injury and am listed as day-to-day. I am a bit worried because the injury has plateaued, but I think playing through it will help alleviate the tightness I am feeling. Roger Caplinger and the Brewers have me on a strict rehab regiment, and I should be ready to go before Opening Day.
Yes, I am joking.
Major League News
Casey McGehee walked the Brewers off in style yesterday, launching a two-run shot off Randy Messenger in the bottom of the ninth inning. Milwaukee has now one six games in a row. The offense is still as hot as ever. Rickie Weeks went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Prince Fielder hit a two-run shot to get the Brewers on the board in the sixth, and Mike Lamb knocked in three runs on a sacrifice fly and a two-run single.
Manny Parra threw the ball well on Monday. He surrendered a two-run home run to Mike Wilson of the Mariners, but featured fantastic control of his fastball and worked efficiently through six innings. Parra also gave up a run due to his own error in the first. He finished the game with three runs against, two earned, on five hits and two walks. The lefty also struck out four. Ken Macha called yesterday's outing the best of the spring for Parra. The fastball command had been shaky at best until Monday afternoon.
Milwaukee's new closer, Carlos Villanueva, pitched another scoreless inning in relief, allowing a hit and striking out one. Ken Macha, however, said that Carlos was only "OK." The overwhelming consensus has been that CV's stuff has been mediocre down in Arizona. The coaching staff is hoping it is the dry Arizona air, but that seems unlikely. That tends to only affect pitchers who feature power curves, like Ben Sheets.
The Brewers made a plethora of roster moves yesterday, optioning Hernan Iribarren to Triple-A Nashville and returned utility man Vinny Rottino to minor-league camp. The team also informed Carlos Corporan, Lindsay Gulin, and Wes Littleton that they would not be making the 25-man roster. The three will still stay with the big league team, however, as Ken Macha will need them at his disposal for the exhibition games in LA this weekend. Macha voiced his happiness with Gulin for his performance this spring.
"Lindsay Gulin had a tremendous spring," Brewers manager Ken Macha said
of the veteran lefty, who lowered his ERA to 2.77 on Monday. "He showed
a lot of people a lot of stuff, so he should be proud of his spring."
Gulin mostly showed that he has a nasty changeup that can still allow him to sneak a low-80s fastball by hitters with regularity.
Ken Rosenthal predicts that Yovani Gallardo will win the NL Cy Young Award. The selection is billed as "this year's Cliff Lee," which signifies that Rosenthal is mostly going out on a limb. If he is correct at the end of the season, he will play himself off to be a genius -- yet he still qualified his selection by stating that other pitchers who he believes are better than Gallardo pitched too many innings last season. It is not that Rosenthal believes Gallardo will be the best pitcher in the NL. He simply through out a flyer to make himself look good if he is correct -- all while qualifying it heavily to protect himself.
Peter Gammons has jumped on the Rickie Weeks bandwagon. Gammons says his confidence in Weeks' breakout season is due to the work Willie Randolph has done with Weeks this spring. While that is nice, I think the progress Dale Sveum has made with Weeks at the plate is far more impressive and more promising. The Brewers second baseman has proven himself to be extremely coachable this spring, which should pay dividends throughout the season.
Speaking of Rickie Weeks, Two Fisted Slopper lists him as #7 on the Too Big To Fail list. I always appreciate someone who understands that Rickie is not a bad ballplayer. He is simply average, and contrary to popular belief, average is not bad. The good news is that I am harboring a significant amount of optimism when it comes to Rickie Weeks in 2009. If nothing else, the 26-year old has gained loads of confidence at the plate this spring. As Cliff Lee proved last season, confidence may be all one needs to break out.
Baseball Musings previews the NL Central, and it does not feature positive news for the Milwaukee Brewers. David Pinto projects Milwaukee to finish fourth in the division, behind the Cubs, Cardinals, and Astros. While I agree that Milwaukee has not "replaced" the +9.3 wins provided by CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets last season, Yovani Gallardo and Braden Looper should produce a little more than most believe. Add bounce back seasons from Prince Fielder and Corey Hart, and the Brewers could be in business in 2009. One thing is clear, however. The Milwaukee Brewers will have to score runs.
Should J.J. Hardy eventually be moved to second or third base? Al's Ramblings outlines the discussion and shows that J.J. would still create more runs than an average player at both positions. While this may be true, his value truly is maximized at short. He has displayed no desire to change positions, and I suspect he will only switch if his range decreases significantly this season. I still believe he will be traded next winter.
Dugout Central attempts to determine who the best hitter of the 1980s was. Robin Yount and Paul Molitor are, of course, discussed. Did you know that Robin Yount had the most hits in the decade by almost 100 over Eddie Murray?
Don Walker has some ideas of what may be on the $1 menu at Miller Park this upcoming season. Fans at the Great American Ballpark, the only other venue trying this promotion, can choose from a hot dog, soda, popcorn, peanuts, ice cream, or a Redlegs Chew candy. The items are obviously not full-sized, and we can expect something Brewers-related for the chew candy. This is an extremely nice option for families with young kids.
Minor League News
Rattler Radio notes that Trevor Hoffman could be coming to Appleton for a couple rehabilitation outings with the Timber Rattlers. The other option is Nashville, and I suspect weather conditions will play a significant role in where the Brewers closer goes to prepare for the big league season. If it is with the T-Rats, however, you can certainly expect to see me in the crowd.
Now that Hernan Iribarren and Vinny Rottino have been optioned to Nashville, Adam McCalvy wonders where the two utility men will fit into the roster. Neither player projects to crack the starting lineup, and Rottino will be supplanted by Carlos Corporan as the backup catcher for the Sounds. Add Jason Bourgeois to the mix, and Don Money will have more utility players than he will know what to do with. Some roster issues could easily be solved, however, if the Brewers opt to keep Chris Duffy or Casey McGehee with the big league club.
Beyond the Box Score lists the range factors for minor league shortstops. Alcides Escobar is far and away the best defensive shortstop in the minors. It is not even close. As the article says, he is a "human vacuum cleaner."
Would you like to tryout to be Homer the Polecat, the mascot for the Huntsville Stars? 10:00am Saturday. Mark it down on your calendars.
Other Baseball News
Here is another list of other articles to peruse while bored at work today.
- The Los Angeles Dodgers signed left-handed reliever Will Ohman to a minor-league deal with major-league terms. He will make $1.35MM plus incentives this season. He has an opt-out clause if the Dodgers do not call him up by April 14th, which they will.
- The Baseball Analysts discuss whether or not Albert Pujols can win the Triple Crown in 2009. In my opinion, only injuries or Ryan Howard can stop him this season.
- The Colorado Rockies sent down both Josh Fogg and Matt Murton yesterday. Murton is not a bad outfielder, but he simply cannot catch on anywhere despite solid skills.
- Gary Matthews Jr. is upset about being buried on the bench with Angels. The Halos apparently tried to move him to Cincinnati. Talks broke down, however, and no deal is on the horizon.
- Derrick Turnbow had been close to cracking the big league bullpen with Texas, but was informed that he will not make the 25-man roster.
- The Tigers released outfielder Gary Sheffield in what was a very surprising move. Sheff can only play DH at this point, and Detroit wishes to feature a more versatile lineup.
- With Sheffield now out of the picture, the Detroit Tigers acquired outfielder Josh Anderson from the Braves for minor league pitcher Rudy Darrow. The center field job in Atlanta now presumably goes to Jordan Schafer. A side note, Darrow hits 94 MPH with a sidearm delivery.
- Former Brewer Zach Jackson made the Cleveland Indians as a reliever.
- The Rays will be placing either Jeff Niemann or Jason Hammel on waivers, as both pitchers are out of options. The Padres and Pirates are reportedly interested in Niemann, but the Rays have been asking for too much.
- Jerry Owens has been placed on waivers by the White Sox. After appearing slated for the starting center field job, Owens is likely headed for Triple-A once more.
- Thank you to Rob Neyer who pointed out what confused me yesterday. Dontrelle Willis has been placed on the DL for an anxiety disorder that the doctors found in his blood. That makes no sense, however, as there is no blood test that would lead to a diagnosis of a psychological disorder. What is really wrong with Willis?
- Cole Hamels will officially not be pitching on Opening Day for the Philadelphia Phillies, due to a sore elbow.
- Nippon Professional Baseball now has a rudimentary English website for all those that like to keep up with Japanese baseball.
Official BC-sanctioned Music Video of the Day
Nickel Creek -- Smoothie Song
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Ryan Braun has now been cleared to play games with the big league squad and is playing as I type. He says the stiffness has not completely subsided, which is a big concern, but believes he can work through it by playing and continuing his rehab regiment. I feel, however, that Braun is simply itching to get back with the big league club. If the injury subsides in the next couple weeks, I would love to be proven wrong. That seems unlikely at this point. Trevor Hoffman is frustrated with his slow progress, but understands that it makes little sense to rush back too quickly at this point. Two weeks at the beginning of the regular season will seem insignificant compared to a month down the road. Hoffman's placement on the DL freed Ken Macha from the difficult choice between Jorge Julio and Mark DiFelice for the final bullpen spot. Both right-handers will be with the Milwaukee Brewers on April 7th, and will continue to fight to stay on the 25-man roster in the first couple weeks of the regular season. Whoever pitches more effectively will earn his spot in a Brewers uniform. Craig Counsell is testing his right knee in big league action today, but could require surgery to repair some torn cartilage in his right knee. The veteran infielder would then be out for two-to-three weeks, and Casey McGehee or Mike Lamb would likely replace him on the 25-man roster. Alcides Escobar would also have an outside shot at making the team, as the Brewers would be left without a reserve shortstop and J.J. Hardy would be required to play everyday for about three weeks. Bill Hall could potentially slide over to short for a couple games, but he is not a solid defender there.
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