Game 4 of the 2008 NLDS- Brewers trail 5-1to Philadelphia
This blog has seriously lagged during two periods during this season. The first is when I spent a lot of time focused on training for a 170 mile bike ride, the 2nd was when my father came close to death due to a complication from surgery. Hard to be concerned about a Brewer meltdown while you deal with the reality of medical shortcomings. Now, as my father continues progressing on his road to recovery, I have been riding the emotional roller coaster of the Crew's dramatic ride into the post season. I will not disagree with ANY of the shortcomings of this team, yet I discovered a strange phenomenon as a fan; when your team gets close, your ability to think logically is severely affected. "Sure," I thought, "the offense hits like Tilted Kilt waitresses in heels and the pitching staff consists of CC Sabathia and well, cross your fingers, but I think we could beat Philadelphia." That seemed unlikely after I watched game 1 at Hooters on Monday. Without watching or listening on Tuesday, Sabathia coughed up a big inning and went into a 2-0 hole Then last night, Dave Bush pitched around a tough Philly offense and the Crew was able to put a few runs together and win. Suddenly, I was back to thinking, "They can do this. Just win tomorrow and get to CC on Tuesday." Well, here I am, blogging during what, barring an epic comeback will be the Brewer's last game of the season. I think what is annoying for Brewer fans is that the outlook for next season is so bleak. The team loses it's best two pitchers and will have repace them while also making major changes to the offensive makeup of this team. It just doesn't seem like there could be any better time for the Brewer's than now, so with few 6 outs left, I'm clinging to the remains of an amazing Brewer season. After that, it's cheer for the Rangers, Wild and Packers, three teams I like, but don't love. So come on Brewer's string a miracle together. Look no further than your dugout where your manager was part of one of the greatest comebacks in Brewer history on Easter Sunday in 1987.

5-4 loss to Cincinnati, 82-63 4½ GB
Falling apart sooner than 11 innings
You always have a chance when you get to extra, but for the Crew, it just doesn't seem that way any more. Ray Durham's pinch hit 3 run HR tied things up in the 7th, but even with that jump start didn't eactly ignite the offense which has scored only 24 runs in 9 games. Chances for go ahead runs were ruined when Alcedes Escobar, pinch running for Mike Lamb, got caught past second base on a Weeks long fly ball for an inning ending DP. A two out single by Fielder in the 10th that led to a man in scoring postion after Tony Gwynn stole second also led to nothing as Cameron flies out to center. Tonight a Brandon Phillips RBI off Seth McClung was all Cordero needed to lock up the win for the Reds.

Tonight's beneficiary of the Brewer's pathetic hitting was rookie righthander Ramon Ramirez, making only his 2nd start. Over 6 innings, he gave up only 1 hit and worked out of a possible big Brewer first when he allowed his only run of the game even though the Brewer's had a bases loaded, 1 out situation thanks to a misplayed pop up. Braun, Cam and Hall all failed to come through in that inning.

The pitching is great on this team, but I just can't stand cheering for a team that relies so heavily on the long ball. I love hitting, station to station, good D baseball, and I cheer for a team that does none of that.

5-4 loss to Cincinnati
This Homestand Could Be It
In a season of 162 games, any loss makes a difference, but if the Crew misses the playoffs, it will be hard not to look at this horrific homestand as a place where the Crew blew it. Dave Bush got some help from taters from Kendall and Hardy, which helped chase Edinson Volquez in the 6th, but his 8 innings of 2 run ball were wasted when Torres could shut the Reds down with a 2 run cushion. Jay Bruce and Wilkin Castillo singled, then a walk, and Torres was in a bases loaded, no out jam. He did get a K, but a grounder off his foot scored 1, and then Jeff Keppinger ripped a 2 run double to finish off the rally.

Relievers will blow games. And the Reds, who had just done the same things to the Cubs, have been a nemesis all season. But this game hurts more because the Phillies beat Florida. Doesn't matter I guess. Torres still thinks the Crew will catch the Cubs, and if the Crew can turn this around and the Cubs continue to falter (2-8 in their last 10), who knows?

10-1 Loss to San Diego and 1-0 win over San Diego

2 Games, Same Offensive Symptoms, Different Results

Chris Young took a perfect game into the 8th. It was Gabe Kapler's HR that ended the bid and provided the Crew with their only run of the day. However, it wasn't just the bat's ineffectiveness against the 4-5 Young, it was 2 errors (Hardy and Hall) in the 3rd that put the Brewer's into a 5 run hole without Parra giving up anything earned. I realize that the '56 NL Champ Brooklyn Dodgers, a team with possible 4 Hall of Famers in their lineup (Campy, Robinson, Snider and Reese) were no hit by Don Larsen, but still, at a time when the Crew is staring at a 4 game series at the home of their closest Wild Card rival (Philadelphia), a split with the worst team in the league at home is not exactly a momentum builder. With the Reds coming back against Kerry Wood yesterday, the Crew at least remains 4 games back, but with 19 left in the season, they are so close and yet, making it very hard.

Sunday's offensive woes were a continuation of Saturday's problems, although with Sheets on the the mound, the outcome was a W. Unlike Sunday, the infield came up with some great D from Counsell and Weeks (Hall should NOT be in there against righties like he was Sunday) to protect Sheets 3 SHO and 5th complete game of the season. After all the naysayers came out in droves to throw dirt on him when he left after 5 in his last start, I wa very satisfied that he threw it back in their face. I think a fan would be fooling themselves if they thought Sheets isn't aware of the "fragile" tag he's been hung with. Listening to him in his post game interview, his trademark dry and curt remarks also carried a bit of smug haughtiness that I understand all to well. When someone questions me and I prove them wrong, I have a hard time being magnanomous about it too. He just wants to pitch and be left alone, which is how I've been feeling at work too. Let me direct and leave me alone.

3-2 win vs. San Diego, 81-60, 4.0 GB

Once Again Bailing Out Gagne

I didn't get to listen to any of this game, just a few checks of the score on Brewers.com while I worked at REI. Every time I checked however, I was ticked to only see 2 runs on the board. Josh Geer was making only his second start of his career and the lineup still seemd to be sleepwalking. Had it not been for Sabathia's RBI, who knows how this would have turned out? Actually, had it not been for Gagne, it would have ended in 9 instead of going 11 and ending on a J.J. Hardy single that scored Craig Counsell. Gagne gave up a tater to Brian Giles on the second pitch of the 8th to run his HR total to 11 in 37 innings pitched. Sabathia's given up 4 in 95 innings pitched as a Brewer. Sheets 14 in 179 innings pitched. Gagne MUST be grooving more pitches per inning than anyone on the staff-- not my definition of a good setup guy. I'm not a huge fan of booing, but Gagne's making $10 million, what does he expect from the crowd. I think now that the Crew has more pitchers on the staff thanks to the roster expanding, it's time to find someone else to do that setup role. Hell, I'd even be for Mota who at one time was my biggest target in the bullpen, but appears to be getting his act together.

The Crew was somewhat better with RISP, 3-9, and the Padres were pathetic 0-16 and missed out on a 1st & 3rd, 1 out in the top of the 11th when Shouse got an inning ending DP. Other concerns in addition to the anemic offense is Torres once again having to to 2 innings and Riske only going a ⅓ and walking a batter. Bright spots are a morale lifting win and the Reds once again beating the Cubs, 10-2. And as much as I hate to take pleasure in an injury, even someone as hated as Zambrano, the Crew still has a good chance at the Division if the Cubs continue to slide and Harden and Zambrano really do have arm issues.

5-2 loss to San Diego, 80-60, 5.0 GB
It's officially a Skid
After dropping 3 in a row to the East leading Mets, bringing in the West's cellar dwelling Padres seemed to be custom made for a Crew turn around. Not so. The Brewers were 0-9 with RISP against a pitcher, Shawn Estes, making his first start since May. The Padres had lost 9 in a row on the road and got into Milwaukee at 5:30 in the morning, yet they did what the Brewers can't, peck away, get guys in, sac flies, timely hits. I'm not going to hang this one on Suppan, even though it fails to be a quality start and he loaded the bases in the 6th and needed Mota to bail him out (Mota only let one of those runs score, I'll count that as a success), but the Crew had bases loaded, 1 out in the 4th and NOTHING. Thankfully CC is going Friday and hopefully Sheets, whose tight left groin seems to be OK, can do better in outdueling Peavy on Saturday and what do you know, 2 game win streak. Cubs had the night off, so the Crew only lost ½ a game.

Aug. 30th, 11-3 win at Pittsburgh, 79-56, 5½ GB
Suppan 5-0 in August
You have to beat the bad teams, even if you're on the road, and the Crew is doing that. Suppan's great month continues as he pitched 7 innings of 3 hit ball and the offense erupted in the 6th to put the game out of reach. Corey Hart hit his 20th tater to be the first Brewer to have 2 20-20 seasons and the 5-8 hittes, (Hart, Cameron, Hall and Kendall) had 10 hits and 9 RBI. Cameron was responsible for 5 of those runs himself, including his 24 tater. That's what the Crew needs if Fielder and Braun are going to go hitless. Mota did walk a couple guys to raise my eire, but he got out of it with a little help from Shouse. McClung polished it off and the Brewer's are now 19-7 on the month with a game left to play.

Aug. 29th, 3-1 win at Pittsburgh, 78-56, 6½ GB
Bush's Comeback Continues
Ryan Braun's 3R homer in the 1st off Tom Gorzelanny was all the Brewer's needed as Dave Bush pitched 6⅔ and made one mistake to Nate McLouth, who launched one in the 5th. In that same inning, Bill Hall snared a Freddy Sanchez liner with a man on second that saved the Pirates from every threatening and Bush moves to 9-9 on the season. Torres picked up his 26th save.

Aug. 27th, 5-3 loss at St. Louis, 77-56, 6 GB
Easy There Villy
This looked like the final nail in the Card's coffin. The Brewer's had a lead in the bottom of the seventh and looked as though they were going to fight tooth and nail to keep it. Villanueva had just worked out of a bases loaded jam when he pumped his fists and pointed towards the Cards dugout. Albert Pujols went up to him and exchanged words with him and while Villy claims he was pointing at Kendall, that lit a fire on the Cards who came out and scored 4 in the 8th to win it. The St. Louis media and the Cards did a lot of whining about the Crew untucking jersey's and disrespecting the game, but let's face it, the Cards are really pissed because the Brewer's ended the season series going 10-5, including 6-3 in St. Louis. Braun got nailed in the ribs by Adam Wainwright in the 5th. Think that was "accidental"? For the Cards, Ryan Ludwick was the big hero of the day, 3-4 with a tater and 2 RBI, one of which was a double that got the 8th inning rally going against Davide Riske. The Cards are still 3½ games back in the wild card with the 2 game series sweep.

Aug. 26th, 12-0 win at St. Louis, 77-55, 5 GB
That's the Sheets I Want to See
Sheet's success agains the Cards, especially in St. Louis, has been limited. He hadn't won there since 2004. He was also coming into the game 1-5 in his last 8 starts. In 6 innings though, he was able to keep the Brewer's main Wild Card rival at bay and give the offense, a chace to make this into a joke. Braunie broke it open with a 2 R tater in the 7th, and then the crew dumped on another !7! in the 9th to run their record to 22 games over .500. Braun is now hitting .491 with 7 taters agains St. Louis this season. Ouch!

Aug. 24, 4-3 win over Pittsburgh

Another Extra Inning Sunday at Miller

The ending on this one wasn't as great as Kapler's HR, but JJ Hardy knocking in Rickie Weeks on JJ Hardy bobblehead day was huge. Lot of heros today, but not who you'd expect. Braun and Fielder were hitless. Brewers had bases loaded no out and 1 out, and the heart of the order failed to capitalize. And Sabathia didn't have his best stuff, but still managed to work around the jams he got into and gave up only 1 run in 6. The Pirates stranded 14 for the game. Cameron had a career day with 5 hits, Bill Hall snapped an 0-16 with 3 hits and Guilermo Mota helped sway my opinion by working out of Villy's bases loaded, no out jam in the 12th.

Aug. 23rd, 6-3 win over Pittsburgh, 75-55, 4.5 GB
Still a Good Guy
I know I'm down on Suppan alot, mainly because I don't think his performance warrants his salary, but the rotation would be rough without him. He eats innings and can get out of jams by pitching to contact, but he also gives up the long ball (22 after this game) and walk total is higher than I'd like (54 in about 150 innings). All that said, the little I've heard from him in person makes it hard to hate the guy. He's been in the league a long time and on most staffs, he'd be a 2 or 3 (in my opinion, pitching is that bad these days). Against poor teams like the Pirates, you expect him to be good, and he was. He came out in the 8th after scattering 8 hits and gave up only 3 runs with some smart, veteran play. He picked Niger Morgan off 2b in the 1st, started 2 double plays himself and worked out of a 1st & 3rd no out in the 3rd.

Braun hit his 32nd in the 4th (3RBI on the day) on an 0-2 count and Fielder had 2 RBI's, 3 in the series as the lone lefty in the starting lineup against the Bucos left handed dominant rotation.

The Cards lost to Atlanta in late innings, but the Cubs won, so the Crew gains in the Wild Card and stays put for the division.

Aug. 22nd, 10-4 win over Pittsburgh, 74-55, 4.5 GB
Could Be Worse, Could be A Pirate Fan
Years of finishing below .500 were matched with the Pittsburgh Pirates until 2005 when the Crew finally broke even. Since then, the Pirates have continued to lose and seem to be constantly "rebuilding". I think they are on their way to 16 straigh losing seasons, which would tie them with the Phillies for the the worst stretch in the history of the game. Thankfully, the Crew is closing in on a convincingly successful season, but I still get leary of playing the Pirates because they just seem to play the Crew tough no matter how bad they are.

My new favorite pitcher, Dave Bush, was touched for a run in the 1st and 2nd, but no dingers or walks, and settled down enough that the bats could do their work in the 4th against lefty Zach Duke. Braun infield singled and moved to 2nd on a throwing error. After a Fielder walk, Hart brought them both home with a 2B that Niger Morgan misplayed in the OF. Hall had a sac fly to make it 3-2, but Rickie Weeks struck out with 2 on to end the inning. Hardy hit a solo shot in the 5th and Bush started cruising, thanks to 2 runners caught stealing by Kendall.

Bush gave up a solo show in the 7th, but in the bottom of the inning, the floodgates opened. Nix leadoff walk, Weeks 3B, Hardy 2B, Braun 2B and a Fielder smash to Freddy Sanchez at 2B led to Braun scoring from 3B on a heads up play when he saw Sanchez was sleeping. Cameron hits his 22nd HR and the Crew is now up 10-3. The Crew was a single short of hitting for the cycle in the inning, almost a winner in the Menard's big inning giveaway. Gagne and McClung finished it off. Bush gets his 8th win.

With the Nationals finally playing like a big league team today, the Crew gained a game on the Cubs.

Aug. 20, 5-2 win vs. Houston 73-55
Yost wanted this one
Yost said in his press conference that it was important for this team to win this game and take 2 out of 3 from a hot Houston team, and they grinded it out. They had won 16 of their last 21, but the Crew managed 2-3 from a tough division rival who is still in this thing. Parra didn't have his best stuff, and the bats were facing Wandy Rodriguez, who has pitched well against the Crew. Rickie had 3 walks in the game and scored each time, which is good to see, even if I would like to see him hit better. Fielder sac flied twice and Kapler got the Brewers on the board as well, but it was J.J. Hardy's 2R tater that was the big hit. MAN, WHY DID YOST WAIT TO PUT HIM IN THE 2 SPOT? The bullpen came up big in this one. Villy pitched 2 scoreless, Gagne used two pitches to work out of a bases loaded- no out situation that he worked himself into with help from a Fielder E and a missed call (Lance Berkman claimed he was HBP when it appeard to just nick his jersey, but he was willing to pull down his pants to show the bruise) with a DP and a bounce out to Fielder. Torres closed it out for his 24th save.

Aug. 19, 5-2 loss vs. Houston 72-55
Sheet's in trouble
I hate to say this about my favorite player, but Sheet's is struggling. Early in the season I thought if he stayed healthy, he'd get 19 or maybe even 20 wins. Now 17 or 18 may be pushing it. Since the break, he has a 4.00 ERA. With a 2-0 lead in the 3rd, he hung a curve to Michael Bourne for a 2R 3B and Geoff Blum touched him for a 3R tater in the 6th. Sheets is now 11-7 on the season, but the bats should have picked him up. Twice they left the bases loaded after scoring 2 early against Brian Moehler, who didn't make it out of the 5th. Good news for the bullpen was that Shouse Mota and Riske kept them at bay and issued only 2 free passes over 3 innings.

Aug. 18, 9-3 win vs. Houston, 72-54
That's a funny Looking Sweep
I love Coop... EVERYONE in Wisconsin loves Coop, but where does he get off predicting the Astros are going to sweep the Crew at Miller. With Sabathia going in the first game? CC became the 3rd pitcher in 90 years to win his first 8 decisions after a "in season" trade (Virgil Trucks and Doyle Alexander were the others). Sabathia loaded the bases in the 9th and was really high on the pitch count, but Yost left him in there and he has yet another CG. 130 hard earned pitches and 2-3 with 2RBI got him there. The Brewer's chased Randy Wolf after 4 with a 5 spot in the 4th. Ray Durham at 3RBI and Corey Hart hit a tater.

Aug. 17th, 7-5 loss at Los Angeles, 71-54
ALMOST, (this is why Villy isn't ready to close yet)
Clayton Kershaw, who I think was just called up for this start, outdueled seasoned vet Jeff Suppan for 6 innings. Soup gave up a dinger to Matt Kempt on the first pitch then gave up another dinger to Ramierez to put the Crew in a 3-0 hole in the 1st. He settled down after that, but Kershaw was dealing. In the 9th, the Brewer's started a comeback that had me showing too much emotion for my liking at work, but down by four in the 9th, Kendall led off with a single and Counsell reached on an error. On the same play, James Loney through the ball away and with 2 men in scoring position, Durham brought them in with a single. Then, Braun doing his best Kirk Gibson impression took two pathetic swings and planted the next pitch from Chan Ho Park into LF to tie the game. However, in the bottom of the inning, Villy gave up Andre Either's 2nd HR of the game, and it was all over for the Crew.

Aug. 16th, 4-3 win at Los Angeles, 71-53
J.J. Hardy's Redemption
Dave Bush got nailed for a 2R Andre Either dinger in the 1st, and I was afraid the old Dave Bush was showing up. But he settled down after that. Then in the 8th, Braun, nutting up for a pinch hit appearance blooped a 2B and was brought in by JJ's tater. That gave the Crew a 1 run lead which J.J. blew when he screwed up a DP ball off the bat of Kent. Manny Ramirez tied things up with a sac fly and there would be no save for Torres tonight. In the top of the 10th, Hardy brought Ray Durham in with the go ahead run and Dave Riske finished off the Dodger's to get his 2nd save.

Also of note, professional hitter Craig Counsell got his 1,000 hit (wow, tell me 3,000 isn't tough) and Corey Hart and Gabe Kapler did their damnedest with the glove to keep the crew in the game. Hart layed out and crashed into the base of the wall while reaching over his head and Gabe Kapler toppled over into the LF stands to rob Russell Martin of a dinger.
Aug. 15th, 5-3 loss at Los Angeles, 70-53
Got To Perform Against the Big Boys
After taking 6 of 7 from two last place teams, I had to control myself knowing that the Crew was going into a series with one of the best teams in the West that now has Manny Ramirez in the lineup. Gabe Kapler got the Brewers on the board with a 2R tater in the 1st, but Jeff Kent came back in the bottom half with a 2R knock of his own. In the second, Mike Cameron reached third thanks to ManRam not knowing how to play the carom in the left field corner and scored on a Kendall single with the infield in. I was happy to see some resiliance in the bats. However, in the 3rd, Casey Blake hit a 2 run dinger to make it 4-3 and that's all the Dodger's needed. Parra didn't have a great day out there, but considering the bats he was facing, I give him some credit; he did K Manny with Kent on 1st to end that inning. Parra was pulled in the 6th with bases loaded and 2 outs. Riske came in and kept it from getting worse. Villanueva finished the game and gave up 1 earned in 2 innings, a Russell Martin tater.

Aug. 14th, 3-2 loss at San Diego, 70-52
Sheeter Outdueled
With Sheets matching up against Jake Peavy, you knew it wasn't going to be easy. I went out for a bike ride around Green Bay and didn't listen to much of this game, but when I got back to Trojan Drive and flipped it on, the Brewers had just taken a 1-0 lead when Bill Hall just eluded a tag at the plate on a Mike Cameron single (he was coming from 2B). Then things fell apart for Sheets in the bottom of the inning. A leadoff single, followed by a double led to a 2-1 defecit after a Tadahito Iguchi single and a Luke Carlin sac fly. That could have been a Carlin single had Laynce Nix (called up for Branyan who went on the DL with an abdominal strain) not made a diving catch. Then a WP by Sheets an another single led to another run and Sheeter was pulled for Shouse. Shouse then through another wild pitch and Jody Gerut raced in from 3B. Shouse dropped the throw from Kendall, but Kendall never saw the home plate call Gerut safe, so he hollarred at Shouse to chase down Gerut and the out was made. Sounded like a bad call, but that's baseball. Today it went for the Brewers, tomorrow it may go against. In the 9th, Cameron made things interesting with a tater off Hoffman, but that was it. Shouse and Gagne finished the game without any more damage and no more walks.

Aug. 13th, 7-1 at San Diego, 70-51
What No Shutout?, Sabathia Sucks
Sabathia continues to amaze the National League. Tonight it was another example of what Prince can do for this team. He launches his 28th tater in the 2nd, and the offense just seems to roll after that. Kendall and Sabathia also added RBIs in that inning. Then in the 5th, Hart hit a bases loaded 3 bagger after starter Josh Banks intentionally walked Prince. Sabathia is now 7-0 in 8 starts since coming over from the Tribe. Tonight he only managed to go 7 innings, but he pitched masterfully again, working out of another bases loaded-no out jam in the 5th with 3-4-5 due up. Kevin Kouzmanoff, Adrian Gonzalez and Chase Headley couldn't do diddly squat. I know there is a lot of speculation that LaPorta is the second coming, but I'll take pitching NOW over a hitter later any day. With Braun and Fielder in the lineup and Sheets and Sabathia in the rotation, this is the time. Riske and Mota looked good in relief.

5-2 win at San Diego, 69-51
Petco is a pitcher's park, unless you are pitching to the Prince. He hit a 3R jack that made even him say "WOW". Suppan was able to protect that lead despite giving up 2 dingers, for once, and some fine D and a HR by Cameron made it 7 wins in a row for the Crew. Still no Braun for this game, he apparently has some tightness in his rib cage that is making it difficult to swing. It happened during that AB in the Sheet's game.

7-1 win over Washington, 68-51
Bushie AGAIN!
Brewer's starters kept Nationals O to just 2 runs over 4 games. Yes they are a last place team, but you have to beat the bad teams to even be mentioned as a contender, and the Crew has done that. The Crew is now 17 games ovr .500, the best mark sine the '92 season. Amazing. Once again, the Nationals were foiled on a bases loaded, no out situation in the 5th when Bush got a ground out force at home, a K of Zimmerman and a ground out. I was glad to see better use of scoring opportunities today. Even professional hitter Craig Counsell got in on it with a 2R 2B.

However, still no sign of Braun in the lineup.

5-4 win over Washington, 67-51
SHTOINK
The concern going into this game was the lack of a Ryan Braun, who was pulled for Gabe Kapler after 1 AB the night before. The offense really could have used him. The game was all Manny Parra and Mike Rivera. Parra didn't issue ANY free passes and kept the Nationals to 1 run when he was pulled for a PH in the 7th with the team clinging to a tie game. Gagne could not resist making things interesting however and gave up back to back HRs to Austin Kearns and Lastings Milledge to make it a 4-1 game. When Zimmerman worked Gagne for 12 pitches before hitting a double in the AB preceeding Kearns, I knew the clock was running out on Gagne's effectiveness. Thank god Mike Rivera, who already had 2 of the NUMEROUS walks given up by Nat pitching (but couldn't be cashed in more often than not) hit a bases loaded double to tie things up. The game dragged into the 13th, after the Brewer's wasted more chances, but Kapler made the game end succinctly with a foul pole HR that was the most rewarding sound I've heard in a while. 3 games attended, 3 games one by the Crew, I can't recall the last time that happened.

6-0 win over Washington, 66-51
Thanks Ben
As I've said in this blog before, I have some doubts as to whether I'll get to see Sheets pitch in a Brewer uniform after this season, so I really hoped his start on Saturday would be a memorable one. Sheets threw a shutout of his own, giving the Brewer's first back to back shutouts since Cal Eldred and Bosio in '92. This time sitting in the rafters, I was again amazed at what I was seeing. The fans in the upper deck didn't seem as "in touch" with the game as they should have, but I think Ben made a strong case that he still deserves some dap on this team. In the 8th, it looked like the shutout might come crashing down with 2nd and 3rd and no outs, but he worked out of it and I could really only shake my head, too amazed to remember to get up and cheer. I knew his pitch count was up, and Jeff and I had much discussion as to whether he'd come out for the 9th. I figured Yost would leave him in even though he was due up in the bottom of the 8th, but Jeff was skeptical. We bet a beer. I won, not only that, but when Sheets blooped an RBI single in his AB in the 8th, I knew there was no way Yost could deny him the CG even if he got into trouble. It was only his 2nd or 3rd SHO I think and thanks to generous run support, mainly from back to back HRs by Hardy and Durham, the Nationals, there really was very little worry in this game.
5-0 win over Washington, 65-51
"C-C...C-C"
After much anticipation, I made me first trip back to Miller Park since 2006 and boy was it worth it. Also helped erase the bad images from that 30 runs in 2 games I had to stomach in Coors last year. In a sold out Miller, where Jeff, Steve and I were forced to migrate from the LF corner to some decent standng room behind Corey Hart in right, I saw something as incredible as I've ever seen in Milwaukee, a raucous crowd that was hanging on every pitch the former Indian and chanting "C-C" every chance they got. Fielder's RBI in the 1st and Cam's tater also got the crowd going, but you could tell this crowd knew they were seeing something special in CC. I don't think the Nats got anyone to 2B until the 8th or 9th, and even though a Sabathia and Hardy throwing error in the 9th seem to endangering the shutout, Yost left him in there to finish it off. The Capuano/Maddux matchup I saw a few years ago still may be a better game in terms of pitching (just because BOTH were so good) but for energy and crowd involvement, this had to be the best game I've ever seen.
6-3 win at Cincinnati, 64-51, 5.0GB
Suppan wins back to back starts for the first time this season and the Crew is doing even better than .500 on the road. I feel pretty good about the baseball I'm going to see in a few days. The Crew is now 11-2 on the road since the break and it's hard not to feel even MORE pissed now about those 4 games dropped to Chicago. Ryan Braun hit the go ahead double in the 5th to help Homer Bailey drop to 0-6 with a 7.93ERA. Ouch!

8-1 Win at Cincinnati, 63-51

Bizzaro World

Brewers winning on the road, NOW DAVE BUSH winning on the road. I'm really starting to root for Bushie, I may even agree with Yost for sticking with him as long as he did. Yost scrapped the home/road platoon with Bush and McClung and Bushie went out there and made him look like a genius.

Hart got Bush a lead in the 1st with a 2R triple off ROY candidate Edinson Volquez, and Counsell (making a start at 3B for the 2nd straight game) made a great defensive play to keep only 1 run from scoring in a bases loaded situation. Then Bush went on to retire 17 Reds in a row.

This was the first game I got to listen to in a while, and it was nice to hear the Crew finally get some hits with ducks on the pond. Hardy snapped an 0-28 slump, Cameron and Kendall had some clutch hits and in the 7th, after Cincy reliever Nick Massett made Fielder look like an off balance hippo with an up and in fastball, Prince tagged the next pitch a country mile for his 26th HR.

I guess after the "donnybrook" the night before, it was good to see the team rally together. Prince apologized and Yost decided not to bench him (I'll admit I'm starting to wonder if the vegetarianism is starting to get to Prince and he was just trying to eat Parra) and Cameron got the Bob Marley going in the club house before the game to relaxe everyone. No woman, no cry!

6-3 Loss at Cincinnati, 62-51

Boiling Over

Almost a year after Estrada and Graffanino tusseled in the dugout, Parra and Prince got into it. Apparently, Prince was unhappy that Manny was heading into the clubhouse after being pulled for a PH in the 7th after pitching well early (no hits through 4), then stumbling in the 5th, which included a 2R double to Bronson Arroyo. Fielder said something like, "We had to watch you, now stay out and watch us." Prince, I got news for you, NO ONE wants to watch a lineup that's 10-104 with RISP over 13 games. All in all, my sympathy goes to the Brewer's pitchers this season. I'm sure it will shift, and the bat's will pick up the pitchers, but this lineup has a problem producing, and I think a lot can be traced to the underachievement in the clean up spot. I guess the one bright spot is Braunie hit his 30th dinger of the season in a 2-4 night and Villy (my closer of the future) was lights out for the final 2 innings.

5-0 Loss at Atlanta, 62-50

REALLY, Campillo AGAIN!

This guy is now 3-0 against the Crew in '08, but what really worries me is another ineffective outing by Sheets. When was the last time Sheets pitched into August? Since the Crew got Sabathia, he hasn't won a game. Today he lasted only 6 and gave up 3 walks, 6 hits and 2 earned. Still a quality start, but not a Sheet's start. He's still stalled at 10 wins when I early on had him making a run at 20. I guess Higuera's 20 win season in '86 will be safe for a while.

The Crew went 0-8 with RISP, now hitting .160 in that department since the break.

4-2 Win at Atlanta, 62-49

Sabathia 8⅓, that should be all you need to know. This guy is pricing himself right into the biggest contract of the off-season with his performance down the stretch. The Crew wins their 9th in a row on the road, which ties the franchise record. Fielder now has a tater in 4 consecutive and had 3 RBI.

9-0 Win at Atlanta, 61-49

Not the Atlanta of Old

I realize that Atlanta, with Texeira gone in a trade deadline deal, is playing out the season with no hope for a division for the first time in a LONG time, but it felt good to nail down an old fashioned drubbing in Turner Park agains the "once" mighty Bravo's.

I think the Brewer's needed a road trip after going 1-6 at Miller. Even Fielder mentioned the Cubs fans in Miller made it challenging. "When you hear people chanting (Alfonso) Soriano's name at home, I forgot where we were for a second." So the Crew extended it's road win streak to 8 and Jeff Suppan actually looked sharp for once. He worked himself out of a 2 on, 1 out jam in the 3rd and then walked the bases loaded in the 4 when he got PH Greg Norton to fly out to end the inning. He's now 6-7, and in my opinion, barely clinging to the "5 spot".

Lefty Chuck James, just called up from AAA, was tagged for 2 runs in the 1st off a Braun RBI double, the Crew's bat's kept it going from there. A Weeks RBI triple in the 2nd and Fielder and Cam homer in the 3rd and Suppan (who usually amazes me with his ability to fritter away a lead) made it stand up.

11-4 Loss to Chicago, 60-49, Now 5 GB

I will admit now, Chicago is good, which will make all the sweeter when they finally do choke. I am still holding out hope the Brewer's can take the division; the Wild Card is too much of a Wild Card in my opinion.

Rich Harden vs. Dave Bush isn't much of a match up I'll admit, but I hoped the Crew would pull something together to avoid their first 4 game sweep at home since 2003 (also the Cubs). Instead, Gagne got tossed for throwing at Jim Edmonds, Fielder hit the showers in the 9th when he argued a called strike, this team is scrambling.

The Brewers did manage to get 2 hits with RISP (their first of the series, and there was much rejoicing) but 2 taters by Jim Edmonds, including a Grand Slam were too much to overcome.

7-2 Loss to Chicago, 60-48, Now 4 Games Back

I'm glad there are still some games left at Wrigley

This is a hell of a time for the Crew's bats to go into a funk. You finally get the division leaders on your turf and you can't bring a runner in to score to save your life. Parra didn't help much with 5 runs and 4 walks in 5⅓, but at least had a double & triple (and was of course stranded). The Brewers are now 0-15 with RISP on this series and only scored on a 1st inning Dempster WP and a 9th inning dinger by Prince, his 21st. Ryan Dempster is now 12-4 and the Cubs fans have now become the vocal majority at Miller. Thanks pathetic Crew fans, go back to your damn Brett Favre watch.

7-1 Loss to Chicago, 60-47, 3 Games Back
I Know there are 50+ games left, BUT....
I didn't want to listen to the game tonight. I knew what it would do to me. So I went to the gym and came back to my computer at work to check in. The headline on Brewers.com had Sheets matching Zambrano, but I saw 1st & 3rd on the current status display, and by the time on logged into hear Uke and Powell, Sheets was in the midst of one of his worst innings ever. The Cubs got seven straight hits off him, batted around, and 5 runs were hung on him in the 6th.

I don't know what these losses will do to this team, they have battled to get to this point, but I have a hard time thinking they have a chance against a team that can score at will like the Cubs, and I'm sure the Crew is thinking that too.

6-4 Loss to Chicago, 60-46, Now 2 Games Back
Wilting Under the Pressure
The atmosphere at Miller sounded like a college football rivalry game-- cheering from both sides. At first, it seemed like Sabathia and the Brewers were in shock, but things started to wake up when the Crew rallied for 3 runs in the 6th and took a 1 run lead. However, I knew the Crew couldn't sit on that, the Cubs are just too good. Alfonso Soriano put on an exhibition and had it not been for Cameron throwing out Derek Lee at the plate and Fielder making a great catch (both in the 6th) things could have been worse. As it was, the back to back home runs from Hardy and Braun that followed in the bottom of the 6th were not enough momentum to overcome a Rickie Weeks error on a DP pivot in the 7th and the Cubs took a 1 run lead. Branyan had a PH tater to tie it, but Torres walked two in the 9th which led to 2 Cub runs in what should have been a victory.

11-6 Loss to Houston, 60-45, Now 1 Game Back
Exactly How are you better than McClung?
Suppan was like one of those 65 mile an hour pitching machines that always makes you feel like Wade Boggs when you are a kid. And Geoff Blum's parents apparently bought him a fistfull of tokens to take some whacks at the Suppan Dinger-O-Matic. Seriously Soup, how do you let that guy bat .541 against you? And Yost, how do you leave Suppan in there to face a guy that owns him? Suppan had a 3 run lead, and thanks to Blum's two home runs and 4 RBI (he came into the game batting around .220) 3 of which came in a 7 run 5th, the Crew fell out of first place and let the 'Stros take 2 of 3 at Miller. Pathetic. It ruined a somewhat decent, early performance by the offense; Braun had a 2 run jack, Rivera chipped in with an RBI double. I have to wonder, if Bush starting on the road is looking better than Suppan starting anywhere? $40 million or not, I think I would rather see Suppan in the bullpen and Bush and McClung getting regular starts rather than this "home and road" platoon.

6-4 win over Houston, 60-44, TIED for 1st
"Oh, hey, when did you get here?"
That's what the Cubbies must be thinking. A 5 game lead at the break has dwindled to nothing like an Italian beef sandwich in front of an overweight, stretch pant wearing FIB. The Crew pulled even with Chicago tonight with a come from behind win over Houston and a Marlins win at Wrigley.

The show was all Braunie in my opinion. In yet another example of an athlete taking the mantle of leadership by letting actions and words speak volumes, Braun had 4 RBI, including a game tying, 2 run, 2 out HR in the 7th. Up until then, it looked like another dismal night for the bats as Brandon Backe kept the Crew to 2 runs through 6. Dave Bush, in his first start as a "Home Only" pitcher, was a little rusty, but still worked a quality 5 innings before being pulled for Riske, Mota and Gagne, ALL of whome did not give up any more runs. By the time Torres came in for the 9th after B-Hall drove in the go ahead run in the 8th, I realized, "This is it, they pulled the Cubbies right back... EVEN WITH this horrible hitting with RISP."

However, in an irony of sorts, the Brewers/Astros lites did not make the Talkin' Sports show tonight. However, we did have a Mike McCarthy VOSOT regarding Favre. I just can't escape that damn Pack.

After the game, B-Hall explained to Jim Powell the new tradition of untucking the shirts after a win. I'd been hearing about it on the JSO blog, (I think many stodgy bloggers find it disrespectful), but until tonight, I had nothing to go on for a reason. Apparently, Cameron brought it to the club as a symbol of, "work is done, time to relax". I like it. I'm not going to Buck Showalter this like the predominantly white, middle aged Crew fans who still think every athlete has to be Robin. Let's remember, Robin tooling around on motorcycles in the off season is more of a problem than anything Bill Hall does in his free time (allegedly).

3-1 loss to Houston, 59-44, 1 game back

"We 'SHOULD' have won

It's hard to be happy in sports. You know you can't win every game, but you think you KNOW which games should be won, and oddly enough, ALL games seem like they should be won. Take for example Friday's loss at the hands of Wandy Rodriguez, who hasn't won since the LAST time the Crew faced him. He gave up only 1 run through 6 and the Brewer's made another bush league pitcher look like a Cy Young Award winner. Parra pitched well, but left with the bases loaded and no outs in the 7th inning after 6 scoreless. Riske couldn't keep them from scoring as the Astros used small ball to get the only runs they needed. Now an 8 game winning streak is yesterday's news as all a Brewer fan can think about is a squandered opportunity to move into a tie for first place thanks to a Cubs loss.

4-3 win at St. Louis, 59-43, 1 game back

Never would have thought!

I knew the Crew was good this season, I knew the Cards, as well as they were playing, were not the same old Cards, but I never expected the Crew to go undefeated on a 7 game road trip, 4 games of which were in St. Louis.

Even though 11 runners were left on base, Ryan Braun hit when it mattered, nailing an 0-1 pitch from closer Ryan Franklin after a JJ Hardy single to put the Crew ahead and STUN the Cardinals fans. Listening to the game, I was shocked to hear the "Best Fans in Baseball" boo their Redbirds. I guess I shouldn't be so hard on the fickle Brewer fans, they aren't the only fans who do it. Apparently, while Torres was striking out the side in the 9th, the fans were chanting, "We want a closer". [I think we could give them a deal on Turnbow. Oh yeah, he's getting his arm checked out. I'm thinking if you walk 41 in 18+ AAA innings, you MAY want your arm checked out.]

Sheeter gave up 2 earned on 4 hits in 7 innings, and while he hasn't been Sabathia good lately, he still deserved a win considering how crummy the run support is. Instead, the W went to Gagne, who did walk a man in the 8th, but otherwise was effective.

Thanks in large part to Braun, who is 14-29 with 3 taters on this trip, the Brewers are 2 games over .500 on the road this season, the latest into a season they have had a winning road record since '99. I guess I can't complain about that. BUT I will complain about the inability to hit with ducks on the pond... the Cubbies won't let that crap fly.

I can't hear the Brewer game over all this C.C. talk.
Haudricourt really thinks the move for Sabathia is a strong possibility. A rumor got floated that the Crew offered Matt LaPorta and Alcides Escobar, but he doesn't think the Brewers would risk that much talent. He believes one of them is possible part of a trade, with either Gamel or Taylor Green. The move is hard for me to get excited over when you look at Sabathia's numbers this season and the rental aspect of a deal, but Haudricourt's right, a rotation of Sheets, Sabathia and Parra would be strong, especially since I don't know what's up with Suppan. And any pitching help means less possibility of seeing Mota during a game.

Mota Blows It
6-5 loss at Arizona, now 46-39, 4½ GB
I can't say it any more plainly than that. Yes only 3 runs were charged to him with a 5 run lead, but when he came in for the 9th and loaded the bases without retiring a hitter, it gave him a total of 10 earned over the last 8⅓. Shouse and Torres came into stop the bleeding, but they couldn't get anyone out either, and just like that, the 5-0 lead they had going into the 9th evaporated. Lefthander Chad Tracy had a 3 run double off Shouse, Orlando Hudson RBI double off Torres and Connor Jackson a 2 run single were the critical hits in a ninth that saw the Brewers bullpen give up 6 hits, 1 walk while recording NO OUTS. Gagne was able to pitch a 1-2-3 8th for crying out loud.

In a game the Crew should have lost (Brandon Webb pitching) I walked into the control room around the 6th or 7th really feeling good that my hope for a 6-4 road trip would be a reality. Parra had pitched himself out of two 2 on, no out jams and kept the Diamondbacks scoreless on 4 hits through 6 innings and Hardy was 4-5 with a run and a RBI (a triple short of the cycle). Cameron got a 2 run dinger off the foul pole that Haudricourt says should have been foul and everyone did their part... except the bullpen.

Braunie sat for Kapler on a second straight day. Apparently his hand is bothering him a little and he's hitting .186 over the last 10.

On Wednesday, the Crew came back late (that's right, scoring in the latter half of the game for once) and put a run on the board in each inning from the 6th on and win 4-3. Weeks, whose battle with food poisoning seems to have the same effect of Braun's ear infection a month ago, comes off the bench for a PH home run in the 8th. Through the early part of the game, the Crew was making Yusmeiro Petit look like most no-name pitchers they've faced this season-- unhittable. But in the 6th, after Kendall's hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, the Crew plays small ball and gets him in to score on a Hardy single. At that point, they are still trailing 2-1. The Diamondbacks chase McClung in the 6th, when Villy has to come in and finish the inning, which he does well, but then in the 7th, Shouse has to come in and clean up a 2nd &3rd, 1 out jam that Villy got into, which he does. It goes back and forth in this tight one with the Crew nipping a win 4-3 in the end. Riske, who gave up a Justin Upton HR, gets the win.

Hardy goes to Town on the Big Unit
Brewers win in Arizona, 8-6, Now 45-38, 4½ games back
JJ Hardy is really making the most of hitting in the #2 spot. He has a 13 game hitting streak now and nailed 2 taters off Randy Johnson tonight. Joe Dillon chipped on in as well with a start for Rickie Weeks who has a stomach virus. Rickie just can't catch a break. The offense jumped out early, and with a 7-1 lead, I figured a vet like Suppan could relaxe and give the bullpen some rest. Not so. He loads the bases in the 4th and gives up 2, then gives up another 2 on a Connor Jackson HR in the 5th. Haudricourt didn't sugar coat it when he called Suppan's performance disgraceful. In his last 3 starts he has an 8 ERA and it seems the youngsters like McClung and Parra know better what to do with a 6 run lead than Suppan. Guillermo Mota did his part to question his reliability down the stretch as well, giving up a run in his inning appearance and benefitting from some strong D.

The Brewer's bats once again shut down in the later innings, but they did score 8 overall, what more can a pitcher expect? The run they scored in the 7th was the first off a relief pitcher since June 22nd.

Had a discussion with Sam tonight about the possibility of "renting" Sabathia. I have a hard time getting excited about a guy who's ERA is 3.78 with a record of 6-8. Yes, maybe he's struggling on a struggling team, but it's hard to pull the trigger and lose Gamel or LaPorta when you know the guy will be gone at season's end. All the same, making the postseason would be worth it I have to admit.

After losing the opener to the Diamondbacks Monday night 6-3 when the offense decided it didn't have to do anything else after scoring 2 early (guys, you can't expect Dave Bush to pitch out of his mind EVERY start), the trip is now 4-4. I really want them to take these last two games and go 6-4, that would feel so great, especially if the Giants can keep the Cubs at least stalled for a another game.

5-1 over Minnesota, 44-36, 4½ back
Winning the first two games of a 10 game road trip in Atlanta made me feel good, but dropping the next two (a Jorge Campillo 7 inning 2 run gem in the finale at Atlanta and a Joe Mauer tie breaking HR in the 8th at the series opener in Minnesota to overcome 4 Crew (2 by Braun) taters) made me feel worse in degree. It is a long road trip, and I strongly feel they should go 6-4 on this trip in order to make a statement to the fans, to the Cubs and more importantly, themselves. The Cubs have just dropped 3 in a row and, as of this blog, are at the point where they might want to start looking over their shoulder at the Cards and Crew.

That's why yesterday's win to give Parra his 7th straight winning decision to make the crew 3 and 2 on this trip was so huge in my opinion. Now you have Sheets pitching on Sunday for the Twinkie finale and the possibility of only needing to split in Arizona to reach the 6-4 trip mark.

Parra gave the Crew 7 inning of shutout ball, gave up only two hits and is now 8-2. I'm trying to think of the last time the Crew had two pitchers with more than 16 wins a piece? It could happen this year!

The offense did kind of shut down in the late innings, but I think the brightest spot was Hall ripping a 2R double in the 3rd. Would love to see B-Hall get hot.

On the long term prospects of this team, it came out this week that Sheets is not really interested in negotiating a contract during the season. I can't blame him for that, it was Melvin that didn't want to talk contract before the season. I just think this is where Attanasio steps up and says, "This is a different Brewer team. We are going to make the stretch to keep a top quality pitcher here." However, there is growing speculation about the Crew (among every other contender) making a move for Sabathia for a late season rental. I don't know about that. He hasn't been exactly sharp. I'm more curious about the possibility of K-Rod bringing that single season save record to Milwaukee in 2009. I don't know why I'm the only Brewer fan thinking about that.

4-3 Win over Atlanta, Now 43-34, 5½ games back

Who is this "Dave Bush" and when did he decide to start pitching?

Following up his incredible start against the Jays with a game in which no Brave reached base until the 4th and he had them shut out through 6. The offense got big help from 4 Bravo errors and the D chipped in with a few crucial DPs. All in all, it was a great game until Torres came in and gave up 2 in the 9th and had a 1st and 3rd situation before getting a pop out to Hardy. Wheew.



June 23rd, 4-1 Win in Atlanta, Now 42-34

Man it feels good to get that first win on a road trip and it feels good to do it without using your bullpen. I think Sheets genuinely feels he has to go out there and make this happen for the Brewers every time he pitches... and it amazes me that most of the time he can. His 3rd complete game of the season and he retired the last 16 in a row. Kasey was actually at the game and said it was the best pitched game he had ever seen. At 2:14, it probably rivaled the Capuano/Maddux game I saw a few years ago. Mike Cameron got things going with a dinger off JoJo Reyes and Rickie Weeks reached base 4 times. I almost think Weeks getting hot is the most important thing for this team.



June 22nd, 7-3 Win over Baltimore, Now 41-34

Manny Parra contributed 6 of the Brewer pitchers 10 free passes, but the Brewers turned 5 DPs to close out the homestand with a win. Prince Fielder has just been locked in and today he knocked 2 out of the park in addition to Bill Hall getting the fans behind him (momentarily) with a tater of his own.



June 21st, 3-2 Win over Baltimore, Now 40-34

Just maybe Seth McClung will be a legitimate member of this rotation? He worked out of jams and got another win. The rotation is REALLY looking sharp, (except for Suppan's clinker). This was the Brewer's 16th 1 run win, a number that leads baseball, but as I point out, it can also mean you have just blown more leads and barely won as being clutch.



June 20th, 8-5 loss to Baltimore, Now 39-34

Eeeeeh, Suppan left in the second after giving up 6 runs. The bullpen kept the Crew in as best they could, and Bill Hall had a chance to get the Milwaukee fans behind him when he came up with the sacks drunk in the 9th, and struck out. This game was lost early it seemed, but I was happy that the Crew was able to climb back close to winning.



June 19th, 8-7 win over Toronto, Now 39-33

This has to be the most upsetting win of my Brewer's fan lifetime. Dave Bush, DAVE BUSH, took a no hitter into the 8th. Going into the 9th, the game had been given over to a bullpen with a 7 run lead. Yet David Riske just in after his stint on the DL and Guillermo Mota did their best to blow this game up. The Jays got a grand slam in the 9th to help make it a 1 run game and Torres actually had to come in and get a save. Prince Fielder also got his second career in the park home run when Alex Rios thought a ball stopped under the fence was a dead ball.



June 18th, 5-4 win over Toronto, Now 38-33

Another win for Sheets, but it got dicey. Torres had to come in during the 8th to wrap this game up, but it worked. I listened to this whole game on the internet and had to deal with the Blue Jays broadcast since there was a quality problem with the TMJ feed. I kind of dozed off during the 9th, but when I woke up, I was listening to a Toronto post game show that had JP Richardi, Jays GM taking calls and getting ripped by listeners, some who wanted to see Gibbons fired. I guess Milwaukee isn't the only city hostile towards mediocrity. I couldn't believe one caller wanted Cito Gaston back, as if a former winner is the answer. Funny though that after a 3 game sweep at the hands of the Brewers, the Jays decided to bring back Gaston.



June 17th, 7-0 win over Toronto, Now 37-33

This is starting to come together. 5 dingers for the Crew, including 2 for Braun and 1 for Craig Counsell! Manny Parra decided to cruise into the 7th with a shutout before getting lifted and the bully was solid. Parra is now 4-0 in his last 4 starts. For a guy I'm still not sold on, it was nice to see him taking advantage of the O and settling in.



June 15th, 4-2 win over Minnesota, Now 36-33

A Mike Cameron tater, another fine performance by McClung and Salomon Torres getting his 7th straight save after pitching 2.1 innings last night. I'm liking Torres alot. Gagne WHO!



June 14th, 9-4 loss to Minnesota, Now 35-33

You don't get any more painful than a "blowout" loss in extra innings. Russel the Muscle gets a PH tater in the 9th to send the game to extras, and the Brewers run out of pitching... plain and simple. Julian Tavarez was left in an inning too long, but then again, Yost really didn't have many other options. Fielder just missed ending it in the 10th with a tater of his own, but it just wasn't enough to give up the winnig run to a visitor in extras, the Crew had to give up 5! I hate that.



June 13th, 10-2 loss to Minnesota

Had to lose to a guy named "Slower". Tomorrow, the Crew will get killed by a guy named Busher. I hate this. Bush feel partly victim to 2 Bill Hall errors who was starting at 2B for an MIA Weeks. I can't fault Hall too much on the Es, he hasn't really been a second baseman for a while and I think it's harder to switch like that then most people think.

Wow, That's a Great Juice Box
9-6 Win at Houston
Now 35-31, 7½ Games Back
This team is just hanging onto my optimism by a thread. After looking horrible in Denver, the Crew finds a way to get up off the mat and finish the roadtrip at a respectable 3-3. Sheets got the support of 3 home runs in the 2nd (4 total in the game) and a lineup that now features Hart in the leadoff spot and Cameron in the 5 spot seems to have found some life. Hart's 3R dinger was his 3rd in two games. So much for not getting RBI opportunities in the leadoff spot. Of course, when Brian Mohler can't even get Sheets out and walks him, your leadoff guy is going to get opportunities to clean the bases.

Added to the 5 HRs they hit in Wednesday's 10-6 win and the Crew is doing its best to channel the Walbangers and take some stress off the pitching staff. Villanueva cooled my "closer of the future" talk a little by giving up a run in 1⅔, but I didn't really hear the situation. It sounds like he came in for Parra in a dicy situation and worked out of it by letting 1 inherited to score and 1 of his own. That'll happen I guess.

However, worry isn't completely out of the picture, with Weeks already on the DL and Hardy getting checked out for a sore shoulder, the infield is looking pretty thin. The Brian Roberts rumor has been floated around, but Melvin denies it. One other thing to note is that Jeff Weaver has officially been released. What does it say about a player that he can't perform acceptable enough at AAA to earn a spot in a thinner than expected rotation?

(Mike Cameron to self) "DOH!"
Loss 6-1 to Houston, Brewers now 33-31, 7½ games back Chicago
After grabbing only one game from the Rockies, I still had hopes the Brewers could break even on this 6 game roadie. And even thought Oswalt was going against McClung, I thought they could find a way to beat him. I was wrong, but not about McClung, he pitched pretty well, but Oswalt was dealing. The Crew was still in the game however until a couple of defensive miscues gave the 'Strohs 3 late inning runs. A Julian Taverez E led to an extended inning and a triple off the bat of Lance Berkman that Cam misjudged cleared a bases loaded situation. It was pretty much over after that. Braunie's HR was the lone O. Got to get off the mat today then take advantage of the Sheets start tomorrow.

With Weeks now on the DL, Hart started in the leadoff spot and Hernan Iribarren was called up.

One Little Victory
Milwaukee 3 Colorado 2 33-30, 6 GB Chicago
When the Crew jumped out to a 2 run lead before Suppan took the mound, I was hoping for a constant barrage of 1 or 2 runs per inning that would take the pressure off the team. Instead the bats shut it down after Kapler's RBI in the 2nd and Suppan had to grit it out again. Villanueava comes in during the 6th and gets an inning ending double play, then overcomes an error in the 7th to keep the Rockies off the board. Had the Brewers found a way to score a runner from scoring position (like they had in EVERY INNING after the 3rd) then Kapler's error in the 8th wouldn't have made things so scary. But Torres goes 1⅔ for the save and the Brewers avoid a sweep in Colorado. First win there since 2006 AT LEAST.

Weeks is heading back to Milwaukee to get his knee checked out. A Jeff Baker slide in Friday's game apparently "tweaked" it. I really had high hopes for Rickie early in his career, but he is quickly on his way to a being a disappointment. I think Yost batting him leadoff is part of the problem, nagging injuries another, but plain and simply, he has underachieved. I'm still rooting for him, the way he's made himself into a legitimate defensive 2nd baseman is admirable, but considering the tools he has, the draft position, the contract, I'll admit to being frustrated with him.

Once again, part laziness, part superstition is my reason for letting this blog lapse. When I got back from Canyonlands a week ago on Saturday and saw that the Brewers had taken care of business, winning three of four, I figured I would catch up on other things rather than blogging. Now that they are back to the dismal state of making weak teams look like the '27 Yankees (see Colorado) I'll get this blog caugh up on how the Crew got to this state continueing the most recent game blog first.

Saturday, 6.7, Part 2 of the Test Fails, Loss at Colorado 7-2
There were two things the Brewers had to do to prove to me they were finally turning things around. Beat a legit team (Arizona swept-- √) and play .500 on the road. Well, the Rockies are one of the worst teams in the league, they have the worst record at home and they are without Holliday and Tulowitzki, so I figured the 3 games in Denver would be a great way to get that .500 record on the road going. 2 out of 3 right? WRONG! Rookie Greg Reynolds came into the game 0-3 with an ERA close to 6. But when your mound counterpart gives up 5 in the first inning like Bushie did, you can relaxe and earn the first win of your career. In 28⅓ previous innings, he gave up 18 walks, but the Crew's free swingers only got 2 free passes courtesy of Reynolds. They did jump on him for 2 in the 2nd thanks to RBI from Kendall and Branyan, but the rest of the lineup sputtered against a no name pitcher. Bushie did his best to maintain, giving up nothing after the 1st, but as usual, the big inning ruins him, and Mike DiFelice and Tim Dillard were responsible for giving up the other 2 runs.

Rickie Weeks sat out this game with a left knee injury, and Yost's replacement in the leadoff spot was Craig Counsell, a player I love, but maybe not your first choice for a leadoff hitter. I know Hart's great in the 5 spot, but given that Weeks is out and will miss Sunday's as well, why not TRY to get something going at the top of the lineup. Instead, Yost is just plugging the 2nd baseman in the leadoff spot regardless of their ability in that spot. For game 3 of the series, it looks like it will be "professional hitter" Joe Dillon leading off. (I love that "professional hitter" phrase I got from Philly.) At least Yost is finally getting Cameron some pine time in place of Kapler, who, unfortunately, is hitting well enough that I'll sacrafice a bit of leather in Center.

Friday, 6.6, BACK ON THE ROAD, BACK IN THE HOLE, Loss to Colorado 6-4
With the night off and Sheets on the mound, I settled down with the computer tuned in on Uecker to listen to what should have been the Crew's 7th win in a row. And it looked good most of the way through the game. I could tell Sheets was struggling with the thin air (he had 2 walks), but only gave up 1 run before being pulled for a pinch hitter in the 7th. With only a 3 run lead and Kendall on 3rd (after an RBI triple) with no outs, I understood why Yost lifted Sheets for Dillon. His pitch count was high and the Crew had a chance for a big inning. But alas, Dillon failed to get the run in, as did Weeks and Kapler. Now the Crew had to put their faith in Villy. Which worked very well-- he needed only 10 pitches to retire the side in the 7th with 2 Ks. So a lot of us Brewer fans were surprised when Mota came out for the 8th. Mota gave up 4 straigh hits and suddenly, the Brewers were out of this game. Shouse couldn't stop the bleeding either (although he should have been brouht in sooner) and a 5 run 8th led to the Brewers downfall.

This is one of those choices Yost made where I think he needs to just flat out accept he was wrong. Villy was dealing he should have stuck with him... PERIOD. Some bloggers argued that Kapler, a defensive downgrade to Cameron, would have pulled in two of those hits, but that seems stupid to argue when Cameron's bat has been taking the Crew out of the game just as much. Maybe Cam should have been a defensive replacement. Either way, my hopes that the Crew could pay the Rockies back for that 30 run beatdown I endured over two games last August quickly faded as I hoped they could just get off the mat and take game two. But in my gut I knew it wouldn't happen.

Thursday, 6.5, "Drafted Eh!"
With the 16th pick, the Brewers chose Canadian catcher Brett Lawrie as their first pick in the draft. Lawrie went to a high school with no baseball program, so since age 15, he has been playing on the Canadian Junior team and RAKING... WITH A WOODEN BAT! Apparently they've played some quality Dominican teams and intertational tourneys and this kid has held his own. He also think he can make the bigs in 1 to 2 seasons. If he can hit, I'm sure he'll get a chance,. Kendall is no spring chicken, I don't think Rivera is a long term option and Vinny Rottino, who was told in spring to "focus on catching" for a quick trip to the bigs, hasn't exactly lit up Nashville, so by all means Brett, do your best to get here. It's likely he'll want to play for Canada in the Olympics this summer, so the Crew could have another Olympic star on the roster.

At 32, the Crew picked up Jake Odorizzi, a Illinois high school righty that was 11-0 with a 0.00 ERA. In 69 innings, he gave up 18 hits, 5 walks with 116 Ks. "Would someone at least try to lay down a bunt against this guy!?" He apparently has a scholarship to Louisville as a WR, so we'll see what happens with that. At 35 they chose Evan Frederickson from the University of SF. Apparently the lefty is a little wild, but in a workout at Miller, he was consistently hitting the mid 90s. The 6'6" had 109 Ks in 75⅓ innings, but also had 61 walks. At 53 the Crew took prep righty Seth Lintz and at 54, Lenny Dykstra's son Cutter, who's recently switched to CF.

Wednesday, 6.4, Well I Wasn't Expecting This, a 10-1 Win A SWEEP.
Kapler still swinging that hot bat goes 4-5 and Parra pitches 7 strong. The starters have a 2.41 ERA in last 10 and the bullpen has a 1.03 in last 13. Now it's time to go out and get it done on the road.

Tuesday, 6.3, Big Unit Gives the Fans a Milestone, but Crew gives them a win, 7-1 Randy Johnson only needed like 3 Ks to pass Roid Clemens for 2nd or 3rd on the all time K list. Against the Crew, he should have felt pretty good about getting that out of the way early. Go figure, the victim was Mike Cameron. I think Milwaukee fans treated him well and he even acknowledged the standing O they gave him after the game. But I think Randy had to be a little miffed that McClung, a lefty with very few AB collected not only his first, but 2nd major league hits of him. I was a little worried about McClung early in this game, but he only gave up 3 in 6 innings and the Crew now has guaranteed 2 out of 3 against a legit team.

Monday, 6.2 Beat a Legit, 4-3 over Arizona 30-28
I wanted to see a good performance against a legitimate team and some .500 ball on the road. The Brewers took a step in the right direction by beating 1st place Arizona. Suppan pitched well for 7 innings, a 2nd consecutive strong start by him and Fielder makes the D-backs pay for the lefty-lefty matchup by knocking a go ahead HR in the 8th off reliever Doug Slaten.

Sunday, 6.1, WAY TO GO F-TROOP, Beat Houston 10-1, 29-28 7 GAMES BACK CHICAGO
Chicago just keeps on winning. Thanks NL West for making Chi feel so at home on their roadtrip. PATHETIC.

Yost gave some guys a rest today and had Dillon and Kapler in 1-2 slot, and they promptely make first two outs. "GREAAAAAAT!" I'm thinking, then Shawn Chacon gets rocked, gives up 4, and lasts only 1 inning. Rivera, Counsel, Kapler end up going 6-12 with 5 RBI. Counsel had a 2 run double in first and in the fourth, Dillon was hit by a pitch and then tripled home by Kapler. That's they type of work I LIKE to see out of the top of the order. I know why Yost is keeping Weeks in the 1 spot, but Cameron in the 2 hole is just making it too easy for the pitchers to get into the heart of the lineup with no one on. These are the big innings I was expecting to see more of from this lineup. In the 4th, 12 hitters to the plate, 6 runs, including jacks by Braun and Branyan. I have to hand it to Braun, he's making a difference in this lineup.

Bush did give up solo shot to Loretta in 1st (seems to be a trend) and I was really feeling sick to my stomach. Seriously, when Loretta takes you yard, you can't feel confident in your stuff. However hen then pitches 7 innings with no walks and Ks 5. In the last 7 games, starters have 6 quality starts and a 2.47 ERA. The Cre is over .500 for the first time since May 13th.

Saturday, 5.31, SO CLOSE! Beat Houston 4-1
Sheets wanted that CG bad and apparently, it was obvious. Kendall said he wasn't going to get between Yost and Sheets in the 9th when Yost yanked him for Torres after 2 outs. But Sheets was well over his pitch count and had just walked Lance Berkman (that guy is raking now, probably best to walk him), his first walk in 4 starts. Torres game in and earned a save on 2 pitches and the Brewers are now 28-28. Fielder hit another dinger, which was obscured by the Herculian shot that Branyan hit to the 3rd deck. Approximately 465 feet and the third longest in Miller history. Too bad the piss poor FSN cam op couldn't follow it. "Zoom OUT ASSHOLE if you can't follow it!" Glad I'm not directing Brewer games, I would probably flip out in the control room every inning.

Friday, 5.30, Back in the win column agains Houston, 5-1
Another gem from the rotation was needed to wash the bad taste of McClung out of our mouths. Manny Parra, who took a Miguel Tejada liner to the stomach in the 2nd went 6 innings and gave up 1 earned to beat Brandon Backe. He's able to keep Tejada, Berkman and Carlos Lee to 3-12 with no Rs or RBI. Cameron and Braun went back to back, however, it was the 2nd game in a row where Cam had 3 Ks. Someone wants to win the Jose Hernandez ahievement award. Fielder also chipped in with a HR, which he hit like a little leaguer playing Home Run Derby, seriously, he swung so far out of his shoes that he nearly toppled over in the box. Braunie, who was battling an inner ear infection was 4-4.

Thursday, 5.29, Streak is over, 8-1 loss to Atlanta
Maybe the McClung starter experiment was too good to be true. In 4⅔, he gave up 6 earned on 6 walks and 8 hits. His counterpart, who hadn't allowed a run in 10 innings over 2 previous starts, had a major hand in stifling the heart of the Crew lineup. Cam, Fielder and Braun were 2-12 and the linup totaled 12 Ks. The lone run was scored on a Branyan HR.

Wednesday, 5.28, my favorite score 1-0 over Atlanta
This is how baseball was meant to be played, little scoring, good pitching and a LIBERAL strike zone. Both Suppan and JoJo Reyes were benefiting from the big box, but the moment I most wished I had MLB Extra Innings to see was when (Brian?) McCann, the catcher for Atlanta, so upset with the strike zone that he stepped out of the box to complain, cost himself a strike when home plate umpire told Soup to go ahead and deliver. In all, there were 10 combined called third strikes.

None of that fine pitching would have meant anything unless the Brewers could find a way to make Reyes look mortal rather than Bob Freakin' Feller. It happened when Hardy drew a leadoff walk in the 9th and Cox quickly pulled him (that's quite a hook). After moving to third, Hardy scored on a Weeks triple and the Crew had their first 1-0 win since Sep. of 2006. It was also the first 3 game win streak since May 11th through 13th. Torres now has 4 saves and is looking like the new closer.

Tuesday, 5.27, come from behind to beat Atlanta 3-2
Bill Hall, who complained earlier in the day about being "soft" platooned with Branyan (read between the lines Hall, soft platoon is a nice way of saying, "You couldn't hit a righty if he was placing it on a tee, so I have to do something to show you that no one is guaranteed a spot in this lineup") came through with a pinch hit single on an 0-2 count (wow, hitting for contact on 2 strikes, what a concept), moved to second on a Weeks sacrafice (another missing concept for this team), then stole 3B. That set the stage for Cameron to win the game with a sac fly, good for two
guys who have barely been hitting their weight lately. I will say this in Hall's defense, if Yost is going to bench Hall for hitting near the Mendoza line, he has other candidates on the team as well, (COUGH!, Hall-- Cameron!).

All this went to benefit Bushy who managed to avoid the big inning and pitch 7 innings, give up 2 earned and only walk 1. Newly acquired Julian Tavarez and Salomon Torres were sharp out of the pen to help the Crew beat a game started by Tim Hudson.

Brewers beat Washington 4-3 in 11
Now 24-27

I can't get too excited about a split with Washington. The team has nowhere near the talent of the Crew, yet, in terms of record, the Nationals are playing no worse than the Crew. Sheet's had his second gutsy start in a row, which is a euphimism for him seeming to struggle because the offense sputtered on various scoring chances and he had to work out of a few jams. His routine for giving up Taters in the 1st, then locking it down happened again when Christian Guzman took him yard. But he left after only giving up 2, I don't know what more the bats could ask for. You also couldn't ask for more from the pen. Shouse looked good striking out the side before giving up a game tying bomb and Villanueva struck out 5 in a row. They did their work in my opinion. Who didn't do his work was Russel Branyan, still suffering from "Contact-itis" with 4 Ks. Kapler gets a pinch hit RBI in the 11th and Torres works 1-2-3 to win it.

Although the bullpen did an acceptable job today, management of the bullpen still seems to be a trouble for Yost. Yesterday, Mota gave up the winning run on a wild pitch after working into a 2nd inning for a 2nd consecutive day. Tim Dillard, Mike DeFelice and Zach Jackson, have all been called up from Nashville to try and stop the bleeding, and so far, only DeFelice seems to be a clinker. But it seems like if Yost doesn't use them in just the right way, the whole bullpen falls apart for a week. Of course, Prince and Brauny dumping some 8 run games on a few teams would help the bullpen also. More help will be coming when Julian Tavarez joins the pen after passing his physical, but Melvin should not have had to resort to these measures. Signing Gagne, a washed up closer and releasing Vargas seem like pretty dumb moves right now. Vargas pitched a fine game for the Mets in Colorado Saturday and guess what, Dana Eveland has a sub-3 ERA and 4 wins for the A's. I hate it when former Brewers succeed, especially when it's pitchers like Eveland and Davis who I thought were finished anyway.

Saturday, the Brewers got a surprising performance out of McClung in his new role as Starter (Villy sent to the pen) but hit the wall around 5 innings, which doesn't surprise me. If Yost plans long term for McClung to be a starter, I hope he can at least work himself into a 7 inning pitcher.

Loss at Washington 22-26, now 7.0GB
3 hits! That's all the Nationals managed against the Brewers last night. Except in the column that mattered (runs scored) the Nationals somehow ended up with 5 to the Brewers 1 thanks to a JJ Hardy E in the 6th. That hung 4 unearned on Jeff Suppan and gave the Crew their 7th loss in 9 games. The one good thing is that Shouse and Dillard came in and looked sharp.

In the "Thank god I'm out of Milwaukee" category, Doug Davis got a W last night in his first start since having his thyroid cancer treated. Other than feeling a little upset over another former Brewer succeeding, I'm happy for him. I'm also happy that the Diamondbacks understand jumping out to a 5 run lead before your pitcher even gets to the bump is a great lesson for the Brewers to learn from.

Brewers lose at Pittsburgh 8-4, now 22-25, 6.0 games back

Unfortunately, as much as Ben Sheets was the streak "starter" on Wednesday, getting the Crew their second consecutive win, Dave Bush will now be seen as the streak "ender", blowing up in the 4th inning.

Eric Gagne was officially put on the DL today. Probably the best move considering they need the roster space for pitchers they don't have. Oh well, Tim Dillard was called up today. He was pitching pretty well in Nashville, so maybe this will be the start of something good.

As tough as this season might turn out to be, I still think it could be worse. A co-worker of mine, a life long Padre fan from San Diego, told me today he can't bare to be a fan through this dismal season and may defect to another team. I'm sure it was the 10 games under talking, but I know how he feels, 2002 did the same thing to me. Being a true fan is about sticking in there and knowing that suffering through a bad season is better than the artificial elation of jumping on a bandwagon.

Milwaukee wins in Pittsburgh 7-2 and 4-1. Now 22-24, 5½ games back.

A hangover of despair hung over my head on Tuesday, caused by 23 lonely Brewers stranded on the Fenway basepaths like the Carole Wright Gifts catalogs I have to discard every two weeks because the lady who had my PO Box before me is still on their mailing list. I wasn't any more optimistic about Tuesday's game at Pittsburgh. Even thought the Pirates were struggling themselves a few games under .500 with an anemic .240 team batting average (close to the Crews), the Steel City has never been kind to the Crew. When I finally checked in on the game and saw a 6 run lead, my hangover cleared like a cold morning and a hot cup of coffee. Parra was sharp in a short outing (5⅔ innings, 0ER, 4H, 6K) and Cameron was 3-4 with a jack to lead the Brewers on a 14 hit outburst. The blemish was a dicey outing by Gagne, who couldn't finish the game off. With a 7 run lead, he was unable to improve his standing in the eyes of skeptical Brewer fans. He walked the leadoff hitter and gave up a few runs on a dinger before Yost pulled him. Sore shoulder or not (Gagne was sent back to Milwaukee for an examine) I don't think Gagne will have any redeeming value to this team. Thank Bernie Brewer he's gone after this season.

Wednesday's game was all Sheets making it work with less than stellar stuff. He scattered 11 hits in a complete game win that put him at 4-0. During the latter innings, the "sign or don't sign" debate heated up on JSO. I think it's 50/50 as far as fans on either side of the debate, and I openly admitted on the blog that both sides have a strong argument. I think many of the anti-Sheets camp likes to predict Yovanni Gallardo as the "Ace of the Future", but do they consider that Gallardo has now suffered two injuries in the span of 3 months and will be out all season. Yes, Sheets is injury prone and will demand a lot of money this offseason, but I think a post season Brewer team has to have BOTH Sheets and Gallardo.

Additionally, Yost has decided to move Villy back to the bullpen and give McClung a shot at the rotation. I can't argue with Villy in the Bully, he was very successful there last year, but I wonder if McClungs stuff can last a few trips through a lineup? I also think any further struggles by Hall might make a callup of Branyan worth it, but I have a feeling his hot bat will freeze harder than his glove once he get's to the bigs. If anything, it may light a fire under Hall's butt.

Swept in Boston
The story of this series of woe in Fenway may not be the Brewers inability to play on the same level as the defending World Champions, perhaps it is the words Ryan Braun had after today's game. In so many words, he said the players don't have a winning attitude. It seems like whenever the starting pitching battles, the offense waves the red flag, and vice versca. I have to keep telling myself, it's just a game and I love this team. But the manager needs to go. I've held out for as long as I could, but I have seen very little evidence that he can take the team to the next leve.

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, sometimes it rains.

The Crew was washed out in Bah-stun today. I haven't blogged on the last two losses against the Dodgers at Miller. Wednesday looked good going into the 7th when the wheels fell off on a great start by Manny. They still had a lead in the 9th however, but Mota fell apart in the 9th. So much for my closer by committee.

Thursday was worse. A great start by Sheets, but in the 7th, he ran into BIG trouble. 6 runs just hung up on the board. An expolosion that should have been indicitive of the Brewer O.

The bigger news on Thursday was the signing of Braun to a 8 year deal (including this season). I think Braun has the talent to contribute to the Crew for a long time, but DAMN!, 8 years is a long time. This is the biggest contract in Crew history, but if Braun continues to play to his potential (and I think he will) it will be a bargain for the Crew. The question I have is, "What does Prince think of all this?"

Brewers beat Los Anglese 5-3, now 20-19
The last time I made a blog entry, the Brewers had lost their 5th in a row. I took a break, because the only things I could blog about were negatives. And while many people see blogs as a place to rant, I think excessive negativity in any venue can be detrimental.

A lot has happened in that time I took that break however. The Brewer's losing streak stretched to 6 games with another loss to the Marlins. Then a Rickie Weeks game ending, 2 run single capped a no-on 2 out rally off Jason Isringhausen on Friday night. Could that be a momentum builder? I held my breath and bit my tongue as the Crew wasted a decent outing by Sheets on Saturday and Eric Gagne blew it in the 9th. The next day I read Gagne wants out as closer. Apparently that's the only way Yost gets the message to try something new (see Fielder and Braun requesting to be flipped in the order). So with my thoughts of playoffs dwindeling, a gutsy performance by Suppan and two Braun Bombs on Sunday lead to another win. Monday (a 4 game set with the Cards) sees Dave Bush pitch his best game of the season, even igniting a rally by leading off with a double. Braun knocks another two out. Eric Gagne comes in in the 7th and pitches 2 innings? He makes it scary, but the Brewers win. Earlier on Monday, Gagne said he was ready to close again. As we'll see, maybe we shouldn't be so eager to put him in there.

Today the Brewers seemed to be having trouble putting anything together against Brady Penny. Corey runs into an out right before a Hall HR. Villy mixes 1-2-3 innings with innings where he get's hit, but somehow, they limit the damage to 3 runs and Braun makes Penney pay for walking the pitcher with a 2 run double. Gagne, however, can't retire the side in order and gets another "dicey" save.

Brewers lose 6-2 at Florida
Now 16-17
Burk [?] Badenhop was the recipient tonight of the Brewers lackluster offense. I commented to some co-workers that if I was a Rotissirie geek, I would merely stack my team with pitchers who were about to face the Brewers.

Talked to my father about the Crew tonight. He's been hearing the complaints about Yost and thoughts of Simmons taking over. And once again, people are pointing to '82 as an instance where firing your manager mid-season worked. While I may agree that Yost needs to turn this team around to save his job, I disagree that a team automatically does better with a new manager. That '82 team was a veteran team that needed the hands off approach of Harvey Kuene instead of the micro-managing style of Buck Rodgers. This team is young, they need a veteran manager... maybe not a first time manager.

The reason for firing Yost during the season should be because you, as a GM or owner, decide that this guy isn't doing the job, and rather than leave a "dead man walking", you toss him to the curb and HOPE that new blood invigorates the team enough to get fans back to the park. Then in the off season, you address your GM situation and do a hard target search for a good manager.

And I'm starting to think Melvin has to worry as well. The Brewers have put some good talent together, but perhaps Melvin tries to hard to continue with "scrap heap" projects rather than making tough decisions on the progress/ potential of our players. Maybe you can't worry that trading Rickie Weeks for a pitcher is a long term mistake?

Either way, I'm starting to think I'll be able to get a Sheets jersey really cheap by the time I visit Milwaukee this summer.