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.

Game 32: 3-0 Loss to Florida. Brewers now 16-16
I listened to barely a third of the game, went to JSO to get the just of it. What I thought when I saw that row of 0's on the linescore is that, "this looks familiar". A beatable lefthander in Scott Olsen makes the Brewers lineup look pathetic again. Hall came up with the basesloaded and two out in the 9th, swung at the first pitch and lined out. Suppan takes the collar in a game where giving up 3 wins should get you a W. It's hard for me NOT to be upset with Yost. Even Melvin has me wondering. Did he get too high on his own press? Thinking that he could pull magic from every risk, gamble and reclamation project out there? Did success in non-standard aquisitions keep him from wisely managing the personel? Perhaps more should have been done to improve the offense then look for bargains and stick with "guys with potential". I'm asking way too many questions for my liking. I'll sum up by saying Yost shouldn't make it through the season if this team doesn't make a drastic turn around and Melvin should be choosing his moves wisely. Dealing Sheets at the deadline now seems wiser and wiser a move, not because Sheets is a liability, but because the Crew could be out of it.

In positive Brewer notes, an article in the JSO highlighted a study by Bill James that the '82 Brewers infield was tied with the '76 Reds as the best infield since 1934.

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=747811

Game 31- Loss at Houston 16-15
Gagne walks in the tying run. Hunter Pence wins it with a HR in the 12th. That was the Astros first extra inning game. That was the Brewers bajillion. NO Brewer's runs scored after the 4th. Sheets outing wasted.

I keep telling myself to stay optimistic. That the talent will get this team over the hump, but 20 years of Brewer disappointment are hard to deny. I really don't know if Yost will still be managing this team when I visit Milwaukee this summer. If this play continues, Yost has to be fired, at least after the season. And Melvin may not be far behind. All that money in the bullpen could come back to bite him in the ass.

Game 30- L Houston 16-13

Listless. That is the best way I can describe the Brewers play lately. Rickie Weeks leadoff HR had all the spark of an Estelle Getty strip tease. I really think this team is so novice that they think losing Gallardo for the season is the end of any hope as they know it. Parra didn't pitch great, but once again, that lineup HAS to do better than 2 runs. Numerous scoring chances wasted. As I mentioned, the Weeks HR, which apparently almost took out the train at Minute Maid, should have been an offensive wakeup, but no. However, the Brandon Backe HR was apparently a wake up for the 'Stros. Good for Cecil Cooper I say. Yo or no Yo, Melvin and Attanasio need to start asking for better results. This team is uninspired and has never put together a consistent season where they met expectations. In 2005 they sort of overachieved, but since then, they have had a team good enough to win the division... and nothing. Am I pissed, hell yes! Offensively the Brewers are about as impressive as a "mountain" in Wisconsin. Pick it up Crew, if you care about Yost's job, pick it up.

Game 29- L Houston 16-13
I think the biggest hurt came today when, during a lull in REI's Anniversary Sale, I decided to check Brewers.com for a start time of tonights game. There was the headline I really didn't think I would see. Gallardo had a torn ACL. All I had to see was that all CAPS "ACL" and I knew the whole story from that. He would be gone the rest of the season and the Crew now has a major hole in it's rotation. Tonight's come from ahead loss almost seems a footnote to that news. From the way Gallardo's fall was described, I guess it should be no surprise it was is ACL. But obviously the fact that he pitched another inning on it led most Brewer fans to believe the Brewers dodged a bullet. I think what this means for the Brewers is they will have to make an acquisition at some point in the season for a top line pitcher. If Melvin has any brains, he's already got a list of young talent the Brewers would be willing to part at the trade deadline to get the Brewers over the hump... if they are still in the race.

Game 28- W Chicago (N) 16-12 1.4 GB
I had a feeling through most of this game that it wasn't going to happen. I listened to the entire game at home while dicking around on the new computer, but wasn't sure I could sit through another loss. Outs on the basepaths, Giovanni Soto killing the Crew and runners left on base were frustrating me. Then Gallardo went down in a collision near first base. I didn't see it, but it sounded bad. Yet another reason why I thought this team would be doomed to be the Brewers for the rest of my life. But Gallardo not only stayed in there, but pitched another inning. Zambrano and Marmol kept the lineup handcuffed for most of the day, but thankfully, Kerry Wood is still the Cubs closer. Braun was able to get things going with 3RBI and a HR. He palayed a critical part in the 9th with a 2 run double and Gagne, after walking the leadoff man, shut things down. Shouse apparently got the win for doing nothing more than picking a man off first. Crew has now won 4 of 6 at Wrigley.

Game 27- Milwaukee 5- Chicago (N) 19
15-12 2.0 GB
If there was one bright spot in this sound beatdown, it's that perhaps now, the Brewers can deffinitively say Turnbow is shot. 6 runs in 2/3 of mop up duty?! It's time for the Crew and Turnbow to part ways and use that roster spot for someone mildly effective. Yes, he wasn't the only pitcher that got rocked, but I can't deny now that he just isn't reliable and will probably never regain his '06 form.

This is one of those games where Suppan shouldn't feel to down about. I think all the pitchers deserve a mulligan after the way they have pitched. Yes the Cubs hung 8 earned over 3 1/3, but the offense has been letting this whole pitching staff down. Maybe the hitters were reminded that getting 6 runs in the first can go a long way towards getting even a half assed pitcher like Dempster a win.

Game 26- Milwaukee 10 Chicago (N) 7
15-11 1.0 GB

Yes, I went through a 7 game lay off. Apparently, so did the Brewers bats. Goose eggs, doughnuts, manholes. That's what Brewer line scores were reminding me of. The series against the Giants was the only one where the lineup really seemed to click. And the drain on the bullpen in all those close, extra inning games was really starting to show. I have to hand it to the bullpen, they kept the Crew around in those games. I don't know how a lineup like the Crew's can go so long without a nice 4 run win, apparently a while. Tonight wasn't a 4 run win, but it was a double digit run total, something this team needs to have more of.

On a night when Sheets was rusty after an 11 game layoff (7 walks), the bats, fired up by the return of Cameron, came alive and lit the Cubs up for 10 runs. Sheets got lit up like a Polish church, but a W is a W. Listened to the 3rd when the Brewers took a lead and then the Cubs came back to tie it up and the HP ump left for "sickness". Then got busy at work and turned on the bottom of the 8th on to hear Gagne make it interesting.

To follow up on something that happened on the "Work Imposed Hiatus", I was actually disappointed to see Bush go down. He still is a decent pitcher and Parra may not be as ready as everyone thought. It may not have hurt to send him down to Nashville to get some focus. While the Brewers are at it, they need to get the memo to Braun to focus. He looked a little better tonight, taking some pitches for once, but you can tell why there is such a phrase as "Sophomore Slump". He must be pressing.

Games 17 & 18: Milwaukee v Cincinnatti: OK, How Many Different Ways Can I Spell Cincinnati
The credit for this roadtrip has to go to the bullpen. Yes, I realized Gagne blew another one today, but I hang that on Yost. 4 straight appearances is too much for even a young stud. Gagne was bound to groove one.

Saturday's win was great because it sealed up a winning road trip (5-4) and was a needed boost for a team that was probably wondering what was going on with Sheets. Plus, I like it when Suppan puts in a good performance. My only request is that he could have gone a little deeper in the game to save the bullpen.

Another plus, the team is at 7 errors on the season. Happy with that defense. Encarnacion boots that ball in the 10th to open the door for the Crew. Last year the Crew is the team making that play. Although last year the crew has CoCo closing games.

Sunday should also be noted for the return of YO! He looked good, went 8 innings, which should have helped the bullpen out, except the game had to go to extra innings. So much for resting the bullpen.

I think the Crew have 5 days left before Cameron rejoins the club. The offense needs him. Gwynn feels good down in Nashville. With the way Weeks is whiffing away in the leadoff spot, I think Yost should try a combo of Gwynn or Cameron in the leadoff spot and send Weeks to watch some Jose Hernandez video. "See, that's what NOT to do!"

Game 16- Milwaukee v Cinncinnati: Hold Your Breath
I wake up from a nap that went excessively long and dial up brewers.com to catch the game. I see 5-0 after 5. "YEAH!" I see Torres pitcher "WA-WA-WHAT!". Oh no, here it goes, Sheets on the DL. I tune in the broadcast, which for some reason defaults to the Reds broadcast and I hear whoever the wisenheimer is on Reds radio blaming the Brewers for Sheets problems. "The Brewers need to be paying attention to more than pitch count when it comes to Sheets' health." Well what else are the Brewers supposed to do? You put a grown man out there to pitch, you try not to run him in the ground, you expect him to tell you when he's not right and you deal with it. Is Yost supposed to pitch him every 6 days? IDIOT. There were many good indicators that "tightness in the tricep" won't include a trip to the DL, but I can respect anyone who is frustrated that we had to blow up our bullpen to get this win tonight. And what a Spectacular win it was.

Game 15- Milwauke v St. Louis-- Happy Cows
Given Prince's lack of home runs this season, many fans were concerned that his vegetarianism was hindering is power. That's why I think cows everywhere were happy when Prince hit his 1st dinger of the season. In the 10th off Brad Thompson and FOLLOWING a legged out single by Ryan Braun. See Yost, maybe Braun 3, Fielder 4 works. Once again, the crew spent most of the day not hitting, and through sheer gutsy pitching, the bullpen kept them in this game. After Para left after 4, the bullpen kept the Cards off the board, McClung, Mota, Shouse and Gagne got it done. Although Gagne had to put a few guys on to keep me from feeling too good about him. To think, I almost turned this game off. Had I not been in the middle of mopping the kitchen, I may have gone to do something else. Shame on me.

Game 14- Milwaukee v St. Louis-- Maybe it was the Brewers playing over their heads?
When I saw the hot start St. Louis got off to, I took into consideration the teams the Cards were playing and thought, "The Crew will bring them back to earth." Hmm. I'd like to retract that statement.

I used to feel bad for Rick Ankiel. Now I just hate him for grinding out 18 pitches agains Villy last night in the 1st. Seriously, if you're pitcher is going to throw 45 in the first, the hitters have to give him some support. I don't know what the Brewer's strike out totals are, but I feel like I'm watching the '01 team. Can Jenkins come back? I was shocked to see they made a game out of it in the 9th, I guess that's good to see if you want one bright spot from the game. Last year they couldn't score after the 7th, and it seems like they're more able to do that now.

Lot of bloggers making an issue of Turnbow saying he is unhappy with his role. I wish I knew what his role is. Yost is only using him when the Crew is behind. To me that says mop up, but even the Turnbow of last season was better than a mop up man. Fact is, Turnbow has a right to be unhappy. He wasn't criticizing Yost's decision, in fact, he kind of defended it. All he said was, he felt he could still pitch effectively and was going to keep going out there until he proved to Yost he could do it.

I hardly put myself in the "Yost-basher" category, but I do have to question his attitude. He seems to have a little Bobby Valentine in him-- being stubborn and taking it personal when the press questions his decisions. If Jason Kendall is your best hitter right now, move him to the 2 spot. If JJ Hardy isn't hitting well, quit having the pitcher hit behind him. If Braun and Fielder worked well at 3 and 4 in the lineup last season, hit them that way. I'm all for trying unique strategy, but sometimes straight up common sense is your best friend.

Tough loss tonight, but not Bush's fault. The Brewer bats are struggling more than Joey Meyer in a phone booth. This funk of Prince's is compounded by the fact that Braun isn't hitting either. If those guys aren't hitting, the whole lineup seems to fall apart.

The Jeff Weaver signing is interesting. My first reaction was, "If we needed an arm, why did we let Vargas go?" But perhaps Weaver has something more left in him than Vargas, and apparently the contract the Brewers gave him was next to nothing considering it is all incentive laden.

Today is the anniversary of Juan Nieves' no-no. I'll never forget that night. I was doing my homework when my father came up from his workroom and told us the Brewers were throwing a no-hitter. I think when we turned it on, it was around the 7th inning. And to be honest, I didn't no the true deffinition of a no-hitter. To me a hit was any time you made contact with a ball. (Later on after the game, my father, using a chalkboard in the basement explained deffinitions of a base hit, error, no-hitter, perfect game and other baseball details.) But my brother and I watched that game, and when Robin caught the last out, I felt genuine excitement over a teams success. When you think about it, being a fan is a weird thing. You have, basically, no part in their success, yet seeing them succeed gives you great joy. I'll save the dynamics of "fan/team" relationships for later, but at that moment, I felt like I went from a casual Brewer fan, to a rabid, die-hard, sprinkle my ashes over County Stadium fan.

I hate starting posts when I may not be able to complete them, (I'm at work right now, an hour from show time) but, I don't feel like blogging at midnight tonight.

Game 11- Milwaukee v NY (N)
It's hard to write this post with my "Ben Sheets is Awesome" sandwich board on. I didn't get to listen to any of this game, just made occasional score checks from my register at REI customer service. The first check of Brewers.com was "Brewers back in game" which I figured meant, "They put a run on the board after the Mets hung 5 on Sheets." But I was glad to see that they had grabbed the lead and Sheets, while finally getting scored on shut it DOWN! 18 consecutive batters after the 2nd. And in consecutive starts, he has beaten Barry Zito (highest paid pitcher in baseball) and Johan Santana (2nd highest paid pitcher in baseball). There's a lot of talk about Kapler and Kendall, but I'm also very happy to see Weeks working out in the leadoff spot.

Game 12- Milwaukee v NY (N)
This game was so anxiety filled, that I wondered if I can take another competitive season. I'll take a season of games like this over a season like '02 any day. All in all, other than Mota's inability to throw strikes, I have to be happy with the bullpen. Gagne, other than making a "bad pitch" in two previous appearances, has been pretty solid. He throws strikes and he doesn't get rattled when he gets knocked around. I found it strange that after a mediocre rebirth in Texas last season, he was touted as the FINAL PIECE of the Red Sox bullpen. The player that would make Boston's bullpen's ubeatable... then he ended up being a bust as a setup man. In my opinion, the media and Red Sox fans overhyped him. But when the Brewers signed him this offseason, the media seemed to forget how wrong they were in July, and assumed he was done, ready for the trash heap, destined to pump gas in Montreal by June. But I figured he could still be effective enough to get the Brewers through this season until they could find a better long term option for the 9th inning. So far, (and it's early) he seems to be doing that. And as long as he doesn't give up 5 runs in the 9th to the Phillies, he may be an adequate replacement for CoCo.

Three game losing streak in which Josh Fogg, Aaron Harang and Nelson Figueroa all looked like Maddux, Glavine and Smoltz. The bats are silent, other than Kendall still gutting it out in the 9 spot like a champ while the 2 spot is stinking up the park, there has been little to look at as positives. Turnbow came in yesterday for mop up and promptly walked the leadoff man before retiring the side. Prince just missed a homer today, but considering he was 0 for Cincy, I'll take the long, loud double. Other than Bush on Wednesday (who was the victim of some poor breaks) the starters got jobbed. Villy did fall apart in the 7th yesterday, and Para got into some trouble in the 4th today, but they deserved better support. I spent Thursday on the JSO's Brewers Blog, and it was fun to be conversing with that many Brewer fans during a game, even if most of them were overly negative.

He teed off on that like he knew I was bringing the heat

I've figured out Doug Melvin's elaborate ruse. In order to take the pressure of Derrick Turnbow, he spent $10 million on Eric Gagne, knowing he would come to Milwaukee and serve up gopher ball after gopher ball, thereby giving the fans someone to hate and boo other than Turnbow. Do you think it's mere chance that Yost has yet to bring Turnbow into a game this season? Of course not, he needed Gagne to blow two of three save opportunities in just over a week so that when Turnbow does come into the game, the crowd will be elated and give him a hero's welcome. Seriously, could you really argue with giving Turnbow a shot at closing after what Gagne did tonight? I didn't expect Gagne to be Mr. bajillion consecutive saves again, but I figured he could at least keep the ball in the park!

Apparently Gagne shook off the change from Kendall on that dong pitch, saying he was caught up in the moment and wanted to throw the heat. Does anyone remember Nuke wanting to "announce his presence with authority" in Bull Durham? Yeah, I doubt it happened, but if Kendall did tip off Phillips, I couldn't blame him. Damn French (Canadian I know) always letting their emotion get in the way.

I'm not sure what bothered me more though, Gagne making 1 bad pitch that took a W away from a great pitching effort by Soup or Mota being absolutely unable to throw strikes. Let's hear it for Shousie and Weeks saving the day.

BROOM TIME
Had the Crew only taken 2 of 3 from the Giants, I still would have been disappointed. You have to get it done against the "lower depths", and the 2008 Giants very well qualify as the lower depths.

Sheets was Sheets today. A shutout, has yet to be scored on and reminding the pessimist Brewer fans that there is reason to re-sign this guy regardless of his freaky injury past. OK, I'll get off my "Re-sign Sheeter" soap box. Combined with Parra's performance yesterday, the only stinker after one lap through the rotation has been Bush. Bush, you have to learn to win on the road if you want to stay in the rotation when Gallardo comes back.

So what happened to Barry Zito? The guy is the most sought after free agent 2 years ago, linked to Alyssa Milano and known for having a nasty curve that makes grown men shudder. Now he's giving up 5 runs in 5 innings to the Brewers and even Tina Yothers won't return his calls.

I was happy to see Gagne look decent in earning his first save yesterday, but I'll be happier if Turnbow looks good whenever he makes his first appearance. I will say this, Gagne's "goggled, frat boy" look is a nice compliment to Turnbow's "80s high school dropout working in an auto shop" look. Throw in Riske's "pale, gringo gunslinger" look and the Brewers bullpen is enough to scare even the bravest barber.

SPORTS TV RANT/ FRIDAY GAME COMMENTS
While watching Friday's Brewer game, I realized just how ridiculous the sports media complex has become. On Hooter's 5 screen TV wall, there was fishing on VS. (which I had them change to Brewers/Giants), Cubs/Astros, the McDonald's girls high school all star game on ESPN2, Outside the Lines on ESPN and a UNLV/Wyoming football game from Oct. 27th on theMtn. Yes, I realize fans of Utah and BYU now have an outlet for seeing their teams play live, but in the big picture, doesn't an entire network for a conference seem like overkill? And who other than these girls parents are watching the basketball game. At first, I thought it was a collegiate all-star game, and found myself getting a little caught up in it (as I will admit to being attracted to female athletes), but when I realized these girls had yet to go to their senior prom, I felt a little confused and guilty, like I had just won home run derby only to find out I was competing against Jim Abbot and David Eckstein. Plus, Hooters chose to have Outside the Lines on the "big screen". I realize Hooter's waitresses have better things to worry about than monitor arrangement, but while I'm straining to see how many outs there are in my game, there is Bob Ley, in all his 16 by 9 glory, enlightening me for the umpteenth time on why Geno Auriema and Pat Summit hate eachother. I get ESPN, you don't have the men's final four, so you have to hype the women's final four-- greaaaaaat. I'll make an appointment to watch women's basketball when you finally convince me that the MLS is just as enjoyable as the NFL. Speaking of the NFL, ESPN seems to think that even though it's April, they will give me 30 minutes of NFL over-analysis every afternoon. Yes, I know the draft is coming up, but shouldn't sports that are actually playing take precedence over 4 guys talking about which QB from the '83 draft would they draft today. Hypotheticals like that should be saved for downtime at work, not put on a major TV network. You know what would be great ESPN, instead of 4 NFL geeks jawing about a season that is 6 months away, you put on a show that updated me on what happened in baseball last night. I think you have a show like that, it's called BASEBALL TONIGHT!

On to the game. Kendall is so far the signing of the off-season. This guy is a gamer and makes the bottom of the lineup awesome. Think about it, we have Bill Hall, JJ Hardy and Jason Kendall in our bottom 4. I know he doesn't have the arm you would want in a catcher, but he knows how to handle the pitchers, gets on base, and moves much better than Johnny Estrada, who only hustled when the Chorizo was heading his way. [Was that racist or a fat joke? Doesn't matter, he sucked and isn't on a active roster as far as I know.] Once again, Weeks showed some skill as a leadoff man. I know it helped that the Giants were putting it on a tee, but I believe it also helps that I've backed off calling him my favorite player, which has been a curse for every player since Yount retired. They either get dealt, get injured or drop off in production. Examples: Jeff Cirillo, Jeromy Burnitz, Ben Sheets, Geoff Jenkins, etc., etc. I think in 2002, I chose Brooks Kieschnick as my favorite just so I could protect the rest of the talent on the team.

Highlight of the game: Hall putting that second homer into the Summerfest grounds. Concern of the game: Villanueava's inability to get through 6. "Hit 'em where they ain't" of the game: Fielder once again making teams pay for putting the shift on him.

You know what that is, that's Bush!

My gut told me that letting Vargas go may have been uneccessary, and judging by how Bush pitched today, I might have preferred him getting a chance in the rotation. I've been pretty neutral on Bush in his career as a Brewer, but today was frightening. 5 walks! You have to do a better job of keeping us in the game Bushy. I believe he went hit batsmen, walk, walk, out, out, and walk. That's not my ideal number 3 starter. I thought Vargas put up good enough numbers in the spring to receive more consideration than he did. Ach! Let's hope Villy gets us back into the W column tomorrow. The Yost-Haters are going to not tolerate Bush in the rotation long if he keeps this up, and honestly, I'm not going to tolerate it either. I hate the bottom three of our rotation being as inexperienced as Gallardo, Villy and Parra, but that most likely will be the case.

Attaboy Rickie

What a game today! I tell myself that 2-0 is nothing to get excited about, but winning on the road, winning at Wrigley, winning against the pre-season pick to win the division, that gets me excited. Listened to the first inning before going to work and felt great about Ricky hitting that first pitch dinger. I'm worrying he's pressing to much as the lead off man, so hopefully he'll relax a little more.

Does anyone remember Uecker ripping LaRussa for doing the "pitcher batting 8th" thing a few years ago? I wonder how he feels about that now... especially when Kendall reached base 5 times today.

The Yost-haters were pissed on the JSO blog today about Kapler getting the start over Gwynn, but you can't argue with righty vs. lefty logic. My question is why trot Riske out for a second inning? I like the guy and all, (and I still think he could be our closer before the season is out), but isn't a 6 run lead a good time to get Turnbow in there for some work and confidence building?

Tomorrow don't have to go into REI until 3:30, so I should be able to listen to the whole game and take my stab at the running game blog on JSO. Some of the bloggers on there really need a reality check, and flame warring complete strangers seems like a great way to spend an afternoon.

I'm the last person to bitch that we need more holidays in this country. I think we have enough holidays in this country. I don't get holidays off with my job, so it pisses me off whenever I have to go the post office/ deposit a check/ buy scotch and the establishments that render these goods and services give their coddled employees the day off. Yeah, I'm sure the break neck pace of being a bank teller earns you the right to spend MLK Day carting your fat ass kids skiing-- I mean celebrating the civil rights struggle.

However, there is one day per year when I always feel a little cheated by work-- Opening Day. Sure, I could take the day off, but I'm usually 1,000 miles from the nearest Brewer game, and burning a vacation day to watch a game on TV seems like a waste. However, when I remember the feeling of driving into the Country Stadium parking lot while my friends were in school, smelling those grills, layering as much clothing under my Brewer jersey as possible, I get very nostalgic and lose any interest in working.

Today I was able to listen/watch the first 7 innings of the Brewers/Cubs game before I had to "focus on the 4" at work. It's probably good I missed the pivotal late innings where all the runs were scored, because watching Gagne choke away a 3 run lead in the 9th would have made me switch a newscast like the Incredible Hulk with jock itch. In the end, the Brewers won, and what I regret missing the most is not Gwynn's game winning sac fly or Riske's shutout 10th, it was how dejected those spoiled, whiny Cubs fans must have looked when Kerry Wood gave up those three runs and Bobby Howry blew it in the 10th. Carlos Marmol may have that closer job sooner than later.

Pitching, Pitching, IT'S PITCHING DAMMIT!

The starting rotation may have seen two more spots locked down yesterday. Dave Bush overcame a rocky first inning against the Cubbies to retire the last 11 in a row. Then Manny Para came in and shut the norththsiders out for 4 innings. This was Bush's first good outing of the spring, but Para has been lighting it up. It would be a shame not to give him a chance, especially if Capuano keeps struggling.

The other pitching note I haven't commented on is Sheet's pending departure after this season. The logic seems to be: If he pitches well, he'll be too expensive to resign and if he pitches poorly, the Brewers are better off without him." I think many in Crew-ville are WAY too concnerned about locking Prince Fielder down to a long term deal. I want to see Fielder as a lifelong Brewer as much as anyone, but the fact is, he's not elgible for Free Agency until 2011 and with Scott Boras as his agent, the odds are slim that he'll stay a Brewer no matter how much Attanasio ponies up. If the focus is to win NOW, let's keep a pitcher who is still, even amidst the bizarre injuries he has endured, the ace of this staff. No one is going to win a championship with a staff anchored by Jef Suppan and Yovani Gaillardo, who, as we learned from Chris Capuano, shouldn't be judged on 1 season.

Contract Problems

The big news today out of Brewer camp in Arizona is that Prince Fielder is unhappy with his contract renewal for 2008. As a player with less than 3 years of ML experience, he is at the mercy of the team in terms of salary, and the Brewers deemed Fielder worth just under 700k. I know he is worth more than that, but what are the Brewer's supposed to do, break the bank for a guy who next winter will easily get $10mill or more through arbitration? I am sure Doug Melvin offered some sort of contract to Fielder ala the Rockies locking in Troy Tulowitzki, but SUPER ASSHOLE Scott Boras probably turned it down because he knows the worst thing to do is lock Prince down early.

In GOOD Brewer news, Sheet's looked sharp in his start yesterday. Two innings, 15 pitches, 6 up, 6 down. Sadly, my favorite player will probably walk after this season unless he has a shitty year and no one is interested in signing him. Say what you will about his injuries, but when he pitches, he is BY FAR the best pitcher on our staff.

LaRussa wanted Bonds
Tony LaRussa, in my opinion, may be one of the most intelligent men in baseball. Until I read Men at Work by George Will, I thought managers were nothing more than washed up players who's baseball cards were usually the first ones to end up in the spokes of my Huffy. After reading that book, which followed LaRussa through his daily rigors, I had a new found respect for him and the work managers did. However, an article I read on MLB.com today changed my mind about this man's intelligence. He's not in GW's ballpark yet, but it's in that territory.

"What I've said each of the last two years is that when you're looking for somebody dangerous to hit behind Albert [Pujols], Barry was a guy that I thought," La Russa said.
"And for whatever reason, at the general manager or ownership level, they didn't agree that he would be a guy that they thought we should add. I understand. Organization chart -- they're my bosses. That's exactly what happened."

Now I'm not arguing with his logic. I personally don't think a 45 year old with bad knees, bad attitude and pending federal confinement is the best addition to a team, but LaRussa's right, he probably would give Pujols some protection in the lineup. What I find amazing is that LaRussa is somehow flumoxed that Cards management wouldn't want to sign this pariah to a contract. LaRussa, have you been so busy with community service after your DUI that you failed to notice Bonds is considered public enemy number one? OK, maybe that's Clemens now, but still?

Considering the allegations that LaRussa knew McGwire was juicing and chose not to take any action, he has shown me that he's less about winning through intelligence and more about winning at all costs. He is no different than many Director Sportiff's in the professional cycling world that could care less about the details of how they win, as long as they win. What LaRussa doesn't realize is that if everything I've heard about the St. Louis fans is true, they would rather win with honor, than by signing Barry Bonds. I have a feeling they already feel a little humiliated thanks to McGwire. LaRussa really doesn't get it and needs to retire.

Proof Things Never Change for The Cubbies...

just the culprits. Last year it was Carlos Zambrano and his lame prediction. This year an even more milktoast picther is giving me cause to chuckle. Just when I thought I wouldn't have anything to blog about today, Ryan Dempster of the Cubs gives me blog-fodder.

From MLB.com
Dempster opened Spring Training by predicting the Cubs will win the World Series, and Baltimore's Kevin Millar had a response to that.
"I'm guaranteeing a 2008 World Series," Millar said. "Everybody else is. I'm going on the record right now. We're going to shock the world. I don't know who Dempster is in Chicago but if he thinks he's going to win the World Series, he has to come through us first."
Millar had one more prediction: "I'm going deep off Ryan Dempster."

"I don't know who Dempster is in Chicago." That is AWESOME! Predictions are the lamest things an athlete can do. To borrow from Jim Rome, "No one remembers when they don't come true, and everyone thinks you're a genius when they do." Kewdohs to Millar for, in a satirical way, pointing out this tom-assery. This team barely made the playoffs, only because of the Brewers choke job, then got embarrassed in the playoffs. Now a pitcher who will be as memorable a Cub's pitcher as Terry Adams or Heathcliff Slocumb suddenly thinks they can topple the AL. Dempster, focus on changing yourself from a mediocre closer to a mediocre starter and leave the predictions to the fans.

And in Related News: Cecil Fielder Spokesman for Atkins

Amazing story this morning in the JSO [Milwaukee Journal Sentinal Online] about Prince Fielder. Since this guy came up in '05, he has exceeded my expectations, both on the field and off. The last time the Brewer's had a draft pick so highly touted, he was the rectal cancer known as Gary Sheffield, so I'll admit, I've come to expect very little from any Brewer marked as "the next big thing". However, reading Anthony Witrado's article this morning made me feel guilty for having any skepticism about Prince-- there are very few flaws in this 23 year old. He has the talent where if he played his whole career in Milwaukee (and I doubt he will) he would supplant Robin Yount as the greatest Brewer, he has the character at a young age to be a team leader, he has shown desire to improve his game and to top it all off, I find out he has chosen to become a vegetarian! Apparently his wife gave him book which detailed the mistreatment of animals by the meat industry (no mention of the book's title, but hell the video from that slaughterhouse in SoCal where they used fork lifts to move live cows would be enough for me) and he found it so disgusting that he chose to change his diet. Add to that the way he's focusing on D this spring and he's already shown more dedication in his 3 seasons than his dad probably did in his whole career. I bet the only self sacrifice Cecil ever tried was limiting himself to 2 trips to the MGM/Grand's Buffet, and that was probably just because he had to hustle and get some action down at the sports book.

Now I'm not saying Prince Fielder has gained any more respect from me because he chooses not to eat meat. While I myself dabbled in vegetarianism once, (not in 'Nam of course), I do currently eat meat. To borrow and modify a phrase from Ben Franklin, "I think bratwurst is proof that god loves us and wants us to be happy." However, it's pretty interesting to read that a player who's frame more closely resembles the beer barrel logo guy than John Jaha and who plays in a state where having a meal without pork, beef, poultry or fish is about as worthwhile as NA beer, is choosing to subsist on soy, lentils and Boca burgers. My advice Prince, try the Boca bratwurst, they aren't as good as the real thing, but if it's your only option, might as well go with it... kind of like the Devil Rays.

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=720531

Earlier in the month, I traveled back to my former home of Idaho to revisit some of the wilderness spots that I enjoyed in my almost 7 years of residence there.

While driving into Stanley on a hot Sunday afternoon, I was reminded of just how jaw dropping the Sawtooth Mountains can be. They tend to be spaced in such a way that each one has a distinct and dominant profile. The Wasatch Mountains in my new home obviously eat up the horizon as well, but various peaks and canyons tend to run into eachother as one menacing front, not the individualistic eruption of pink rock and jagged stone that bumps and pushes along the 50 mile Sawtooth Valley. For the first time ever, I approached the range from the west on ID-21 and right past the turn-off for Grandjean, there was a perfectly opened window into the heart of the range. I stopped and tried to identify the summits, but without much bearing, they were just sophisticated wild ass guesses.

In actuality, I hadn't planned on spending anytime in the Sawtooths this trip. My plan was to ride Fisher Creek which is on the east side of the Sawtooth Valley, (technically part of the White Cloud Range) then make my way south to the Pioneer mountains and a third attempt at climbing Hyndman Peak, the 12,009' mountain that can be gained in one long day of hiking. However, that afternoon on Fisher Creek I began to reconsider leaving the valley that night.

In early September of last year, the Valley Road fire burned about 41,000 acres in and around Fisher Creek. [For info on this fire, I found a great article at http://www.forwolves.org/ralph/valley-road-forestfire.htm] I knew this, (I was actually hiking up to Alice Lake with a friend on the opposite side of the valley and saw the plume of smoke build throughout the day) but as I rode the gravel jeep road that leads back to the downhill portion of the trail, I saw little evidence of the fire. They had fought hard to protect this area since there were about a dozen cabins within the first few miles of riding, but about 2 miles from the highway, I began to see patches of burnt land and black naked trees. Then, about 6 miles from the valley, the full force of the fire was evident. In this section, nothing escaped, and as I reached the top of the first climb, and got a perspective of the surroundings, I saw used matchsticks poking up over countless hills and drainages. Views that were normally limited due to thick folliage were now almost clear. Washington, Blackman and other peaks of the White Clouds were easily visible through the barcode forest. The threat of rain and the fact that I have countless pictures of Fisher Creek were reasons why I left the camera in the car. But after seeing this devistation, I felt like I was visiting this place for the first time.

The best I can describe the first mile and a half of descent is frightening. You could see where you were in relation to the landscape for the first time. All of the drainages and low levels of the trail were visible. The intrusion of being in the wreckage made me feel guilty. I could barely focus on my ride. I could see all the contours of the land and the consequences of slipping off the narrow, side hill trail that weaved and wound around the tops of these sandy and rocky hills. I felt like a tourist going to a crash site, taking a bus tour of Katrina devestated New Orleans. I questioned wether I should be there? Am I doing more damage to the trail? I finished that first section of descent feeling pretty bummed. It was my first time riding the trail since I crashed and tore up my knee in June of '05. 2005 was the first time since 2000 that I hadn't ridden Fisher Creek during a season. I wanted to blame the fire for my cautiousness, but I knew the texture of the trail was always loose and dicey. I began to feel the effects of bonking during the middle climb section, 2 miles through a meadow and gradual single track climbing. This is where I would usually turn it on, a good section of grinding before the tastiest 3 miles of descent you will find anywhere, but I was feeling burnt, like everything around me. It was depressing to ride in this. I ate a granola bar at the top of a short pitch right before you drop into the roller coaster and felt a little better. As I began the descent, the adrenaline got to me, the trail was more forgiving here and as I left the burnt areas, the forest began to look familiar again. I realized I had to come back and ride this again, not in the near future, but in the next few days. The trail sent me a message through the destruction that the "path" was still here, and I could find my way through it even though everything around me seemed so drastically different. My bike, my legs, my mountain bike chi seemed to just begin warming up and it seemed like a shame to piss that away now. As dissapointing as this man made fire was to me and the pride I felt in what I thought was one of the best trails you will ride anywhere, it was a reminder of "annica", the Buddhist term for change. I had changed in the last year, drastically, when the "Melon Valley Incident" sat me on my ass for most of the summer and took me closer to death than I had ever been. I fancied myself a good, (not great), but pretty good recreational cyclist before that crash. But since then, I didn't have the balls, the legs or even the drive to rack mile after mile in the saddle. That was somewhat depressing, but not necessarily bad. I came through it all right, just like Fisher Creek came through the Valley Road Fire all right.

When I started that days ride by heading down ID 75 to Fisher Creek road, I passed the old, non-operative Chevron / International Real Estate buildings that were the sole structures of "Obsidian". Had it not been for the sign declaring it, you wouldn't have known this was actually a town. The dilapitated buildings always made me laugh because the thought that there was anything "International" about this one room log cabin real estate office seemed rediculous. It looked like it had been built when mining was still a valid means of income here. The gas station never was open in my memory, and the tiny lodge near it seemed like a relic from the past like in the same category as the mining ghost towns in the area. Yet, I was shocked to see the buildings refurbished without losing their original charm and a few out-of-towners actually parked and staying at the 3 or 4 room lodge. There were even pay-showers outside the gas station. It was about time I figured. A service station within 1 mile of the best mountain biking trailhead in Idaho seemed like a no-brainer now. Stanley was still 15 miles to the north, and for those driving up from Ketchum to the south, it made more sense to stop here, rinse the salt off and grab a cold six for the night than make the journey out of the way to Stanley or to Smiley Creek Lodge just before Galena Pass. I gladly took a $2.25 shower, which was much nicer than the bacteria laden stalls at Redfish Lake Campground and bought an $8.99 six of Ruby Mountain (it's still WAY off the beaten path, so everything is "resort priced") and made my way to Alturas Lake, at the south end of the Sawtooths. Redfish is "the" destination for most campers, and even though it was a weekday, I doubted I could find anything. Alturas was my first cmaping experience in the Sawtooths, back in '99 during a cold night in September with some friends with work. After that, I began spending more and more vacation time in this valley, which was easy when I lived 150 miles away, but now that it was 400 miles away, I was going to take advantage while I could.

My ears are filled with the sounds of Widespread Panic. I'm listening to the concert I went to a little over a week ago in Jackson. Last night I saw they finally posted the concert for download on widespreadpanic.com and for $10.95, I can finally take a listen to a musical snapshot of a great night of music I had. I've bought live recordings from Rush tours I've seen, where the setlist hasn't changed from venue to venue, but this is the first time I've been able to listen to the actual show as I heard it. Pretty cool. Deffinitely a better value at $10.95 than going out and spending $16 on one of their studio albums.

Today, I unexpectedly had contact with someone whose attention I'd love to get a little more of. I tired my best to be charming, which usually results in damn goofiness more than charm, but I guess it's better for a woman to see the genuine craziness of my personality than the reserved, "What do I do next?" persona that I usually have. Actually, I guess if I had one lesson from tonight, is that I should act that way more often, since silliness is a good thing and more often than not, I will tend to walk out of work bitter and focused rather than shrugging and forward thinking. Silliness is a virtue, and I have to remember that now that I am no longer in an official management position, I can temper some of my leadership with goofiness. And as my best friend tells me, being yourself is still the best way to find acceptance with people. So here's to slowly trying to break out of my shell of focused, intense, self discrimination and moving more towards perceived weirdness.

The great thing about living in a large city, (even if it is Salt Lake) is the opportunities for culture. In my old home of Twin Falls, Idaho, culture was sitting on the canyon rim with a case of Pabst Blue Ribbon after a dinner at Outback Steakhouse. Tonight, I was able to go downtown to see one of the legends of Bluegrass, Earl Scruggs, play at the Gallivan Center's free Twilight Concert Series. Yes I went alone. Yes it was worth it. They finished with Foggy Mountain Breakdown (what else COULD he finish with) and I felt chills. I can break down my live musical experiences into two categories. Shows that meant alot to me, and shows that would mean alot to ANYONE because you knew you were seeing a legend. The latter was the case tonight. Yes, I saw Widespread Panic a week ago and it was incredible, but when you go up to Joe Green Jello and tell him that, he won't give a fuck. However, certain artists you see and know that you are lucky to have seen them. Bob Dylan falls into this category. And now he has been joined by Earl Scruggs. Many people don't know his name, but it won't take much to realize that he is the last remaining legend of a musical artform that, let's face it, could go the way of polka. I can't understand why all these fringe musical styles like bluegrass, flamenco, folk, blues have all found their way into the fusion of pop music, yet Polka can't buy a piece? But I digress, back to the show. At 82 years old, I knew that this man was a link to previous Bluegrass legends like Bill Monroe and Lester Flatt. They are gone, but Earl Scruggs is still around, and his brand of music should mean something to every fan of good music everywhere.

The pic below was another taken via the timer on my first excursion to the Uinta Mountains in Utah. I felt a little guilty about it. In my time in Idaho, the Sawtooth Mountains had become my sanctuary, my "fortress of solitude". However, now that I'm in Utah, I figured it was impractical to have a escape route that required 6 hours of driving, so I decided to try something more local.

It was the Wednesday after Memorial Day, so I figured there would be some people up there, but not a lot considering that area got snow most of the holiday weekend. Turns out the place was completely empty. The camp hosts told me I was the only one in the whole drainage. Where I was "exactly" was the Yellowstone River area on the South side of the range, 20 miles north of Duchesne. I actually planned on heading to the northern side and hopefully getting a view of Kings Peak (the highest point in Utah) but a road closure due to snow changed the scenic route I was going to take to get there. I planned on taking 150 north from Kamas and finding a route along the range, but after reaching the pass and seeing UDOT vehicles blocking the road for plowing, I figured I had to durn around. Rather than go back around to Park City and then up to Evanston, I stayed on the southern side and took UT 35 across. Passing oil rigs and red stone, it was a little different than I expected, and I never really got the jaw dropping view of the summits that you get on ID 75 on your way to Stanley. In fact, most of the drive reminded me of the more subtle rolling hills of the Rock Creek Foothills near Twin Falls. Elevation, it was much higher than any developed campt site I've been to (8,200') but the major summits I did see were rounded off and bare. In my opinion, even the Wasatch are more impressive. A good mountain spot though can't be judged on impressiveness alone. There is the people factor. That's where the Wasatch lose out. When you are right on the edge of a metropolitan area of 1.5 million people, the nooks and crannies are going to be filled with people looking to "escape to nature" and that's fine, however, it makes to truly secluded spots like the Sawtooth Wilderness Area in Idaho that much better, which is why if I had my choice, I would live in Idaho and work in Salt Lake, if that makes any sense.

"Just sittin' here, watchin' the river flow."