The Brewers are continuing to scuffle. They beat their nemesis in Adam Wainwright and the Cardinals in St. Louis on Monday, but have not won since. They fell to the Cards on Wednesday and Thursday, and then were swept in Pittsburgh over the weekend. They also lost OF Carlos Gomez to a hamstring injury.
Gomez strained his hamstring in the ninth inning on Thursday. He did manage to beat out the throw, but he came up limping and came out of the game. The Brewers placed him on the 15-day disabled list and brought up IF Jason Rogers. Losing Gomez is huge for a team that is already having problems scoring runs.
Manager Ron Roenicke tried to shake things up on Saturday by having OF Ryan Braun hit in the leadoff spot. This move worked out in the first, as Braun led off the game with a single and scored in the first. Unfortunately, they only scored one more run and lost 6-2.
The Brewers only scored more than 3 runs once this week, and they beat the Cardinals 5-4. They were outscored 23-9 in the next 5 games. Roenicke and his team are not panicking, but there is some urgency in the clubhouse.
“They’re tired of it. We’re tired of it. We need it to change,” Roenicke said. “Whatever you have to do to just get the job done. These are good players, and we need to get it done.”
Hopefully, for Brewer fans, they start getting the job done this week. This team is good, and they have a chance to make the playoffs, but that chance is getting smaller by the week.
|
Games |
Series |
|
| Record for the week |
1-5 |
0-2 |
| Record for the month |
2-10 |
0-4 |
| Record for the year |
2-10 |
0-4 |
I had a mixed week this week. Bassball Fever got its first victory, 5-4 while Brooks Robinson lost 7-2. Bassball Fever’s pitchers had a much better week. I’m happy with my players on both teams, so I am going not making any transactions this week.
|
Brooks Robinson |
Stat |
Opponent |
|
24 |
R |
36 |
|
7 |
HR |
10 |
|
28 |
RBI |
38 |
|
2 |
SB |
7 |
|
.278 |
Avg |
.253 |
|
2 |
W |
2 |
|
5 |
SV |
6 |
|
59 |
K |
58 |
|
4.48 |
ERA |
2.87 |
|
1.37 |
WHIP |
1.12 |
|
2 |
Points |
7 |
|
Bassball Fever |
Stat |
Opponent |
|
23 |
R |
43 |
|
2 |
HR |
14 |
|
22 |
RBI |
37 |
|
6 |
SB |
2 |
|
.290 |
Avg |
.304 |
|
3 |
W |
3 |
|
5 |
SV |
1 |
|
61 |
K |
47 |
|
3.36 |
ERA |
5.44 |
|
1.28 |
WHIP |
1.32 |
|
5 |
Points |
4 |
Bassball Fever’s record: 7-12-1
Brooks Robinson’s record: 6-12-2
Well, I made some mistakes so far. This is my first year doing fantasy baseball in some time. I had forgotten that you can make changes to your lineup during the week. Therefore, I did not have nearly enough pitchers on my bench in either league. I made many transactions to remedy that.
I picked up Wily Peralta, Clay Bucholz, and Jimmy Nelson for my Bassball Fever team, dropping Erick Aybar, Ender Inciarte, and Joe Panik. Unfortunately, I picked them up after their first start. Bucholz had a great opening day, but he tanked on Sunday.
On my Brooks Robinson team, I picked up Collin McHugh, Jason Hammel, R.A. Dickey, Mat Latos, Neftali Feliz, Jimmy Nelson, and LaTroy Hawkins. I dropped Yu Darvish, Brandon Belt, Chase Headley, Jonathan Broxton, Steve Pearce, and Yan Gomes. Also, I put Cliff Lee on the DL.
I lost both of my games this week. Here are the results:
|
Brooks Robinson |
Stat |
Opponent |
|
38 |
R |
32 |
|
13 |
HR |
7 |
|
44 |
RBI |
31 |
|
3 |
SB |
3 |
|
.246 |
Avg |
.242 |
|
2 |
W |
5 |
|
3 |
SV |
9 |
|
42 |
K |
80 |
|
4.99 |
ERA |
2.21 |
|
1.42 |
WHIP |
0.95 |
|
4 |
Points |
5 |
|
Bassball Fever |
Stat |
Opponent |
|
24 |
R |
38 |
|
2 |
HR |
17 |
|
17 |
RBI |
35 |
|
0 |
SB |
6 |
|
.208 |
Avg |
.239 |
|
3 |
W |
5 |
|
5 |
SV |
11 |
|
70 |
K |
66 |
|
2.71 |
ERA |
1.79 |
|
1.07 |
WHIP |
1.09 |
|
2 |
Points |
8 |
So it was a rough week. I am making some adjustments and hopefully I will have some more success next week.
The Brewers have picked up right where they left off last year, which is not a good thing. They opened the season by being swept at Miller Park by the Colorado Rockies and outscored 20-6. The onslaught continued when Pittsburgh came to town.
Kyle Lohse gave up 8 runs on 10 hits in just 3.1 innings on Opening Day. Of the 10 hits, 5 were doubles and 2 were home runs. The Rockies hit another double off of Michael Blazek, for a total of 6 doubles in the game. Adam Lind (3 for 4) and Aramis Ramirez (2 for 3) accounted for 5 of the 8 Brewer hits. Unfortunately, the Brewers were not able to cross the plate, falling 10-0.
Game 2 was not much better. Matt Garza gave up 4 runs on 8 hits (4 doubles) in 5 innings. The Brewers scored their first runs of the season with 2 in the 5th, but that only brought them to within 4-2. The Rockies added 2 more doubles and another run to win the game 5-2.
The Brewers came close in game 3. They took the lead for the first time this season on a 2-run home run by Adam Lind. The Rockies came back and took a 4-2 lead in to the 9th. The Brewers scored 2 in the 9th to force extra innings, but the Wilin Rosario hit a home run to give the Rockies a 5-4 lead that they did not give up. In all, the Rockies hit 4 doubles and 3 home runs, giving them 16 doubles and 5 home runs for the series.
After an off day (in which Scooter Gennett got married), the Brewers started a 3 game series against the Pirates. Mike Fiers racked up 8 strikeouts in 5 innings, but he also gave up 5 runs on 7 hits, 4 doubles, and a home run. Lind continued his hot streak going 2-3 with a double and 2 RBIs, but it was not enough as the Brewers fell 6-2.
The Brewers finally got their first win on Saturday behind a terrific pitching performance by Jimmy Nelson. Nelson went 7 innings giving up just 2 hits while striking out 9 and walking 2. Will Smith and Jonathan Broxton completed the shutout without allowing a base runner. It was the Brewers’ turn to hit some doubles, as Ramirez, Khris Davis, and Carlos Gomez each had one and Hector Gomez had two. Lind started a rally in the second with a single and he scored on a ground out by Davis. Hector Gomez drove in Ramirez and Jean Segura with his first double. Segura scorched a two-run home run in to the upper deck in left field to give the Brewers a 5-0 lead in the fourth.
The Brewers finished their home stand with a 10-2 loss to the Pirates. Lohse had a better start but still gave up 4 runs in 6.1 innings. Carlos Gomez hit a two-run home run to give the Brewers a lead, but that was all of their scoring. An error by Khris Davis allowed the Pirates to tack on 6 unearned runs to put the game out of reach.
The Brewers had some positives this week. Adam Lind tied the record for most hits through the first 5 games as a Brewer with 9 (Paul Molitor in 1978 and Dave Parker in 1990) and is hitting .450. Jean Segura is hitting .316 including his monster home run. Hector Gomez started at second base and went 3 for 5 with 3 doubles and 2 RBIs. Jimmy Nelson had an incredible curveball working for him and racked up 9 strikeouts in 7 scoreless innings.
Unfortunately, the bad overshadowed the good. The Brewers were outscored 36-16 this week. An average of less than 3 runs is not going to get them many wins, and giving up an average of 36 is not helping.
On the injury front, the only cause for concern was Ryan Braun. He left the game on Monday with a strained rib cage. He sat out the next two games as a precaution. Scooter Gennett was hit by a couple of pitches and Segura was hit in the face by a pitch, but both of them seem to be unaffected.
|
Games |
Series |
|
| Record for the week |
1-5 |
0-2 |
| Record for the month |
1-5 |
0-2 |
| Record for the year |
1-5 |
0-2 |
I am all set with my teams for the week. I have two teams, one is in a league where we name our teams after a baseball legend, and the other is a public league. My legend team is Brooks Robinson and my public league team is Bassball Fever.
For my Brooks Robinson team, I used projected WAR for the draft. I signed up for the league without realizing how early the draft was, so I was unprepared for it. Projected WAR was an easy way to make my selections without too much research.
Bassball Fever was drafted using my pitchers first strategy. I drafted nothing but pitchers until the 10th round. I did a bunch of mock drafts with different strategies and this strategy consistently got better results.
I am happy with both teams. As long as they perform up to expectations, I will have competitive teams. I will post an update every Monday detailing any transactions I make, how the team did, how the team is doing overall, and who the starters will be for the current week.
Brooks Robinson Starters
C Buster Posey
1B Freddie Freeman
2B Dustin Pedroia
3B Josh Donaldson
SS Ben Zobrist
OF Andrew McCutchen
OF Carlos Gomez
OF Jason Heyward
UT Even Longoria
UT Joey Votto
UT Kyle Seager
SP Hisashi Iwakuma
SP Jeff Samardzija
SP Collin McHugh
RP Mark Melancon
RP Huston Street
RP Neftali Feliz
P Alex Wood
P Gio Gonzalez
P Mat Latos
Bassball Fever Starters
C Jonathan Lucroy
1B Michael Cuddyer
2B Ben Zobrist
3B Daniel Murphy
SS Alcides Escobar
OF Adam Eaton
OF Martin Prado
OF Angel Pagan
UT Erick Aybar
UT Scooter Gennett
SP Felix Hernandez
SP Max Scherzer
RP Craig Kimbrel
RP Greg Holland
P Johnny Cueto
P Jake Arrieta
P Dellin Betances
P Mark Melancon
The Brewers are ready to start the regular season. They set their roster, finished their last spring games, and are all set to open the season at Miller Park against the Rockies. As far as injuries go, they are looking pretty good. The Brewers are hoping to show that they are more like the team that spent 150 days in first place last year and not the team that faded down the stretch.
The Brewers lost to the Reds, Cubs, and Padres to open the week before beating the Indians on Friday and Saturday. Saturday’s win was capped off by Luis Sardiñas’ walk off single, driving in Hector Gomez for a 4-3 win. That sent to Brewers to Milwaukee on a winning note.
The Brewers’ rotation is solid. They have Kyle Lohse starting on Opening Day, followed by Matt Garza, Wily Peralta, Mike Fiers, and Jimmy Nelson. The bullpen is anchored by closer Francisco Rodriguez, who is joined by Jonathan Broxton, Neal Cotts, Michael Blazek, Jeremy Jeffress, Will Smith, and Tyler Thornburg.
There were not many questions about who the starting eight would be once they acquired Adam Lind to play first base. Scooter Gennett will be taking over second base full time this season, with Jean Segura playing shortstop and Aramis Ramirez playing third. The outfield starters from left to right will be Khris Davis, Carlos Gomez, and Ryan Braun. And, of course, Jonathan Lucroy will take his spot behind the plate.
The Brewers are going to carry two infielders and two outfielders on their bench to start the season. Luis Jimenez will be Ramirez’s primary backup, while Hector Gomez will be Jean Segura’s backup. Either one can play second base to give Gennett a day off. In the outfield, Gerardo Parra and Logan Schafer will be able to play all three positions. Martin Maldonado returns as Lucroy’s backup.
Braun looks healthy after an off season procedure on his right thumb. Going in to the final Spring Training game, he was hitting .395 with 3 home runs and 9 RBIs. Lucroy has shown no ill effects from a pulled hamstring just before Spring Training, hitting .435 with 5 home runs and 11 RBIs.
The Brewers are looking to show that they are the team that led the NL Central for most of 2014 and not the team that collapsed down the stretch. They are a better team right now than they were at the beginning of last season. They should get more production at first base from Lind, they have a gold-glove winner coming off the bench in Parra, and with the addition of Broxton, the bullpen is even better.
Weekly Record: 2-3
Season Record: 13-16-1
NL East
Washington – The Nationals finished 2014 in first place with an NL best 96 wins, 17 games ahead of the Braves and Mets. They were the best team in the National League in 2014 and they got stronger in the off season. They added P Max Scherzer to an already stacked rotation to make it arguably the best in baseball. Injuries are about the only thing that can derail this team. OF Denard Span is starting the season on the DL, and 3B Anthony Rendon and OF Jason Werth may not be ready for opening day. Prediction: 1st place
Miami – The Marlins finished 2014 in fourth place with 77 wins, 19 games behind the Nationals. Their offense looks good, as long as OF Giancarlo Stanton can come back from a horrible injury to his face last season. They have a rebuilt infield that has added 1B Michael Morse, 2B Dee Gordon, and 3B Martin Prado to SS Adeiny Hechavarria. The rotation looks good and will get better when P Jose Fernandez comes back from his Tommy John surgery. Prediction: 2nd place
New York – The Mets finished 2014 tied for second place with 79 wins, 17 games behind the Nationals. The Mets have a solid rotation, even without P Zack Wheeler, who is out for the season Tommy John surgery. They are counting on 3B David Wright to come back from a nagging shoulder injury. P Matt Harvey is coming back form Tommy John surgery and has looked good this spring. Prediction: 3rd place
Atlanta – The Braves finished 2014 tied for second place with 79 wins, 17 games behind the Nationals. Adding OF Nick Markakis helps the offense, but without a solid power hitter it will be hard for the Braves to compete. Their rotation can be good, and closer Craig Kimbrel will shut the door when they have a lead. The question is whether or not they will score enough runs to have a lead late in the game. Prediction: 4th place
Philadelphia – The Phillies finished in last place with 73 wins, 23 games behind the Nationals. They are in full rebuild mode. P Cole Hamels is the only solid starter, P Jonathan Papplebon is their best reliever, and they are both being shopped around. 1B Ryan Howard has been fading for the last few seasons and is another year older. Prediction: 5th place
NL Central
Milwaukee – The Brewers finished 2014 in third place with 82 wins, 8 games behind the Cardinals. They spent 150 days in first place before they collapsed in late August and September. OF Ryan Braun underwent a procedure to fix a nerve issue in his thumb. If that works, he should be back to his old self. They traded for 1B Adam Lind to shore up a huge weakness at first base. Their rotation looks good even after trading away P Yovanni Gallardo. Their biggest weakness is the depth at starting pitching. They do not have a sixth starter at this point. Prediction: 1st place
St. Louis – The Cardinals finished 2014 in first place with 90 wins, 2 games ahead of the Pirates. They are perennial front runners in the NL Central. They have one of the best rotations in the league. The one problem that they do have is a lack of power (105 home runs in 2014, last in the NL). C Yadier Molina is the unquestioned leader of this team. Prediction: 2nd place
Cincinnatti – The Reds finished 2014 in fourth place with 76 wins, 14 games behind the Cardinals. Their offense should be better with the addition of OF Marlon Byrd and having 2B Brandon Phillips and 1B Joey Votto healthy. Their rotation looks pretty good, especially when P Homer Bailey comes back. Prediction: Tied for 3rd place
Pittsburgh – The Pirates finished 2014 in second place with 88 wins, 2 games behind the Cardinals. OF Andrew McCutchen leads one of the most well rounded offenses in the league. Replacing C Russell Martin is not going to be easy, both at and behind the plate. Their pitching staff should keep them in most games. Prediction: tied for 3rd place
Chicago – The Cubs finished 2014 in last place with 73 wins, 17 games behind the Cardinals. They hired Joe Madden to manage and added P Jon Lester to lead their rotation. The Cubs could finally get over .500, but that may still mean a last place finish the the NL Central. Prediction: 5th place
NL West
Los Angeles – The Dodgers finished 2014 in first place with 94 wins, 6 games ahead of the Giants. They have one of the best 1-2 starting pitchers, with P Clayton Kershaw and P Zack Grienke. SS Hanley Ramirez, 2B Dee Gordon, and OF Matt Kemp left town, but they were replaced by SS Jimmy Rollins and 2B Howie Kendrick. Prediction: 1st place
San Diego – The Padres finished 2014 in third place with 77 wins, 17 games behind the Dodgers. The Padres upgraded their team this off season. They added a complete outfield with OF Matt Kemp, OF Justin Upton, and OF Wil Meyers. On top of that, they added P James Shields, C Derek Norris, and 3B Will Middlebrooks. Prediction: 2nd place
San Francisco – The Giants finished 2014 in second place with 88 wins, 6 games behind the Dodgers. They made the playoffs as a Wild Card and went on to win the World Series. Their rotation could be a little shaky this year, with P Madison Bumgarner throwing 217.1 innings in the regular season and adding 52.2 more in the postseason and P Matt Cain and P Tim Hudson are coming off of surgery. They lost 3B Pablo Sandoval, but the picked up 3B Casey McGehee and they still have C Buster Posey. Prediction: 3rd place
Colorado – The Rockies finished 2014 in last place with 64 wins, 30 games behind the Dodgers. If SS Troy Tulowitski and OF Carlos Gonzalez can stay healthy, the offense will score some runs. The question is whether or not the pitchers can keep the other teams from scoring more. Prediction: 4th place
Arizona – The Diamondbacks finished 2014 in fourth place with 66 wins, 28 games behind the Dodgers. The only thing that kept them from finishing in last is a Rockies team that only won 64 games. If 1B Paul Goldschmidt and OF Mark Trumbo stay healthy, there is plenty of power on the team. Pitching will be a problem for them this season. Prediction: 5th place
AL East
Baltimore – The Orioles finished 2014 in first place with 96 wins, 12 games ahead of the Yankees. They had a great season last year and there is not much reason that they will not have another one. C Matt Weiters and 3B Manny Machado are coming back from injury, and that should make up for losing DH Nelson Cruz. 1B Chris Davis has 1 game left on his suspension and he should be producing as well. Their rotation returns intact and P Zach Britton returns after a 37 save season. They may not win 96 this year, but they won’t need to in order to win the AL East. Prediction: 1st place
Toronto – The Blue Jays finished 2014 in 3rd place with 83 wins, 13 games behind the Orioles. They added C Russell Martin and 3B Josh Donaldson to an already potent lineup. Martin will be able to handle their staff and add some offense. Their biggest problem right now is that they do not have a proven closer. The rotation looks solid. They will be better this season. Prediction: 2nd place
Boston – The Red Sox finished 2014 in last place with 71 wins, 25 games behind the Orioles. They are looking to bounce back from a horrible 2014 season. Their leaders are getting older, as DH David Ortiz is 39 and 2B Dustin Pedroia, C Mike Napoli, and OF Shane Victorino are all in their 30s. They lack a solid number 1 or 2 pitcher in their rotation. They added OF Hanley Ramirez and 3B Pablo Sandoval. The Sox have enough faith in SS Xander Bogaerts to move Ramirez to left field. The additions of Ramirez and Sandoval could make up for their pitching. Their off season moves have made them better than last year. Prediction: 3rd place
New York – The Yankees finished 2014 in 2nd place with 84 wins, 12 behind the Orioles. They stayed in the race until the last month, but will be without SS Derek Jeter in their Opening Day lineup for the first time since 1995. He leaves a big hole at shortstop and in the leadership role. Only one pitcher in their rotation (Nathan Eovaldi) started more than 20 games last season. 3B/DH Alex Rodriguez has not played in almost 2 full seasons. Closer Dellin Betances is the bright spot in the bullpen. The loss of Jeter keeps them from getting them to .500 this season. Prediction: 4th place
Tampa Bay – The Rays finished 2014 in 4th place with 77 wins, 19 games behind the Orioles. The Rays lost SP David Price and SP Matt Moore is out until late June or early July. They desperately need 3B Evan Longoria and closer Grant Balfour to have bounce back seasons. Losing manager Joe Madden hurts the team. Prediction: 5th place
AL Central
Detroit – The Tigers finished 2014 in first place with 90 wins, 1 game ahead of the Royals. They are looking for their fifth straight Central title. They lost P Max Scherzer, but gained P David Price. The pitching staff still has P Justin Verlander and P Anibal Sanchez. 1B Miguel Cabrera and DH Victor Martinez can still hit, and OF Yoenis Cespedes has been added to outfield. Prediction: 1st place
Chicago – The White Sox finished 2014 in 4th place with 73 wins, 17 games behind the Tigers. They improved their pitching by acquiring starter Jeff Samardzija, closer David Robertson, and relievers Zach Duke and Dan Jennings. On offense, they added OF Melky Cabrera and DH/first baseman Adam LaRoche. Starter Chris Sale is out for Opening Day, but should be back soon after. They should improve this year. Prediction: 2nd place
Kansas City – The Royals finished 2014 in second place with 89 wins, 1 game behind the Tigers. They secured the first Wild Card spot and went to the World Series, losing to the Giants in 7 games. The American League Champion Royals are looking to prove that 2014 was not a fluke. It is going to be tough with the losses of P James Shields, RF Nori Aoki, and DH Billy Butler. Their defense could carry them again, but without Shields, it will be hard for them to repeat. Prediction: 3rd place
Cleveland – The Indians finished 2014 in third place with 85 wins, 5 games behind the Tigers. They have 18 game winner Corey Kluber as their ace. DH Nick Swisher is coming back from double knee surgery in August and will probably not be ready by opening day. They need him to get back to 20 home runs in order to get back in to the race. Prediction: 4th place
Minnesota – The Twins finished 2014 in last place with 70 wins, 20 games behind the Tigers. They are looking to stop a string of 4 straight 90-loss seasons. They are a young team, with just OF Torii Hunter (turns 40 this season) over the age of 32. P Phil Hughes leads a rotation that, while not great, looks good. They may improve, but not much. Prediction: 5th place
AL West
Los Angeles – The Angels finished 2014 in first place with an MLB best 98 wins, 10 games ahead of the A’s. They lost 2B Howie Kendrick, but they gained P Garrett Richards and Closer Huston Street. Add them to P Jered Weaver, OF Mike Trout, 1B Albert Pujols, SS Erick Aybar, and 3B David Freese and you have a team that will be hard to beat. Prediction: 1st place
Seattle – The Mariners finished 2014 in third place with 87 wins, 12 games behind the Angels. They have a good rotation led by their ace P Felix Hernandez, especially with the addition of lefty P J.A. Happ. The addition of DH Nelson Cruz adds to an already potent offense that includes 1B Logan Morrison and 2B Robinson Cano. 2B/OF Rickie Weeks should provide quality backup and can fill in if anything happens to Cano. This team is better than they were last year. Prediction: 2nd place
Oakland – The A’s finished 2014 in second place with 88 wins, 10 games behind the Angels. They have had one of the biggest personnel turnovers in baseball. They gained 2B Ben Zobrist, DH Billy Butler, 1B Ike Davis, 3B Brett Lawrie, SS Marcus Semien, RHP Jesse Hahn, RHP Tyler Clippard and lost LHP Jon Lester, RHP Jeff Samardzija, 1B Brandon Moss, 3B Josh Donaldson, SS Jed Lowrie, INF Alberto Callaspo, OF Jonny Gomes, RHP Jason Hammel, DH Adam Dunn, LHP Luke Gregerson, C John Jaso, C Derek Norris. Closer Sean Doolittle is not likely to be ready for Opening Day. Tyler Clippard has some experience as a closer (saved 32 games in 2012 for the Nationals), and he may fill the void. Overall, their losses are more than their gains. Prediction: 3rd place
Houston – The Astros finished 2014 in fourth place with 70 wins, 28 games behind the Angels They got to 70 wins, which is a huge improvement for them. They have some power and the addition C/OF Evan Gattis and OF Colby Rasmus gives them some more. SS Jed Lowrie is an improvement for the Astros, and if C Jason Castro bounces back, they can get Gattis in left field. It is possible to get to .500 this season. Prediction: 4th place
Texas – The Rangers finished 2014 in last place with 67 wins, 31 games behind the Angels. They were hurt by injuries last season, and they are getting hit already this year, with P Yu Darvish going down for the season with Tommy John surgery and P Derek Holland having shoulder issues. P Yovani Gallardo and P Ross Detwiler were supposed to be added to Darvish and Holland, but now the Rangers need them to fill in for the injured pitchers. If the position players can stay away from injuries, they should be able to put up some runs. 1B Prince Fielder should bounce back to his 30 home run, 100 RBI norms. Prediction: 5th place
AP Photo
There is only 1 week left before opening day and the Brewers are almost ready. The bats had an up and down week. There are still a few positions up for grabs. The Brewers had a few visitors this week, including some Brewer alumni and a famous ballpark pup.
The Brewer bats have been hot and cold this week. They scored 44 runs in 4 games, and only 3 in the other three games. Luis Jimenez had 2 home runs and 9 RBIs. Scooter Gennett added 6 runs and 5 RBIS, while Jean Segura scored 7 runs and had 3 RBIs. Nineteen different Brewers scored at least one run this week, and sixteen different Brewers drove in at least one run.
Ron Roenicke still has Jimmy Nelson as the fifth starter, even though he has not preformed as well as some others. Tyler Thornburg is now being considered as an option for long relief. The Brewers have optioned IF Luis Sardiñas and P Brandon Kintzler to AAA. They also released Chris Perez, which leaves 2 bullpen spots for Rob Wooten, Tyler Thornburg, and Mike Blazek to fight over. The Brewers are still weighing their options for how they want to fill the remaining bench spots.
The Brewers welcomed special instructors Robin Yount, Gorman Thomas, and Jim Gantner this week. Those three players were a significant part of a Brewers team that won the second most games between 1978 and 1982. The younger players recognized the camaraderie between the trio.
“A couple of the younger guys on the roster see how we interact and a few of them come up and say, ‘That’s really neat how you mix together, you hang together and talk about old times and talk about the game that’s going on right now,'” Thomas said. “For Jimmy and Robin and myself, it’s like we never skipped a beat. It will always be that way. We’ve been friends for the better part of 40 years.”
The Brewers also welcomed Hank, the Ballpark Pup. Hank was a stray that inserted himself into the Brewers camp last spring. When the Brewers were not able to find his owner, they adopted him and brought him back to Milwaukee. This week, he made the rounds at his old stomping grounds.
On the field, the Brewers beat the Diamondbacks, Mariners, and Reds by a combined score of 35-7. They lost to the Rockies, Indians, and the A’s, and had their first tie of the preseason against the A’s.
Weekly Record: 3-3-1
Season Record: 11-13-1
Pete Rose has officially submitted a new request to be reinstated to baseball. Major League Baseball’s new commissioner, Rob Manfred, now has a decision to make. If Manfred reinstates Rose, Rose would be able to coach or manage for any of the Major League teams. It would also open up the possibility of Rose being inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Technically, Manfred’s decision will not directly affect whether or not Rose is on the Hall of Fame ballot. According to BBWAA’s Rules For Election 3-E, “Any player on Baseball’s ineligible list shall not be an eligible candidate.” That is the part that Manfred’s decision could allow Rose to be eligible.
However, Rule 3A states that, “A baseball player must have been active as a player in the Major Leagues at some time during a period beginning fifteen (15) years before and ending five (5) years prior to election.” That would pose a problem for Rose, as he has not played in over 25 years.
Now that we have looked at why Rose will have a problem entering the Hall, I would like to break down the reasons that he should be in.
First of all, there are the obvious reasons. He has the most base hits (4256) in baseball history. Anytime you have the most of any of the basic stats in Major League history, you should be in the Hall. He was the NL Rookie of the Year in 1963. He was voted the NL MVP in 1973. He played in 6 World Series, winning 3 of them. He was awarded the World Series MVP in 1975.
Then there are some lesser talked about items of interest. Rose was a 17-time All Star who started 8 times. He started the All Star game at 5 positions. Yes, 5: second base (1963), left field (1973, 1974), right field (1975), third base (1976, 1978), and first base (1981,1982).
Rose has played in the most games (3562), had the most plate appearances (15,890), the most at bats (14,053), and has hit the second most doubles (746) in Major League history. He led the National League in batting average 3 times, hits 7 times, runs scored 4 times, and doubles 5 times. His career spanned 24 years and 3 teams. He was known for his hustle and aggressive base running.
In short, his numbers speak for themselves. Pete Rose belongs in the Hall of Fame. He bet on baseball and has been banned from the game. I get that. But that does not change the fact that he was one of the best players of his era. I would like to see the day that his career is honored with a plaque in Cooperstown.
DJ's Baseball Blog 