As you may know I have been trying to structure this blog a little bit more and I cannot promise to stick to the schedule, by having one it helps me think about things to say. So Tuesdays are going to be dedicated to sports and Thursdays to movies.
If you live in Wisconsin and havent heard the Brewers have the best record in the National League, well then you are a freakin idiot. They have taken this state by storm with there hot start and it is starting to look like on of the Wisconsin Franchises is going to start winning again. Living in Milwaukee for close to six years, i know that is a town that is dying for a team to really rally behind. They will be up there with the league leaders in attendence if they can continue this success. It can be a very good baseball town and with the great summers we have here and a beautiful ball park there is no reason not to get out and root for this team.
OK now for my take the Brewers are currently have a record of 25-13. Are you kidding me playing nearly .700 baseball that is incredible for any team, not just a team that hasnt won anything since Moliter and Yount split the team. At first glance take this number with a grain of salt. The central is the weakest division in baseball and they have been beating up on the bad teams. Are they going to play this well the rest of the season, well no. However, they do play in a week division and there is no reason to think they are not as good as the Reds and the Cubs, I have already counted out Pittsburg, St. Louis, and Houston. I probably shouldnt have but I think the Reds, Cubs, and Brewers have much more complete teams. If they can play .500 baseball the rest of the year they will have 93 wins and that should be good enough to win the division.
Reason I think they will win 93:
Reason number one, is a dominating pitching staff. When your ace is pitching worse than anyone else in the starting rotation and you still have won 25 of your first 38 you are in good shape. Ben Sheets is going to pitch better. Yes you can say the other guys Bush, Suppan, and Vargas will come back to the pack a little bit and I will agree but these 3 are quality veteran pitchers that you can count on to give you 6 innings a night.
Reason number two, a dominant backend. I remember thinking when the Brewers traded Carlos Lee that this was Doug Melvin first mistake as GM. I really thought they should have got prospects back and or kept Lee and got the draft pick compensation that would have came with him leaving. I underestimated the importance of a dominant closer. Coco Cordero has been lights out, he has only given up one run all season and has converted all 15 of his save opportunities. This also puts a lot less pressure on Turnbow so he can get back to his nasty ways. Playoff teams have strikeout guys in the 8th and 9th inning and I dont know of any team that have two better than the Brewers do now.
Reason number three, patience with all those young guys. The Brewers are having suprising years from veterans like Mench, Jenkins, and Estrada. However lets face the two guys that are carrying this team are some home grown young guys JJ Hardy and Prince Fielder. These two are having monster starts and look to be the new cornerstones of the Franchise. Brewer fans that were complaining about the lack of free agent spending and losing guys like Sexson, Overbay, and Carlos Lee, well this is the reason we let those guys go. So we can afford to pay the talent that has been building in Brevard County, Huntsville, and Nashville. There is more on the way. Ryan Braun and Yovani Gallardo are two top ten prospects in all of baseball and could provide a Miguel Cabrera or Bobby Jenks type playoff push. Be patient with these young guys they will have there struggles, but they also provide the ability and depth needed to reach the playoffs.
Reason they wont win 93:
The Brewers have teased us before with good starts. This one is probably the most deceiving because they have played a lot at home against some very poor competition. The NL has some very good teams that the Brewers have yet to play and the defending champ Cardinals and the rest of the central can only get better.
The Brewers have had no injuries to note. No player that has been in the lineup reguraly has been on the DL. This is significant because this simple wont happen all year. 162 games is a long time and there will be injuries. It is important to have that depth on your bench and on the farm to fill in when the time comes.
Baby Brewers, this team may still be a year away. The young guys are playing well and are hot, but with all young players they will go in a funk. No way JJ Hardy hits 60 home runs like his pace may suggest. He has 14 career homers and 12 already this year, there is some outlying statistics there. Can these young guys continue to carry this team?
I think this team is legit and even if they dont make the playoffs this year they will be in the race and they will not go down like the lovable losers we have seen in the past. They have the components in place to win now even if they have a tremendous amount of youth on this team. Not too mention the great foundation they are building with Hall, Fielder, Weeks, Hardy, Hart, Sheets, Capuano, Villenueva, Braun, Gallardo. All of these guys with exception to Cappy are home grown guys with a lot of upside, they are also all cheap and under the Brewers control for the next 3-5 years. There window is just about to open and it is going to be fun to watch.
If you live in Wisconsin and havent heard the Brewers have the best record in the National League, well then you are a freakin idiot. They have taken this state by storm with there hot start and it is starting to look like on of the Wisconsin Franchises is going to start winning again. Living in Milwaukee for close to six years, i know that is a town that is dying for a team to really rally behind. They will be up there with the league leaders in attendence if they can continue this success. It can be a very good baseball town and with the great summers we have here and a beautiful ball park there is no reason not to get out and root for this team.
OK now for my take the Brewers are currently have a record of 25-13. Are you kidding me playing nearly .700 baseball that is incredible for any team, not just a team that hasnt won anything since Moliter and Yount split the team. At first glance take this number with a grain of salt. The central is the weakest division in baseball and they have been beating up on the bad teams. Are they going to play this well the rest of the season, well no. However, they do play in a week division and there is no reason to think they are not as good as the Reds and the Cubs, I have already counted out Pittsburg, St. Louis, and Houston. I probably shouldnt have but I think the Reds, Cubs, and Brewers have much more complete teams. If they can play .500 baseball the rest of the year they will have 93 wins and that should be good enough to win the division.
Reason I think they will win 93:
Reason number one, is a dominating pitching staff. When your ace is pitching worse than anyone else in the starting rotation and you still have won 25 of your first 38 you are in good shape. Ben Sheets is going to pitch better. Yes you can say the other guys Bush, Suppan, and Vargas will come back to the pack a little bit and I will agree but these 3 are quality veteran pitchers that you can count on to give you 6 innings a night.
Reason number two, a dominant backend. I remember thinking when the Brewers traded Carlos Lee that this was Doug Melvin first mistake as GM. I really thought they should have got prospects back and or kept Lee and got the draft pick compensation that would have came with him leaving. I underestimated the importance of a dominant closer. Coco Cordero has been lights out, he has only given up one run all season and has converted all 15 of his save opportunities. This also puts a lot less pressure on Turnbow so he can get back to his nasty ways. Playoff teams have strikeout guys in the 8th and 9th inning and I dont know of any team that have two better than the Brewers do now.
Reason number three, patience with all those young guys. The Brewers are having suprising years from veterans like Mench, Jenkins, and Estrada. However lets face the two guys that are carrying this team are some home grown young guys JJ Hardy and Prince Fielder. These two are having monster starts and look to be the new cornerstones of the Franchise. Brewer fans that were complaining about the lack of free agent spending and losing guys like Sexson, Overbay, and Carlos Lee, well this is the reason we let those guys go. So we can afford to pay the talent that has been building in Brevard County, Huntsville, and Nashville. There is more on the way. Ryan Braun and Yovani Gallardo are two top ten prospects in all of baseball and could provide a Miguel Cabrera or Bobby Jenks type playoff push. Be patient with these young guys they will have there struggles, but they also provide the ability and depth needed to reach the playoffs.
Reason they wont win 93:
The Brewers have teased us before with good starts. This one is probably the most deceiving because they have played a lot at home against some very poor competition. The NL has some very good teams that the Brewers have yet to play and the defending champ Cardinals and the rest of the central can only get better.
The Brewers have had no injuries to note. No player that has been in the lineup reguraly has been on the DL. This is significant because this simple wont happen all year. 162 games is a long time and there will be injuries. It is important to have that depth on your bench and on the farm to fill in when the time comes.
Baby Brewers, this team may still be a year away. The young guys are playing well and are hot, but with all young players they will go in a funk. No way JJ Hardy hits 60 home runs like his pace may suggest. He has 14 career homers and 12 already this year, there is some outlying statistics there. Can these young guys continue to carry this team?
I think this team is legit and even if they dont make the playoffs this year they will be in the race and they will not go down like the lovable losers we have seen in the past. They have the components in place to win now even if they have a tremendous amount of youth on this team. Not too mention the great foundation they are building with Hall, Fielder, Weeks, Hardy, Hart, Sheets, Capuano, Villenueva, Braun, Gallardo. All of these guys with exception to Cappy are home grown guys with a lot of upside, they are also all cheap and under the Brewers control for the next 3-5 years. There window is just about to open and it is going to be fun to watch.
1 comment:
I totally agree that this town, and the State, will go balls out if this team continues playing well and ends up heading into a pennant race and / or the playoffs.
I know you were just being born during the '82 World Series, but I was already about 8 years old. The mania I saw from this State for a World Series runner-up was bigger than anything a Packers Super Bowl ever brought. The entire State was wetting their pants over the Brewers and Milwaukee was just beside itself. When they came home from LOSING the Series, they had a huge parade downtown with thousands and thousands of fans cheering them on, as Gorman Thomas rode by in a convertible with a Pabst in his hand.
I still think that sleeping giant is here. People that I know that never really talked about the Brewers before are suddenly dropping hondos on 20 game packs. Not because they are dying to attend 20 games. Why? Because it gets them priority for PLAYOFF tickets. That's right, this town is already planning the playoff tailgates.
I could go for a little Brewer fever right now. If it happens, it will be well worth the price of admission to get a sweet taste of the sickness that is Brewer Love.
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