Club Record: Fastest To 30 Wins!!!

Finally, the Crew is finally smacking some homeruns. Over the past two days there have been 6 homeruns that have yielded some winning results.


On Friday night Milwaukee narrowly beat the Reds on Friday night 3-2, thanks to Corey Hart's (5) blast in the 7th inning that prove to be the winning run. Prince Fielder also added a dinger.
Braden Looper, who just flew back to town after attending his grandfathers funeral, also had a strong outing. Both he and Jonny Cueto matched each other inning for inning. Looper (5-3) earned his win and the bullpen finished what he started. Trevor Hoffman capped the evening with his 12th save of the season.

Saturday night Dave Bush was a little rocky, lasting only 4 innings and giving up 2 homeruns and 3 runs in the first. By the fourth, he had given up 5 earned runs and struck out 3. The bullpen came in and locked it down with Seth McClung throwing 3 scoreless innings.


Milwauke ended up taking game 2 by the score of 9-5, thanks to scoring 6 runs in the 5th inning.

Ryan Braun (9), Prince Fielder (12), and Mike Cameron (10) all went yard for the Crew! All off of Aaron Harang, who typically has his way with the Brewers (4-1 career, coming in to the game).

Yesterday afternoon was a nice treat. The Crew came out with their bats a-blazing. Yovanni Gallardo last 5 1/3 innings, giving up only 1 earned run! He struck out 9 batters and walked only 2. Yo pitched a gem only 6 days prior, goes to show what an extra day of rest will do for a guy.

*Trevor Hoffman collected his 13th save.


Mike Cameron went yard for his 11th of the year. He also had a RBI single, going 2 for 4. He is now batting .284 on the season. This man has lifted the Brewers many times this season, already.


Prince Fielder has a good shot of getting NL Player of the Month, we'll see later today. He didn't help his cause by going o'fer yesterday. Although he hit one just shy of the foul poll out in right field. It's probably between Fielder and Raul Ibanez.


Milwaukee has dropped only 2 series since mid-April. That would be the Twins and the Cards (last week).

Brand Phillips of the Reds, believes...truly believes that the Reds are the better team. They are pretty even. Both teams have solid young hitting, however I know their starting rotation is better than Milwaukee's. Perhaps not this past series, but in the long run they will have better stats. Don't get me wrong, Milwaukee's is damn good and are noted for it. But the Reds didn't have Valquez this weekend either.

Craig Counsell is batting .324 on the year. He went 3 for 5 with an RBI on Saturday and 1 for 3 yesterday. He is on his way to a career year, which says a lot considering that the man holds two rings.
Finally....SOME RUNS!

Milwaukee hasn't scored more than 4 runs in the 10 past games.

In my opinion...Brewer fans don't realize how good we have it with players like Craig Counsell, Jason Kendall, Trevor Hoffman, and Mike Cameron being on the team. This club is filled with young players who need guidance from their own peers. Having these veterans is like having 4 extra coaches on the team.


The Oakland Athletics pitching staff heavily relied on Jason Kendall two season ago. Read about it here.

-Escobar was moved back to SS.

Mat Gammel will be the Brewers for most of June. He's hitting .160 with one homerun, coming in to Sunday's game. He did go 2 for 3 in yesterdays game however lifting that average to .214.

-Milwaukee will pick a pitcher with it's first pick in this year's draft (26th pick).


-During the 4-9 start I had asked for Billy Castro's "head to roll"...meaning fired. I am eating my words. It has to be the coaching. He was able to turn around a train wreck of a rotation and finally salvage a bullpen in to a significant ingredient to the club. Castro has lived in Milwaukee, year-round, since playing for the team in the 1970's. This man is committed to the organizatin. Unlike his predessecer Mike Madux, who jetted down to Texas for a better offer.
Doug Melvin on Billy Castro: "I think Billy keeps things simple," said general manager Doug Melvin. "He's probably not as complicated as what you can be with everything available to you. Billy does the 'Reader's Digest' version of all of that.
"Personality-wise, they knew him all except for maybe Braden Looper and Trevor Hoffman, the new guys. He's not one to sell himself. There are a lot of pitching coaches out there who really sell themselves to people. Billy didn't feel he had to do that.
"You have to be pleased by our performance and the transition. Mike has a good reputation as a top pitching coach. Billy has been here a lot of years, so he has seen it from a different viewpoint."

According to CBS Sportsline, the Brewers will be in the market for either a 2B or a starting pitcher (Peavy or Oswalt?). It mentions that Trevor Hoffman likes his new home in Milwaukee. Unfortunately, all Jake Peavy knows of Milwaukee is this:::
"What he sees in Milwaukee is the ride between the Pfister Hotel and Miller Park on some gloomy days. ... You run a path from the Pfister to Miller Park, and that's not a very pretty drive."
I can 100% agree with TH. Most players don't want Milwaukee because all they see is the old part of downtown, where the Pfister is. They don't know about the bustling streets of Old World 3rd Street, the 3rd Ward, Water Street (not the bar district), and other excellent neighborhoods of the Suds City. The Pfister is on the outer perimiter of Downtown. It's bordered by the lakefront and the interstate.

Big Series

The Milwaukee Brewers will take on the Cincinatti Reds this weekend in what will probably end up being a series win for the Crew, if not a sweep.

The bats are angry, the Reds are hurting (as are the Brewers), and Yovanni Gallardo is destined for a win, and Braun-Fielder need to get going on their homerun quests.

Mark DiFilice is the starting barber for the Milwaukee Brewers. Apparently Kenny Macha gets his haircuts from this man.

Right now, today, on May 29th, most of Wisconsin is crossing their fingers for Doug Melvin to trade for Jake Peavy. If this did happen, the level of risk that the Milwaukee Brewers would face is comparable to last decade when they build Miller Park and their revenue sunk. Attanasio and Melvin are far too intelligent to risk this much on one player. Or are they? Regardless, the story in the Trevor Hoffman story in the NY Times even mentions that Peavy probably won't be wearing a Brewer uniform any time soon.

The more and more I think about this, the more I'm turned off by it. Yes, he's a great pitcher who could probably have as big of an affect on the Crew as CC Sabathia...but he would cost entirely way too much (prospects). Milwaukee would have to dish out Gamel, Escobar, Salome, or Jeffress. The Brewers can't afford to give up any of these players. I will take a season of not-making the playoffs in order to shore up these rising stars.

-Apparently the Pfister Hotel, downtown Milwaukee, is haunted. This hotel is over 100 years-old and it's truly amazing inside. I once applied for a job at their lounge/bar (didn't get it). Players like Mike Cameron and other Brewer teammates who played against Milwaukee prior to coming on-board all have had experiences. It's time to call in Grant & Jason of TAPS. Apparently the Florida Marlins are most freaked out about the hotel. Perhaps this provides another home field advantage?

-The Brewers will start Braden Looper (4-3) against RHP Jonny Cueto (4-2) tonight. HERE is the match-up.

-The Toronto Bluejays have now lost 9 straight. Sinking fast.

-Atlanta has lost 4 straight.

Brewers lose 5 of their last 6 games....problems in brew town?

PAGING MR. BRAUN & MR. FIELDER!!!!

Is it a bit premature to think that our beloved Brewers are officially struggling? I don't know. That's a tough call. Despite the fact that the Crew dropped their first back-to-back series in more than a month and a half suggests otherwise. You're going to lose series, that's acceptable. However, one has to look at the bigger picture. The past 6 games fall with in the post-Ricke Weeks era ala 2009. Milwaukee hasn't repsonded to this loss like we would expect.

With that being said, the struggling Reds come to town with their own problems. No Velquez in that starting rotation, that's a plus. Also, Milwaukee has to deal with Brandon Jacobs (thumb) and Joey Voto's (ear infection) injuries as well as Aaron Herrang possibly being rusty after his debacle this past Monday. All signs point to a Brewer sweep. We shall see.

The Brewers have their own problems....their lack of hitting the long ball. Milwaukee has yet to hit a homerun this week, which is concerning. This is the cornerstone to their offense, with out it they are like every other team out there. The Reds are sixth best in the NL for playing long ball, while the Brewers are 4th.

The starting rotation hasn't had a win in 8 games.
Milwaukee has been averaging two runs in the last 6 games.
Milwaukee batters are struggling when they are behind in the count.
More here.

Look, it's going to happen. Milwaukee will struggle this year numerous times. Right now is only the second significant stretch in 2009 where they are in a "slump". Not bad. Have you seen the NL East lately? Those teams can't buy a hot streak if it were free.

While listening to post-game radio FSR on 1250am (Milwaukee) while driving home from Mondays game at Miller Park, I heard Sparky make a bold prediction for 2009. He doesn't see Milwaukee losing 6 straight games this year. Mind you, he initially made this prediction before the season started and when Rickie Weeks was playing 2B. I sort of agree though. There are too many tools and too many options for the Brewers to snap out of a skid. Who still step up tomorrow versus the Reds? I think Frank Caliendo (he he) will be that guy. Since making his first appearence on Monday he has been a great addition both offensively and defensively. He made the game fun to hear (on the radio...thanks FSWisc.). It will be the unsung players who will rise up...not your typical Braun, Fielder, and Hart. I see a big series coming from Counsell, Cantalanatto, and Cantu.

ESPN is finally taking note of Milwaukee's pitching, especially Trevor Hoffman's. Despite his last save coming a week ago today.

Interesting...Braun, Hall, and Weeks are leading the NL All Star vote. If it's one thing Milwaukee can do, it's voting early....and voting often. William "Boss" Tweed would be a huge fan of this.

David Riske blows....this only proves it. What a perverbial bust! He's a bigger bust than Cory Koskie.

RFB pointed this one out...you all remember Keith Ginter of the Milwaukee Brewers...well, he's still playing.

Cubs suck.

Carp and Gallardo go toe to toe

What a game yesterday. Thankfully I was in attendance to see probably one of the best pitchers duel I have ever seen (in-person). Carpenter and Gallardo kept even with each other up until the 6th inning when Yo gave up a hit. Carp's hit came in the 7th. The most interesting thing about yesterdays game is that Gallardo threw 130+ pitches, while Carp had 90 (give or take). I think I saw Carps pitch count at 29 in the 4th, but I could be wrong.

Brewer bats were silent until the 7th inning when Craig Counsell hit a single, but was then thrown-out in a poorly executed hit and run. Mike Cameron also added a hit in the bottom of the 8th inning.

It was nice to see 3 players other than Braun, Fielder, and Weeks contribute to a huge win like this.

After Billy Hall smacked in the game winning run, he quickly ran down the 1B line and then bolted for the dugout's tunnel where the rest of the team joined him for a celebration.

This was a blatantly directed at the Cardinals and Billy Hall sort of hinted at it in his post-game interview. There was no un-tucking of the jerseys after the win, just a nice little celebration in the dugout's tunnel....out of the public eye.

-Wait a minute...Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote recap of the game and didn't mention the untucking of the shirts!!?!?!?!? Holy SH*T! Hallelujah. Where's the Tylenol?

This is the moron Cardinal-writer who has a fetish with questioning the Brewers motives in untucking their Jerseys.

-Jeff Suppan (3-3) takes to the mound tonight versus Adam Wainwright (4-2)

-The Cards are in a 'historic hitting slump' of biblical proportions....according to this guy. Let's hope they don't snap out of it before Thursday.

-The Brewers wearing their redcaps yesterdays game annoyed the living piss out of me. I wasn't even drinking during the game, yet I still had a hard time keeping them straight. I know, it's not that hard...but I had troubles....ADD.

-Milwaukee is in a homerun draught.

In the past 10 games the Brewers have hit only 4 HR's.

I sort of like reading this, because they were able to win 6 out of those 10 games by playing some small-ball and having some timely hits. Most of the teams critics, most notably ESPN's commentators, feel that the Brewers rely too much on the long ball. Well, why don't you douche bags talk about this?

-Milwaukee called up Frank Cantalanotto (still can't pronounce it) before the game yesterday. He had a pretty good at-bat and played some RF. Frank almost belted a foul ball that was just shy of being a stand-up double. Shoulda-coulda-woulda.

-Jake Peavy trades are running wild. The Brewers are mentioned in almost as many of the rumors as the Cubs. The Phillies are also thrown around out there as possible suitors. We'll see. No sense in even discussing this. The Cubs will probably land him.

-Looking ahead to 2010 club options, Milwaukee only has Braden Looper to deal with and his $6MM option, 750k buy-out clause. I would agree with MLBtraderumors.com in saying that the club will probably decline the option, pending an unforeseeable rise in performance. Thus far he's been a tad bit shakey.

Brewers get bounced on the Twin Cities

The Minnesota Twins played textbook baseball this weekend and outscored the Crew 23-8. The hardest pill to swallow was having to listen to the ESPN crew cover the third game (Sunday's game). The three douche bags could not stop talking about the greatness that is Minnesota. Seldom did they discuss anything of significance regarding the Brewers. Joe this, Justin that, Joe did this, Justin is so great. Well noted, the two players go great with each other. But let's open the discussion up a little.

There's not much to talk about.

Mike Cameron did blast his 250th homerun of his career, officially making him a member of the 250-250 club. Again, the ESPN crew took a while to pick up on after he hit it.
This is a great achievement for a professional ball player.

Reversed Call
The home plate umpire in Sunday's game reversed a call, thanks impart to Ron Garden arguing with him. Joe Mauer was "struck" on the wrist by a Mitch Stetter pitch. At first the umpire thought it didn't hit the wrist. But Joe Mauer returned to the plate to show him the mark. Gard then broke out of the dugout to argue the ump. The call was then REVERSED. Macha was less successful in arguing his stance.

Brewers are the 2nd most valuable team in baseball

CHECK THIS OUT

This makes it a little easier to swallow a crushing defeat to the Twinkies.

Twins Blast Brewers

More on that later...

CHECK THIS STORY OUT.
A nice little piece on Miller Park that is taken way out of context. Miller Park, like any other park, has it's own problems. But this piece makes it sound like a war zone.

Crew Comes From Behind....Again

Once again I found myself having heartburn while watching the Brewers play. Regardless of Milwaukee smacking around Roy Oswalt in last nights 4-3 game, they couldn't seem to seal the deal and drive in runs. It wasn't until the 6th inning that Milwaukee was finally able to get Oswalt out of the game and start doing damage. Roy gave up 13 hits last night and 3 earned runs by the time he took his seat on the bench.

Milwaukee, not particulary known for their defense, made two highlight worthy plays during key moments of the game. Ryan Braun fielded a one hopper to left field and threw out Lance Berkman who tried to tap home plate on a head-first slide. Instead, Jason Kendall was able to blocke the plate with his left shin and get the out. To me, it was a toss-up. It could've gone either way. Regardless, the end result was Berkman and Cooper getting the boot.

The next noteworthy plays of the game was Jason Kendall springing up to field a soft bunt in front of homeplate. Kendall grabbed the ball and launched it to third to get the force out. This prevented the Astros from tacking on another would-be run.

The bullpen...The bullpen....The Bull pen.....You can't give enough credit to the relief team. They kept Milwaukee in it and ulitmately delivered a key win that took the series.

Trevor Hoffman worked his way out of his own jam and earned his 11th save, thus becoming the NL saves leader. McClung (1-1), Villanueva, and Coffey all did their part to prevent any further damage to their team and kept the game close. Jeff Suppan got the no-decision. He didn't pitch a horrible game, but certainly wasn't his best of the past 4 games.

*Billy Hall went 0 for 3 with two key strikouts (w/ RISP) and grounded out in to a weak-ass double play (w/ RISP). He's turning in to the same ol' Billy Hall. Macha is giving him plenty of opportunities to make a come-back. I would expect to see Billy Hall sent packing by the trade deadline. With Mat Gammel playing third and Counsell starting against righties. On secondbase Macha will also have Counsell and Escobar. So in theory, Counsell will be playing 140+ games this season. The loan team that could use him the most is the St. Louis Cardinals, a division rival. So this could turn out to be a little more complicated. But it's staring to unfold, Hall's days are numbered.


-Milwaukee FINALLY traded Tony Gwynn Jr. to the Padres for Jody Gerut, a 10-year veteran outfielder. Whatever. I guess it's a win for the Crew, because Gerut almost hit .300 last season and plays pretty decent defense. TGJ was a flop who could never find his place in the clubhouse. He'll probably fit in well in San Diego. As for Gerut, he will provided yet another left-handed bat on the bench for Kenny Macha. Remember the days when Milwaukee had a couple of lefties? Hell, now they have 5 (I think, of the top of my head). Apparently Melvin has recognized his key mistake of 2008, not enough lefties to match up with hurlers like Santanna of the Mets and Randy Johnson of the Giants.Tony Gwynn Sr. (dad) was the one who notified Tony Gwynn Jr. of the trade over breakfest yesterday morning. Cute. Now dad can talk about how big of a flop his son was while playing in Milwaukee while announcing Padre games.


-The Brewers, in need of another left-handed reliever (who doesn't have 2 lefties in their bullpen?) brought up RJ Swindle from AAA-Nashville. In return, The Sounds got back their below-average 2B Hernan Irb-I-suck.


-You guys remember John Kruk's pre-season words he had to say about Milwaukee's pitching. You know, that overgrown turd with small chicken legs? Well, he's eating his words now. The Brewers have the third best winning percentage. You can't blame him, I mean, the guy only knows about the Yankees, Ray, Mets, Phillies, and Boston...oh, and the Dodgers. If you're not one the afermentioned...forget it.

-So, now that we all know the trade between the White Sox and the Padres was all bullsh*t...we can now presume that the Padres are sending out warning flares to all NL teams that they are ready to move their star ace. The Chicago Cubs OR the Milwaukee Brewers will land him by the end of July.



Milwaukee-Minneapolis weekend preview. Should be a good series. There are alot of good match ups.

Multiple Sources: Peavy to ChiSox

Peter Gammons (ESPN) is reporting that Jake Peavy's thumbs-up is all that's needed to close the deal on a trade between the Pads and the Chicago.

Which means that Milwaukee will have to face him in a ChiSox uniform come June 12-14th. Better that, than having to face him a couple of times when the Crew plays the Pads this season!

Win Streak Snapped At 7

Well, you can't win them all. From the very start Brewer fans knew that Yovanni Gallardo looked pretty rusty. After all, he hasn't pitched since Friday's 2-inning stint in St. Louis when they were rained out. Looks like this may have threw him out of wack a little.

Instead, it was Wandy Rodriguez who stole the show Wednesday night. This guy is lights out....right now. Will this change? I'm sure of it. But right now he's pitching like he'll be the starter in St Louis come the All-Star game. Wandy (love that name) gave up 1 run on 6 hits and fanned 5 to improve his record to 5-2 on the year. Typically, if you have 10 wins by the time All Start picks are made, you're pretty much a shoe in....heck, even with 8 or 9 wins. Wandy is already at 5 wins and it's only May 21st. Move over Roy Oswalt.

Gallardo (4-2) lasted only 5 innings, giving up 6 runs (all earned), 2 walks, and struck out 3 batters.

Once again, the bullpen pitched excellent and gave up only 1 hit. Jorge Julio threw 2 scoreless innings and kept the Crew close.

Billy Hall struck out 4 times and went o'fer 5. If this guy ain't playing 4 times a week, he's a dud off the bench. It's either he starts most games at 3B, or you can forget about it with him. So, why then did Kenny Macha stick with Bill Hall in the top of the ninth with 2 outs against a right handed pitcher? Apparently he had a promise to keep. Billy flat-out stinks against righties. However, he can kill the ball against lefties. So, with that in mind....plan accordingly.

Mike Cameron hit his 8th HR of the year to get Milwaukee on the board.

Casey McGehee was on base 3 times last night with a double and a walk (2 for 3) while starting at 2B. He also had a couple of sharp plays. However, he did have a momentary lapse of reason while trying to tag 2B when Mike Rivera towered a pop-up to deep right field. Instead of staying put, Casey went half way and returned to the bag once Hunter Pence caught the ball. Shame, as he could've tagged and made it to 3B.

Speaking of Hunter Pence, he killed the Crew with 2-run triple early on in the game.

-Milwaukee can thank Trevor Hoffman for a strong start to the season, despite the 41 year-old starting the year the DL.

-Despite losing last night, Milwaukee have won 21 of 27 games for the best record in baseball since April 22nd. It's a good time to be a fan....get on the band wagon quick!

-Apparently Maddon (Rays) and Cecil Cooper have a lot in common....they don't know how to correctly make a line-up.

Make It 7 Straight!

+3 lead in the NL Central!
Milwaukee is 25-14
Second best team in all of baseball!

(Houston)
Milwaukee came from behind last night to beat the Astros 4-2. Milwaukee manufactored enough run support to allow Dave Bush to collect his 3rd win of the season and no losses (long-term contract...do it!). In addition to Bushy, Trevor Hoffman provided the heroics by breezing by the first two batters of the ninth inning having only thrown 2 pitches. He is now 10 for 10 in saves.

Bush went 6 complete giving up 2 earned runs on 7 hits, striking out two and walking only 1 batter.

Milwaukee's bullpen didn't give up a run. Villy and Coffey looked insane and breezed through the 7th & 8th innings.

Offensively, the Crew started off slow and then turned on the heat. JJ Hardy led the Crew with 2 hits and 2 RBI's while Prince collected a double that drove home a run.

The base running, although gutsy, was effective to say the least. Funny thing is, Ned Yost would've never allowed this style of play on the baseline. Both Braun and Prince Fielder cruised by "HOLD" hand/arm signs by 3B coach Brad Fischer to score.

Casey McGahee looked pretty damn good at second. We all knew he could play Center, but was pretty sharp last night turning a double play and collecting his first RBI in a Brewer uniform.

Tom Haudricourt is getting crafty coming up with nicknames for Bush and Hoffman. Dave "Houdini" Bush and Hoffman the Great. Cheesy, but I like.

Shocker: Jack Z signs Brad Nelson

Get ready Milwaukee Brewer fans, we will soon witness Brad Nelson revive his career with Seattle in the American League. Jack Z just signed him to a minor league contract.

Don't get me wrong, I wanted him shipped off down to Nashville....but didn't expect him to choose free agency.

He will do just fine in the American League.

Brewers Sweep Cards! - Weeks out for the season...

For many, May 18th 2009 was a historic date. The Crew swept the Cards in 3 games, Jason Kendall tallied his 2,000 hit, and rookie Mat Gamel had his first homer in the bigs. On the flipside of that coin there was a sad day. It was announced that Rickie Weeks will be out for the season....More on that later....

Braden Looper held the Cardinals scoreless until the seventh until he gave up a homerun to Rasmus that put 2 on the board. The 7th took a turn for the worse, yet again when the reliable Mark DiFilice got rocked by good ol' Skip Shumaker.

It was Carlos Villanueva that came in to the game who was able to put the nail in the coffin against a team who has it out for him (think 2008 in St. Louis). He fanned 4 and gave only 1 hit in 2 innings pitched. Mitch Stetter collected his 8th hold of the season.

At the plate the offense was led by Mat Gamel who blasted his first career homerun and Jason Kendall who collected his 2,000th hit of his long career. Kendall went 2 for 5 and an RBI.

Mat Gammel's homerun escalated his RBI total to 3...in his first game.

Everyone contributed in the starting line up except Looper, who did his part on the mound. Hart and Cameron went hitless, but each added an RBI on sac-flys.

Braun & Fielder contributed by reaching first base 4 and 5 times each, respectively.

** Milwaukee outscored the Cardinals 17-6! Meanwhile, the Cards and Cubs are probably bitching about not having their best players available. I'm sorry St. Louis, but if Rick Ankiel and Troy Glaus are your best players...then you are in a sad state. Be more excoted about Kolby!

-When I was watching the game last night I noticed (along with everyone else) a cool looking scene after Gammel hit his homerun. He had Fielder and Braun on his sides congratulating him on this all important feat. What a great picture that will make in years to come. These three will be the face of the team for many more season....well, at least for the next 2 that will include Prince.

Gammel had a web gem that allowed him to show off his canon of an arm, but he then followed that with a throwing error. But hey, he's a kid and he'll hopefully come around on defense. Bill and Brian were both saying that he has his hardest time play defense when he has a lot of time to make the play. Seems to be challenged by the routine plays and not the advanced ones.

-Sadly, for Rickie Weeks, this is yet another set-back to his career. I feel bad for the guy, but you can't help but think that he just won't cut it. Despite his fast start to the 2009 season (9 hr's), he will forever be looked at with a cautious eye. Now both of his wrists will have gone under surgery and both injuries could re-occur. Too bad. Willie Randolph was pretty sure of himself that Rickie Weeks would become an All-Star this season, which would've made me laugh alout if I heard this in spring. Now I'm looking like the jack ass. Regardless, this is looking like a chronic problem...Rickie Weeks can't stay healthy....nor can he talk clearly.

Ken Macha had some kind words to say about Rickie Weeks as well. He even dropped the "L" word to his team!

-Alcides Escobar WILL NOT be considered for the open roster spot. Hernan Irbarren will probably get another shot at the bigs instead. So this will mean that Milwaukee could have 4 left handed batters in their lineup at one time...long shot, but could happen! Good heavens. This should position Prince Fielder to increase his productivity.

-Last night on ESPN's Sports Center, I noticed (unless I missed it) that the show showcased Todd Helton's 2,000 hit more than Kendalls. Granted, it was on an error by Yunnel Escobar that will probably get overturned this afternoon. Regardless, it was all Helton and only a brief mention of Kendall's 2,000th hit.

Which leads me to my next rant. The Brewers are still being left out of most conversations on the major networks despite their winning ways. Yes Yes, Milwaukee is a small market town. Regardless, Milwaukee has the third best record in the MLB and the best record in baseball since April 22nd. Only Toronto (biggest surprise) and LA are ahead of them.

LA (27-13)

Toronto (27-14)

Milwaukee (24-14)

Evenstill, all we are hearing about in the news is on the Rays (20-20) and the Giants (19-18). The latter had two games on primetime over the weekend on MLB and Fox, which makes me sick. Yes, I can see having Lincicum on primetime...but Randy Johnson versus Johan Santana was a joke. Who cares if they are both storied left-handers. Had this showdown occurred 5 years ago, you may have had my attention.

The Milwaukee Brewers should be the top story in baseball right now along with Toronto and LA. But they aren't. Instead, they make the headlines with bad news like Rickie Weeks being out for the year and when they were playing awful in the month of April.

I have not seen any stories done Ken Macha or Dale Sveum's accomplishments in turning a young team of players in to a club that is well-disciplined at the plate and getting hits with runners in scoring position. Both of these coaches are the hidden success story that the media turds aren't reporting on. Instead they are talking about Maddon's boneheaded line-up glitch, which was FUBAR in every way, and Girardi going at it with Twins skipper Ron Gardner.

-Three years ago Mark DiFilice (3-0, 0.98) was working in a warehouse and playing for a bush league minor team called the Riversharks. Now he is the go-to reliever in the Brewer bullpen at the ripe old age of 32. He even likes to rip on his slow style of pitching (82 mph), however, batters are having a hell of a time hitting it.

-Milwaukee flew in to Houston early this morning to play the 'Stros (17-19) at the Juice Box. This will be tough series. Milwaukee has never swept the Astros (to my knowledge). Lance Berkman is starting to feel better at the plate after his dreadful start to the season.

Dave Bush (2-0) will face off with Mike Hampton (2-3) tonight at 7:05. Here is the probable pitching lineup.

Weeks, Gamel.....and Escobar update!

It's looking like Rickie Weeks will go on the DL as expected, which should be announced tomorrow or Wednesday. With that being said, Mat Gamel will have his first Major League start tonight at thirdbase! Craig Counsell will start at secondbase.

According to Tom Haudricourt, Melvin and Macha with have Casey McGahee start at third against lefties and Gamel against righties.

Now imagine this....three, count'em three left-handed batters will be in the lineup tonight versus the Cards' Kyle Lohse. When was the last time Milwaukee had three lefties in the lineup? Anyone? Get on it.

If/when Rickie Weeks gets put on the 15 day DL, I would expect to see Alcides Escobar getting brought up from AAA Nashville. He would then have some spot starts to give JJ Hardy days-off. So, it's looking like Wisconsinites will see two of the Brewers hottest prospects in some time, make their big league debuts sooner than expected!

Although I don't want to see Weeks going on the DL, it's nice to have this happen now while the Crew is on a roll. This would be a nightmare if it happened after July. Having two young, inexperienced prospects fill huge roles like this is a lot to ask for and can have a long-term effect on the players talent growth. Although both were added to the expanded playoff roster last season, this will be their first true gig in the bigs.

Wow. That wasn't even close St. Louis

The whining little bitches that inhabit St. Louis are crying more tears of sorrow. The Milwaukee Brewers gave them a beatin' that will probably stick in their minds for some time to come. The Crew jumped to an early 4 run lead on 2-run doubles by JJ Hardy and Jason Kendall, repectively. Manny Parry continued to right the ship with another great start. After starting the season 0-4, Parra has now gone 3-0 with a 3.00 ERA in his last 4 starts.
Prince Fielder contributed yet again, to the win by nailing a 3-run homerun for his 9th of the year.

Craig Counsell, yes, the guy that many Brewer fans didn't want returning to Milwaukee, had another great game. He doubled and singled while driving in a run. He is now batting .329 on the year.

Rickie Weeks left the game early after injuring his OTHER wrist (left). This is not good and will most likely result in a trip to the DL.
So....if he does go to the DL, will Billy Hall play second and Gamel & Counsell platoon at third? Or will Counsell just play second and Billy Hall continue to play third with Gamel getting the start against right handed pitchers?

Counsell has made the decision quite easy for Ken Macha at this point that he needs to play. Despite Hall playing well defensively and hittle effectively against left-handed hitters, Counsell needs to ride this hot streak. Ned Yost would've never have done this. NEVER. He was far too stubborn to play a hot bench player. Although Russell Branyon (who has 9 HR's right now) did find a way to play under Ned when he was hot last season. I still feel Neddy would have continued to have Bill Hall play everyday at third and Counsell filling in once a week.

The Crew will go for a sweep today when Braden Looper takes the mound. Macha has decided to rest Yovanni Gallardo, wisely so.

Some feel that the Brewers are arrogant and disrespectfull. I chuckle when I hear this. So does this man.

Mark DiFilice is starting to get recognized by the national media....finally. His stats this season are insane.

Cardinal Slayer

Jeff Suppan (3-3) is now 9-2 versus his old ball club, thanks impart to a 6 hit shutout in St. Louis this afternoon.

Milwaukee won 1-0 on a Corey Hart solo HR. The Crew only mustered two hits the whole game against Adam Wainwright.

I ask, how many scoreless innings has Milwaukee's bullpen thrown now?

Crew to play Cards on Monday

The Brewers received good news today. They will make-up Friday's postponement this coming Monday. As a result, all stats and the 2 runs that the Cardinals scored....will be erased. Start fresh.

I would have thought the game would pick up where it left off, with the Brewers down by 2 runs. Learn something new everyday.

Colby Rasmus lost a HR because of it. So that stinks for him.

Good Heavens....A Sweep!

Brewers

21-14

1st place in NL Central

The Florida Marlins came in to town thinking the best and with high hopes. Those rapidly diminished once they entered the friendly confines of Miller Park (ha!). Despite having to come-from-behind all three games, the Milwaukee Brewers were able to pull of a 3-game sweep over the (was) NL East leading Marlins. Pretty significant sweep at that!

The Crew was lead by Prince Fielder (8) and Billy Hall (4), who both went yard for the Crew. Prince has homered 3 times in as many games.

Mike (Cam) & Mike (Rivera) both added a pair of hits each, with Rivera just coming off the DL and contributing right away. This also provided Kendall with a much needed day off, whether he agrees or not.

Dave Bush tossed 7 complete innings, earning his 2 win of the season (2-0). He gave up 2 runs on 6 hits, with only 1 walk (key!). Mark DiFilice and Trevor Hoffman, once again, provided the final nail in the coffin. Hoff recorded his 8th save (8 for 8)!

36,000 fans attended the game today...which is unheard of. It was a school day and a day-game. Unbelievable.

Brewers come from behind....yet again!

Another come from behind win!

Milwaukee 8 Marlins 6

20-14

First place in NL Central

Braden Looper (3-2) gave up 5 runs in one of his rougher starts to the season. The Marlins zero'd in on him right away in the first inning and they were crushing his fast ball. After going 6 complete innings, Looper gave up 8 hits, 1 walk, and tallied 6 K's.

The bullpen put the icing on the cake last night with a solid 3 innings put in by Coffey (who did give up run), Mitch Stetter, Carlos Villanueva, and a 1-2-3 inning close by Trevor Hoffman (7 saves). You can't say enough about this pen. Let's hope they keep this streak alive.

Milwaukee and the state of Wisconsin....Rickie Weeks is now the hottest player on the team (not looks-wise)! He has now tallied 9 homers and is batting a hefty .286 in the lead-off spot. Could it be that Milwaukee finally has a true lead-off batter? It's a long season, let's stay tuned. Now if only Weeks could improve his speaking skills. Listening to him last night in the post-game was pretty tough. Doesn't matter, Weeks had a three hit night (triple, single, homer) and was a double shy of a cycle. Remember, it was the show stopper Chad Moeller who hit the last cycle for the Brewers and the first in Miller Park.

There wasn't a player in the line-up who had two hits (besides Rickie).

JJ Hardy left the game early with headaches. He was able to crush a triple (that was close to being gone) that scored a run.

Craig Counsell continued his mid-life crisis of a hot streak, driving in two runs on one hit. He is now batting .328!

Jason Kendall added a pair of RBI's.

-In order to make room for the newly arrived prospect, Mat Gamel, Milwaukee sent down Brad Nelson (rightfully so) to AAA-Nashville. Why so soon on Gamel? Well, remember when they first brought up Prince? Melvin loves to bring up minor leaguers just in time for inter-league play on the road. That way he is able to utilize them as a designated hitter. Case in point with our coming series in Minneapolis next weekend.

-Instant Replay was used last night. Although in worked in Milwaukee's favor.....I am still not a fan.

Gamel gets the call

Tom Haudricourt broke the news earlier this evening. Mat Gamel is on his way to Milwaukee!

So who's the odd man out? Nelson? Or a Bill Hall trade (he did sit tonight)....

Melvin clearly was in need of another left handed batter to take the pressure off of Prince. Fielder has been getting hit with a number of relievers. Good move. But will Gamel play outfield or platoon at third? He is prone to fielding errors, that's for sure.

Prince heads offensive charge

What a game last night. Ken Macha and Doug Melvin were scrambling to find some video footage and intel on newly summoned lefty John Koronka of the Marlins. The 28 year-old southpaw was called up Sunday to face the Brewers' arsenal of right handed hitters. After watching the game last night, it appears they didn't get that information on Koronka until the fifth inning. That was when the floodgates opened and the Crew unleashed their bats.

Prince Fielder led the charge with two homeruns (both were two-run shots) a single, and 4 RBI's. He was honed in on the ball and even had a solid at-bat his fourth time at the plate, narrowly missing his third homerun of the night.

"Obviously, Prince Fielder killed me...He's a big league hitter who hits mistakes and that's exactly what he did. Two swings of the bat by him, cost me the game."

Koronka quoted by the Seattle Post

Rickie Weeks (8) & Mike Cameron (7) also added solo shots, respectively.

Milwaukee now leads the National League in homeruns, surpassing the Nationals and Reds.

JJ Hardy continued showing signs of life by have a two-hit night that included a double.

Manny Parra held on for the win, improving his record to 2-4. This despite giving up 3 runs early-on in the game. Regardless, Parra has now had 4 solid starts over the past couple of weeks. This is a good sign. Parra gave up 6 hits but shelled 8 batters, which is common when you face the strike out-heavy Marlins.

Yet again, the Brewer bullpen solidified the game by tossing 3 hitless/scoreless innings and 4 strike outs. I can't say enough about this bullpen. This is what Milwaukee has been missing the past 5 years. Now that the starting rotation is cranking out quality outings, teamed up with a productive bullpen, Milwaukee should be able to squeek out a number of wins. Even if the bats go silent, which is highly unlikely.

Trevor Hoffman looked most impressive, striking out two, only throwing 12 pitches. He has YET to walk a batter!

Listening to MLB Radio on XM yesterday on my way home from work, I am finally starting to hear some Brewer-awareness by guests on the show. Most notably being the TV announcer to the Cubs, Len Kasper. He was discussing the 4-team log jam at the top in the NL Central. He briefly covered the Brewers being the biggest surprise with their solid starting pitching. Kasper questioned the Reds and if they will continue their power hitting (2nd in HR's in the NL). Of course, a good portion of the interview dealt with him explaining the "excellent" counter-balance of offense and defense of the Cubs. Yadda Yadda Yadda. He also felt that Milton Bradley is starting to break out of his slump.

One thing I do like about the Cubs, is their ability to sign solid players in the first couple of months in to the season. I mean what the hell???? They pick up Ryan Freel....and we pick up Catalanotto, who isn't a bad pick-up by any means. But Freel is solid defensively and at the plate. Also, look no further than Jim Edmonds. You know, the guy that jacked 2 homeruns in one inning against the White Sox last year!

Milwaukee has won 18 out of their last 21 games and 7 of their last 9! THIS blog post mentions, however, that the Crew is 11-12 on the season against teams above .500 and is 5-0 against last place Pittsburgh. They fail to keep in mind that 6 of those losses came against their arch rivals (who they recently took a series from) the Chicago Cubs, Reds, and the Giants.

Regardless, wasn't in the Cubs who had a similar showing early last season?

**The Milwaukee Brewers' starting rotation now leads the league in quality starts (19)!***

Other media outlets and blogs are taking note as well!

No surprise here, most major league teams are witnessing a dip in attendance. Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Brewers have already passed their record season from last year (3mm) and have a 3% increase thus far in to the season!

Milwaukee inks Catalanotto

Frank Catalanotto, who is 35 years-old, just signed a deal with the Crew after being waived by the Texas Rangers. He should be able to make his way up through the farm by June 1st. It's do or die for Brad Nelson.

With resurgence of Andruw Jones, the Rangers felt that Catalanotto was expendable. This is a nice pick up for the Crew and it adds another veteran player to the already solid outfield. Not to mention, an additional left-handed hitter! He has an .807 OPS and a .292 batting average. He also has the highest batting average for a pinch hitter (.289) amongst active players.

Marlins have been troublesome in the past

Milwaukee has had some troubles playing the young Marlins ball club, despite having a 7-7 record with them over the past two seasons. Hanley Ramirez and Jorge Canu are the loan bright spots on their starting line-up, hitting a whopping .348 and .294 respectively, on the year. Meanwhile, players like Dan Ugla (.189) have struggled out of the gates.

The pitching match up faces two lefties. Manny Parra (1-4) and newly promotted southpaw John Karonka (0-0) from AAA-New Orleans.

Oh, by the way Marlins, while you have been playing on a lengthy road trip....we went ahead and changed the name of your home stadium. As much as I can't stand Jimmy Buffet and the knobs that follow him, I can't help but think that this move is brilliant. It's a great way to get aging baby-boomers out to the ball park, as well as Generation X'ers and Y'ers. Everybody loves Buffet. Although I would imagine he will make more of an impact on the Dolphins rather than the Marlins. I suppose it doesn't matter, because the Marlins will get a new ball park in 2012. I order to court fans who suffer from a severe case of ADHD, they will have a swimming pool and deck to play in/on during their games. Tell me, why would you need a convertable roof in sunny Florida? Seems a bit excessive.

Brett Lawrie is learning the ropes at second base. This will certainly delay his rise to the BIGS. But what's the hurry? Especially if Rickie Weeks continues to play well. If anything, it gives Weeks a boot in the butt to get going. Likewise with Escobar patiently waiting for JJ Hardy to go on the DL or to be benched.

Milwaukee is favored tonight, by Vegas odds-makers. I foresee the Crew winning the series 2-1. Tonight will be rather close.

Ex-WoodChuck Steve Foster (bullpen coach) is doing a fine job in re-tooling the Marlin relievers. Thus far in to the season they have been pretty damn solid.

I love Braun like the next guy....but.....

Ryan Braun was announced today as the NL Player of the Week. That will happen when a guy does the following:
12 RBI's
Hit .458
6 RBI's in one game
Grand Slam
.....all in 7 games.

Unreal. CLICK here to see a nice week-long high light reel of this amazing player.

The only thing negative I have to say about Braun is that his recent public griping about beam balls is not doing him any good. In fact, it's putting a huge bulls-eye on his melon. The chin music Dempster tossed was just a bad throw. I don't feel that it was meant to be a head shot. If anything, he was probaby just backing Braun of the plate. Keep in mind, dude tends to crowd it. For Braunie to give the ol' staredown, only pisses Dempster off and the rest of the NL pitching staff. Not to mention, he did call out his own pitching staff a few weeks back...so hurlers from across the NL take note of that sort of thing.
What am I trying to say?
Braun was smart not to open his mouth at the end of the Saturday's game. Let Macha call Dempster out. That's what he's there for.
Now the constant pissing match between the Pirates and Brewers is enough to "T" me off. But hey, such is baseball. When you're good, you'll have a target on you. But when you publically discuss it (after last weeks Pirates game), you are only drawing attention to yourself.

My overall take on it....Let Macha be the bad guy. Don't be that guy Braun.

Steve Rosenbloom (d-bag from the Tribune) agrees. Although, he is questioning why Braun was bunting in the first place?

HERE is a breakdown of the heated rivalry. The Cubs-Brewers match ups have witnessed a number of coincedental beam-balls. Look no further than Gagne beaming Jim Edmunds last season.

Bob Brenly recent words on Ryan Braun echos some of what I had to say.. However, Brenly is a complete moron and should also have to eat his own words from the weekend series. RFB discussed his recent take on the city of Milwaukee. I could provide Mr. Brenly a long list of "things to do in Milwaukee, when you're a dirty FIB-Flatlander". I do, however, think that Braun should simmer the show-boating/drama.

I love Braun like the next guy...hell, I even rock his jersey at every home game. But he has to chill out a little bit with the show-boating tongue gestures and voicing his take on the situation.
I also enjoy a nice heated-rivalry between these dirt bags to the South and the Brew City. I just don't want to see it bleed over in to a league-wide distaste for Braun.

Brewers win their 7th straight series!

Despite yesterday's loss to the Cubs, the Milwaukee Brewers have been on a rampant tear the past couple of weeks. The Cubs came to town and received a good ol' fashion ass kicking. Well, at least Saturday they did. The Crew outscored the Cubs 17-12 for the series. All in all, it was a pretty excellent weekend for the beloved Crews.

The starting pitching was the only (some what) rough spot. Soup got roughed up one inning and provided the Cubs with 4 runs, after Milwaukee went ahead in the first.

Yovanni Gallardo had another sub-par outing, allowing 5 hits and 2 earned runs. He did earn his 4th win of the season though. What struck me sideways was the 5 free-passes he gave out.

Dave Bush pitched fairly well, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits. He got the no-decision while Mitch Stetter picked up the win.

The entire bullpen is the bright spot for Milwaukee. Finally, the state can say that. It's been a hell of a long time. But the comboniation and mixing of hurlers like Villy, Stetter, Julio, and DiFilice by manager Ken Macha is really something to get excited about. You give the pen the lead when the starter exits, or even if you're down by a couple of runs....the pen will keep you close or ahead. Seldom have they give up leads.

One of the most enjoyable games to listen to was Saturday's game. Hell, Craig Counsell hit his first homer of the year and Ryan Braun his 8th. Meanwhile, 4 different Cubbies hit doubles while Ryan Braun was the loan Brewer to do so.

Was it just me, or did you not know that Soriano was gonna go yard in his first at-bat after muffing that triple by Jason Kendall? I could see it in his eyes. The guy is an awful fielder, or more importantly, doesn't care. THIS story by the Tribune doesn't even mention it. It was quite obvious that Soriano wasn't taking his fielding seriously.

The Marlins come to town and play a 3-game series at Miller Park. Today is an off-day.

Florida just shipped down one of their top prospects in Cameron Maybin. In his place, the Marlins are bringing up leftie John Koronka to start tomorrow's game.

Tim Dillard is really throwing well down in Nashville, although he did get beat by Omaha last night. No thanks some piss-poor fielding by his teammates. Dillard is now 5-1 in AAA-Nashville.

Brewers Split Series in the Queen City

Milwaukee fell 6 to 5 against the Reds last night. Braden Looper lasted only 3 and 1/3 innings in last nights loss, allowing 5 runs on 8 hits. It's gonna happen. Looper is a solid #4 or #5 pitcher who will probably get to 10 wins on the season.

It was the bullpen, once again, who kept the Reds at bay. Seth McClung was the only reliever to give up a hit and a run. It was Stetter, DiFilice, and Jorge Julio who threw 3 hitless/scoreless innings. Although they didn't strike out a single batter, they only issued one walk in the 9th (Julio). This is a great sign for Milwaukee. I'm telling you, the starting rotation the Brewers have right now...will lead the NL in no-decisions this season. It will be the under-rated bullpen who will notch most of the victories. Look no further than DiFilice who is 3-0 and has already pitched 13 and 2/3 innings to date.

I don't know about you guys, but this game just seemed off. It felt like Milwaukee just wanted the game to end so that they could quick board the plane and head back to the Brew City and prepare themselves for the big series with the Cubs.

Brad Nelson is 0-20 thus far in to the season. Brad Nelson is 2-27 in his Major League career (2 walks). WHY is he still in Milwaukee?

I'm all for giving a young ball player his opportunity. But let's face it, Nelson is horrible at the plate and he sure can't field. He is 28 years old and has a number of years experience while playing in the minors...a very good minor league farm system...yet he swings for the fence every f'n time he's up. Last night's at-bat was the closest he has come to a hit. I know Ken Macha is thinking to himself that he's bound to "break-out" and have a timely hit that will help make his point come across...but it's not going to happen Kenny. Just go ahead and bring up Tony Gwynn Jr. At least he can field.

Some way, some how, the young Jay Bruce has hit 8 homeruns. This kids is the real deal.

Fielder went 3 for 3 with a double and 2 RBI's.
JJ Hardy added a hit to keep his mini-hot steak alive.

-Chris Duffy is an excellent Centerfielder. Nod your cap to Dale Sveum for pointing him out to Melvin and Macha.

-Danny Gokey, the dude that sings other people's music on tv and makes money off it, is singing the National Anthem tonight. Oh, and it's officially Danny Gokey Day in Milwaukee..... I mean, who really cares about V-Day right? Rome is officially burning!

Brewers Maul Reds

Sounds like some sort B-movie title. Last night the Milwaukee Brewers pounded the Reds 15-3 in a good ol fashion hoe-down. From the very start Bronson Arroyo had troubles with his location, tending to leave his balls hanging in the middle of the plate and down (ick!). The Crew erupted for 9 runs in the first two innings. Meanwhile, Manny Parra looked average from the mound notching his first win of the season. He gave up 4 walks, 8 hits, and 2 runs...striking out 5. Hopefully this will boost his confidence, since that seems to be his problem the past two seasons. He's like an anorexic school girl who feels fat, but really isn't (clearly).

Jorge Julio and Todd Coffey contributed and put together some solid innings. Julio allowed only 1 hit and a run, while Coffey tossed a hitless/scoreless inning and struck out 2.

Ryan Braun (6) hit yet another grand slam to add to his resume. It was the icing on the cake and put the lead out of reach. Braunie went 3 for 6 on the night and had 6 RBI's. That's insane. Love it!

Every batter in the starting line-up had a hit, most had two. Manny Parra notched his first hit of the season as well.

Fielder(5) and Hardy(4) both went yard as well.

Brandon Phillips probably made one of the coolest plays I have seen in a long time, despite not getting the out. He field an in-field grounder, which should've been the pitchers play. He was ahead of the ball and grabbed it, then tossed it behind his back for a no-look toss to first. No out though, as the firstbaseman took his foot of the bag.

Chris Duffy was the #1 play of the day for ESPN Sports Center. He made a diving play while in Center, on the warning track. As a result, he got his hands and pants dirt. That was one of the best grabs I've seen in a while. Reminded me Robin Yount's gem, but not as good.

Check out the play HERE, on ESPN.COM. Watch the full video.

Great American Ball Park decided it was a great time to ignite some fire works last night, when the Reds finally put a run on the board after a Brandon Phillips(5) homerun. The smoke decided to linger, like the song from the Cranberries.

Jay Bruce also went yard, for his 7th of the season. Is he eligible for ROY this year, or did he play enough games last season? Joey Votto was close last year, I know that.

Billy Hall sat out last night due to the weather. Play it safe...don't mess up that good start to the season.

Todd Coffey was released last season by the Reds, on his birthday. He pitched a hell of an inning last night, striking out a pair and making it a quick inning.

My wife is freaking out because Danny Gokey is returning home to sing the National Anthem for this weekends Brewer-Cubs game Saturday. OMG>>>I'm like so jacked!

JJ Hardy Leads Brewers Past The Buc's

Unbelievable performance by JJ Hardy last night. I think we're all racking our brains right now and asking ourselves if Hardy has officially hit his way out of lengthy slump? Let's all hope so.
Hardy entered last night's game hitting a piss-poor .167 and was 2 for 25 RISP, as pointed out by the Journal-Sentinel. JJ went 3 for 3 last night, all with runners in scoring position and also cracked a double. Clutch. That's the timely hitting the Brewers lacked last year and most of this first month of the 2009 season.

Craig Counsell and Corey Hart also added doubles, however I must be losing my mind because the box score marked down Hart's "triple" as a double. So I must have missed something there while watching the game last night. Fielder added a single while Ryan Braun went hitless. It should be noted that Leftfielder Morgan made pretty sweet grab out in left-center when Ryan Braun cracked, what could have been, a triple. It was a web gem that's for sure.

Another unsung contributor to the recent Brewers success is none other than Jeff Suppan. This guy has been lights out. I am still not convinced that he has righted his ship, so to speak. He collapsed last season in the play offs. Aside from his Dave Bush-like first innings that past couple of starts, he has been lights out. He location was the best I have ever seen from him, last night. He was hitting the corners of the strike zone and worked counts quite well, seldomly falling behind. Carlos Villanueva notched his 3rd save of the season as well. Mitch Stetter struggled and gave up some runs, however the bullpen has been the deciding factor the past couple of weeks.

Milwaukee has now won 17 straight games against the Pirates. The record is 23 games held by the Balitmore Orioles, 39 years ago, against the expansion team Royals of KC.

Bill Hall got the day off to rest his hamstring.

The Hoff was given the night off, as well. Macha wants to ease TH in to the closer role. Despite it being a full week since he rejoined the team. Better to be safe, with an over-the-hill pitcher who is in better shape than most of the players in that clubhouse.

Hilarious...First Base Coach Ed Sedar's leg was almost burnt alive in the dug out last night. Apparently he stood too close to the portable heater. Take a look at his pants HERE.

How is the Crew doing?

First off, I have never been a fan of Rickie Weeks. He talks like he has sh*t in his mouth at all times and has turned in a pathetic first 2+ seasons with Milwaukee. That being said, I will always admit my mistakes and overlooks. My friend Jon Thiel has been having a man-crush on this kid for sometime now. I don't know how or why....but he's proven me wrong.

I don't know how this has happened, but Rickie Weeks has surprised the living hell out of me thus far in to the season. The kid is swinging the bat well and playing much better defense here in 2009. Last night it was Weeks' 3-run homer in the top of the 9th inning that sealed the deal for Milwaukee. In front of 8,500 fans that filled PNC Park, Weeks was able to help Milwaukee grind out yet another victory against their bitch....that is the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-4. It has almost been a year since the Pirates last beat the Crew.

Weeks now has 6 homeruns on the year and is tied with Cameron for team lead. Both have been a huge contribution to the team who has seen some streaky starts by Braun, Fielder, Hart, and JJ Hardy. I would say that 3 of the 4 are playing pretty damn well, but can't seem to get in sync with each other. Hence the lack of runs being scored during the homestand. Of course, JJ Hardy is struggling the most batting a lowly .167 on the season.

In addition to Weeks' big bat (.270 avg), he should also be credited for making some key defensive plays. Although he has cost Milwaukee a couple of games and leads in 2009, he has been making some impressive plays on secondbase. But let's be real here, he has 5 errors to date, compared to 15 in all of 2008 and 13 in 2007. He had a whooping 23 errors in 2006. He seems to bobble when he's pressed to make a double play, but is quick at fielding with firstbase empty. He robbed one of the LaRoche brothers of a base hit last night that caught my eye. Defense is the main ingredient for this Milwaukee club to win, along with a solid bullpen. I would say that both are filling in nicely.

We all knew that in order for Milwaukee to win this season, their bullpen would have to pick up a large number of wins. It was pretty much a shoe-in that the starting rotation would probably lead the NL in no-decisions. Although, I have to argue that the starting rotation has saved Billy Castro his job and righted their ship in rather quick manner. Mark DeFilice (3-0) and Trevor Hoffman have been the foundation to the pen. Since last week, The Hoff has already notched 4 saves in as many attempts.

Up to this point in the season, all areas of the team get a C+ or higher, except for that horrid bench. Brad Nelson should've been shipped back down to Nashville by last week and Casey McGahee has been a bust. Chris Duffy is a pretty damn good outfielder, holding his own defensively. Plus, he has already contributed to a win this past Sunday. Craig Counsell should also be credited for providing a steady stream of offense covering short and third base. He's batting .297 with 11 hits and 5 walks. Again, I remember a number of certain Milwaukee Brewer bloggers and fans who ripped Melvin for bringing back Counsell...who is a low-risk signing and has already earned himself a World Series ring. In all, it's been the lackluster impact of Nelson and McGahee that have the bench blowing.

The front 5 started off pretty weak and have turned it up the heat the past 3 weeks. Their hasn't been a crummy start during this current span. Manny Parra is the only one in the rotation who has been pretty damn bad this season. Although, he too has had two solid outings this past week.

(picture of Packer fans who cross-dressed)

In closing...
I realize that other blogs have covered this topic in the past. Most noteworthy being MillerPark Drunks and Rightfield Bleachers..but...

All in all, the fans who jumped on the band wagon last year have been pretty quick to toss in the towel and call it a season three weeks ago. Why is it that the new found Brewer fans are so quick to pass judgement? Is it a generational difference? A case of the ADD's? Or is it the simple fact that a good number of "fans" who attend the games do so because it's hip? You know, it's so cool to wear the Brewer T-shirt and bring your beer bong to the park. It tells everyone around you that you are the sh*t and shouldn't be messed with. Another fan-type I would like to strangle are the metro-sexual fans. You know, the ones who refuse to don a Brewer cap, instead laying a thick layer of hair-gel on their spikes of frosted hair.

Then of course you have the Abercrombie fan, who refuses to wear the team logo or any type of clothing that has "majestic" or "MLB Shop" on it. Instead they color-coordinate their jeans and polo shirts with the handkerchief that is wrapped around their wrist, probably hiding his/hers failed attempt of taking their own pathetic life.

Also....I would still like to stab the guy who brought the cowbell to the the NLDS game 4...Had I not been with my wife, I would have staggered over there and gauged out your right eye, the stinkiest one of the two.

Never again will I attend an opening day party through any bar. The gathering of dimwitted baseball fans who know nothing of the sport...is enough to make me puke in my shirt. Yes, it could be that I'm just getting old and don't appreciate a good beerpong game (f*cking amateur drinkers). Let's face it, I have probably spilt more beer in my lifetime then most of those douche bags have drunken. That's not a bragging right either, it's the a knock on the the fair-weathered fans of Generation Y (and some of X) that blanket the parking lot with their swooped up hair and douche bag drinking games.

All I need to tailgate is beer, grill, brats, and the trunk popped with the pre-game show on AM620 or AM1250 on. I'm all for drinking too much at the game and pissing every half inning...but some of these fans are complete retards.

Brewers Win 5 of 7 On Homestand

The Crew split their 4 game series with the DiamondBacks this weekend and leave for Pittsburgh with a .500 record. It was an extended weekend of ups and downs. Friday's game was tough to swallow. Had the umpire not botched a call late in the game, Milwaukee could've had a better shot of winning the entire series. It appears AM620 is taking this a wee-bit too far. It was a botched call. It's going to happen. Although it was a pretty f*$#@ked up call.

Friday's Game Arizona 5 - Milwaukee 2
Saturday's Game Arizona 4- Milwaukee 1
Sunday's Game Arizona 3 - Milwaukee 4



Trevor Hoffman is now 3 for 3 in saves. I don't know if this will last the entire season, but his location and control is phenomenal right now. In yesterday's game, The Hoff decided to open up on the DBacks with fastballs, deciding to put his custom change-up to the side. Considering the fact that the Arizona has faced Trevor many times...he decided to "Play with their heads".

Hey, Mike Cameron-haters, how's the Melky trade idea looking now? You morons. This past off-season I have a number of friends and acquaintances who all called for Cam to be traded. "He strikes out too much"...."He's too old"....."He isn't a strong clubhouse leader"....
Now they are all eating dirt. Cam also hit a solo homerun yesterday...
The fact of the matter is that Cam will strike out a lot this season. He will also have a number of slumps. That's in his nature. But, Mike Cameron will also be blasting 25-30 home runs out of the park this season. So...I will take that over some hack named Melky. Although Melky has been playing decent as of late, filling in.

Brad Nelson is 2-25 in his career. He is 0-18 thus far in 2009. Thankfully, Macha finally wised-up and yanked him out of the game. It proved to be a great move, as Chris Duffy came in at LF and drove home the winning run in JJ Hardy. Two unsung role players who have yet to really contribute this season. His stats state that he weights 266. I'm calling BS on that one. As a fat-body myself, I can tell you that he is closer to 285-290. Which would be fine...if he could hit the ball out of the park. Duffy was filling in for the resting-Ryan Braun, who had back tightness. Let's hope that's not code for an abdominal strain. It was also Ryan Braun bobble head day. So all the weird sports fans who only show up to games only to collect these lovable kids toys, were Braun less.

Dave Bush looked impressive until the 7th inning. That's when things blew up in his face. Why did Macha continue to leave in Bush after the first homerun? That's my biggest concern. Unless Bushy has a no-no going in to the 7th, he should've been on a short leash. He wasn't, and it almost cost Milwaukee the game and the series.

The Crew flew in to Pittsburgh late last night and are preparing themselves for a short 2-game series with the Pirates. The media seems to think that "there is no love lost" between the two teams. If you ask me, Milwaukee shouldn't even waste their time in feuding with this team. Show some of this hostility that you have with the Pirates, and have it roll over in to the weekend with the Cubs. The Cubs and Cards are the teams you should have "no love lost", not some bush league team that hasn't been to the playoffs since I was squirt.
Here is a PA's paper view on the upcoming series.

In following behind Jeremy Jeffress, Brewer prospect Pedro Lambertus was suspended for pissing hot. It appears that Mr Lambertus was taking performance enhancing drugs.

Flash Gordon suffered a strain left hamstring in yesterdays loss to Milwaukee. I can't believe he's still pitching...

oh...and the NBA playoffs are going on...woo-who.

HERE are the pitching match-ups for the upcoming 2-game series' in Pittsburgh and Cincinnati.

When All Else Fails....Try Try Again

Despite being held scoreless for 6 innings by DBack hurler Max Scherzer, the Crew hung in there and waited to strike their bullpen which was suspect. Sherzer's gem, once again, yielded him no results. He exited the game with a 1-0 lead, only to lose it on Tom Gordon's behalf. Flash just wasn't flash. With two on base Rickie Weeks provided the go-ahead single that scored Jason Kendall in the in the 7th inning.

Jeff Suppan had his third straight solid outing after ending the 2008 year and start of the 2009 season on a slow note. Hell....he was just piss-poor. His control was spot on, as was his location. He issued NO walks and gave up only 1 earned run on 5 hits. Most impressive Soup. Keep it up.

Milwaukee's bullpen put in another strong performance by going 2 2-3 innings with out a run....and most importantly...NO WALKS. Trevor Hoffman notched his second save and looked like he still has it. He did give up a weak single, but finished strong with 2 strike outs.

Max Shezer pretty much owned Prince Fielder last night and had him swing life away. I mean Prince looked pretty bad up there. Once he even got caught looking. Which is all good, Prince is Prince and he'll crush the hell out of the ball tonight. But this shows just how potent Sherzer is on the mound. Despite being winless on the year. Arizona's bullpen is horrid. Macha's plan was evident, get through Max and you'll have a shot at winning the game.

Mike Cameron is flamming hot thus far in to the year. He had two double last night. As did Billy Hall. Rickie Weeks went 3 for 4 on the night too.

The Phoenix New Times newspaper had some words to say about the Milwaukee Brewers. But they also like to rip on the German heritage of this great city. Keep in mind Phoenix, at least Milwaukee isn't overly populated with MS-13 gang members, senior citizens, and the dueche bag Matt Leinhert. I will take a brat over a taco any day of the week!

-The Brewers and FSWisconsin struck a new deal that will bring 150 season games to my tv. Hopefully WMLW will bow out.

-Carlos Corporan is thankful for being called up to the Bigs. He had a hell of a travel day getting to Milwaukee on Wednesday.

-Keep in mind that Don Money was finally promotted to the next big step in his coaching career last year. It's starting to pay off for Nashville.

He has really done a fantastic job in developing the farm system. While in Huntsville (AA) Money became the most winningest coach in franchise history down there.

"I know there are coaches that have never played in the big leagues, (that) their goal is to get to the big leagues," he said. "I've been in the big leagues. I've had my time. If they'd come to me and want me to go back to A-ball, that'd be fine.
"I want to do my job and get the players ready for whatever level it is.
"My job is to help every player get better." spoken like a true leader.