MLB: Milwaukee Brewers

2008-11-26T09:12:00.000-08:00

We got R.J. Swindle, a leftie. Here's the full story.

2008-10-30T10:48:00.001-07:00

Get out there and vote next Tuesday, November 4th, Brewer fans!

2008-10-16T14:14:00.000-07:00

Every kids' dream! Check out the BREWERS CHARITY AUCTION: Night of the Living Sausages. You can win a night of Trick or Treating with the Famous Racing Sausages!

Beautiful, Braun

2008-07-25T12:00:00.000-07:00

I don't want to jinx it, but the Brewers are on a hot streak! Did you see that beautiful homer last night by Braun? Somebody buy that guy a beer! You can send me the bill.

Diversity: Brewers show it's not just for breakfast anymore

2008-02-26T13:27:00.001-08:00

Thought this was a good article not only in light of it being Black History month, but in general terms too. Sports has always been one of those areas where color doesn't matter so much, and well it shouldn't.

Seems like a lot of the world could take a lesson from that.

Beat the Astros!

2007-09-05T16:09:00.000-07:00

The Milwaukee Brewers are in a do-or-die battle for supremacy in the Central Division (and a spot in the playoffs) against the Cubs, and beating the Astros tonight would get them a little closer. Considering that the Astros are battling it out for last place in the division, a win by the Brewers isn't an unreasonable hope. Go Brewers!

We need some change around here...

2007-06-01T15:57:00.000-07:00

Seriously, what's going on with the Milwaukee Brewers? They started so strong, up 24-10 back in early May, and have recently plummeted to a 4-13 record in recent games. Were they playing against little league teams at the beginning or what?

I'm willing to wait and give them the benefit of the doubt, but my TV is tired of getting yelled at.

Searching for the Milwaukee Brewers

2007-02-15T13:11:00.000-08:00

You and I know something about the internet, right, or we wouldn't be writing/reading a weblog, fondly known as a blog. But I got a chance to see how little I know when I went off to Google news about the Brewers and this popped up: http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3624972, an article P.J. Fusco called "Canonicalization Made Simple." Uhh, not simple enough for yours truly, 'cause I don't really know a subdomain from an algorithm.

Still, since Ms. Fusco used a search for "Milwaukee Brewers" as her test case, I at least found out that a) nobody is declaring our Brewers have achieved sainthood, and b) whether you're using Google, Yahoo, or MSN Live Search to find them, some completely different looking responses will still get you to the same spot, brewers.mlb.com. Which is a better place for me than a site about search engine marketing. So I'm gonna go redirect my query.

2007-01-17T08:12:00.000-08:00

The Brewers came to agreement with Kevin Mench (outfielder) with a 3.4 million, one-year contract. Of all the pre-expansion teams (excluding Arizona, Florida, Colorado and Tampa Bay) the Brewers enjoyed the fewest arbitration hearings of any Major League club, with only three.

No Action in Milwaukee

2006-12-11T07:13:00.000-08:00

I can't find anything going on with the Milwaukee Brewers yet, and I have to say I really can't blame them. This year's crop of free agents is so lacking in quality that it's probably best just to hold your ground and save your money. All of the players that I see out on the market right now either used to show promise or are far past their prime.

A Look Back at Last Season

2006-12-03T13:38:00.000-08:00

Last season most offensive stats for the Milwaukee Brewers were led by one man, Shortstop Bill Hall. Now, I have nothing against Hall, but it's a sad state of affairs when his numbers are the best on your team. Hall hit 35 home runs, 85 RBI's, and had 101 runs. I haven't anything new on new contracts or trades.

Milwaukee Bucks' Redd Scores 57

2006-11-15T14:02:00.000-08:00

For baseball fans, numbers over 50 take a good part of a season to acquire, so I have got to salute a member of that other Milwaukee professional athletic institution, the Milwaukee Bucks. Michael Redd scored 57 points against the Utah Jazz in a valiant effort to overcome a 24-point deficit that the Bucks were saddled with in the 2nd quarter of the game.

Redd's achievement topped the team's previous record of 55 points by a single player in a single game. The player: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. But the game ended with the Jazz in the lead, 113-111.

World Series Belongs In Midwest...Sometimes

2006-10-27T12:52:00.000-07:00

I like that the World Series doesn't always have to be a "subway series" or a "bicoastal rivalry." Not all baseball fans live in the nation's biggest commercial markets. Sorry.

I've been hearing talk of moving the World Series off to someplace sunnier and more popular with tourists than St. Louis or Detroit. Or Milwaukee. But the real fans of each club, who start with hope in their hearts every April, know where they want to see the Series played. In their special team's own hometown.

World Series Suspense Continues

2006-10-16T08:41:00.000-07:00

Half of it anyway. We know the American League will have the Detroit Tigers. But after last night's homerun explosion I'm not so sure who the National League will have. The New York Mets had been kinda droopy through out the first three games, even though they had a win out of them.
They definitely woke up, with that 12-5 victory, something I never saw the Oakland A's do in the ALCS.

Whoever finishes as National League Champs, I'm hoping for a seven game series. It's a long time from October to April.

Baseball and excuses

2006-10-10T14:40:00.000-07:00

It will be interesting to see how the Milwaukee Brewers do next year, certainly I could sit here and make up reasons why things didn't go our way, but instead I will complain about the neighbors dog next door barking his ass off from 2am-7:30am this morning till i guess it was convenient for him to let the spawn of satan inside so the rest of us could get 30 minutes of sleep. Francisco Cordero certainly wouldn't, maybe thats why they picked him up for "small change" for next season...

The 10 Games that Killed Us

2006-10-02T22:33:00.000-07:00

If it weren’t for that 10-game losing stretch in August, I really think we would have had a shot at the post-season this year. But as fans of losing teams love to say, it was a building year. And at least we have youth on our side.

A major league contribution from Milwaukee

2006-08-17T13:18:00.000-07:00

He’s not a Brewer, but Milwaukee can be proud of what he has sure contributed to baseball. Wednesday night the Boston Red Sox – Detroit Tigers game at Fenway Park marked Milwaukee native Bruce Froemming’s 5000^th game as an umpire for Major League Baseball! His 36 MLB seasons have included well over 100 postseason games, among those five World Series. His calls have not always earned the devotion of fans, as when his “Ball four” ended Chicago Cubs’ Milt Pappas’s perfect game one strike shy of the record books. But what he has earned is respect. And Wednesday night, a standing ovation.

By the way, that game went to the Red Sox, 6-4.

Help us out Yost! Brewers need a pep talk or something

2006-06-25T20:45:00.000-07:00

It appears that the Milwaukee Brewers’ road woes are far from over. Today’s loss to the Kansas City Royals coupled with our fall to the Detroit Tigers seems to mock the progress we made going into mid-June and our sweeping victory over the Cleveland Indians only seven days ago. If we want to climb the ladder we had better get scrambling because throwing a series to the bottom team in the AL Central is not going to help us push past the Houston Astros and Cincinnati Reds.

Hopefully Chris Capuano can give us a good leg up in the first game of our four game series against the Cubs at Wrigley Field this week. Another shutout would be just the thing to pull us out of this slump.

Can Capuano set us up for a winning series?

2006-05-15T17:43:00.000-07:00

The Milwaukee Brewers are facing the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday and Chris Capuano will be leading off the match up. I would be happier if we were ahead of the Houston Astros in the standings because I don’ t think they have the pitching we do, but that is going to mean getting some more wins this month and playing fierce against the Phillies and Twins while we are at home.

Young Players Payoff

2006-04-26T11:11:00.000-07:00

Chris Capuano and Corey Koskie are doing awesome stuff for our Milwaukee Brewers! Capuano pitched seven powerful innings against the Atlanta Braves and Koskie hit his first home run for the Brewers. The season is really looking up thanks to the younger players who are helping the team keep their winning record.

Baseball, Beer and fun in the sun.

2006-04-02T21:08:00.000-07:00

The Milwaukee Brewers fanfest is going on this weekend and the Brewers home opener is on Monday. I have my jersey, my Brewers opening day tickets and my cash for peanuts and beer. I plan to attend a lot of games this season to celebrate another year of Brewers baseball. Go Brewers!

Wow! This is fun!

2006-03-10T10:56:00.000-08:00

I used to think that people who liked the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer were cultish and weird like Star Trek enthusiasts can be. Well I borrowed the entire series from a friend to see what all the hype was about and found it extremely entertaining. Not only do they battle interesting monsters and crack ancient mysteries, but you get to see the characters grow and change while sticking together to fight against a mutual enemy. I’m glad I didn’t watch it when it came out because I could not have waited through the commercials and they didn’t have Tevo back then.

Wearing Brewer Pride

2006-02-20T14:54:00.000-08:00

The Milwaukee Brewers’ website has a headline today that says “It’s time to Take Back Miller Park.” They’re talking about fans getting to the stadium in big enough numbers to make sure that visiting teams realize they’re definitely in Milwaukee where they’re here. There have been times, like when the Chicago Cubs or the St. Louis Cardinals are here in giant swarms, that a person could wonder. So on Saturday, when individual tickets go on sale, if you are one of the first 3000 buyers at the Miller Park box office, they’ve got free stuff for you. Well, I don’t need a bribe to go after Brewers tickets, but I think I might like one of the t-shirts. See ya in line Saturday morning!

Going to the Super Bowl?

2006-01-30T17:53:00.000-08:00

2006 will be a rebuilding year for the Milwaukee Brewers and it is also the year the Super Bowl is being held in Detroit. Thanks to some old friends I’ve got tickets to the event and will be there in person to cheer on the Pittsburgh Steelers. They aren’t the Green Bay Packers but they’ll do.

Rookie Mistakes

2005-06-16T12:17:00.000-07:00

At the age of 23, Rickie Weeks is learning that experience is highly important in the big leagues. In a loss last night to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Weeks committed two errors and rookie base running mistake. The final score was 5-3.

"We knew coming in that Rickie had some work to do defensively. It's something we have to work on every day. When two runs result from errors, it hurts. You know the upside that Rickie brings to the table. It's just the growing pains you've got to go through." - Manager Ned Yost

A Need for Speed

2005-06-06T15:23:00.000-07:00

There was much needed help in the outfield and much needed dept as well. Manager Ned Yost looked through his farm clubs and found Dave Krynzel in Class triple AAA Nashville. Yost likes his speed, which is something the Brewers are lacking right now in the line-up.

Changing the Sheets

2005-05-31T17:18:00.000-07:00

Good news in beer land. Right-handed-ace Ben Sheets is back from the disabled list. He was gone away for a month due to an inner-ear condition that throws off his equilibrium causing him to loose balance. The scary thought about that is the doctors didn’t say the condition couldn’t come back. Hopefully it doesn’t since Sheets just signed a $38.5 million dollar contract before the season started.

Good to Have

2005-05-26T17:46:00.000-07:00

When injuries happen there is always the back up man there to step up. In this case it was right handed pitcher Gary Glover. In six innings of pitching he allowed just one unearned run. That is pretty good. It has actually been his best performance all season. Still, Glover will go back to the bullpen when Ben Sheets comes back. Just good to know he is there.

Somethings Got to Give

2005-05-24T11:01:00.000-07:00

The Brewers centerfielder Damian Miller rejoined the starting lineup yesterday against the Rockies in game one of that series. He was given two days off so he could tend to his sore shoulder, but was only able to go 1-for-4 last night.

That just adds to the problem the Brewers already have, which is run scoring. The Brewers are ranked at then bottom of the league in hitting with runners in scoring position. The club needs to figure out a way to manufacture more runs.

Overlooked

2005-05-18T11:21:00.000-07:00

from Foxsports.com

The team signed RHP Matt Wise in 2004, when he was coming off elbow surgery, and pitching coach Mike Maddux tried to avoid using Wise on back-to-back days. This season, Wise had pitched in back-to-back games three times entering the week and has been moved from middle relief to late-inning situations. His changeup, one of the N.L.'s best, makes him a candidate to close games.

A Pitching Game

2005-05-11T11:19:00.000-07:00

from Foxsports.com

RHP Derrick Turnbow is doing a better job of limiting his pitch counts, which had been a problem. If Turnbow can hold his innings to 10 to 15 pitches, he'll stay fresh. In short stints, Turnbow's 97-mph fast-ball and sharp slider could make him an elite closer.

The team might consider turning off the radar gun when LHP Jorge De La Rosa pitches at Miller Park. The Brewers believe he started watching the readings and overthrowing his fastball, which affected his release point. De La Rosa's pitches reach the mid-90s; he doesn't need to overthrow.

Around the Horn

2005-05-02T13:14:00.000-07:00

2B Junior Spivey was dropped from second to sixth in the order after struggling to make contact -- he struck out once every 3.0 at-bats in April. Spivey is coming off shoulder surgery and might be "cheating" to catch up to inside pitches, which would leave him unable to reach low, outside pitches.

C Damian Miller was moved to the two-hole to replace Spivey. Although Miller was surprised by the move, it makes sense. Not only is Miller off to a good start with the bat, but he also fits in the No. 2 slot because he consistently hits the ball to the right side and can move runners along.

Bullpen Blues

2005-04-19T13:48:00.000-07:00

The bullpen's early struggles can be traced to losing RHPs Greg Aquino, Jose Valverde and Oscar Villarreal to injuries and the failure of the starters to pitch deep into games. Now that the starters are working six-plus innings, manager Bob Melvin has been able to limit relievers' innings and thereby increase their effectiveness.

Melvin has made it a point to let his bench players know a day ahead of time when they are going to start. Melvin also makes every effort to match them up against pitchers they have had success against.

Brewers drop Series

2005-04-10T15:42:00.000-07:00

by the Associated Press, From ESPN.com

Todd Hollandsworth singled through a drawn-in infield with one out in the 12th inning Sunday, giving the Chicago Cubs a 6-5 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.

Jeromy Burnitz hit a triple off the left-center field wall with one out against Derrick Turnbow (0-1). After an intentional walk to Derrek Lee, Hollandsworth hit a bouncer into right field for his second RBI of the game.

Reliever Glendon Rusch (2-0) pitched three scoreless innings to earn the win.

The Cubs scored three runs off Milwaukee reliever Tommy Phelps to tie it at 5 in the sixth inning. Phelps gave up hits to the first three batters of the inning, and was removed after Hollandsworth hit a run-scoring single.

Ricky Bottalico relieved and hit Michael Barrett to load the bases, and the Cubs then scored runs on an infield single and a groundout.

The runs were the first allowed by the Brewers' bullpen this year after 12 2-3 scoreless innings.

Chicago starter Greg Maddux allowed four runs -- three earned -- and nine hits, including two homers, in five innings. The Cubs right-hander entered the game with a 10-2 career record and 1.45 ERA against the Brewers, but Milwaukee touched him for single runs in four of the first five innings.

Chicago's Aramis Ramirez had three doubles and an RBI. Burnitz, Neifi Perez and Corey Patterson also drove in runs for the Cubs.

Milwaukee's Junior Spivey, Lyle Overbay and Damian Miller each hit solo home runs. Spivey and Miller each added two singles.

Brewers starter Victor Santos pitched five strong innings, allowing two runs on three hits.

Oakland 6, Milwaukee 1

2005-03-31T12:57:00.000-08:00

(AP), from ESPN.com

It's never good when two players get plunked on getaway day.

Oakland shortstop Bobby Crosby left the Athletics' 6-1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers in the fourth inning with a bruised left hand after being hit by a pitch from Gary Glover.

Then in the seventh, A's outfielder Hiram Bocachica left the game after he was hit by a pitch on the right wrist by Matt Wise. Both players will have X-rays Thursday back in the Bay Area.

"Right now they both have bruises," trainer Larry Davis said. "There's not a lot of flesh between the ball and the bone, so it's always a concern."

Crosby, the reigning AL Rookie of the Year, grimaced and jumped back afterward, then slowly made his way to first base. Manager Ken Macha and a trainer hustled out to check on him, and Crosby was lifted for pinch-runner Marco Scutaro.

"I can move my fingers and arm around," Crosby said. "I'm just hoping it's not broken. Until I get X-rays that are negative, I'm not too pleased. It's pretty sensitive to the touch."

Macha said he didn't want to speculate on the severity of the injuries.

"Let's not jump to conclusions," Macha said. "Let's wait and see. Injuries are part of the game."

A's ace Barry Zito says his stuff is crisp, and he's ready to find the form that earned him the AL Cy Young Award in 2002. He certainly appears well on his way.

Zito allowed seven hits and one run, struck out four and walked one as the A's capped their Cactus League schedule with their second straight decisive win.

The team returned home to California to play three exhibition games against the San Francisco Giants before opening in Baltimore on Monday.

"Whenever I can throw all three pitches for strikes and come in consistently, that's my game," Zito said.

Erubiel Durazo hit his third homer of the spring and Mark Kotsay had a triple and double for the A's, determined to start strong this season despite lower expectations around the league following the departures of aces Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder in a three-day span in December.

After the game, Oakland's players learned that baseball's owners unanimously approved the sale of the team to Los Angeles real estate developer Lewis Wolff.

Brady Clark, Lyle Overbay and Pat Borders all had two hits for Milwaukee. Overbay has hit safely in 12 of his last 13 games.

Updates from Camp

2005-03-10T13:25:00.000-08:00

from Foxsports.com

The team still sees RHP Jose Capellan as a starter, but he may break camp in the bullpen. Manager Ned Yost likes the idea of breaking in the 24-year-old in relief, then extending him into a starting role by June. Yost figures the light early load would keep the hard-throwing Capellan at full strength through the entire season. . . .

LHP Doug Davis downplays the back spasms that slowed him early on, but it may be a cause for concern. Davis was at his best last year after a mechanical change recommended by pitching coach Mike Maddux added a few mph on to his fastball. If Davis cannot work his back into shape, will he lose some of that velocity? . . .

One radiologist saw something he did not like in C Damian Miller's shoulder before the team signed him to a three-year contract, so Miller has been working on a strengthening program while taking it easy in drills. That combination has left him in his best throwing shape in years, according to Miller. He threw out just 18 of 64 basestealers last year, a career-low 28 percent.

The Key to Success

2005-02-22T17:06:00.000-08:00

from Foxsports.com

The key to the success of the team's rotation might not be No. 1 Ben Sheets and No. 2 Doug Davis, but RHP Victor Santos. After bouncing between the starting ranks and bullpens in Detroit and Colorado, Santos settled in last season and won nine of his first 12 decisions. But he faded in the second half and won only two of his next 11 decisions. Santos had never started more than seven games in the majors and attributed the fade to simple arm fatigue. He'll have to be more durable this year.

A change that doesn't Fit

2005-02-09T17:10:00.000-08:00

from Foxsports.com

Late-inning leads could be harder to hold this year without RHP Dan Kolb, the closer, and RHP Luis Vizcaino, the setup man, who were dealt in separate trades. Young, unproven RHP Mike Adams now is the presumptive closer.

Melvin tried to cover his tracks by acquiring RHPs Ricky Bottalico and Justin Lehr, but the back end of the bullpen still appears to be weaker. To get Lehr from the A's, Melvin dealt utilityman Keith Ginter, leaving the team short of backup infielders. Free-swinging SS/2B Bill Hall will have to step up to replace Ginter, who was one of the team's more patient hitters.

Brady Clark resigned.

2005-01-31T16:28:00.000-08:00

From sports.yahoo.com:

The Milwaukee Brewers avoided salary arbitration with Brady Clark on Thursday, agreeing to terms on a one-year contract with the outfielder.

Financial terms were not disclosed for Clark, who made $376,000 last season. He was asking for $1.3 million in arbitration while the Brewers offered $1.05 million.

Clark, 31, batted .280 with career highs of seven homers and 46 RBI in 138 games last season. He ranked 13th in the National League with a .415 on-base percentage in the second half of the season.

Claimed off waivers from the New York Mets following the 2002 season, Clark is a career .267 hitter with 19 homers and 116 RBI in 427 games. He started his career with Cincinnati in 2000.

Infielder Junior Spivey and righthander Ben Sheets are the Brewers' remaining arbitration-eligible players.

I guess we will have to see if he was worth it in Spring training, and during the season. Lets cross our fingers for a better season Brewers!

2 more sign, 3 left in arbitration.

2005-01-26T16:35:00.000-08:00

From sports.yahoo.com:

The Milwaukee Brewers signed free agent reliever Ricky Bottalico to a one-year contract and re-signed pitcher and pinch-hitter Brooks Kieschnick on Wednesday.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Bottalico was 3-2 with a 3.38 ERA in 60 appearances with the Mets, holding opposing hitters to a .215 batting average.

"Ricky had a very solid season with the Mets last year," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said. "He will bring us a good veteran presence in our bullpen as well as quality experience as a closer."

The Brewers avoided arbitration with Kieschnick, who was 1-1 with a 3.77 ERA in 32 appearances, while batting .270 with one home run and seven RBI in 63 at bats, including 44 as a pinch-hitter.

The team's web site said Kieschnick asked for $750,000 in arbitration while the Brewers countered with $500,000 before the sides compromised.

Pitcher Ben Sheets, infielder Junior Spivey and outfielder Brady Clark are the last three Brewers eligible for arbitration.

The hustle and bustle is about to begin, and I am hoping to get the best possible roster before we head out to the free agent market. Keep up the good work Brewers and get whoever you feel would be the best. On another note...
From sports.yahoo.com:

The Selig family's 35-year reign over the Milwaukee Brewers ended Friday when the team was sold for $223 million to a group headed by Los Angeles investor Mark Attanasio.

Selig bought the Seattle Pilots in bankruptcy court in 1970 and moved the team to Milwaukee, where it was renamed. He was team president until 1998, when he was elected baseball commissioner. At that time, he put the right to vote his shares in trust and his daughter, Wendy Selig-Prieb, became the Brewers' head.

Baseball owners unanimously approved the sale Thursday, and Attanasio already had signed the various legal documents to buy the team, Brewers spokesman Jon Greenberg said.

``Today was the day where Wendy Selig-Prieb did the past ownership's half of that part of the deal,'' Greenberg said Friday.

Attanasio, 47, has been a group managing director of the Trust Company of the West, a money management firm, since 1995. He is committed to keeping the team in Milwaukee, where the team has a 30-year lease to play in Miller Park.

The Brewers have made several player moves in the offseason thanks to the prospect of new ownership.

Late Friday, the commissioner's office announced it will open a new Western office in the Phoenix area to ``provide special attention to and coordination between the office of the commissioner and the major league clubs in the Mountain and Pacific time zones.''

Laurel Prieb, the Brewers' vice president of corporate affairs and the husband of Selig-Prieb, was hired to run the office.

Branyan signs, avoids arbitration

2004-12-23T16:51:00.000-08:00

By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com

The Brewers continue to tweak the roster in the wake of the Winter Meetings, this time focusing on the unsettled situation at third base.

The team avoided salary arbitration with slugger Russell Branyan, who agreed to a one-year contract that could pay as much as $1 million, and added insurance with veteran Kevin Orie, who agreed last week to a contract with Milwaukee's top minor league affiliate.

Half of the Brewers' arbitration-eligible players are now accounted for. Branyan and catcher Chad Moeller signed one-year contracts and pitchers Dan Kolb and Luis Vizcaino were traded, leaving pitchers Ben Sheets and Brooks Kieschnick, infielder Junior Spivey and outfielder Brady Clark yet to sign.

All four were tendered contracts before Monday's deadline and will be back in 2005, Melvin said.

The Associated Press reported last week that Branyan had agreed to a one-year, $800,000 contract and could earn another $200,000 in performance incentives.

The team picked up Branyan from Cleveland's Triple-A affiliate just before the 2004 trading deadline, and he arrived just as advertised: plenty of strikeouts and plenty of power. The Brewers were desperately in need of the latter.

In 51 games, Branyan hit .234 with 11 home runs, 27 RBIs and a whopping 68 strikeouts in 158 at-bats, winning the starting third baseman's job away from slumping Wes Helms. Before the trade, Branyan hit .279 with 26 home runs and 79 RBIs at Triple-A Buffalo.

"He struck out a lot, but the tradeoff is that he played pretty good defense for us," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said. "And he showed a lot of power, something we didn't have a lot of last year."

The Brewers partially addressed that weakness during the Winter Meetings, acquiring outfielder Carlos Lee from the Chicago White Sox. Branyan and Helms will be expected to provide some pop in 2005 and will compete for the starting third baseman's job.

"Wes has to prove that he can get back to where he was [in 2003]," Melvin said.

Branyan, who hit a career-high 24 home runs while splitting the 2002 season with the Indians and Reds, turned 29 years old on Friday.

In a minor league transaction last Wednesday, the Brewers signed veteran infielder Orie to a minor-league contract. He will compete for the Triple-A Nashville Sounds' third base opening in 2005.

Orie, 32, brings 316 games of Major League experience with the Cubs and Marlins. The 12-year pro split the 2004 season between the Indians' and Astros' farm systems after missing all of 2003 and the first three months of 2004 following surgery on his right shoulder. He batted .299 with 20 home runs and 63 RBIs in 86 games for the Iowa Cubs in 2002 during his last stop at the Triple-A level.

Orie is down on the depth chart, but he gives the Brewers more infield options in the wake of Wednesday's trade that sent utilityman Keith Ginter to the Oakland A's for a reliever and an outfield prospect. Branyan and Helms are expected to vie for the starting job at third base with Bill Hall as a backup. Trent Durrington, who spent some time with the Brewers in 2004 and has the arm for third base, also signed a minor league contract and was invited to Spring Training.

The Brewers have been one of baseball's busiest teams since the Winter Meetings. The team engaged in the meetings' two most significant trades, acquiring fireballer Jose Capellan from Atlanta before landing Lee from the White Sox two days later. The Brewers then dealt Ginter to Oakland last Wednesday for reliever Justin Lehr and outfielder Nelson Cruz.

Non-tender news: The Brewers non-tendered pitching prospect Chris Saenz on Monday, momentarily making him a free agent. But Saenz, who underwent Tommy John surgery on Sept. 23, was then re-signed to a minor league contract and will spend 2005 rehabbing his right elbow.

He is working out five days a week at the team's minor league complex in Phoenix, and Melvin said trainers will begin mulling a throwing program for Saenz next month.

Seanz spent the majority of the season with Double-A Huntsville but dazzled in a brief Major League stint. He made his Major League debut on April 24 against St. Louis and pitched six shutout frames, leading the Brewers to a 3-1 win.

Brewers consider run at Clement

2004-12-01T15:17:00.000-08:00

By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com

Long shot or not, the Brewers are exploring a pitch for free agent right-hander Matt Clement.

General manager Doug Melvin has had at least one telephone conversation with Barry Axelrod, who represents the 30-year-old pitcher. The idea was sparked during the Brewers' contract discussions with catcher Damian Miller, who was a favorite of Clement's during their year together with the Cubs in 2003.

"We'll talk to Matt Clement," Melvin said. "It doesn't mean that we're going to be able to sign him, but at least it gives you the opportunity that over the past two years we never had. We would sit and wait for players to call who had sincere interest, and it never happened. Now, the phone will ring periodically, to the point where we don't always have to be the aggressor. ... Those are steps we have to take before we can go out there and talk about being attractive as a ballclub."

Axelrod confirmed the mutual curiosity, though he said Melvin placed the inital phone call.

"I told him that there are some things about the Brewers that are intriguing to Matt, among them that they are in the National League and in the same division that Matt has played in," Axelrod said. "At the time we talked, the Damian Miller thing was just a rumor. ... Matt is very partial to him."

That rumor became hard fact on Tuesday, when Miller signed a three-year pact with Milwaukee.

Miller's contract was for three years and guarantees about $3 million per season, about 40 percent of what Clement is reportedly seeking over the same number of years. Even with plans to modestly increase payroll under new owner-elect Mark Attanasio, that type of contract may be out of Milwaukee's reach.

Still, Melvin said, just getting consideration from a player like Clement is a positive development. According to Miller, the image of Milwaukee as Major League Baseball's frozen tundra is beginning to thaw.

"Three years ago, I might not have made this decision," Miller said. "I saw the improvement in the organization, from [Melvin and Ash] down to Ned Yost and the competitive team that these guys are putting on the field."

Maybe Clement is taking note, too. A right-hander with a nasty sinking fastball, he posted a 9-13 record with the Cubs in 2004 despite finishing in the top 20 in the NL with a 3.68 ERA. Clement ranked seventh in the league with 190 strikeouts.

Plenty of teams are after Clement -- "many more than I anticipated," according to Axelrod. Clement told a newspaper over the holiday weekend that Cleveland has been the most aggressive suitor, and the Blue Jays, Red Sox and White Sox are reportedly in the running. According to one account, Clement may be seeking a three-year contract for about $24 million.

Axelrod said he also had a very brief discussion with Melvin about another client, St. Louis' Matt Morris. It could help that Morris' wife is from southern Wisconsin, but Axelrod said Melvin expressed concern about the health of Morris' right shoulder. The pitcher underwent arthroscopic surgery on Tuesday to clean up some fraying of the labrum.

For Brewers fans, even hearing names like Clement and Morris associated with Milwaukee brings some warmth to the winter.

"I think they are trying," Axelrod said. "I really do like Doug Melvin and his ability. I like Ned Yost and his ability. The one thing they can't control is the disadvantageous position they find themselves in in terms of how much money they have to spend. That's not just me being a greedy agent representing a player -- it comes back to being a competitive team.

"I think Milwaukee is going in the right direction. I think they realize that they need to do some things to entice players and Damian Miller is the right kind of guy. He is a winner. Put a check mark in the right column in terms of what Matt thinks about Milwaukee."

Brewers can't keep up with Astros

2004-09-26T16:37:00.000-07:00

By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com

MILWAUKEE -- Houston catcher Raul Chavez spoiled the Brewers' home finale by driving in a career-high five runs and leading the Astros to an 11-7 win in front of 18,496 at Miller Park.

Keith Ginter, Chris Magruder and Lyle Overbay homered for Milwaukee and Overbay broke Robin Yount's franchise record for doubles in a season, but the Brewers' loss dropped their final home record to 36-45. It's a five-win improvement over the team's 31-50 finishes in each of the past two seasons at Miller Park.

Houston jumped ahead on Brewers starter Victor Santos with four runs in the first inning, only to watch the Brewers rally to tie it against Astros starter Carlos Hernandez in the third.

Santos (11-12), making his final start of the season, gave it back in the fifth inning when the Astros batted around for the second time and scored five runs. With Santos out and Matt Wise on in relief, Chavez delivered the big blow of the inning, a three-run double that gave Houston another four-run lead. He capped his five-RBI performance with an RBI single in the seventh that came after Brewers center fielder Scott Podsednik misplayed Jason Lane's leadoff triple.

Tim Redding (5-7) pitched an inning of relief for the win, and Lance Berkman also homered for the Astros, who picked up a game on the Cubs in the Wild Card race. San Francisco, which had a chance to take the lead with a win over Los Angeles, was still playing when the Astros wrapped up Sunday's win.

Ginter hit a solo home run in the second inning and an RBI single in the third to spark Milwaukee's early comeback, and Magruder followed with a two-run home run that pulled the Brewers back to even.

They had another comeback cooking in the bottom of the seventh, when Overbay hit his 15th home run, a solo shot, and Dave Krynzel hit an RBI single to make it 10-6. The Brewers then loaded the bases against Astros right-hander Chad Qualls, thanks in part to a pair of hit batsmen, but pinch-hitter Craig Counsell popped out.

The Brewers also left the bases full with one out in the second inning and are batting .226 (31-for-137) in bases-loaded situations this season, including .197 (14-for-71) with the bases loaded and two outs.

Overbay, who scored three runs in the game, hit his 50th double of the season in the third inning to set a new franchise record. Hall of Famer Yount had held the record since 1980.

Go Brewers!

To Pitch or Not to Pitch

2004-09-15T15:47:00.000-07:00

From MLB.com, by Mike Bauman

You have to give the Milwaukee Brewers some credit. They had enough guts to give Barry Bonds nine pitches to swing at in one game. That's about a series' worth of swings for Bonds these days. He did not hit home run No. 700 Tuesday night. But at least he had some hacks.

"I've had some Giants people tell me that Bonds hasn't had this many pitches to hit all year in any one game," Commissioner Bud Selig, a highly interested observer, commented.

The record will show that Bonds received two walks, one intentional. But he got to take a mighty cut even during the unintentional walk. And in the first inning, with a runner on second and first base open -- an almost automatic intentional walk for Bonds these days -- left-hander Doug Davis engaged Bonds in a rare, but compelling nine-pitch duel that ended with a pop to short.

Davis pitched well but took the loss in a 3-2 San Francisco victory. Apart from the decision, Davis was also disappointed that he had to walk Bonds intentionally in the fifth with two out, a runner on second and first base open. He didn't dispute the logic of the move. It just wasn't what he wanted.

"The competitive part of me was disappointed there," Davis said. "I'm not scared to face him. I'm scared to put it down the middle, but I'm not scared to face him."

And that was the theme of the evening for facing Bonds. What you have seen in recent days is this "not on my watch" approach by the opposition to the idea of Bonds reaching 700 home runs. It is ultimately wrongheaded. Walking Bonds outside the context of normal strategy is more like spite and mulish stubbornness than actual managing.

Go Brewers!

Forever Young

2004-09-09T15:29:00.000-07:00

With Ben Ford's recall from Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday, the Milwaukee Brewers' youth movement rolls on.

With top prospects such as outfielder Dave Krynzel, 22, and starter Ben Hendrickson, 23, already integrating themselves into regular roles, the Brewers have begun the process of looking forward to 2005.

Despite a 6-21 August that has taken the luster off what had been a marked improvement in the standings over recent seasons, the organization is being lauded as one that is heading in the right direction.
From ESPN.com

Go Brewers

Brewers Beat Pirates!

2004-09-03T15:41:00.000-07:00

from mlb.com:

In 10 seasons as a big league reliever and 13 as the Brewers' bullpen coach, Castro had never witnessed a game like that. Manager Ned Yost, who coached 12 years in Atlanta before coming to Milwaukee last season, said the same thing.

"Not one time did we get a reliever up," Yost said. "You never see that. It's taken me 14 years to see that so it tells you the type of game he pitched."

"He" was Ben Sheets, who finally got some run support and responded by pitching a complete game four-hitter, leading the Brewers to a much-needed, 7-1 win over the Pirates in front of 11,763 at Miller Park.

WOO HOO!! Way to go Sheets! GO BREWERS!!!

Welcome Back

2004-08-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

from mlb.com:

After missing a month with a sprained left wrist, Ginter was activated on Saturday night and was back at second base for Sunday's series finale against the Phillies.

Welcome back Ginter!

Capuano on DL

2004-08-25T15:02:00.000-07:00

From mlb.com

Injured Brewers left-hander Chris Capuano will visit Dr. James Andrews in the next few days and faces the prospect that his rookie season is over.
Capuano's recurring elbow injury forced him out of Wednesday's blowout loss to the Cubs after he allowed seven runs in 1 1/3 innings. He was placed on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday for the third time this season and the Brewers called up rookie Pedro Liriano for bullpen insurance.

Let's hope that Capuano feels better soon.

Brewers Beat Cubs!

2004-08-18T10:42:00.000-07:00

From mlb.com

Energized by 41,174 fans of varying allegiances at Miller Park, Bill Hall delivered a two-out, two-run triple and Victor Santos snapped a five-start losing streak on Tuesday, when the Brewers beat the Cubs, 3-1, to open a three-game border battle.

Way to go Brewers!!!

Santos takes on Atlanta

2004-08-11T14:02:00.000-07:00

Victor Santos is aiming to end a bad run in the second of three games at Turner Field in Atlanta. Last night the Brewers broke the Braves' five-game winning streak, building Brewer confidence.

Santos has dropped his last four starts with a 4.98 ERA. This was not helped by weak batting in those games. However, Santos has shone on the road this season and will attempt to add a third win to the Brewers' current streak.

Be sure and watch tonight, it'll be a good one - I promise.

GO BREWERS!!!

Maybe Next Time...

2004-08-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

From mlb.com:

After starting the game 0-for-6 in clutch situations and leaving runners in
scoring position in each of the first four innings, the Brewers took the lead in
the fifth inning on Branyan's two-run triple and Overbay's RBI single off Mets
starter Steve Trachsel.

Those hits gave the Brewers a 3-1 lead that Davis carried into the seventh
inning, when things came undone in a hurry.

It was a good inning though, wasn't it?

Victory at Last!

2004-08-03T10:55:00.000-07:00

From mlb.com:

After a well-deserved day off, the Brewers will try to build on Sunday's
thrilling win over the Pirates when they host the Mets in a three-game
series.

Bill Hall went 3-for-5
with two RBIs, including a bases-loaded, game-winning single in the bottom of
the ninth inning for an 8-7 Brewers win. It earned the team its first series win
since July 5-7 and ended a month-long stretch against National League Central
rivals.
The Brewers also avoided dropping a season-low four games below .500
and falling below the Pirates into last place.

Way to go Brewers! Now we've just got to keep it up!!!

Welcome Branyan!!

2004-07-27T08:38:00.000-07:00

From MLB:

Looking to add some pop to what has been a punchless offense, the Brewers on Monday acquired the 28-year-old Branyan, once a hot prospect in the Cleveland Indians organization, for future cash considerations.

Hopefully Branyan will be as much of a success as Podsednik, Davis, Kolb, Kieschnick and Santos who were earlier trades that really worked out for the Brewers.

2004-07-20T09:09:00.000-07:00

Hi... I'm working with Julia on this blog. We're both really excited to be able to put info about the Brew Crew up on this website!!

So... here's what I've been paying attention to lately...

Jenkins leads all NL left fielders with a 1.000 fielding percentage. He has not made an error since June 4, 2002 -- a span of 222 games and 408 total chances. Jenkins is also tied with the Reds' Adam Dunn and the Phillies' Bobby Abreu with eight outfield assists. Jenkins has 66 outfield assists in his career.

Jenkins made the play of the game on Sunday at Wrigley Field. He snared a drive off the bat of Chicago's Aramis Ramirez and then delivered a laser-beam throw to Lyle Overbay to double-up Moises Alou at first base.

Way to go Jenkins!!! Keep up the great work!!!

NL Loses to AL

2004-07-15T10:44:00.000-07:00

From MLB.com:

The crowd had barely calmed itself from the buzz created by the appearance of ceremonial first-pitch honoree Muhammad Ali when Clemens put the National League in a quick six-run hole, which led to a 9-4 American League win.

An Ivan Rodriguez RBI triple and two-run homer by Manny Ramirez gave the AL an immediate 3-0 lead. With two outs, Jason Giambi reached on a Jeff Kent error, and after Derek Jeter singled to left, game MVP Alfonso Soriano cleared the bases with a first-pitch homer to left field that gave the AL a six-run advantage.

Dan Kolb took the mound and didn't do his best work, but got some nice acknowledgements from other players:

Some of the Reds' All-Stars were still talking about Sunday.

"That's amazing, man," Cincinnati closer Danny Graves said of Kolb's avoidance of extra bases. "That's kind of unheard of to go through this long of a season to not give up an extra-base hit. Not even a flare double? It's easy to give those up. It was definitely a great run for him."

Reds first baseman Sean Casey called it "ridiculous."

"The bottom line is that it's nice to see Dan Kolb here at the All-Star Game because he's got great stuff," Casey said. "He had it last year, too. He's flat-out nasty. I'm not surprised that no one got an extra-base hit off him."

HELLO WISCONSIN!!!

2004-07-12T15:00:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

I'm a Brewers-loving baseball chick from Kenosha, Wisconsin, and I'm starting this page devoted to my favorite baseball team. I'll be updating the blog regularly with news and opinions on the Brewers and baseball in general. I welcome any comments or questions, and I'm excited to hear from other Brewers fans all over the map.

Not much going on right now since it's All-Star break, so I'll put up some numbers and stuff. The Brewers are at .523, 4th in the NL Central. Not a bad record, but there's definitely room for improvement. Luckily there's plenty of time left before playoffs to show our mettle. We're just coming off a 1-3 series with the Reds, and we'll be heading to Chicago to begin a 4 game series against the Cubs on Thursday. The Cubs are looking good this season, so we need to come up with some answers as we rest up during the break.

In other news, congrats to Dan Kolb and Ben Sheets on making the 2004 NL All-Star team!!! GOOD LUCK IN HOUSTON!!!

That's all for now :-)

GO BREWERS!!!