Results tagged ‘ Jonathan Lucroy ’
Opinion Poll: Who Should Start for the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday?
After a mild winter, the experts claimed that Wisconsin would see an increase in the number of insects that nobody likes this summer. Mosquitos, black flies, those annoying orange lady bugs. What the experts didn’t tell us in Milwaukee was that the injury bug would be the most prevalent before the calendar even turned to June.
The Brewers have now lost three starters (Chris Narveson, Mat Gamel, Alex Gonzalez) to injuries that, barring a quick recovery by the two surgically-repaired ACLs, will cost them the balance of the 2012 season. They’ve lost games by other players both on the Disabled List but already back (Carlos Gomez), not to the DL but just missed a few games (Rickie Weeks, Ryan Braun, and maybe Aramis Ramirez after getting drilled in the elbow last night), and finally two more players that have gone down to the DL over the past two games (Cesar Izturis, Marco Estrada) that were filling in for guys lost for the year.
The shortstop position has been a mess. The team claimed 36-year-old Cody Ransom off of waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks to replace Edwin Maysonet on the roster, but after Izturis’ hamstring injury Maysonet is coming back up to, presumably, backup Ransom now. There really isn’t much more that General Manager Doug Melvin can do about the shortstop position right now.
What he does have some options at, however, is what this post is here to discuss.
Melvin announced through the media that he expected recently-injured starting pitcher Marco Estrada to miss “three or four starts”. The diagnosis since then is that Estrada could miss “4-6 weeks” which of course is a lot more than four starts.
Given that Melvin has options, I took to social media and asked who my followers and friends would like to see fill Estrada’s void. This was asked when we were under the assumption of “three to four starts”, but I’m not sure that Estrada being out longer would affect the answers much.
Here now are the answers, ordered by the number of mentions the player received:
Total Votes: 51
Manny Parra: 13
Wily Peralta: 9
Tyler Thornburg: 8
Roy Oswalt: 7
Anyone but Manny Parra: 4
Michael Fiers: 3
(the rest of the list is presented alphabetically by last name since they’re all tied with 1 vote)
Brian Baker
Chorizo
Teddy Higuera
Brooks Kieschnick
Jonathan Lucroy (with George Kottaras catching)
Jason Marquis
Kevin Millwood (via trade)
Obviously some people went for a humorous response (Higuera, Chorizo, Kieschnick), and I’m sorry to inform seven of you that Roy Oswalt isn’t coming to a team in the Brewers current state (record and otherwise).
The beat writers seem to think that Ron Roenicke is backing off of Manny Parra as an option, and that Parra will likely remain in the bullpen, but he got the most votes here. Also, assistant GM Gord Ash made comments that while Thornburg is “in the discussion”, his likelihood of getting chosen is low because he’s not on the 40-man roster already and that must be a consideration.
But, seeing the list here, do you agree? Who would you vote for if you haven’t already?
Or is this the guy you want on the mound on Tuesday?
Brewers By the (Jersey) Numbers: #9 George Kottaras
Would you look at that? We’re in the single digits, folks!
Regular season baseball is almost here.
Well, regular season Brewers baseball that is. See, they’re playing games that matter today in Japan. The Oakland Athletics and the Seattle Mariners are playing a regular season series outside of North America.
It’s not the first time it has happened, nor will it be the last, I’m sure. That fact doesn’t make it less silly though.
Anyway, you didn’t come here to read about any of that. No, you’re here to read about the man who is wearing jersey number 9 for the first time as a Milwaukee Brewer (or as a big leaguer at all):
George Kottaras.
The backup to Jonathan Lucroy, George Kottaras is a 6’0″, 200 pound catcher who hails from Scarborough, Ontario. Though Canadian by birth, he is of Greek descent and played on the 2004 Greek baseball team in the Olympics.
Kottaras is an offensive catcher who possesses a bit of power from the left-handed batters box. He is streaky in his offense, though when he’s on he’s usually very on.
In fact, Kottaras had a very significant offensive achievement in 2011 when he hit for the cycle in a game at Minute Maid Park in Houston against the Astros.
It was an event that might not have happened for him had everything gone to plan.
Kottaras, along with Wil Nieves, broke camp with the team in 2011 because Lucroy was shelved with a broken finger. The incumbent starter was ready to return eventually and the team later needed to open a roster spot. The decision came down to who would backup Lucroy.
Nieves, proven to be superior defensively to Kottaras, was chosen to remain on the team as the backup catcher and Kottaras was outrighted to Triple-A Nashville. It was a move which would prove fruitless for the Brewers and Kottaras rejoined the club when Nieves was completely useless at the plate. Nieves was traded to Atlanta shortly thereafter.
While catching games in 2011 for the Brewers, the pitchers he caught posted a 3.59 ERA. That would be 101 earned runs in 253.0 innings. Kottaras started 31 times, catching left-hander Randy Wolf in 22 of them. The Brewers were 20-11 in games where Kottaras was in the starting lineup.
Like was mentioned, though, Kottaras was on the roster for his stick. He batted .252 with 5 home runs and 17 RBI in 49 games. A far cry from starting catcher material, but a significant improvement over Nieves.
Still, Kottaras was a candidate after the season for non-tendering. The Brewers have another solid catching prospect in minor-leaguer Martin Maldonado and Kottaras was set to be arbitration-eligible, thereby greatly increasing his compensation.
Instead of being non-tendered, Kottaras agreed to a 1-year contract which he signed on 12/12, thereby avoiding arbitration and guaranteeing himself a job (at least going into spring).
Kottaras has had a good spring this year, and has all but assured himself of the backup catching job. He has hit .316 (12-for-38), scored 7 runs and driven in 7 as well, including a 5-RBI game on March 14. He’s walked four times and has even stolen a base.
As for the outlook for this year, it’s the same as last but with more time on the 25-man roster. He’ll likely catch every fifth day when Randy Wolf pitches, and occasionally a day game following a night game. The only difference might be that manager Ron Roenicke stated to the media that he intends to use Kottaras more in a late-inning pinch-hitting role.
All that is well and good, and I know that this won’t be a popular statement with the ladies, but 2012 could very well be the final season for Kottaras in Milwaukee.
He’s arbitration-eligible again after the season and with Maldonado having another year to get better in the minors, it might be time to pull that trigger.
Bottom line though, Kottaras should contribute a bit on offense, be torched badly by the majority of would be base stealers, and the subject of plenty of “personal catcher” tweets throughout the year.
After signing a new five-year contract extension, the Brewers will be looking for Lucroy to increase his games this year for sure, so Kottaras shouldn’t have too much exposure. And while I’ve got faith that Kottaras will win at least one game this year with his bat…
A lack of exposure of his weaknesses is better for everyone.
Jonathan Lucroy, Milwaukee Brewers Agree to Multi-Year Contract Extension
It was announced today that the Milwaukee Brewers have signed starting catcher Jonathan Lucroy to a multi-year contract extension.
Lucroy agreed to a five-year deal (with a club option for 2017) which buys out all of what are probably four years of arbitration eligibility. The arbitration system normally only gives you three years of mediated contract decisions (if necessary), but a status called “Super 2″ most likely would have applied to Lucroy after this year which gives an additional year of arbitration.
The contract value is actually variable on whether Lucroy reaches that Super 2 status but reports say that the least amount Lucroy will earn over it is $11 million total.
***UPDATE***
The versions of Lucroy’s contract structuring are as follows:
Non Super 2: $500,000 signing bonus, $500,000 salary in 2012, $750,000 in ’13, $2 million in ’14, $3 million in ’15, $4 million in ’16 and a $5.25 million club option for 2017 with a $250,l000 buyout.
Super 2: $500,000 signing bonus, $500,000 salary in 2012, $1.9 million in ’13, $2.3 million in ’14, $3.3 million in ’15, $4.25 million in ’16 and a $5.25 million club option with a $250,000 buyout.
***End of update ***
It is rare to leapfrog any steps in the developmental ladder that is the minor leagues, but especially so when you’re a catcher. Lucroy did exactly that, however, in 2010 when the team needed another catcher following a season-ending injury to veteran Gregg Zaun. Lucroy joined the team from Double-A Huntsville initially as a backup to George Kottaras who now currently backs up Lucroy.
The Brewers starter hasn’t looked back since.
This is a move that makes sense on both sides of the ledger. Lucroy, 25, gets that increasingly important guaranteed money. The Brewers gain some cost certainty with an eye on the future budgetary concerns of the ball club.
Lucroy’s ability to handle the pitching staff, keep a running game relatively in check, and contribute at the plate enough are all lauded aspects of his game. Numerous pitchers were quoted last year as saying something to the effect of that Lucroy is still learning but he’s getting very good at his job behind the dish. Public praise from veteran pitchers to a young catcher isn’t exactly easy to come by.
This projects to be Lucroy’s first season as the Brewers catcher on Opening Day. Lucroy was listed atop the depth chart in 2011 as well but missed Opening Day (and a few more days following) due to a broken pinkie suffered during Spring Training.
Back in the saddle this spring, however, gives the starting pitchers a sense of security in the knowledge of who they’ll be throwing to the for the majority of their starts.
With this extension in place now, those good feelings will continue…on both sides.
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Jonathan Lucroy is represented by Sports One Athlete Management.
Brewers By the (Jersey) Numbers: #12 Martin Maldonado
Welcome back to the countdown!
We’re a dozen days away from the sights, sounds, and smells of baseball overtaking the sprawling Miller Park grounds.
What a day it shall be!
Unfortunately for today’s profile, Miller Park will likely not include him in its Opening Day festivities and therefore this preview won’t be as long as it otherwise would.
Despite being a member of the 40-man roster, he is currently listed as third on the catching depth chart and is therefore slated for a minor-league optioning to be the starting catcher with the Triple-A Nashville Sounds.
I’m talking about:
Martin Maldonado.
A champion this winter in the Puerto Rican League as a part of Los Indios de Mayaguez, Martin Maldonado is a 6’1″, 225 pound backstop who hails from Naguabo, Puerto Rico.
Every player (well, in the National League at least) plays both offense and defense in a baseball game. For a catcher, however, defense becomes much more intense of a discipline.
You’re involved in almost every single play and aware of everything happening on the field. The catcher is the only player in the game who sees everything happening on the field in front of him.
Some catchers are offensive-minded and only catch a game well-enough to get by. Some catchers are phenomenal receivers, and have a great “catch and throw” but can’t hit their way out of a paper bag.
Then every so often you get a catcher that seems like he’s going to be able to do both. Maldonado profiles as such a catcher.
Already deemed ready defensively by scouts and those who follow prospects much more closely than I do, Maldonado had a bit of an offensive breakthrough in 2011 in the minor leagues while catching for Nashville following a promotion from Double-A Huntsville.
The combined numbers for 2011 for Maldonado look like:
103 games, 342 at-bats, 47 runs, 98 hits, 18 doubles, 11 home runs, 59 RBI, 35 walks, 77 strikeouts resulting in a slash-line of .287/.373/.436 as a minor leaguer.
He was rewarded with a promotion to the Major Leagues as a September call-up.
His final season line was all buoyed by his Nashville-only numbers which saw him finish with a .321/.410/.537 slash line. His Spring Training this year hasn’t been tremendous, but it’s only 23 at-bats worth so I’m not worried in slightest.
The writing has been on the wall for Maldonado’s ticket for the minors this year since incumbent backup George Kottaras agreed to a one-year deal back in early December. Kottaras was a non-tender candidate (much like Casey McGehee who ended up getting traded when a one-year deal wasn’t reached) in large part because the front office knew that they had another catcher waiting in the wings who they were comfortable going with if Kottaras wouldn’t agree.
With another year of seasoning down on the farm for Maldonado on deck, it would not be a surprise at all if Kottaras was sent on his way before the next non-tender deadline this coming December.
Normally you don’t like to simply give up a commodity like catching without getting something in return, but Brewer Nation can rest easy if Maldonado is the reason that it happens in this case.
Remember those types of catchers we talked about before? Jonathan Lucroy leaned offense in the minors and has done an admirable job on his defensive skills since his unlikely promotion from Double-A to the majors after Gregg Zaun was lost for the season a couple of years back.
Kottaras is most definitely an offensive asset but is also a defensive liability. Yes he pairs up nicely with Randy Wolf, but that’s not enough of a reason to keep someone around when his replacement would do it even better.
Martin Maldonado is enough of an asset on both sides of the game that he might force his way into the lineup sooner rather than later.
Then again, this is Randy Wolf’s last guaranteed season in Milwaukee anyway, isn’t it.
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You can follow Martin Maldonado on Twitter: @Machete1224
Milwaukee Brewers on ESPN Top 500 MLB Players List
ESPN is slowly revealing its list of the best 500 players in baseball, heading into the 2012 season.
This was determined by a team of 34 “experts” (their word) were given a list of the top 600 players projected to play in the Major Leagues this season.
Using a 0-10 scale, they evaluated “only the quality of each player for the 2012 season” which means no past performance should be factored in, though we know that likely won’t be the case.
In the event of ties, ZiPS was used to project performance and therefore break those ties.
I make this post to pull out the Brewers players as they are revealed.
The surveying took place over the last two weeks of February, so I’m very interested to see where Ryan Braun’s final ranking comes in.
Ages listed are as of July 1, 2012.
Without further ado, here are the Brewers that have been revealed to this point on the list:
Rank – Name – Position – Age – Twitter handle (if appicable)
# 6 – Ryan Braun - LF – Age: 28
# 42 – Zack Greinke - RHP – Age: 29
# 53 – Yovani Gallardo - RHP – Age: 26
# 84 – John Axford - RHP – Age: 29 - @JohnAxford
# 90 – Rickie Weeks – 2B – Age: 29
# 130 – Shaun Marcum - RHP – Age: 30
# 133 – Aramis Ramirez - 3B – Age: 34
# 144 – Corey Hart - RF – Age: 30
# 173 – Francisco Rodriguez – RHP – Age: 30 - @El_kid_rod57
#232 – Randy Wolf- LHP – Age: 35
# 320 – Alex Gonzalez - SS – Age: 35
# 330 – Jonathan Lucroy – C – Age: 26
# 331 - Nyjer Morgan - CF – Age: 31 - @TheRealTPlush
# 362 – Chris Narveson – LHP – Age: 30 - @sleep_trick
# 458 – Carlos Gomez - CF – Age: 26 - @C_Gomez27
# 461 – Mat Gamel - 1B – Age: 26 - @JMGamel
I will be updating this post daily as more names are announced.
(A cool little bonus to the list is that ESPN is including confirmed Twitter handles for players when they know them, and while they’ve included Chris Narveson’s, they skipped both Gomez’ and Gamel’s. I have included them in this post.)
Brewers By the (Jersey) Numbers: #20 Jonathan Lucroy
Today is St. Patrick’s Day in the United States of America, but at least as important, if not more so, is the fact that today is 20 days away from Opening Day!
You read that correctly. There are less than three weeks to go, Brewer Nation!
Today while you’re likely out partaking in some adult beverages and/or watching the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament’s Round of 32, be safe. Getting hurt (or God forbid worse) simply isn’t worth missing out of Opening Day.
But sometimes playing it safe can’t keep you injury free and you might miss Opening Day after all.
Such was the case last spring with today’s subject:
Jonathan Lucroy.
During a normal drill during Spring Training last year, Jonathan Charles Lucroy broke the pinkie finger on his throwing hand. (Lucroy bats and throws right-handed.) It caused Lucroy to begin the year on the disabled list as Wil Nieves and George Kottaras began the season as the two catchers on the 25-man roster.
Lucroy was reinstated to the active roster on April 10th and immediately worked back into the starting role. He had a nine-game hitting streak to begin the season once he got back to Milwaukee and was named the team’s Player of the Month for May.
Overall for the year, Lucroy batted .265/.313/.391, in 430 at-bats over 136 games (114 starts). He scored 45 runs, drove in 59, and totaled 114 hits (16 doubles, 1 triple, 12 home runs) while striking out 99 times and only walking 29 times.
More important for a catcher though is how he performs defensively. In that regard, the Brewers had a 3.63 ERA when he caught (1043.2 innings, 421 earned runs) and went 68-46 when he started. Lucroy threw out 21 of 98 runners attempting to steal, good for a 21.4% rate.
What’s more is that there have been more than a couple of articles written over the winter about Lucroy’s ability to frame pitches and help get borderline strike calls for his pitchers.
He was also inserted late in games which he did not start to pair up with the late-inning relievers. He is much more defensively sound than George Kottaras and those late changes helped evidence that.
Lucroy joked at one point during the season that he was the closer off the bench for the closers in the bullpen.
Back to the bat, Lucroy is having by far the best Spring Training of his career. Coming into today, Lucroy is batting .571 (12-of-21) and slugging .857 by way of three doubles and a home run. He’s also recorded his first Cactus League stolen base.
It’s been related by the beat writers that Lucroy has really taken well to the instruction from first year Brewers hitting coach Johnny Narron. If the results in the regular season and over the course of the long summer reflect the improvements he’s made so far, it’ll be a banner year for third year big-leaguer at the plate.
If there is any knock on the way Lucroy has performed to this point in his career, it’s in the fact that he is only the starting catcher 80% of the time. He might get more days off than that of course with day games following night games, or the occasional double-header, but he’s only the #1 option for four of the five starting pitchers in Milwaukee’s rotation.
That’s not entirely Lucroy’s fault, of course, but the face remains that he and left-handed starter Randy Wolf have been unable to get on the same page. Wolf likes to pitch a game a certain way. He has a very specific game plan and knows what he wants to throw in any situation. Lucroy hasn’t gotten it yet. He needs to work harder to be able to catch Wolf and not force manager Ron Roenicke into having to catch Kottaras (or more accurately “not Lucroy”) against tough left-handed pitchers.
Lucroy and Wolf have been paired together this spring and it seems to be working well enough so far. Having said all that, every catcher not named Jason Kendall needs some days off and catching Kottaras every fifth day all the time at least helps keeps Lucroy fresher.
As for being on the club on Opening Day, things are looking good for Lucroy there as well. Getting the start on the mound on Opening Day will likely be Yovani Gallardo, one of the four that Lucroy catches.
What all that means is that when Miller Park announcer Rob Edwards is rattling off the members of the Milwaukee Brewers prior to first pitch 20 days from now, it’ll be Lucroy’s name he calls out in the batting order as “in the bullpen” while he’s warming up Gallardo.
It may be a small thing, but making your first Opening Day roster means something to a ballplayer. But there’s something special about Opening Day.
For Jonathan Lucroy, it doesn’t signifying anything that we don’t already know. He’s the starting catcher and will be so for the majority of 2012.
But you just never know what it might mean to the individual. Hopefully in 20 days, we’ll find out what it means for Lucroy together.
Brewers By the (Jersey) Numbers: #51 Zelous Wheeler
It’s February 15th. It’s 51 days away from Opening Day.
Enough opening. Let’s cut right to the chase.
Number 51 on the countdown is the proud owner of one of the best names in the Brewers organization, if not the entirety of baseball:
Zelous Wheeler.
While Zelous Lamar Wheeler only joined Twitter a few short weeks ago, Twitter was the place last season where several of his biggest supporters started a hashtag that permeated the general consciousness of Brewers-themed tweets. That hashtag is #ZealotsForZelous.
A zealot is defined as a fanatic. Therefore the Zealots For Zelous group are some that have high hopes for Wheeler’s future career projections. Let’s take a look at what exactly makes someone a Zealot.
Before we get there though, let’s lay the groundwork. Wheeler is listed at 5’10″ and 220 pounds. For the sake of comparison, Rickie Weeks was most recently listed at 5’10″ and 215 pounds. Wheeler was born on January 16, 1987 in Alabama. He bats and throws right-handed and plays mostly third base.
Wheeler was drafted by the Brewers out of Wallace State Community College in the 19th round of the 2007 First-Year Player Draft. This is the same draft that has given the Brewers organization Jonathan Lucroy, Caleb Gindl, Eric Farris, Dan Merklinger, and Cody Scarpetta.
Listed as a third baseman when the Brewers drafted him, Wheeler has maintained his defensive spot during his rise through the minor leagues. Wheeler manned the hot corner for both Double-A Huntsville and Triple-A Nashville during 2011, compiling similar lines at each locale. In Huntsville, where he spent the majority of 2011, Wheeler compiled 62 hits and scored 34 runs while he put together a .272/.377/.465 line filled out with 20 doubles, 8 home runs, 32 RBI, 7 stolen bases (in 7 attempts), 30 walks and 49 strikeouts in 228 at-bats. As for Nashville, in 51 at-bats Wheeler hit safely 14 times and put up .275/.383/.431, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 home run, 6 RBI, 9 walks and 8 strikeouts.
Also encouraging, despite the small sample size with Nashville, is that Wheeler’s walk-rate and strikeout-rate were both better in Triple-A. His ISO, wOBA and wRC+ were worse, but again, small sample size can be argued on both sides.
He then spent some time with the Peoria Javelinas in the Arizona Fall League where he got 56 more at-bats, posting a .276/.358/.397 line with 16 hits, 15 runs scored, 8 runs batted in, 7 walks and 14 strikeouts in 16 games. All of that hard work and consistency paid off in the form of being added to the 40-man roster last fall. What that means in the short term is that when Wheeler begins the 2012 season assigned to the minor league affiliate, it’ll cost one of his three minor league options to get him there.
Wheeler did play a little first base in the Arizona Fall League, for the record. It’s likely that the majority of Wheeler’s defensive plays in 2012 will still be at third. Wheeler is blocked at his natural third base position, however, by both recent Brewers signee Aramis Ramirez and fellow prospect Taylor Green who finished 2011 on Milwaukee’s 25-man playoff roster. That won’t stop Wheeler from continuing to work on his game at whatever affiliate he does start the new season with.
There is some doubt as to where Wheeler will begin 2012 because although he did start the season with Triple-A Nashville in 2011, he only played with Double-A Huntsville from June 29th through the end of the season. He also missed nearly two months of the year due to an injury suffered in the second game of the season. Wheeler was hurt in a collision at home plate, a collision which resulted in a torn PCL in Wheeler’s right knee.
After being added to the 40-man roster, however, if Taylor Green wins a backup infielder spot with Milwaukee, it’d be a safe bet to put Wheeler in at third base for the Sounds on a roster projection.
Wheeler isn’t merely a consistent bat with no defense. In fact, coming into the 2011 season, Baseball America labeled Wheeler as the Brewers prospect with the best infield arm. He picks the ball well and makes strong, accurate throws. Wheeler isn’t resting on those laurels though. He wants to be a super utility player that can handle any defensive position. He said that he even started catching a little bit recently because he’s simply wants to get in the lineup and contribute.
It’s that kind of attitude and commitment that will win him fans in Milwaukee, both in the stands and in the front office.
Or perhaps I should say that those qualities will be earning him some more zealots.
Milwaukee Brewers S.W.A.T. Team Indeed Special
The Milwaukee Brewers have been gaining in both popularity and recognition on a national level due to their superb play as of late. This popularity led the FOX broadcasting network to option games on consecutive Saturdays to become a part of their national broadcasts.
During a pre-taped segment at Miller Park (the game today is part of a three-game series at Citi Field in Flushing, NY) FOX broadcaster Chris Rose discussed various topics with several Brewers players, including one Nyjer Morgan.
The story of Tony Plush is one that has not really been tackled by this blog despite my extensive discussion about it on Twitter. I won’t rehash anything here but suffice it to say that Morgan is more than a bit unique. In fact, in the taped segment Prince Fielder agrees with Rose’s assessment of Morgan as “a little crazy”.
The reason for this post is not, however, due to any of Morgan’s actions, hand-gestures, yelling or otherwise. Instead it is being written to expound on something Morgan uttered when he was in the midst of being quizzed on Milwaukee Brewers trivia by Rose.
Rose asked Morgan if he knew what the nickname of the 1982 Brewers offense was. As any Brewers fan with knowledge of the team prior to 2008 would know, it was “Harvey’s Wallbangers”. Morgan didn’t know this, admitted as much, but said that he knows that this group is calling themselves the “SWAT team”.
This could have a simple reference to swatting baseballs with baseball bats but I like to think of it in another way whether Morgan meant it as such or not.
S.W.A.T. is an acronym for specialized police forces around country and elsewhere. S.W.A.T. stands for Special Weapons And Tactics. This a moniker that, quite simply in my estimation, personifies the 2011 Milwaukee Brewers perfectly.
Let’s take that in halves and I’ll show you what I mean.
Special Weapons: The Milwaukee Brewers have plenty of players that can be categorized as “Special Weapons”. Here’s an incomplete list.
- Ryan Braun: Former Rookie of the Year. Four-time elected All-Star Game starting outfielder. Currently second in the National League in batting average. Leading the NL in runs scored and slugging percentage.
- Prince Fielder: Youngest player to ever hit 50 home runs in a single season. Two-time elected All-Star Game starting first baseman. Recipient of MVP votes several times. Batting over .300, with 28 HR, 96 RBI. Leading the NL in RBI. Second in the NL in OBP and OPS.
- Nyjer Morgan: Spark plug that always seems to be in the middle of game-winning situations and game-turning plays. Recently had a double-digit game hitting streak. Getting on-base multiple ways. Keeps the clubhouse loose and keeps everybody relaxed during the grind of the season.
- John Axford: Second in the National League (and all of MLB) in Saves. Current owner of a 34 consecutive Saves streak. Three pitch arsenal which can all be thrown for strikes. 97-98MPH heat. Outstanding control. Came out of nowhere to take over the closer role from future member of the Hall of Fame, Trevor Hoffman and has converted saves since then at a 92.4% clip.
- Take your pick of the Starting Pitchers. They are currently on a spectacular run of efficiency and dominance. The only recent hiccup was Randy Wolf’s start on August 20 in New York but otherwise it’s been a tremendous past few weeks. Getting stronger at the right time. Here are a couple of highlights from the new members this year to the Brewers’ rotation.
- Zack Greinke: 12-4 record. Former AL Cy Young Award winner. Currently 9-0 at Miller Park this season (the team is 11-0 in his home starts). 151-29 K-BB ratio.
- Shaun Marcum: 11-3 record. 2.47 ERA on the road. .227 opponent batting average. Has played stopper more than a couple of times this year.
Again, that’s an incomplete list because several others could be on it but let’s move ahead to…
Tactics: Under first-year manager Ron Roenicke, the Brewers have employed several tactics that have helped them defeat opponents on a consistent (and lately near constant) basis. Here are a handful of examples.
- Over-Shifting: The Brewers have shifted a lot this season as a way to help make up for a lack of range amongst three-quarters of their infield. Not only have they shifted against the biggest left-handed hitters by having the shortstop play up the middle or even on the first-base side of second-base, but they’ve also flipped the script and done the opposite against right-handed hitters by having the second baseman play up the middle on several occasions. This has led to many batted balls that would normally be easy hits against a standard defensive alignment to wind up as outs in Fielder’s glove at first.
- Squeeze Plays: When Roenicke took over he warned everyone that this team would be much more aggressive on the base paths. The result has been mixed at times with the baserunners running into several outs as they tested their own limits or simply miscalculated their odds for success. However one base running tactic that Roenicke has used several times this year with good success has been the suicide squeeze (with its less exciting cousin the safety squeeze sprinkled in as well). There have been a couple of bad examples lately due to missed signs, but they are still employing the tactic.
- Five-man Infield: Late in games when the opponents have the winning or tying run at third base with less than two outs, Roenicke has made it a habit to head to the mound to talk to his pitcher and infield, and to beckon left fielder Ryan Braun in from his normal spot to fill space on the dirt instead. This has worked more often than it has failed but just the radical idea of trying it makes it a specialized tactic indeed.
- Strict Platoons: Most contending teams don’t have strict platoons at any position. The Milwaukee Brewers have two. First is the fact that Randy Wolf and starting catcher Jonathan Lucroy haven’t ever been able to get on the same page when it comes to the way Wolf likes to pitch a game. Therefore, Lucroy does not catch Wolf at all. Backup catcher George Kottaras does instead. Wolf feels more comfortable so it makes sense. The other strict platoon is in centerfield. After the plan to begin the season wasn’t effective, Nyjer Morgan began starting against all right-handed pitchers with Carlos Gomez starting against lefties. Once Gomez got hurt coupled with Morgan’s stellar play, many fans were calling for Morgan to start every game. This wouldn’t have been the best option and it wasn’t the option Roenicke went with. Other players have filled the role against lefty starting pitchers and Morgan has continued playing at a high level due to being put in the best position to succeed.
With all of these examples of tactics and weapons, I think it’s pretty clear that whether “T-Dot” intended it or not (and let’s be honest, he probably did), S.W.A.T. is an absolute personification of the 2011 Milwaukee Brewers.
Simply stated it’s another dynamite drop from the silver-tongued Tony Plush, aka Mr.Eezzy Breezzy, aka Mr.Gotta B Startin Somthin, aka Mr.Professional Tony Gumble, aka T-Dot…Nyjer Morgan.
This S.W.A.T. team is highly talented, highly trained, and will take down an opponent with skilled precision and remarkable play.
The National League has been on notice for a while. The nation itself is taking notice as well.
It’s about time.
Milwaukee Brewers 25-Man Roster Comes Into Focus…For Now
By: Big Rygg
- Yovani Gallardo
- Shaun Marcum
- Randy Wolf
- Chris Narveson
- John Axford
- Takashi Saito
- Kameron Loe
- Sean Green
- Zach Braddock
- Mitch Stetter
- Sergio Mitre
- Brandon Kintzler
- George Kottaras
- Wil Nieves
- 1B – Prince Fielder
- 2B – Rickie Weeks
- SS – Yuniesky Betancourt
- 3B – Casey McGehee
- Bench – Craig Counsell
- Bench – Erick Almonte
- LF – Ryan Braun
- CF – Carlos Gomez
- RF – Mark Kotsay
- Bench – Jeremy Reed
- Bench – Nyjer Morgan
Brewer Nation
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