This Week in Baseball 5/7 - 5/13

[vivalaultra]

There's always Homer Bailey to look forward to. With Eric Milton going on the DL, I was surprised that they didn't call him up. I thought he was to the Reds what Phil Hughes is to the Yankees.

[treble]

I clicked on the Wild Card standings to see how far the Jays were back in that. Big mistake, as I realized the only teams that have worse records right now are the Royals and Nationals.

[snuffbox]

Skip Bayless said the Brwers will not win the division or the wild card. That pretty much ensures a playoff berth for Milwaukee.

[vivalaultra]

I dunno...he's gotta be right one of these times. What was his reasoning?

[snuffbox]

"They're not legit like the Tigers last year."

[Mik]

that almost sounds like it could have some logic behind it...

[vivalaultra]

That's ridiculous. The Brewers aren't any less legit than the Tigers were. However, Cordero's arm might fall off eventually if he keeps pitching everyday.

[Guest Queen Leelee]

The Brewers don't have Jim Leyland's old man personality.

 

And Ben Sheets doesn't bring his lunch pail to work.

[Boon]

We're a month into the season. It's pretty tough to argue that any team is legit or not.

[snuffbox]

That's ridiculous. The Brewers aren't any less legit than the Tigers were. However, Cordero's arm might fall off eventually if he keeps pitching everyday.

 

One of those games was a one-pitch save. No game today. Don't hold your breath on Cordero's demise saving the Astros season.

[vivalaultra]

Awww...look at the Brewers' fan getting cocky. It's cute. Wait till August, junior.

[USC Wuz Robbed!]

Why? It's not like Astros will make up ground. They have a worse record than the Cubs.

[vivalaultra]

Come on...the Astros are totally going to be in the race. Once Jennings comes off the DL and Berkman starts heating up, they'll be fine. And when Clemens comes back, that'll give the Astros the best rotation in the NL Central.

[Failed Bridge]

how does Clemens pitching for the Yankees help the Astros?

[Guest Queen Leelee]

Removed distraction. Which may actually have some validity, since it appears most of the Astros couldn't stand his shit last year.

[USC Wuz Robbed!]

By that token, shouldn't they have the best rotation NOW? Knowing Clemens isn't going to come back to the Houston clubhouse?

[vivalaultra]

Oh, Clemens ain't pitching for the Yankees. He's just using that as a bargaining chip to get more money out of Drayton McClane. He wants to be around his family and go watch his kids play their Little League games. The Yankees would NEVER give him a clause in his contract letting him skip road trips he's not pitching on and miss some games for family functions. Clemens has a 10-year personal services contract with Houston AND his son is in the minor league system. Roger Clemens is a man of integrity to whom money and the spotlight does not matter. There's no way he'd blow off his hometown fans to pitch in New York. No way at all!

[snuffbox]

Trying way too hard.

[EVIL~! alkeiper]

Heh.

 

Brewers are 6.5 games up. If they go .500 the rest of the year, they'll still win 88 games. As far as I'm concerned, any team with that kind of lead is the team to beat. Besides, there are no teams the quality of the Twins to give them a run.

[vivalaultra]

Trying way too hard.

 

That's just how I roll.

[Guest Queen Leelee]

The Big Donkey with another HR. BAM.

 

EDIT: Followed by a triple.

 

Go for the cycle!

[Guest George's Box]

Awww...look at the Brewers' fan getting cocky. It's cute. Wait till August, junior.

When everybody in Wisconsin buys their new Brewers hats, I hope they'll do the right thing and donate their old circa-'04 Red Sox hats to charity.

[EVIL~! alkeiper]

C'mon Czech. Can you blame fans that didn't want to support a Selig owned team? I'll give their fans a pass given the way that franchise was mismanaged for a decade.

[vivalaultra]

Awww...look at the Brewers' fan getting cocky. It's cute. Wait till August, junior.

When everybody in Wisconsin buys their new Brewers hats, I hope they'll do the right thing and donate their old circa-'04 Red Sox hats to charity.

 

Nothing can bring Astros and Cubs fans together like a Brewers' division lead. I feel both dirty and slightly aroused all at the same time.

[Guest George's Box]

C'mon Czech. Can you blame fans that didn't want to support a Selig owned team? I'll give their fans a pass given the way that franchise was mismanaged for a decade.

To clarify, Bud Selig = great owner. Wendy Selig = bad owner. My argument has just been that since baseball doesn't matter to Milwaukee the way it does to Chicago, New York, Boston, and St. Louis (in no order), it's clearly going to take being 14 games over .500 to play to 60% capacity at home, and I'm not in any hurry to laud Milwaukee's support of the Brewers just yet. The Brewers are not embedded in the cultural fabric of greater Milwaukee, and it shows. They're just Milwaukee's baseball team.

[snuffbox]

The 1990s were a brutal time to be a Brewers fan. To watch so many star players come up, play a season or two in Milwaukee, only to be let go for the equivalent of a six-pack or less was depressing. Obviously, fans of teams that constantly funnel cash into the roster have no idea how frustrating that can be year in and year out.

[Guest George's Box]

The 20th century was hard for Cubs fans.

[Dobbs 3K]

Awww...look at the Brewers' fan getting cocky. It's cute. Wait till August, junior.

When everybody in Wisconsin buys their new Brewers hats, I hope they'll do the right thing and donate their old circa-'04 Red Sox hats to charity.

 

No one I know here in Wisconsin is or was a Red Sox fan. We fucking hate them and all the attention they get, along with the Yankees. I think I wanted the Red Sox to win the World Series, but that was just so we didn't have to hear "It's been xxx years" anymore.

 

The Brewers are legit this year because of their depth. Even if a starting pitcher and/or an infielder gets injured, it's not like they don't have anyone to plug in as a backup. They still have Yo Gallardo and Ryan Braun waiting in AAA. Hell, Corey Koskie is even claiming he'll be back this year (though I personally doubt that he'll bounce back from his post-concussion syndrome). Also, Mark Attanasio and Doug Melvin have stated they'll spend money on the right player later in the season if they have a need.

 

People are excited because it's not all lip service, like during the Bud and Wendy eras.

[Guest George's Box]

So you don't see a great deal of Red Sox hats? Who you crappin'? Everybody was on that bandwagon, and it wasn't "so people would shut up about them already cuz we hate it." That was an unforgettable month of baseball, and I'll respect you more if you come right out and say it instead of trying to cloak it in your so-called exhaustion with the hype.

[Dobbs 3K]

The 1990s were a brutal time to be a Brewers fan. To watch so many star players come up, play a season or two in Milwaukee, only to be let go for the equivalent of a six-pack or less was depressing. Obviously, fans of teams that constantly funnel cash into the roster have no idea how frustrating that can be year in and year out.

 

Yep. When I first started really getting into baseball as an eight year old in 1988, Gary Sheffield was my favorite player. Everyone knows how well that turned out, and they ended up trading him for a couple bums I can't even name. Then, they let Paul Molitor go and he wins a World Series for Toronto.

 

I remember reading quotes from Phil Garner in the mid-'90s about how "The goal is to win the World Series. It is every year", and wanting to vomit beause everyone knew there was no way in hell they were going to contend. We also had to hear Wendy Selig-Prieb's constant excuses about being a small market team, and all that.

 

Yeah, we're more than due.