Some things to read while glowing.
The Milwaukee Brewers had a much-needed off day on Thursday, giving them a chance to regroup a bit after falling back to Earth with a 2-5 week against the Reds and Diamondbacks. They’re back in action tonight, though, as the New York Yankees come to town to open a three-game series for the first time since 2005 and just the second time since the Brewers moved to Miller Park. Yovani Gallardo will face Masahiro Tanaka in the opener at 7:10 p.m., and Adam McCalvy has the MLB.com preview.
This weekend’s series will also feature the Milwaukee return of CC Sabathia, who will pitch against the Brewers on Saturday for the first time since leaving the organization as a free agent after the 2008 season. Jack Moore of Sports on Earth has a reminder of the impact Sabathia made in a short stretch in Milwaukee.
It’s been a disheartening couple of weeks for the Brewers, who have gone 4-7 in their last 11 games. They’re still tied for the most wins in baseball and have a four game lead on the Cardinals in the NL Central, however, so there is some cause for optimism. A Thursday poll at Brew Crew Ball shows nearly 60 percent of voters saying the last two weeks have not changed their expectations for this team.
The Brewers will still have to get through this weekend without Ryan Braun, but it does sound like he’ll be healthy enough to rejoin the team when he’s eligible to come off the disabled list next week. Curt Hogg of Disciples of Uecker has a look at some of the Brewers that have struggled offensively during Braun’s absence.
Jonathan Lucroy is one of the Brewers who has not picked up the slack during Braun’s DL stint. Alec Dopp of Gammons Daily has a look at Lucroy’s diminished power and the likely reason behind it.
It’s probably safe to assume Scooter Gennett will be back in the lineup at second base tonight, but you can add one more to the list of Brewers fans calling for more playing time for Rickie Weeks. Vince Morales of Miller Park Drunk cited Weeks’ stronger power as something that could help the Brewers get by without Ryan Braun.
NL MVP candidate Carlos Gomez is also expected to be in the lineup tonight, but he’ll have a busy day first: His appeal of his three-game suspension for events in the Pirates series weeks ago is expected to be heard today, with MLB Vice President Joe Garagiola, Jr. presiding over the hearing (h/t @Haudricourt).
In the minors:
- The affiliates went 3-1 Thursday, and one win came from Wisconsin, where the Timber Rattlers hit four home runs en route to an 11-7 win over Cedar Rapids. You can read about that and more in today’s edition of Minor League Notes at Brew Crew Ball.
- Chris Mehring of Rattler Radio has highlights and pictures from Wisconsin’s win.
- Wisconsin made a roster move before yesterday’s game, sending 2013 ninth-round pick Tyler Linehan back to Nashville. Linehan had a strong professional debut season in 2013 but had struggled mightily with Wisconsin this spring, posting a 10.05 ERA over 11 2/3 innings with 18 hits and nine walks allowed.
- On the other end of the spectrum, Jimmy Nelson continues to dominate Triple-A. He has a 2.00 ERA after seven starts for Nashville, and Benjamin Orr of Reviewing the Brew asks when we’ll see him in Milwaukee.
- Nelson is also featured prominently in Ryan Topp of Disciples of Uecker’s minor league awards for April.
- The Brewers have an international signing bonus cap of $2.61 million for this season, but Noah Jarosh of Brew Crew Ball spotted a report saying they’re expected to be one of four teams to go over that figure. Teams can acquire extra pool money from other organizations in trade, but if the Brewers fail to do so, they could face loss of a draft pick.
- Nashville broadcaster Jeff Hem has an interview with Sounds first baseman Sean Halton.
- Big League Stew has a report about a fight in a Nashville bar between two members of an opposing team that left one player with a broken jaw and the other suspended.
Meanwhile, back in Milwaukee, the Brewers held a ceremony Thursday to honor former Milwaukee Brave and longtime MLB player, manager and executive Joe Torre. Torre played for the Braves in each of their final six seasons in Milwaukee from 1960-65 and represented the city in three All Star Games. He’s now a member of the Milwaukee Braves Honor Roll at Miller Park. The Yankees are also expected to retire Torre’s number this summer.
Elsewhere around town, someone took a Kyle Lohse bobblehead out to the golf course, and you can see the picture on the Brewers’ tumblr page. Lohse bobbles will be given away on Sunday.
Today in power rankings:
- Tim Brown of Yahoo moved the Brewers down a spot to No. 2 and made a Ryan Braun joke I didn’t get.
- Nats Insider has the Brewers holding steady in third place.
Around baseball:
Angels: Claimed pitcher Brooks Raley off waivers from the Cubs and designated pitcher Buddy Boshers for assignment.
Padres: Designated pitcher Hector Ambriz for assignment.
Rangers: Designated pitcher Scott Baker and infielder Josh Wilson for assignment.
Twins: Placed outfielder Sam Fuld on the seven-day DL with a concussion.
It won’t take long today to go around the NL Central:
- The Cubs avoided a four-game sweep with a 12-5 win over the White Sox Thursday. Anthony Rizzo, Starlin Castro and Mike Olt all homered in the game.
- The Brewers, Cardinals, Reds and Pirates were off on Thursday.
| Team | W | L | GB | Today | Matchup |
| Brewers | 22 | 13 | — | vs Yankees, 7:10 pm | Yovani Gallardo vs Masahiro Tanaka |
| Cardinals | 18 | 17 | 4 | @ Pirates, 6:05 pm | Michael Wacha vs Francisco Liriano |
| Reds | 15 | 18 | 6 | vs Rockies, 6:10 pm | Johnny Cueto vs Jhoulys Chacin |
| Pirates | 14 | 20 | 7.5 | vs Cardinals, 6:05 pm | Francisco Liriano vs Michael Wacha |
| Cubs | 12 | 21 | 9 | @ Braves, 6:35 pm | Jason Hammel vs Julio Teheran |
The fact that the Brewers continue to hold the top spot in the NL Central may surprise some people, but this is borderline shocking: With a win last night, the Marlins improved to 20-15 and moved into sole possession of first place in the NL East.
Today in former Brewers:
- George Kottaras was called up by the Indians over the weekend, hit two home runs in a game and was designated for assignment before his next appearance. Jason Lukehart of Let’s Go Tribe has a look at Kottaras among the greatest one-game wonders in Indians history.
- David Laurilia of FanGraphs has a story on Manny Parra resurrecting his MLB career with the Reds.
Meanwhile, in baseball economics: Major League Baseball created some negative PR this week when they asked iTunes to remove a number of podcasts featuring team names in their titles and/or variations of team logos in their logo. Wendy Thurm of FanGraphs has a look at the decision, which she says is “bullying these fan-driven podcasts.” Grant Brisbee of SB Nation has a look at what the podcasting landscape might look like if other popular brands treated their podcasts the same way MLB does.
Today in statistical notes: Entering play today, the Brewers have 36 home runs in 35 games, the third-highest total in the National League. Baseball In-Depth notes that home run rates are down across baseball this season, with teams averaging 41.3 at bats per home run after having a figure somewhere in the mid-30s every season since 2007. Home runs have actually gotten less frequent in May, where teams are averaging 48.6 AB/HR.
Across baseball, more and more teams are increasing their usage of defensive shifts, making it increasingly important that teams figure out how to exploit the strategy’s weaknesses. A member of the FanGraphs community has an interesting take on the physics involved in beating the shift.
Finally, with help from the Baseball Reference Play Index, we’d like to wish a happy birthday today to:
- 2005-11 Brewer Prince Fielder, the Brewers’ first pick (No. 7 overall) in the 2002 draft. He turns 30, and I covered his birthday in Today In Brewer History at Brew Crew Ball two years ago.
- 1984-95 Brewer Doug Loman, who turns 56.
- 1976-77 Brewer Dan Thomas, the Brewers’ first pick (No. 6 overall) in the 1972 draft. He would have turned 63.
- Milwaukee native Gus Krock, who would have turned 148. Krock played three MLB seasons between 1888-90 as a member of the Chicago White Stockings (Cubs) and three other teams.
Today is also the 40th anniversary of Hank Aaron’s final MLB stolen base in 1974 and the 30th anniversary of the conclusion of the longest game in franchise history, a 7-6, 25-inning loss to the White Sox in 1984. Follow the links for those events’ respective entries in Today In Brewer History. Also, Doug Padilla of ESPNChicago.com talked to Harold Baines, who hit the game-winning home run in the 25th inning of that 1984 game.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go get supplies.
Drink up.
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