The turn around series

Finally a sweep for the Brewers worth taking note of, sorry Pirates' fans but the Brewers have had there number and I expect the Brewers to sweep the Pirates when they play them now. But a sweep of the Rockies was not expected but is very much enjoyed by me and Brewer fans everywhere. Not only was it three wins while the Reds lost three games but it puts us above .500 and the Brewers did it in ways that we aren't really used to seeing so far this season. On Friday the Brewers picked themselves up multiple times to come back and win in extra innings. Saturday they backed a great pitching performance with just enough offense to win and did the same on Sunday. The thing to note is that in every game the Brewers were outhit by the Rockies, meaning the Brewers got clutch hits, something that has bee lacking so far this season and it all started Friday night.

Friday nights game was special for me because I was there and it was possibly the best Brewer game I have seen in my life. It started with Greinke getting the start and he pitched well. Four runs over six innings with eight strikeouts. Not bad but he departed with the team losing. Casey McGehee hit a clutch homerun in the bottom of the 8th to tie the game up at four. The score stayed tied at four until the top of the 13th when the Rockies took a one run lead. The Brewers answered with another clutch homerun from Yuniesky Betancourt to tie it up. The Rockies once again took the lead in the top of the 14th and in the bottom of the 14th Prince Fielder crushed a homerun that may or may not have landed yet. This game was great to watch because it showed the fight the Brewers had in them. It's tough to hang in there for that long of a game and for them to fall behind twice in extra innings and still pull out the win is a great sign. They had great work out of the bullpen and great defense to go with the clutch offense. It was a great game all around for the whole team and it was one you circle on the calendar and say, "this could be a turnaround game."

Since the Brewers used so many pitchers Friday night they needed a nice long outing from starter Shawn Marcum and thats exactly what they got. Marcum shut down the Rockies offense. He gave up only four hits over eight innings, striking out eight batters as well. The offense did just enough to get the win and once again the Brewers play good all around baseball to secure the win.

The Brewers did more of the same on Sunday. It takes a good pitching performance and clutch hitting to win a game while only collecting two hits, and thats what the Brewers did today. Wolf goes seven strong, Loe gets the 8th, and Axford shuts the door. Braun hits a triple and scores on an error and thats all they needed.

This sweep is more than just three wins for the Brewers. Like I said in the beginning this isn't against the Pirates, this is against a team that will contend for a division title. It's a great sign to see the Brewers sweep the Rockies this weekend and do it in the manner in which they did. They won't always be able to out score their opponents so you need to win games on pitching and clutch hitting and thats what the Brewers did, especially concerning Friday's game. This series can be a key part of the season and could be the series that finally gets the Brewers on an extended winning streak. The Brewers showed a lot of heart and determination this weekend and it's a fun thing to watch. They never gave up and they continued to work hard to win all these games. The Brewers have some good competition coming up on their schedule so continued play of this caliber would help them a long way.

The case of Carlos Gomez

When you ask Milwaukee Brewer fans what they think of Carlos Gomez you will probably get a look of disgust or a rolling of the eyes. Everybody knew coming in that Gomez had great speed, played great defense but he had a really hard time getting on base and he struck out a lot. Well Gomez has played just as advertised since coming to Milwaukee and it has caused some Brewer fans to become upset as many were hoping his play would improve.

Due to injury to Nyjer Morgan, Gomez has had to play more often and his name in the lineup every day is something many Brewer fans don't want to see. He is currently batting .228 with a .288 on base percentage. This would be a problem if he was buried deep in the batting order but it makes it worst that he bats second in the lineup. A guy who only has a .288 on base percentage is batting before Braun, Fielder, and McGehee. For those three to drive in runs they need guys on base and Gomez isn't doing that. Gomez should be bumped down in the lineup, thats for sure but where do you put him? The answer I think is 8th. If Gomez does get on base in the 8th spot he could steal and then have the pitcher bunt him over. That gives the top of the order a chance to score and easy run with Gomez on either second or third. It would be perfect for Gomez as he should get some decent pitches to hit, especially if he leads off an inning and it can also help with his patience because usually pitchers will try to go around the 8th place hitter to get the pitcher, but that might change if a guy with speed like Gomez is batting the 8th spot. Overall I think batting 8th would be perfect for Gomez.

Gomez offense is clearly something that needs to work on but there are two reasons why he plays every day. His speed and his defense. Gomez can seemingly cover every inch of the outfield when he is out there. There are only a couple of plays where he wasn't able to race down a fly ball in the outfield. I have become so use to seeing Gomez make every play out in center field I actually become shocked when he doesn't make a play. Something that goes hand in hand with Gomez's defense is his speed. Gomez is one of the fastest players I have every seen. I recall one instance in a game where he hit a bloop single and he sprinted out of the box and somehow managed to turn it into a double. He can stretch any hit into extra bases and can score from first on a hit to the wall. The times he does get on base he becomes a constant worry for the other team because he can steal anytime and even if he doesn't he can score from any base on a hit to the wall.

So the argument here is wether or not to keep Gomez in the lineup. On a team that prides itself on offense Gomez is a black hole of sorts that doesn't get on base enough. His defense has helped the team on numerous occasions and his speed gives other teams headaches on the base paths, but he doesn't get on base enough to make use of that speed. I think what the Brewers need to do is move Gomez down in the lineup where he won't have as much pressure to get on base as he doesn't currently batting second. Although many Brewer fans don't want to see Gomez playing everyday I think we need to keep him out there. His defense is too much to just throw away. There was a play the other day with Kotsay in centerfield and at first I didn't realize it wasn't Gomez out there. As soon as the ball was heading his way I thought, "this is an out" but then I realized it wasn't Gomez and Kotsay didn't get the out, something that Gomez would have done with ease. I don't think Gomez will improve his offense drastically but I think it will improve if he gets bumped down in the lineup but his defense is something this team needs out in centerfield. As painful as Gomez at bats are to watch we will have to continue to watch them and I won't be as mad as long as he continues to make plays great plays in centerfield.

UPDATE: I originally wrote this blog post Monday afternoon but didn't get a chance to finish it up and by the time I did Ron Roenicke had already made a move. On Tuesday Roenicke moved Hart into the second spot in the lineup and bumped down Gomez to the 8th spot. Instead of just trashing the whole post I decided to just add this part in. Hopefully this move pays off for the Brewers and Gomez can do better on offense. If not, Nyjer Morgan should be back soon enough...

The continued woes of the Brewers bullpen

After a bad start by Wolf it didn't look like the Brewers were in line for a sweep of the Padres this afternoon, but a comeback by the offense gave the Brewers the lead in the sixth inning it was up to the bullpen to hold on to the lead. Now earlier in the game Sergio Mitre pitched great to keep the Brewers in the game but once again the end of the game is where the bullpen fell apart.

In the 8th inning Kameron Loe came in and blew the game and it was bad but he had help from Stetter. Stetter came in to try and get the lefty Brad Hawpe out but failed to do so giving up a hit. So they went to Loe who lately has been really struggling to have successful outings. He proceeded to give up back to back singles, got an out via a sac bunt then gave up a walk and a hit. He was then pulled so young Mike McClendon who gave up a home run and gave up two runs on his own. Stetter's final line O innings pitched, 1 hit and one run. Loe's final line, 1/3 innings pitched, three hits and four runs. McClendon rounded off the game with one and two thirds innings pitched, 5 hits and 3 runs.

This is a problem that needs to be addressed because this isn't the first time this has happened. It didn't help that Wolf had a terrible outing forcing the bullpen, who have already worked a lot in this season, to pitch a lot of innings but this is still no excuse for such a poor performance. Loe in particular has not looked sharp really at all this season. But lately he struggles to have clean outings. His last outing was good, only one run but it was an amazing play by Betancourt that saved Loe. Today he could only get one out, and that was on a sacrifice bunt. This can't continue to happen and it is a problem that needs to be addressed. We need somebody to come in the 8th and get outs that we can trust. I can no longer trust Loe and I think a majority of fans would agree with that. This one hurt because the sweep was there for us to take and it would have been a good one to have. Loe was great last year but if he continues to struggle the Brewers need to make a change, but its not just Loe, the whole bullpen needs to step their game up.

Not much else to add on this, I'm upset over the loss so this was a quick reaction post but there are hints of truth to it. The bullpen needs to be able to get outs without giving up runs and thats something that doesn't seem to be happening a lot lately.

On a side note congrats to Prince Fielder on hitting his 200th career homerun today. It was a clutch shot that tied the game at the time. Here's hoping Prince hits a bunch more and that they all happen in a Brewer's jersey...

Once again Gallardo gets it done.

It had all the makings of a no-hitter. Great pitching, great defense. You could just feel it. It was in the fifth inning when I really began to notice the work Yovani Gallardo was doing. Right after Mark Kotsay made a jumping catch to end the fifth that not only kept the no-hitter going but also kept the Brewers in the lead. Oh how the game could have changed if Kotsay didn't catch the ball but baseball is a game of inches and Kotsay timed his jump just right to catch that ball. That's when it clicked in my head, Yovani Gallardo could seriously throw a no-hitter today.

A day after almost getting no-hit themselves it only seemed like some type of poetic justice that the Brewers do it to the Cardinals. But just like how the Cardinals fell short last night, Gallardo came up just short of history, but still gave the Brewers exactly what they needed today.

You can see a pattern forming in this Brewers season. Whenever the Brewers are in a major slump its Yovani Gallardo bailing them out with a much needed clutch pitching performance. It happened earlier in the season when the Brewers dropped the first four games of the season and it happened again today when they were currently on a seven game losing streak. Gallardo was on a pretty bad streak of his own and needed this just as much as the team needed him to do it. Once again Gallardo stepped up and shut down the Cardinals and although his no-hitter was broken up in the eighth, he still pitched amazing. The offense did its part adding an additional three runs in the top of the ninth to give Axford more breathing room to close out the game.

The thing with Gallardo was he looked like a whole new pitcher today, at least he looked more like classic Gallardo. With his new look pant legs rolled up he seemed to have more confidence. He attacked hitters, worked ahead in the count, sped up his pace and looked dominant and it showed. You knew that Gallardo wouldn't stay in the funk he was in for a very long time and this is a great sign for Brewer fans. It looks like Gallardo is back.

In a related note Justin Verlander threw a no-hitter and thanks to the powers of the internet I was able to watch it. I heard of Verlander's work when he finished his sixth inning still perfect so using the picture and picture ability of MLB.TV I began watching the game along with the Brewer game. As the game began to near its end my roommate started up his laptop and we began watching both games full screen at the same time. The Brewer game ended and Verlander was only two outs away from his second no-hitter. This is why I love being a fan in this day and age. With MLB.TV I am able to watch any game I want, and being the die-hard baseball fan I am I will not miss a chance to watch history. The only thing that would have made this event any cooler was if Gallardo threw a no-hitter as well because the games would have ended within five minutes of each other. I guess there is always next time.

Grades for Brewers after 1 month

Even though a month into the season is still not a large sample size to make large assumptions it is enough to see the patterns and signs of how the team will be. So I am going to go over some aspects of the team and give them a grade and explain why they got the grade they did.

Offense - A

There isn't much you can say wrong about the offense so far this season. Braun is tied for the league lead in home runs and Fielder is second in the league in rbi's. There are some bad spots in the lineup right now, mostly Gomez and Betancourt but they both have had good games on there own to help out the team. The bench has stepped up with Nyjer Morgan coming up big until he got hurt and Mark Kotsay holding down the right field spot until Corey Hart was able to come back. Everybody said the Brewers would have a good offense and they are proving everybody right so far this year and there is no reason to question why it will stop.

Starting pitching - B

Nothing about this team has been more up and down than the starting pitching. Just look at how the seasons have gone for each starter. Yovani Gallardo started out so good, threw a complete game shutout and hasn't pitched well since. Shawn Marcum started off shaky but has since found his grove and has seem to settle in and has pitched well. Randy Wolf started the season off horrible but has since been outstanding. Chris Narveson started off as dominating as one could but has struggled his last couple outings. It's been a very strange month for starting pitching and one that is tough to watch at times. Everybody hits slumps but you only want one pitcher to be in one and you don't want one of them to be your ace. Gallardo will get back on the winning track, he is too good to struggle for long. Narveson should be able to get back to the form he was in, in those first couple starts and Wolf and Marcum should be able to pitch like they are now. Also with the addition of Greinke the rotation should really improve and it also gives everybody a normal rotation instead of the sometimes four sometimes five-man rotations we have used so far this season.

Bullpen - B-

I was going to break this up into two different sections for the front end of the rotation and back end of the rotation but just went with the one lump group. The front end of the bullpen is very hit or miss. Sergo Mitre can get outs but has also had just terrible outings. Sean Green can't seem to have an outing without giving up runs anymore. Mitch Stetter continues to be up and down. Marco Estrada has been clutch with his spot starts and he hopefully continues his great work out of the bullpen, he deserves to stay on the team. The back end of the bullpen has done better but still has its fair shares of mess ups. Latroy Hawkins has looked sharp since his return which is a nice site. Kameron Loe has been good but still has outings were he can't seem to do anything right. Axford has been much more consistant in the closers role since the start of the season which is always good to see. Bullpens can be a very fickle thing on a baseball team, you just need guys you can count on and honestly right now I don't think the Brewers have that. I still get nervous when Axford is on the mound, Loe has struggled more this year and my confidence is shaken in him a little. I think our best guy out of the pen right now is Estrada and who knows if that will even be his role for the team once Greinke comes back, although I really hope thats what it is. Like starting pitching guys will hit slumps but you only want a couple of them at a time and right now it seems some guys still need to find their grove.

Overall team grade - B

The Brewers have stuck around .500 even with all the injuries through this first month and thats good but now we are in May and the team is almost fully healthy. Greinke makes his first start on Wednesday and all others injured in spring training are back. The offense has been good this year and have only been shutdown a couple of times and there is nothing that should slow down the offense and it should get better once Lucroy and Hart regain their offense after coming off of injuries. The starting rotation is kind of shaky right now but Gallardo should get back on pace and Narveson should do the same as well. The bullpen continues to give me concerns but Axford has regained his stuff and its only a matter of time till the other guys start getting back to their old selves. I have to sound like a broken record, but thats just how the season has gone so far, but the team should be getting better and start winning more. It should be fun to watch.