Can Ryan Braun get 200 hits this season?

Braun struggled mightily at times this season. After knocking the cover off of April, he batted .264 in June and an absolutely miserable .200 in July, with a .615 OPS. His slump was the subject of much analysis and debate. Was he injured? Had he changed his approach? His stance? His girlfriend? Did Corey Hart steal his eyes?

Look at that focus!

On one of the broadcasts, Rock and BA said that Braun had said that the best advice that he’d received was to just “move on.” So simple, yet so profound. Braun went on to bat .421 in August with a 1.080 OPS. His average is back over .300 at .303 and his OPS has risen to .842. I think he’s moved on.

After tonight’s two-hit game, Braun has 155 hits for the season with 30 games to play. (He was fourth in the NL in hits behind Prado, Pujols and Carlos Gonzalez prior to the start of play.)  Braun will need 45 more hits, or 1.5 hits per game, to reach 200 for the second straight season. With three center fielders vying for playing time, it is possible that Chris Dickerson, Carlos Gomez or Lorenzo Cain could get some time in left field before the season is out, but, if Braun does play in the final 30 games, he is likely to get at least 120 at bats. At that rate, he would have to bat .375 to reach the 200 hit mark. Keep in mind that the Brewers schedule is full of .500 or better teams, many of whom need to make up games to make play-off runs. There are 13 home games on the schedule, and 8 days games, although, perhaps this will be less of a factor with the new closed panel design at Miller Park.

Braun faced a similar up-hill battle in 2009, when he finished with 203 hits. (He led the NL.) Ryan had 157 hits at the end of August 2009, but went on to collect 46 hits in 129 at bats in September and October. I remember that Braun said he found a new level of focus with his hitting.

There’s not a whole lot left to cheer for this season, but I am going to root like hell for Braun to get to 200 hits. If he can get the at-bats, I think he’ll do it. A meaningless stat? Maybe. A reason to keep watching? Yes. 

Feelin’ a little Washington General-ish

This is how Tuesday night’s game ended. With the Brewers trailing 8-3 in the eighth inning, the Reds unleashed Aroldis Chapman on the bottom of the order. Chapman, pitching in his much-hyped MLB debut, needed just 8 pitches to retire Jonathan Lucroy, Craig Counsell, and pinch hitter Carlos Gomez. His fastball topped out at 103 MPH (or 102, depending on the source). Whether Chapman will be as good as advertised remains to be seen but I can’t see how Chapmen won’t help in the Reds’ playoff run.

After Todd Coffey pitched a scoreless eighth, the Brewers had one last shot at a comeback in the ninth. Weeks led off with his 25^th home run of the season. Corey Hart, who appears to have a case of lazy head once again, flied out to right. Ryan Braun singled to right, bringing the tying run, to errr, I guess, still in the dugout.

This is when the Reds started to toy with us.

Prince Fielder hit a hard ground ball down the right field line, which Joey Votto smothered. Votto, who had fallen to his knees to get to the ball, began to fall over backward but somehow managed to throw a strike to the shortstop, Paul Janish, and get Braun running to second. (I’m pretty sure that even Braun turned around to admire the play.) The next batter, Casey McGehee hit a bouncer to Scott Rolen at third. Rolen slid feet first to grab the ball and ended up with his back to home plate. Because of his position he couldn’t make a normal throw, so he backhanded the ball to Chris Valaika covering second. Rolen’s one-hop flip nailed Prince for the final out.

Some days you’re the Harlem Globetrotters and some days you’re the Washington Generals. We got dunked on tonight. 

Reds 8, Brewers 4

Game played 8-31-10

A little bundle of joy called Lo Cain

I learned today that another one of my friends is pregnant. That makes two good friends and two co-workers who are expecting. When I walk around the skyway at lunch, it seems like every fifth woman I pass has a baby bump.

When Seth and I started dating that was something we agreed on—no kids. I’m not sure what his reasoning was but I grew up with five siblings and spent plenty of time watching my brother and sisters. I have four nieces and six nephews—so far. I am sure that I will have more. It’s not that I don’t like children. It’s more that I’m selfish. I like doing my own thing. I don’t know anyone who has a child who doesn’t love being a parent but I worried that I could be the first.

“Ummm, Seth, isn’t it your turn to watch the baby? The Brewers are on.”

In honor of all the procreating going on, I want to take a moment to acknowledge Brewers’ fans newest kid—Lorenzo Cain.  Cain is the latest Milwaukee prospect to make a splash in the big leagues--and it seems that he might be something special. (See, don’t I sound like a proud mother?) Since being called up on August 6, Cain has impressed with a .303 BA and .750 OPS in 21 games (66 AB, 73 PA). His defense has been solid, and at times, spectacular.

Cain was spectacular in the first of three against the Reds on Monday night. He had two defensive plays that made the ESPN Top Ten, including the No. 1 play, an impressive grab that ended with Cain crashing into the outfield fence. He went 1-3, with a walk.

The youth movement couldn’t save the Brewers, however, as the oldest Brewer, Trevor Hoffman, gave up a walk-off single to Jay Bruce in the tenth inning.  

Reds 5, Brewers 4

Game played 8-30-10

Is this the pants party?

A day game after a night game—it’s hard on players and it was hard on us. The parking lots at Miller Park open three hours before game time. We had to hustle but we made it into line to park at 10:06 a.m. Starbucks in hand. We parked our car and wandered around the parking lot trying to find the party put on by the Miller Park Drunk guy.


There is a certain amount of risk that you take when you sign up (and pay) for a game and tailgate party put on by an internet personality whom you’ve never met. It seemed legit but as my friend pointed out, it could also be a swingers’ party. I rolled the dice.

Megan and I walked up to one guy who was setting up a tent. “Is this the pants party?” we asked.

The guy looked at us and said, “Excuse me?”

“Oh, sorry, wrong party.”

We knew we were in the right place when we saw the MPD t-shirts. The next problem was that we didn’t really know anyone and no one knew who we were either. (I guess I needed a nametag that said “Hi, my name is Hangwith’em Rach”.) Finally, we just walked up to the group and said, “we’re here for the pants party.”

After that, and several cups of beer, we felt like we were with a group of our long lost friends. Great group, great food, great fun. The one thing about standing in the middle of a blacktopped parking lot at noon on a summer day—it’s hot. And, no matter how much beer you drink, you’re still hot and sweaty. One person commented that they were surprised the stadium didn’t smell worse on a day like Sunday.

Our seats were way up high in section 434 but they were in the shade and there was a nice breeze. And the Brewers were nice enough to overcome a 0-2 deficit after the first half of the inning to win, 8-4. And, by allowing two base runners in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Brewers were able to bring in Trevor Hoffman to collect his 599^th career save. Nice touch—a Hoffman appearance at the pants party.

With a sweep of the Pirates, the Brewers are now 62-68. It would be monumental if the Brewers could finish the season at .500—although if you told me that was the goal at the beginning of the season, I’d have been mad. Milwaukee will have to play some of its best baseball of the season to do so, however. Of the 32 remaining games, the Brewers have 26 games against teams with .500 records or better. Of those, nine are against the Reds, with series against the Phillies, Cardinals and Giants, who are all just a few games out of the lead in their divisions. In other words, a lot of these games will mean a lot to Milwaukee’s opponents.   

Brewers 8, Pirates 4

Game played 8-29-10

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has

It had already been a long day when Saturday night's game went into extra innings. We left St. Paul at 9:30 a.m. and had been on the road most of the day.  But when you've come this far, you don't quit early.

Chris Capuano, who started in place of Manny Parra, did little to solidify a place in the starting rotation, giving up six runs on six hits and three walks, in three innings. Ironically, Parra had to come in to settle things down. He pitched three scoreless innings. The Brewers found themselves in a 6-3 hole after three innings and down 7-4 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning.

In the bottom of the seventh inning, Milwaukee rallied to tie the score. Ryan Braun led off with a single and scored when Prince Fielder hit his second home run of the night--a shot that hit the Tundra Territory truck. An error by the Pirates allowed the tying run to score. (I heart the Pirates.) With neither team able to score in the eighth or ninth inning, the game went into extra innings.

Because it is such a long drive and attending a Brewers game is such a treat, we usually go for the full fan experience. We tailgate, we keep score, we buy overpriced crap at the Brewers store, we polka in the aisle, we make friends with people in our section, we cheer--AND, on this night, we heckled. We are effective. In fact, I think it is safe to say that you can thank sections 119 and 120 for what happened next.

In the top of the tenth inning, after Ronny Cedeno innocently popped out, Chris Snyder came to the plate. And those of us still left in Sections 119 and 120 decided to let him know that he, in fact, sucked. Normally, I'm not one for taunting an opposing player unless it's witty and funny but for some reason, the guy sitting behind us took the "Chris Snyder, you stink" to a whole new level. And when this same guy went to the taunt where you just repeat the player's name over and over, Megan chimed in with sucks ...Chris Snyder ...sucks! ... Chris Snyder... sucks! It was during this at bat that I noticed that Chris Snyder's pants looked like they spent too much time in the dryer. "Chris Snyder, your pants are unreasonably tight" became quite popular in our section. Snyder was nice enough to ground out to first.

Having tasted a little success, Sections 119 and 120 were hungry for more. The rest of the way, we let no pitch go by without some form of cheering or heckling. (If you listen closely to the Fox Sports Wisconsin feed of the game, you can hear us.) And there is no doubt in my mind, that we willed that winning run to score. Braun led off the eleventh inning with a single. Prince followed with a hot shot that was booted by Neil Walker. See, we were in his head. After McGehee flew out, rookie Lorenzo Cain lined one down the left field line that easily scored Braun.

Chris Snyder your pants are unreasonably tight, and, you suck. Game time 4:16 and worth every minute.

Brewers 8, Pirates 7
Gamed played 8-28-10

Spending money to make money: Would it work for Pittsburgh?

After being swept in a three-game series by the Dodgers, there was little doubt that the Brewers were ecstatic to see the Pittsburgh Pirates come to town for a weekend series. Going into tonight’s game, the Brewers were 10-5 against the Pirates in 2010 and 43-17 since 2007. Overall Pittsburgh has a 43-85 record this year, following up 62-99 (2009), 67-95 (2008) and 68-94 (2007) campaigns. You have to go all the way back to 2004 to find a season in which the Pirates won more than 70 ball games. 

OK. You get it. The Pirates are not a good baseball team. And tonight’s game was a good illustration of this fact.

James McDonald, a recent acquisition from the Los Angeles Dodgers, was nearly untouchable for the first five innings for the Pirates. Milwaukee managed just one hit, an infield single by Alcides Escobar. During this stretch Pittsburgh put together a 2-0 lead, with a few timely hits (and a dropped ball at home plate) in the second and a solo home run in the fifth. The Brewers finally broke through for one run in the sixth but were unable to tie the score when Ryan Braun hit into an inning ending double play. (Replays showed he was safe.)

And then the seventh inning happened (to the Bucs!)—in much the same way the sixth inning usually happens to the Brewers. With one out and runners on first and second, Escobar tagged one to the opposite field. Right fielder Lastings Milledge froze for a half second and then broke back but the ball was over his head and to his left. By the time Milledge got the ball into the infield, two runs had scored and Escobar stood on third. It was as if Milledge opened the floodgates for the Brewers. These would be the first two of six runs that the Brewers would score in the seventh inning.

Chris Narveson picked up his tenth victory, pitching seven innings and allowing two runs on seven hits and one walk. He struck out eight.

The Pirates have been the subject of much discussion in the baseball world. Eighteen consecutive losing seasons will do that. Sports Illustrated ran an article in July that detailed the Pirates woes. “There hasn't been one seminal event or single colossal error that has sunk the Pirates' ship. Rather—fitting for a city situated at the convergence of three rivers—a confluence of factors has created this singular awfulness. Bad trades. Bad picks. Bad signings. Bad finances. Alone, none is insurmountable. But taken together, they create a death spiral for a faltering small-market team.”

A recent article on Slate gave the situation in Pittsburgh an interesting twist. Taking confidential information published on Deadspin, this article analyzed whether the Pirates should spend money to win ballgames. “In light of these financial statements, the Pirates have been criticized for refusing to spend money to make money. It's not clear, though, that Pittsburgh's owners could spend more on player salaries without turning their profits into losses. Buying wins is not a cheap proposition.”

Sabermetricians have found that it costs approximately $5 million to purchase each additional win. It is not clear that these additional wins would give the organization a return on its investment, especially when the potential loss of revenue sharing money is factored into the equation. In other words, the Pirates would probably lose money to become only marginally better. The good news (if you can call it that), for fans of other small market teams—like the Brewers, is that you don’t always need a big payroll to be good. You have to rely on “young, cheap players” and hope for a little luck if you want to make a run at the playoffs. Signing veteran stars to long-term contracts is not an option. 

Milwaukee’s payroll of $81 million is significantly higher than the $35 million that Pittsburgh doled out this year. Milwaukee ranks 18^th out of 30 clubs in payroll in 2010—a giant leap forward since it spent $27 million in 2004. While I am not always happy with the manner in which the $80 million payroll is spent, I am happy that the Brewers organization spends it. I am glad that at least some of our best players, who were developed through the Brewers farm system, will be Brewers in the upcoming years. I am glad that we can go after free agents, too. (Again, happy with the ability, not always the selection.) The hope (in Pittsburgh) is that the same will happen for the Pirates—that many of their young players will develop and lead a charge in a few years. This is not my hope. I am ecstatic when the Pirates come to town.

Brewers 7, Pirates 2

Game played 8-27-10

Paul Molitor: My first sports crush

On this day (August 26, 1987) in baseball history, Paul Molitor had his 39-game hitting streak end while standing in the on-deck circle. Rick Manning drove in the game-winning run in the tenth inning and Molitor didn’t get another crack at extending his hitting streak. 

Molitor turned 54 on August 22.  Happy birthday, Igniter!

My first baseball memories are of the 1982 World Series. I can’t explain why or how but I fell madly in love with Paul Molitor. He made me feel like my heart would explode. I was nine years old and I did not possess the vocabulary to express how he made me feel. I tried to explain this to one friend, who made fun of me.

“Rachel and Paul Molitor sittin’ in a tree…” she taunted.

“But you should see him hit … it’s amazing…” I tried to explain.

My first sports crush lasted for a long time—until Molitor did the unthinkable. He went to play for the Minnesota Twins in 1995. Now, this is a move that makes a ton of sense if you know Molitor’s background. He grew up in St. Paul and went to the University of Minnesota. He was coming home. (I actually live about a mile from where he went to high school.) To me, he was going to play for the enemy. (I never felt this way about the Blue Jays but I think I’ve already explained my feelings about the Twins.) I’ve never gotten over it. To this day, I harbor resentment toward Molitor for leaving me for the Minnesota Twins. He is without question my favorite Brewer of all time but this comes with a caveat. He was my favorite player UNTIL 1995. 

I feel like this picture requires explanation. Back in 1986, the Brewers had a promotion called photo night. They actually let fans onto the field at County Stadium before the game and the players would pose with the fans. Molitor put his arm firmly around me and asked, “who’s taking your picture tonight?” And I pointed and he smiled in that direction. I cannot even imagine what would happen if they had photo night in 2010, on the field, before a game. I think the game would have to be forfeited like disco demolition night. I might not let go of Ryan Braun if he put his arm around me. 

There is no explanation for my hair. My friend Andy, who was nice enough to scan in this photo, joked that my hair made the file too large to e-mail. He’s not kidding. On a positive note, Paul and I have matching high-waisted pants.  I remember that the Brewers played the Blue Jays on this night and we thought we were cool for taunting Jesse Barfield. 

Dodgers 7, Brewers 1 (I have nothing to say about this game.)

Game played 8-26-10