Brad Nelson's Major League Ability

[JoeHova]

I agee here. Fielder for pitching. Gamel or LaPorta to 1st base.

 

 

but what I'm saying is that three Prince's (Gamel & LaPorta), one Braun, and one Hart will win 90 games no matter how bad their defense is. It makes little sense to trade a team's most valuable player when he is 24 and the team is planning on contending.

 

If they are so desperate for pitching, move JJ or Rickie, not guys who can actually hit. They would bring back something. Concentrate on improving the middle infield defense and use the corners and the outfield for bats.

[dadofandrew]

I'd say his ceiling is Mark Sweeney, the bench player for many teams. If he could play league average 3B, maybe he could platoon for a year or two.

[Gopher74]

And I think you need to be realistic.

Just curious, what makes you think you're being realistic? I frankly can't stand when someone has a differing opinion and they tell someone else to be "realistic". I've hyet to see someone make a genuine argument they didn't feel was "realistic".

 

Impressive? Really? I think he looks quite awkward out there, and he turned a single into a triple again today.

 

"Again" today? It's awfully convenient to say "hey, he made ANOTHER bad play today"...regardless of weather he'd actually done it before. I don't recall the other times he's done this. Braun has been rather impressive out in LF. There have been a couple Line Drives hit right at him that he's taken a couple mis-steps on, but I think everyone's expecting such poor defense out of him that they're forming their opinion before they allow themselves to form an objective opinion.

 

Braun's made some huge throws out there, and he's made some great plays. He plays it a big too safe sometimes or had early on by playing deep and allowing balls to bounce in front of him. But honestly, if we're going to use one example to say that a guy isn't a good OF'er because he dove for a ball he didn't come up with and it went for a triple, then I believe every single OF'er who's played for any period of time in the OF would have those very same concerns.

[Gopher74]

when they lose Sheets, they won't have adequate pitching. Gallardo is a great #2, but would be a very marginal #1 long-term. That would make for some fun games, but not very balanced.

 

You're presenting these as facts when they're absolutely anything but. Now Gallardo hasn't done enough to show that he's absolutely going to be a front line ace, but to say that he's going to be a marginal one is absolutely unfounded. Everything in his minor leaguer career, and his short big league career suggest that he's a player who at the bare minimum has shown the ceiling to be a very solid ace on a team.

 

As for Sheets, "when"? I think you mean "if". There is absolutely no guarantee that Sheets is gone, and if anything, this FA class makes the likelihood that Ben Sheets is back next year much higher.

Bottom line is that with Sheets gone, they need pitching.

Again, IF he's gone. There's still this myth that the Brewers are such a poor team, and that they don't have any money. They certainly can't afford to spend 150 million a year, but this is a team that's making a lot of money on their own, and is getting a very, very big chunk from MLB. Sheets has some pretty strong ties to the community in Milwaukee, has expressed an interest in staying in Milwaukee, and the Brewers clearly need him. Not to mention Mark A has probably said 20 times over the years that if an ace was available to the Brewers for 15+ million that they'd have no problem going out and paying for him. Now you're telling me they're not going to make an effort to pay 4 or so million more than he's making right now to keep the one they have? Especially when they had record profits last year, a number that should be exceeded this year?

 

You saying that Sheets IS gone is almost as wrong as me saying that Sheets WILL be here next year. The Brewers will try to bring Sheets back next year, and if they don't, they're absolutely going to go after a pitcher of Derek Lowe's talent level. Maybe even a guy like Jon Garland or making a trade for Javier Vasquez, someone along those lines. They likely won't sign one of the Lackey, CC's, Burnett or someone in that group, but they could sign one of those pitchers in that first group, or even a guy like Oliver Perez.

[soundsradio]

"I watched him the entire game on Saturday when he was playing right field. On EVERY fly ball, he broke the wrong direction. There were at least two hits that should have been caught, but fell in when he didn't get there in time. If you take three steps back, then have to run in and the ball bounces five feet in front of you, that's a ball that should have been caught. He has no instincts for the outfield."

 

I once saw a red jeep, that does not mean all jeeps are red. I think you watched him play one game in the OF your entire life and that was at a ballpark with the wind gusting to 30 mph and plays like a pinball machine. Greer Stadium is an absolute hole ( Ishould know, I've worked there for 11 years) but it plays like a true ballpark. Cashman Field plays like a raquetball court. That park is to accurate player evaluation as fish are to bicycling. Balls were carrying over the head of Tiffee and the Vegas CF (Paul?) as well. As a matter of fact didn't the Vegas CF get a bad break on a Nelson double?

 

Nelson is a pretty good firstbaseman an average outfielder (pretty solid arm, covers more ground than you think and has a pretty respectable glove). he won't make a ton of diving catches, but he won't mess up alot of fly balls either (Vegas was a bad game for all the outfielders). As a third baseman, I think he has the athleticism to play the position passably, no more. But he has only played a few games there and needs a ton of work.

 

As a hitter, he has raw power and does a good job thinking up the middle. I would mainly call him a double hitters right now, he hits the gaps pretty regularly, but I can see those doubles turning into homers pretty easily. By the way he is among the team leaders in stolen bases on a team that leads the league in stolen bases.

 

[TooLiveBrew]

Vegas CF (Paul?) as well. As a matter of fact didn't the Vegas CF get a bad break on a Nelson double?

 

Yes, Xavier Paul is Vegas's CF. He badly misplayed a sinking liner in CF at PGE Park (Portland) last night. It was hit hard, so it wasn't an easy play, but he took one or two steps back, then came in... but was too late, and it was ugly. The ball skipped all the way out the the wall, resulting in a 'triple'.

 

I haven't seen Nelson play at all, let alone the OF. It sounds like, at worst, he could be a 2nd/3rd-string LF, & a competent DH or backup 1B. With Fielder here, he doesn't make as much sense as the backup 1B -- but once/if the starting 1B becomes LaPorta, having a lefty to back him up would seem to fit. In the meantime, it doesn't hurt at all to try Brad out in the OF as much as possible in Triple-A, since if he can be a competent corner OF backup he'd fit in Milwaukee whether Prince is there or not.

[battlekow]

Braun's made some huge throws out there

I'll give you that. His arm has been not only very strong, but surprisingly accurate.

[JJHardy7]

That's like comparing apples to squid. Second is a position that Weeks does have talent for. If Weeks was still in AAA and being switched to, say, catcher, just to get his bat in the lineup, then it would be an apt comparison.

 

I don't think that's true at all. Weeks has played 2b for a long, long time and is at this point and time a below average second baseman defensively who is struggling this year with the bat. Now there comes a point and time where Weeks may have to be moved off of 2b, but Nelson has played less than half his games in the OF so in my mind there is still potential to become a player who can play the field. What is Nelson lacking? Instincts? Some of these so called "instincts" are coachable and get better through experience (i.e. facing the same hitter multiple times, knowing the path of of fly balls, etc). My point is Weeks isn't average at 2b and has been there a long time -- Nelson has played OF less than half of his career. I don't think Nelson is lacking the tools to develop into an average OF.

 

I like Brad Nelson. He is going to be a decent hitter. But he just doesn't have the ability to play any position other than first.

 

I will just agree to disagree with you. I've seen Nelson enough in the OF to have the opinion that he can make it in the OF in the bigs. I respect your opposite opinion.

[TuesdaysWithRillo]

Well I have never seen Nelson play OF so I can't add anything to the discussion of him being able to play there or not, but Nelson's best shot as a Brewer is a power bat off the bench and we could use that right now. He could be the equivalent to Daryle Ward of the Cubs.

[Hate those Rodents]

It looks like Nelson has been spending a lot of time at 3B lately in AAA. How is he doing there so far this year defensively?

[soundsradio]

It looks like Nelson has been spending a lot of time at 3B lately in AAA. How is he doing there so far this year defensively?

He hasn't looked bad. Not smooth to be sure, but he's only made one error there and has made the other plays. his biggest struggle has been the quick turn to second to start a double play. But, I can only think of one instance where he didn't turn the DP. Arms pretty good, he's experienced enough to slow the game down at 3B (unlike Braun) and make throw accurately. He's still an emergency 3B but now the Brewers have a guy who can play LF, RF 1B(he is pretty good defensively at 1B, and adequate in RF and LF) and 3B in a pinch. He is also pretty locked in at the plate right now. It seems like everything is up[ the middle and if he pulls one, it gets out. In Memphis last weekend he homered twice, a game tying solo shot in the seventh and a grnadslam in the 12th inning. For that series he also drew 11 or 12 walks over 7 games.