Should we be DOING something by now?

[logan82]

I hope we don't get CC back.

[pitchleague]

Matt Holliday, Coco Crisp, Scott Olsen, Josh Willingham. Nick Swisher, Eric Gregg.

Kevin Gregg.

 

The off-season is always a long, drawn-out process. Sure, some teams jump the gun early, and some play very late. But most activity is from Thanksgiving until New Year's or so.

 

I usually enjoy the off-season as a baseball fan but I don't post as much here during the winter. Some of that is reading all the speculation about trades and signings.. I'd rather just discuss trades, signings, etc. that are official.

[CheezWizHed]

Well, we finally got a taste of the playoffs after 26 years... Good to see the fans anxious to taste some more. There's blood in the water people and the piranhas are feeding! http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Invader3K]

There's fans of about 29 other teams right now asking the same questions. At least we know the Brewers for sure will be making moves and spending a decent chunk of change. Wasn't too long ago that we'd be wondering what kind of scrap heap reclamation projects Milwaukee might be able to salvage.

[PrinceEatMeat]

I believe in Doug Melvin. He isn't just sitting on his hands. Sure, he is waiting to see if CC signs before doing anything else, but that doesn't mean that he doesn't have trades on the table based on whether CC signs or not. He may have deals worked out for either scenario for all we know. I'm sure he has also reached out to multiple free agents in the case of either scenario as well. No one needs to be panicking right now. Melvin WILL make moves. Why does it matter when they happen? Let's just hope that the first move is re-signing CC!

[sbrylski]

Wasn't sure where to put this, and actually sat on it for a few days, but anyone else notice this?

 

Melvin's comments also would seem to close the door on the rumors that have swirled for some time about San Francisco's Matt Cain. Fielder and shortstop J.J. Hardy have both been mentioned as possible tools to pry away Cain.

 

"I can't talk about players on other clubs, but I read where [the Giants] said they aren't moving him," Melvin said. "Other than that, I can't comment."

 

Source: Brewers waiting on word from Sabathia, Brewers.com

 

"Other than that, I can't comment."

 

Something else going on with the Giants? Or Fielder or Hardy?

 

(PeaveyFury's most recent comment about what DM says to the press in the KRod/Fuentes thread is what got me to post this.)

[Ennder]

Also, about this time last year, our closer-to-be was Derrick Turnbow. A year later, our closer-to-be...is a much murkier situation. If we're heading to AZ and still formulating a strategy, then we can worry about the competency of our new staff.

 

Our bullpen was in a much worse state this time last year than it is now. We had Turnbow who many thought would fail and not really much else. Now we have a good idea that McClung is at least adequate, Villanueva seems to have found his role in the pen and we have Riske who we at least hope can come back healthy. There is an ok core in the bullpen even before signing more players.

[logan82]

Big news. We finally signed somebody. Jason Bourgeois

 

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/35021194.html

[trwi7]

Big news. We finally signed somebody. Jason Bourgeois

 

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/35021194.html href="http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/35021194.html" target=_blank>http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/35021194.html

 

First comment.

My buddies just ran into Ben Sheets and his family down in New Orleans for the game. He said and I quote "There is no way in hell I'm coming back to Milwaukee." Take if for what it's worth. My buddies then insisted on letting Ben and his family have it.

Ugh, do they not have someone who monitors comments there?

[Brian the Automator]

The Jason Bourgeois sweepstakes is over already?

[Invader3K]

Well, the question now is: Where will Jack Proletariat be landing?

[MNBrew]

First comment.

My buddies just ran into Ben Sheets and his family down in New Orleans for the game. He said and I quote "There is no way in hell I'm coming back to Milwaukee." Take if for what it's worth. My buddies then insisted on letting Ben and his family have it.

This has to be from the same guy who "first comment-ed" to an earlier JSOnline blog posting that he heard from a reliable source that the Brewers were on the verge of sending Cameron, Hall or Hardy, and Villanueva to the Twins for Denard Span, Kevin Slowey, and a prospect.

[logan82]

The Jason Bourgeois sweepstakes is over already?

No doubt spells the end for Weeks.

 

Edit Thought I should clarify the sarcasm.

[mothershipconnection]

Well, they've been saying all along that this would set the market for a Rob Mackowiak or Wilikin Ruan deal. Let's see how the other shoe drops.

[tigerbrew]

The Jason Bourgeois sweepstakes is over already?

No doubt spells the end for Weeks.

Maybe the combination of Jason Bourgeois and Hurricane Hernan Iribarren could make Weeks available for trade.

[Ennder]

Please oh please don't overpay for Cain who is as much a product of that stadium as anything else. He is exactly the wrong type of guy to go after as an extreme flyball type in a pitchers park.

 

Not to say he is a bad pitcher but he is not anywhere near a #1 or #2 outside of that park, he is more of a #3 or #4.

[BADGERJOBOB]

Not sure what people expected. The Brewers have one open position and even there if they think Gamel can really handle 3B its a stopgap position that can be filled with a platoon if need be. They have enough money to look at FA starters and relievers but arby decision make a huge difference when looking at relievers.

One open position? This team has a lot more problems than just one open position. As of right now, we have openings for 2 starting pitchers, a closer, another 1 or 2 relief pitchers. We need to determine what we want to do at second, short and third and that doesn't even take into account for potentially trading away and replacing 2 other positions (center and first). On top of all that, we need more left handed bats and a shift away from all or nothing hitters to at least 1 or 2 players with higher on-base percentage.

 

What has some people concerned, including me, is that some clubs have already made moves and are positioning themselves for additonal moves. Us on the other hand, we seem to be sitting back doing nothing waiting until CC decides if he is going to New York or California. This team has a lot of holes and so far nothing. That doesn't mean we won't make a lot of changes but some of these small parts that have already been exchanged would have looked very good in a Brewer uniform, as well as some of these other FA that are being mentioned to be possibly going to every other team out there except the Brewers. Its not time to panic but if Melvin waits until all of the big dominos fall, it might be too late for us to even tread water let alone improve for next year and thats when big signing mistakes start to take place as your over spending on mediocre talent that is left.

[BADGERJOBOB]

Please oh please don't overpay for Cain who is as much a product of that stadium as anything else. He is exactly the wrong type of guy to go after as an extreme flyball type in a pitchers park.

 

Not to say he is a bad pitcher but he is not anywhere near a #1 or #2 outside of that park, he is more of a #3 or #4.

I agree 100%. The cost in talent we would have to give up for Cain would be beyond extreme.

[logan82]

We need to determine what we want to do at second, short and third and that doesn't even take into account for potentially trading away and replacing 2 other positions

 

We have Weeks at 2B and Hardy at SS. 3B is our only hole. I don't see the need to worry about positions that might or might not open up because of a trade.

[Invader3K]

I thought it would be amusing to bump this thread right now.

 

So, how long before Mr. Melvin makes any kind of meaningful acquisition for the Brewers? I'm guessing another week or so, when he finally signs some kind of decent reliever to compete for the closer role.

 

This has been a maddeningly quiet off season for the Brewers so far.

[CWSOmaha]

Kind of like the Packers GM who sat back and did nothing to improve the team that made it to the championship game. I know that there is a lot of time to make improvements but as a fan I saw what happened to the Packers and now I'm afraid the same will happen to the Brewers. To me both of the GM's are kind of passive and laid back about improving the teams.

As much as I really like Melvin when he first came in all of this sitting on our hands has been difficult to understand.

[yoshii8]

Would you have said that Melvin was passive after the he acquired Sabathia and Durham last season? I'm positive that Melvin hasn't been sitting on his hands, I'm sure he is doing everything he can to improve the Brewers.

 

I would love to see them make a big move, but I don't want to see it done just for the sake of something happening.

[SZBrewerFan]

I completely agree that with the notion of not making a move just for the sake of making a move, however the one thing I do not understand is some of the double talk that is going on. How does an organization have enough money to offer one pitcher who throws once every five days $20+ million per year, but on the other hand not have the capibility to increase payroll in any other situation? I know CC is probably the best pitcher in the game and I loved what he did for us last year, but does that make any sense. So we could increase payroll by nearly 25% for one player, but as soon as he signed elsewhere payroll has to remain constant or less than what it was last year? There is still 6 weeks remaining before pitchers and catchers report so I am not panicking, but something has to be done for our rotation. The idea of Yo/Parra/Bush/Suppan/McClung as our top 5 is terrifying and where is the depth behind that?

[JohnBriggs12]

Change for change sake isn't such a bad thing. Not making changes can lead to complacency.

 

But this team needs changes because of a number of significant issues both offensively (low OBP, high K rates, inability to hit with men in SP, shortage of lefty bats), and in pitching (lack of experience at top of rotatation, no depth in rotation, lack of depth and quality in the bullpen).

[brewmann04]

Hopefully Melvin is working on some deals that will improve the Pitching and would expect something to happen by the middle of the month.