Your 2009 Timber Rattlers -- Latest: OF Erik Miller interview & RHP Trey Watten update

[BoKnowsBall]

Tight groin

[battlekow]

Lawrie finished second in the MWL home run derby.

[Mass Haas]

Midwest League All-Star Game Box Score / Game Log Link

 

That link also includes audio for the 6:35 PM Central Time contest Tuesday night.

 

All reserves --

 

Pitchers: RHP Wily Peralta, LHP Daniel Meadows, closer RHP Jim Henderson

Catcher: Corey Kemp

Infielders: Brett Lawrie

MiLB.com's All-Star Game Preview

 

Voice of the Rattlers Chris Mehring will be conducting a live blog on his site during the course of the game.

[brewmann04]

will this game be on TV any of the direct TV stations going to broadcast?

[Mass Haas]

will this game be on TV any of the direct TV stations going to broadcast?

Apparently, no.

[battlekow]

Relevant Lawrie sections from the Clinton Herald's article on the MWL home run derby:

Lawrie, the No. 16 overall selection in the 2008 MLB Draft, hit one homer off the scoreboard in the finals, finishing in second with five total round-trippers.

 

"I just wanted to try my best and get the fans going a little bit," said Lawrie, the highest-ever draft pick out of Canada. "I got a little tired toward the end there, but it was great to be a part of this."

 

The Midwest League sluggers faced a pitching machine during the contest and reported problems picking up the ball. Players train their eyes to track the ball during a pitcher's circular delivery.

 

The machine doesn't provide such a motion.

 

"You could tell it affected some of the guys," Lawrie said. "It takes a while to get used to. You know when a guy who has 17 home runs this year (Russell) only hits two, something's up."

 

Lawrie batted first in the finals. After a short massage at the plate from teammates, he pelted the top of the scoreboard beyond the left-field wall.

[Mass Haas]

MiLB.com story on the Midwest League All-Star Game

 

From Chris Mehring, Voice of the Rattlers, who live-blogged the game:

 

CLINTON, IA - Sawyer Carroll was 4-for-4 and Ronnie Bourquin hit a three-run homer to lead the East to a 6-3 win over the West at the Midwest League All-Star Game. Carroll, an outfielder for the Fort Wayne TinCaps, was named the 2009 Star of Stars as he scored a run and stole a base to pace the East to the win at Alliant Energy Field.

All five Wisconsin Timber Rattlers selected to participate in the game played for the West Division. Pitchers Daniel Meadows (.1IP), Wily Peralta (.1IP), Jim Henderson (.2IP) did not allow a hit or a run. Both Peralta and Henderson had a strikeout.

Catcher Corey Kemp and infielder Brett Lawrie both went 0-for-2 as substitutes.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Rattlers pitcher Alex Periard rounding into form

Pitcher may soon be promoted

By Brett Christopherson

Post-Crescent staff writer

 

GRAND CHUTE - When asked to grade his body of work, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers pitcher Alex Periard thought for a moment before giving himself a B-plus.

 

And that might mean High-A. Or maybe even Double-A.

 

Although the right- hander didn't factor in Thursday's 4-1 Midwest League triumph over Peoria at Fox Cities Stadium, he looked sharp enough through the 4 2/3 innings he worked to perhaps convince the Milwaukee Brewers front office to send one of their top prospects on to his next assignment.

 

The 22-year-old was making his third start of the season - all with the Rattlers - after being shut down in spring training because of a sore pitching shoulder first developed during last fall's Arizona Fall League.

 

So how's he feeling?

 

"I've got to work on some stuff," said Periard, who scattered six hits, struck out three and surrendered one earned run. "But the more innings I throw, I'm starting to get a feel. It's getting better."

 

The Canadian is rated by Baseball America as the fourth-best pitching prospect in the Brewers' system and the club's 13th-highest overall.

 

He was selected by Milwaukee in the 16th round of the 2004 June draft and split last season between High-A Brevard County and Double-A Huntsville, finishing a combined 11-10 with a 4.06 ERA in 27 games, including 26 starts.

 

In his three starts with the Rattlers, Periard - a member of the Brewers' 40-man roster - has fanned five, walked two, and allowed 14 hits and four earned runs through 11 1/3 innings.

 

"Yeah, it was," Rattlers manager Jeff Isom said when asked if Thursday's outing was the best of the three for Periard. "He gave up a few hits there, but a couple of them were well-placed. His velocity is increasing. He's got good sink on the ball. Located pitches. Stayed down in the zone. I thought he did a real good job tonight.

 

"The ball's coming out of his hand nice and easy, so we're excited to see that."

 

Periard's only blemish came in the fifth when he gave up a pair of doubles to account for the Chiefs' only run. Isom said he was lifted with a pair of runners on and two down because he had reached 67 pitches, which fell within the allotted 65 to 70 pitch count range.

 

Otherwise, Periard, backed by a three-run first inning, said the plan is to iron out the wrinkles as he continues to round into form.

 

"I'm trying to pull my front shoulder too much, so the ball's cutting instead of sinking," said Periard, whose fastball touched as high as 89 mph on the stadium radar gun. "I'm just tying to concentrate on my delivery right now, be consistent in and out of the zone. My fastball command. For me, it's just staying healthy."

 

And eventually advancing to Huntsville, his likely destination had he opened the season without the troubled shoulder.

 

Isom said he was told by the Brewers to expect two or three rehab starts from Periard before he would be shipped off.

 

"I felt at times (during his previous two starts), he was feeling for his pitches, didn't throw them with conviction'," Isom said. "Tonight, he was throwing his pitches with conviction. So he's obviously turned the corner and not thinking about surgery and all that stuff. That's good to see."

[Mass Haas]

Latest You Tube profiles are Erik Miller (back soon -- hand injury), Cody Scarpetta, Michael Marseco, and Manager Jeff Isom, who is a low-key hoot. Each of the guys have their humorous moments.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

2009 Draft pick Fatse shows promise in debut with Timber Rattlers

By Cory Jennerjohn

Post-Crescent staff writer

 

GRAND CHUTE - Need that elusive promotion?

 

Talk to Timber Rattlers newbie Peter Fatse.

 

The 24th-round selection in the 2009 draft got his first start in maroon and black Tuesday night during the Timber Rattlers' 4-2 loss against Clinton.

 

"I jumped off the plane last night, was here today, everybody's awesome and welcomed me to the team," said the 22-year-old, who started in left field.

 

The reason he could help you climb the corporate ladder is because he barely unpacked his suitcase in Rookie League by spending a mere four games with the Helena Brewers.

 

"The draft was three weeks ago," Fatse said. "Next thing you know, I was in Montana and then I got a call last night and was told to come out here."

 

His name (pronounced FAHT-zee) has been easily butchered despite holding a slender 5-foot-10, 170-pound frame.

 

"I was always the skinny kid," he said with a smile. "My younger brother was a little heavier and he got made fun of. He's tougher, I think, for it though."

 

Jokes aside, the University of Connecticut product made an eye-opening, diving catch in the fourth to snatch a hit from Blake Ochoa.

 

"He was drafted as a second baseman, but he's had a little bit of background in the outfield and he makes a heck of a play on a ball on a sinking line drive," Timber Rattlers manager Jeff Isom said. "I'm excited to see what else he can offer our club. It's good to see a guy that's hungry right now."

 

He may have gone only one-for-four at the plate but he has already impressed his co-workers, who would love to follow his promotional path.

 

"You know what, he plays hard," said Timber Rattlers catcher Corey Kemp, who knows a thing or two about playing hard after playing in the Midwest League All-Star Game on June 23. "He made a really good defensive play for us tonight and he got a clutch hit for us in the ninth inning. So, hopefully, he can keep coming out and giving us good performances night after night."

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Attendance at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute bigger than ever for Timber Rattlers

Fans pay closer attention, thanks to new link to Brewers

By Brett Christopherson

Post-Crescent staff writer

 

GRAND CHUTE - It took one climb of the dugout stairs and a step onto the field for Wisconsin Timber Rattlers catcher Corey Kemp to realize he wasn't at rookie ball anymore.

 

The seats were stuffed. The place was abuzz. A professional baseball player he finally felt.

 

"When you think cold baseball weather, you think nobody in the stands," the 23-year-old Kemp said as he recalled that April 6 evening at Fox Cities Stadium, when a crowd of 5,487 braved temperatures in the low 50s to help the Rattlers usher in another Midwest League season.

 

"Those are the toughest days to play, but it makes it easier when you've got fans, it really does. People who tell you it doesn't matter, they're lying. It was definitely a nice change of pace coming from the low levels of minor league baseball."

 

The attendance total was considered a sellout, shattering the club's 1995 home opener mark of 3,474 and foreshadowing an impressive showing at the gate that has the franchise positioned at establishing a new single-season high.

 

Front office officials recently announced the Rattlers, propelled by their new affiliation with the Milwaukee Brewers, had eclipsed the 100,000 attendance barrier through the first half of a season for the first time in team history as they welcomed 107,362 fans in 33 openings.

 

A crowd of 3,322 checked out Wisconsin's 4-3 Midwest League win over Clinton on Wednesday, raising the season total to 128,026 through 39 dates for a 3,283 per-game average.

 

Keep in mind a first-half attendance total of 82,822 was reached in 1996, the same year the franchise produced its overall record of 233,797. That meant nearly 151,000 folks flocked to the park the second half of that year, a number that would easily push the team past this season's goal of 225,000.

 

The club drew 190,263 last season.

 

"It doesn't matter what year you look at, the second half is always stronger than the first half," Rattlers president Rob Zerjav said. "So that's what we're hoping for. Two hundred, twenty-five thousand is a number that would we nice. Over that would be great. But even if we don't get to 225,000, it has still been a great year, a great partnership."

 

The Rattlers and Brewers agreed in September on a four-year player development pact that stations Milwaukee's Class A minor league talent in Grand Chute through 2012. Wisconsin had been affiliated with the Seattle Mariners the previous 16 seasons.

 

Understandably, fan interest heightened, given the Brewers' close proximity and rise as a National League contender.

 

Case in point: A crowd of 17,880 flocked to Milwaukee's Miller Park to catch the April 24 game pitting the Rattlers against Peoria. Incidentally, that figure is included as part of Wisconsin's home season total.

 

"I see more people wearing Brewers stuff," said Fremont's Jeff Fahser, a social studies teacher at Weyauwega-Fremont Middle School and in his sixth season as a stadium usher. "More people are excited about these guys possibly playing someday at the major league level. There's a bigger interest. It's the baby Brewers who could someday become the major league Brewers."

 

Denmark's Ron Grusznski, a 10-game season ticket holder who actually attends between 15 and 20 games a season, has noticed a more intense following in that fans seem interested in what's happening on the field as opposed to stopping by simply for the minor league experience.

 

"There's a lot more excitement, cheering," said Grusznski, sporting a Rattlers jersey and cap while hunkered down with his wife, Shirley, two rows behind the first base dugout before Tuesday's game with Clinton. "We were to a lot of games last year, and it was dead. Even if they were scoring, nobody was making noise. So it's a lot nicer this way."

 

Zerjav has noticed the fan base begin to branch out with folks making the trip from places like Stevens Point, Wausau, Sheboygan and particularly Milwaukee, which is part of the Time Warner Cable coverage area, that can take a peek at some of the Brewers' prospects by watching the network's broadcasts of select live games.

 

He also noted a dip in the percentage of no-shows.

 

"Last year, we had about 75 percent of the people buying tickets actually coming," Zerjav said. "And now we're at 82, 83 percent. And sometimes, we're upwards of 90 percent."

 

While the new affiliation has certainly been a boon, Craig Dickman, chairman of the Rattlers' 11-person board of directors, said the team's ability to combat the sluggish economy by remaining affordable has been just as important.

 

Wisconsin hasn't raised its ticket prices - $8.50 (box), $7 (reserved) and $5 (general admission) - since the 2006 season.

 

"We're still a value-driven form of entertainment," Dickman said. "We've done a lot to try to keep the cost of admission and concessions down so families can come out and, for real inexpensive investment, have a real enjoyable family time."

 

Dickman added the franchise is operating ahead of both last season's bottom line figures and this season's projections and is eyeing an even bigger second half.

 

"Historically, that's been the case, as kids are out of school, more families attend and the warmer weather," he said. "We certainly planned for the growth in attendance because of the affiliation and hoped it would hit this level. We're very pleased with where we're sitting at the moment."

 

Additional Facts

 

Popularity on the rise

Timber Rattlers' first-half season attendance dating to 1995, the team's first season at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute.

Final season totals are in parenthesis.

1995: 74,060 (209,159)

1996: 82,822 (233,797)

1997: 84,004 (227,104)

1998: 92,563 (227,306)

1999: 92,075 (223,814)

2000: 84,184 (215,612)

2001: 83,483 (207,823)

2002: 73,697 (199,210)

2003: 71,304 (198,004)

2004: 77,101 (206,487)

2005: 86,389 (211,927)

2006: 74,772 (209,033)

2007: 74,841 (197,511)

2008: 57,506 (190,263)

2009: 107,362

 

A good-sized crowd fills Fox Cities Stadium Tuesday night in Grand Chute to watch the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers play the Clinton Lumberkings. Attendance numbers are up for the first half of the season for the Timber Rattlers. Post-Crescent photo by Kirk Wagner

 

http://cmsimg.postcrescent.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=U0&Date=20090702&Category=APC0206&ArtNo=907020458&Ref=AR&Profile=1016&MaxW=550&MaxH=650&title=0

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Brett Christopherson column: Timber Rattlers' Brock Kjeldgaard making shift from pitcher to hitter

 

GRAND CHUTE - Two summers ago, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers manager Jeff Isom was skippering the rookie level Helena (Mont.) Brewers, when the team's radio announcer approached with an idea.

 

If this Brock Kjeldgaard kid ever has trouble finding the plate, you might want to try having him stand next to it. You know - hit.

 

"And I was like, 'I don't know. How many guys actually do that, go from pitcher to position player?' " Isom said. "But I give him credit. He was right."

 

The Milwaukee Brewers selected Kjeldgaard as a right-handed pitcher in the 34th round of the 2005 June draft.

 

Today, the 24-year-old Canadian is a slugging first baseman/outfielder who leads the Timber Rattlers with 11 homers and 46 RBI in 73 games.

 

Seamless transition? Hardly.

 

While his power continues to impress, he'll assess his overall production as still being very much a work in progress.

 

"I've had a couple of good days, and a couple of bad days," Kjeldgaard said. "I'd just like to be a little bit more consistent day in and day out. There are days it seems like a struggle. But there are other days where I feel really good up there. So I'd like to have a better balance."

 

Like giving that batting average a nudge. He was scuffling at .215 over 246 plate appearances following Wednesday's 4-3 Midwest League win over the Clinton LumberKings at Fox Cities Stadium, whiffing in his first two at-bats to add to his team-high 92 strikeouts before grounding out to short to end the fifth.

 

But then came the biggest base knock of the afternoon when he roped a one-out triple to right in the seventh to drive in the game winner.

 

Lasers like those are why Isom prefers to compliment rather than be critical when asked for a progress report on Kjeldgaard's switch. As a former pitcher himself, he said it's difficult - and rare - for a pitcher to convert to a position player and then have success.

 

"Usually, it's the other way around," said Isom, a lefty who spent three years in the minors in the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres systems. "You get a hitter who just can't hit, but maybe he can field and shows a good arm. So you say, 'Well, he can't hit, so let's put him on the mound.' This is kind of the exception to that rule.

 

"He's a very athletic kid. The organization thinks very highly of him. He goes about his business, works his tail off and keeps his mouth shut. Just a grinder-type guy. He's got a great attitude."

 

And a smart head, too.

 

Like Isom, Kjeldgaard realized soon into his professional career he didn't exactly have what you'd deem big league stuff, going 1-2 at Helena with a 5.29 ERA in 16 games - eight of which were starts - in 2006 and then 0-1 with a 5.91 ERA in 17 games - one start - in 2007.

 

In his first season, Kjeldgaard said his fastball topped out in the high 80s but then dipped to the mid 80s the following year. Over a total of 81 1/3 innings, he fanned 46 and walked 34.

 

But the kid could definitely hit and often displayed that ability in pitchers' batting practice by using his 6-foot-5 frame to pepper liners and launch deep bombs.

 

It was nothing new, really, since he showed a lively bat during those junior college days in Iowa, where he also shined on the mound.

 

"The pitching coach (at Helena) told me (during the 2007 season), 'What are you doing on the mound? You should be hitting,' " Kjeldgaard said with a laugh.

 

"That was a pretty big sign, when your pitching coach tells you that."

 

So was that phone call in October of '07 from Brewers director of player development Reid Nichols, explaining the organization's decision to move him from the mound to first base.

 

Kjeldgaard responded by hitting .278 with 14 homers and 65 RBI in 75 games last season at Helena, while also landing a spot in the Pioneer League all-star game.

 

He has also fared well on the field, supplying a big target at first and showing a solid glove in being able to pick throws in the dirt, while getting his first feel this season for outfield play. Kjeldgaard has just eight errors in 51 games at first base and 20 games in left field.

 

"I was a little shocked at first, because you don't really expect to hear that news," Kjeldgaard said of Nichols' call. "But I got excited after I let it set in a little bit. I knew it was a fresh start. And I knew I could hit from junior college. I just didn't know they knew I could."

 

A lot of folks do, now.

 

Perhaps his most memorable homer this season was the opposite-field, two-run shot he belted on April 24 at Miller Park in Milwaukee. The ball sailed into the right-field seats to highlight a three-run fifth as the Timber Rattlers rallied to beat Peoria 5-3.

 

Isom remembers one clubbed at Fox Cities Stadium. It was during batting practice and the ball tagged the top of the left-center-field scoreboard, which is situated beyond the 385-foot mark and about 40 feet high.

 

And then there was another at Kane County, where the ball nearly hit the top of a light tower before clearing a clump of trees.

 

"In our organization, we don't have a lot of guys with raw power," Isom said. "But he's one of those guys who has raw power. It's a credit to what he's done.

Yeah, he's striking out a little, but that's just the progression of becoming a hitter.

 

"When he puts the balls in play, it's usually hit hard. And when he gets a pitch he can handle, he can hit it a looong way."

 

***

 

If that's true, that Kjeldgaard's conversion was suggested to Brewers management by Helena's broadcaster Steve Wendt initially, that is a heck of a side story to this tale.

[battlekow]

Corey Kemp's hometown newspaper ("The Voice of America's Greatest County"--haha) interviewed him. Those sandwiches better be tuna!

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Schoolcraft's Ritchie paying his dues in Brewers' farm system

Posted by Wes Morgan | Kalamazoo (MI) Gazette

 

KALAMAZOO -- Brandon Ritchie is a broke college dropout who takes a smelly bus most everywhere he goes. But he's enjoying the ride, often at 93 miles per hour.

 

"It's been a lot of fun, but people like to glamorize being a professional baseball player," the left-handed pitcher said. "But we pretty much scrape up all the money we can get."

 

Ritchie, a former Schoolcraft and Grand Rapids Community College star in his first season with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Class A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers) hopes to one day cash in on his potential left-arm lottery ticket in the Majors.

 

The big southpaw gave up a 60-percent scholarship at Indiana State to bird-dog a Big League dream when he was selected in the 24th round of by the Brewers last year.

 

Ritchie, 22, gave up his friends and family when he was assigned to Helena, Mont., for rookie ball. He traded college sway, which propelled GRCC to the NJCAA Division II World Series, and quickly realized he was playing a whole new game.

 

"I'd say Montana was one of the worst experiences I've had with baseball," Ritchie said of his brief stay with the Helena Brewers. "I came out of junior college where it was easy to dominate hitters. My first couple outings I realized this isn't a game I'm going to dominate anymore."

 

The lifelong starter was relegated to the bullpen once he arrived in Wisconsin, where he'd have to sharpen his mind, as well as his breaking ball and changeup, he said, to accompany a fastball that regularly clocks in the low- to mid-90s.

 

Ritchie's fitting in just fine with Wisconsin and his numbers thus far are, well, dominating.

 

With a staggering 1.98 ERA, 26 holds and 5-0 record as a reliever this season in the Midwest League, Ritchie, who has no career back-up plan, is getting noticed within the organization.

 

"We've been pleasantly surprised," said Timber Rattlers manager Jeff Isom, once a minor-league journeyman who played for the Kalamazoo Kodiaks in 1998. "We didn't know what we were going to get from him coming into the season. We just continue to put him on the mound and he continues to have success for us.

 

"He's got closer stuff and he's a guy who's been able to do whatever we've asked of him, whether that's short relief, long relief or setup. He's given us every opportunity to win."

 

At 6-foot, 4-inches and 230 pounds, Ritchie is an imposing sight on the hill. And Isom says his "bulldog" personality complements his frame. With durability, enabling him to pitch "each night" if needed, according to Isom, Ritchie has helped boost the Timber Rattlers -- currently second in the Western Division -- to a 41-39 overall record and 7-3 start in the season's second half.

 

"He's definitely opened up the eyes of the Brewers' brass here this season," Isom said. "When you're a left-handed guy throwing 93 miles per hour, it's hard to overlook that. There's people taking notice of what he's done, for sure.

 

"Brandon's a big, strong guy who wants the ball in his hands when the game's on the line."

 

Isom knows all to well how difficult it is to crack a Major League roster, something he never accomplished over his seven-year professional career.

 

"He's decided this is what he wants to do," said Isom, who thinks Ritchie has what it takes to make it at the next level but knows there's no guarantee. "Once baseball is done, he doesn't know what's next. So he's all ears, listening and soaking everything in."

 

In some capacity, whether it's from the pen or in the starting rotation, Ritchie believes one day he'll trot out on a greener field than Appleton's, but says he's happy wherever he has a baseball in his hand.

 

"I can honestly say I'd rather be doing this than anything else," Ritchie said. "In the offseason I hang drywall with my dad and that's not the best job.

 

"I feel like I have a good chance of moving up in the organization; I just have to continue doing my thing, I guess."

 

Photo Courtesy of Wisconsin Timber Rattlers

Former Schoolcraft High School baseball player Brandon Ritchie now pitches for the Class A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, a minor league affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers

 

http://blog.mlive.com/kzgazette/sports_impact/2009/07/medium_Brandon%20Ritchie_2.jpg

[battlekow]

John Sickels saw the Wisconsin/Burlington game yesterday and thought Brett Lawrie's bat looked "much quicker" than #3-overall pick Eric Hosmer's.

[battlekow]

Scarpetta in today's MLU from BP:

When he's good, he's very good

Cody Scarpetta , RHP, Brewers (Low-A Wisconsin)

Wednesday's stats: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 9 K

An 11th-round pick in 2007, Scarpetta is a 240-pound behemoth with 89-93 mph sinker, quality curve, and decent changeup. The problem is a messy delivery that causes him to have plenty of days where he gets out of synch, loses command and velocity, and gets hit hard. He has certainly been in synch of late, firing 14 shutout innings in his last three appearances, while giving up just six hits and striking out 19.

[TheCrew07]

Messy delivery? He doesn't have a consistent arm slot, so he doesn't repeat his delivery well, but it's hardly messy? Willis' delivery would be messy to me... what does "messy" even mean?

[battlekow]

John Sickels scouts the Timber Rattlers.

[Mass Haas]

John Sickels scouts the Timber Rattlers.

Brett Lawrie, 2B: 2008 first round pick, hitting .264/.351/.459 with 14 steals this year. He had a frustrating series, going 1-for-9, hitting a couple of noisy fly ball outs, but also hitting a couple of foul balls that would have been in the stands in most parks, but were outs in Burlington. This left him visibly frustrated, loudly cursing his luck in the dugout to where everyone in the stadium can hear. Scouts weren't surprised, saying he has an "intense" personality.

That matches all the reports we've heard, both published reports and individual accounts. Intense not always in a good way. Dude needs to chill.

 

Encouraged on Cody Adams, Dan Merklinger, and Brandon Ritchie based on John's notes.

 

An obvious must-click-and-read for all here.

[TooLiveBrew]

His play at second base was OK; he caught what he got to, and showed decent range to his left, but his range to the right was less impressive. He doesn't LOOK anything like a second baseman, due to his thick strong legs, and the scouting consensus among observers is that he'll end up in left field eventually. Despite his muscular build, his running speed is above average.

Ack. I really wish that wasn't the consensus on Brett. Obviously his bat at 2B >>> his bat at LF

 

Is there reason to hope for the kinds of gradual defensive improvements made by Rickie Weeks for Brett? In this instance the shared position is 100% coincidental.

[igor67]

I think the scouts are largely guessing. It's not like they get guys who just shift to second base from catching all that often. It's easy to say he doesn't look right based on his frame and guess he won't stick it's the low risk thing to say, so at this point I don't put a lot of stock in it. Next year will be much more informative.

[biedergb]

I'll throw out Patrick (colbyjack)'s comp here of Jeff Kent. Not in build, but Jeff never 'looked' like a 2b to me when he played. He always looked stiff, but could do the basics, and obviously had the bat. Obviously everyone is different, and we've had our fair share of poor fiedling positional players fly through the system. Hopefully Lawrie's bat just dictates his prospect status, and we'll just let them all sort out.

[Never Outhustled]

I thought the most interesting part of the article was that many see Peralta as a future reliever. Some him are projecting him as a guy with unlimited potential. he's likely somewhere in between.

[TheCrew07]

I thought the most interesting part of the article was that many see Peralta as a future reliever. Some him are projecting him as a guy with unlimited potential. he's likely somewhere in between.

I viewed that as "whatever", every SP pitcher in the organization for the most part outside of Yo at one point or another has had a post or blurb out of someone about being a reliever, projectable pitchers with high velocity and only 2 polished pitches always seem to get that label regardless of the organization. Heck, Parra even got that label because of health concerns in the past... There's a chance that Rogers, Jeffress, and Peralta will all end up in the pen, but they will be given every opportunity to succeed as SP. To me that's no different that calling Scarpetta's delivery messy... none of our pitchers in A ball repeat their deliveries well, that's just the nature of the beast for most prospects.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Cain latest top Brewers' prospect to rehab with Timber Rattlers

Brett Christopherson, Appleton Post-Crescent

 

GRAND CHUTE - The M*A*S*H unit that has become Fox Cities Stadium recently welcomed yet another of the Milwaukee Brewers' top minor league prospects.

 

So that prompted this inquiry of Wisconsin Timber Rattlers manager Jeff Isom, MD: Do you feel you're now just as equipped to read a medical report as you are a scouting report?

 

"Nah," Isom said before pausing, grinning and then delivering the punch line. "But I did stay at a Holiday Inn one time."

 

OK…seriously.

 

"That's what they said they wanted to do," Isom added. "Keep guys close to Milwaukee and keep an eye on them."

 

"They" would be the Crew's brain trust - fellas like general manager Doug Melvin, assistant GM Gord Ash and director of player development Reid Nichols.

 

And the latest to join a growing list of "them" is 23-year-old Lorenzo Cain, who with a bit of better karma could one day find himself patrolling Miller Park's center field grass.

 

Cain, the top outfielder prospect in the Milwaukee system and rated by Baseball America as the Brewers' sixth-best prospect overall, had set a goal to end the 2009 season at the Triple-A level.

 

Today, he's just relieved to be hanging out with the Single-A Rattlers after suffering a knee injury that at first blush had season-ender stamped all over it.

 

It was only three months ago when Cain, playing at Double-A Huntsville, sprained his left knee while trying to make a diving grab during a Southern League game.

 

Cain said he felt a sharp pain but was able to jog off the field and even tried stepping up to the plate.

 

But…

 

"I hit a line drive to center and took off out of the box, and the knee just kind of gave out on me," he said. "I just stopped, and at that point, I knew something was wrong."

 

An MRI later revealed the injury to be a partial tear of his posterior cruciate ligament, which meant a big WHEW! since rest and rehab - and not a collection of surgical tools - would be the prescribed avenue of treatment.

 

"Right now, I'm just happy to be on the field," said Cain, selected by the Brewers in the 17th round of the 2004 June draft. "I'm not 100 percent right now, but it's coming back slowly. Just get my at-bats in and continue to play. I'll get it going, sooner or later."

 

Cain was assigned to Wisconsin on July 3 and has since appeared in nine games. He was hitless in three at-bats in Monday's 5-2 Midwest League win over visiting South Bend to dip his average to .192 (five-of-26).

 

Not exactly eye-popping when compared to the rest of his resume, like the .279 with 11 bombs and 60 RBI he combined to produce last year in 126 games at High-A Brevard County, Huntsville and Triple-A Nashville.

 

Or the .307 with six homers, 60 RBI and a league-leading 162 hits he put together three seasons ago at West Virginia, the Brewers' previous Single-A affiliate. Those numbers earned him midseason and postseason South Atlantic League all-star mention.

 

His overall minor league totals coming into '09 showed a .295 batting average with 24 homers, 106 doubles, 278 runs scored, 95 steals and 202 RBI in 440 games.

 

But hey, this setback could have been tons worse.

 

"Knock a little of the rust off, that's what 'Lo' Cain is doing right now," Isom said. "He's not where he has been in the past offensively, there's no question about that. You can see, offensively, why he's so good. But it's just not coming out yet. He's still a few games away."

 

Cain deemed his knee - he protects it with a sleeve while he plays - at 80 percent and admitted trying to clear the mental hurdle has proven to be a tricky challenge.

 

So, too, has been keeping the faith.

 

His season got off to a slow start because of a right hamstring strain, so he was only in his fourth game at Huntsville at the time of his knee injury.

 

"It's been a tough year, but things happen, and I've just got to keep my head up and try to bounce back," said the 6-foot-2, 192-pound Cain, who made a three-game stint with the rookie level Arizona Brewers before heading to Wisconsin. "I feel things are slowly coming back. It's still a little tough to kind of go full speed right now. It's still a little sore. And after the game, it's very sore. I have to ice it and get the rehab in.

 

"It's probably going to be sore for a while. It probably won't heal completely until I get a long period of rest. I'm just trying to stay injury free right now."

 

And get going to Huntsville, the next stop on Cain's itinerary once Brewers officials feel he's ready, again, to play at that level.

 

"I haven't heard (of a timetable)," said Isom, whose clubhouse has seen five of the Brewers' top 13 prospects stroll through at some point this season, not to mention Milwaukee right-hander Dave Bush. That includes a pair of rehab stops in third baseman Taylor Green (No. 8 prospect) and pitcher Alex Periard (No. 13).

 

Bush, meanwhile, made a rehab start on Friday.

 

"I'd imagine they're keeping a close eye on (Cain) with his average and getting some quality at-bats. But he's still battling a little bit of the injury bug with his knee."

True, but he's also still clutching The Dream.

 

"I want to play center field for the Milwaukee Brewers," Cain said in a quiet but determined tone. "Who knows when that would happen? But I want to make it happen as soon as possible."

 

Lorenzo Cain of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers breaks his bat while batting against the South Bend Silver Hawks at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute on Monday. Post-Crescent photo by Patrick Ferron

 

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