Capuano will not return to Milwaukee

[PeaveyFury]

Per Tom H, negotiations between the Brewers and Chris Capuano have broken off and he will not return:

 

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/112528034.html

[Ennder]

Not a big surprise. I don't see how they could count on him as a starter for a full season and he doesn't want to be a depth move or a bullpen guy.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Sad to see him go, but we don't really need him anyway. Parra will do fine as our long man/6th starter.

[paul253]

I actually thought he would have a good chance to be the number five starter. It was basically down to him and Narveson. So the rotation is pretty much set then, unless Many Parra has a really impressive spring.

[PrinceEatMeat]

I actually thought he would have a good chance to be the number five starter. It was basically down to him and Narveson. So the rotation is pretty much set then, unless Many Parra has a really impressive spring.

I'm guessing Parra won't even be used in a starting role in the Spring. I think they really like him in the pen now.

[ilovebeer]

I knew this was coming but still sad news, cappy i will miss you.

[The Truth]

Who is our long reliever & #6 starter just in case of injury? Parra? I kind of like Parra being strictly a 2 inning guy. If a pitcher gets shelled early in the game though, who pitches 4 innings for us? Probably Parra

 

I suppose Rogers is the first starter in terms of depth in case of injury

[BrewCrewForever]

Kind of figured this would happen, but still kind of stinks. I wish Cappy all the best where ever he goes. Unless of course he goes to the Cardinals or Cubs.

[dadofandrew]

Rogers will probably be penciled into the #6/7 mix. I'd expect at least one more signing, though it could be of the minor league variety. Heck, nothing wrong with Washburn on a minor league deal with an opt-out in June. John Maine and Brian Bannister are two FA's who have been connected to MIL rumors in the past.

 

Other guys who had some success as SP's that might have to take a minor league contract? Bruce Chen, Rodrigo Lopez, Ian Snell, Elmer Dessens. Aaron Heilman wants to start, but is looked at as a reliever. Dustin Nippert and Zach Miner are possibilities as well.

[danzig6767]

So if/when one of our five projected starters suffers an injury of some sort and needs to miss anywhere from one start to multiple starts, who is the likely guy to fill in? Parra?

 

It's very rare for a starting rotation to pretty much go a whole season injury free and thus a team's 6th and even 7th starter can factor in to how well that team ends up doing, especially if one of the top five starters has to miss quite a few starts. Besides Parra, i'm not sure who else Melvin would turn to?

 

Plus, if Parra is in the pen as mainly the long reliever and an injury struck at some point, he likely wouldn't be stretched out enough to throw more than 4-5 innings at best.

[BrewCrewForever]

I think Rogers and Rivas are two viable options for spot starts and if there is an injury.

[HiAndTight]

Who is our long reliever & #6 starter just in case of injury? Parra? I kind of like Parra being strictly a 2 inning guy. If a pitcher gets shelled early in the game though, who pitches 4 innings for us? Probably Parra

 

I suppose Rogers is the first starter in terms of depth in case of injury

We're to the point now I think we've got several guys capable in the system of filling that role. I've always been a big fan of Rivas in the middle of a rotation and think he could hold his own after Rogers in case of injury. Peralta would obviously be high on the list. I don't think having a proven guy to fill that role is that big of a deal this year. When you're trying to patch together a rotation with a 2nd year Yo as your #1 and Wolf as your #2 a guy who can eat up innings is obviously a higher priority.

 

 

Too bad. Cappy's a guy everyone roots for, and still will(unless Duncan gets his hands on him and he wins the Cy Young this year).

 

Obviously this is subject to change. I can't imagine there are a lot of contenders out there with a promised rotation spot waiting for Cappy.

[Kricket755]

Despite the fact that he hasn't started consistently since 2008, I still think Pat Egan might have a chance to be the long man out of the pen. The odds of your long reliever pitching a big number of relevant games isn't too high, so he might be able to fill that bottom slot. Granted , if he can't get big league hitters out, I am sure they will try to find someone else. With Rogers, Rivas, and Peralta all getting consistent innings in the minors, there would be no pressure on Egan to step up should an injury occur. This would be close to ending the Parra project as a starter with the Brewers. That can be a positive or negative, depending on your view of Manny. I, for one, would love for him to solidify a consistent spot in the pen. The luxury or Starting Pitching (Rogers, Rivas, Peralta) and Relief Pitching (Kintzler, McClendon) that is cheap with upside is nice insurance. Also, Justin James appears to have starting experience as recently as 2009 in indy ball. Again, I feel like the ML-ready AAA arms will take a lot of pressure of this spot for the Brewers.

[PeaveyFury]

Count me with those that are concerned about depth in the rotation- a backup plan of Parra and Rogers as your 6th/7th starters seems like we're setting ourselves up for a major problem when the inevitable injury strikes to our starting 5 (or if Narveson doesn't develop, etc). Cappy seemed like at least a viable option to give us another arm in case the backup plan(s) failed.

 

Hopefully we can still bring in a vet on a minor league deal to add some kind of depth there.

[MNBrew]

I've been saying all offseason that I want Capuano back, partly to battle with Narveson to be the #5 starter and also to be the #6 starter when someone ends up missing some time, which is virtually inevitable. He'd be the perfect guy to have as a long man.

 

In 6-8 weeks when ST & then exhibition games start, if someone else hasn't been smart enough to snatch him up, I wonder if he'd still consider coming back here for 3 reasons:

 

- It could turn out that he's got as good of a shot at getting starts here as anywhere when all's said and done (maybe not likely, but a possibility).

- If a player or two from the fringe of the bullpen (thinking James or Egan or Kintzler or whomever) become(s) so attractive to other teams who'd be willing to offer someone more useful than someone on our roster turns out to be, then maybe there becomes a spot ready-made for Capuano. This might also be contingent upon the circumstances in the 1st point.

- Mark Rogers gets hurt again and Manny Parra suddenly becomes the best option for #6 starter, which for the past couple years has proved lethal to the team's well being.

 

I'm being incredibly optimistic, I know, but I still really wish Capuano were the #5/6 starter and already signed on to wear his #39 Brewers jersey come spring training.

[Roscoe Chill]

Maybe Jeff D'Amico is available?

[splitterpfj]

It's too bad, it would have been fun to have Cappy around as the Brewers make a run next year. This news was predictable though, Milwaukee's rotation spots are filled...I don't blame Chris for looking elsewhere.

 

The team got Marcum, Greinke and Saito, but lost Capuano for depth...I'll count that as a win. I don't view Mark Rogers as more risky than Capuano if one the starters goes down.

 

Good luck, Chris, and thank you.

[kramnoj]

I think it's better to have the 6th and 7th starter types be in AAA where they are stretched out and ready to be called up, rather than be a long man in the bullpen. Rogers is projected to about what a #5 starter can produce in 2011. Rivas and Peralta don't project for 2011 well, but they could come up and make some emergency starts.

 

I'm disappointed that Cap won't be back, but it's an understandable decision.

[Ennder]

There was no chance that he would get a starting job for our team, there is no reason at all to expect him to be able to throw 200 innings. His best shot was as a minor league starter or a bullpen guy who could start in times of need, neither jobs he wanted at all.

[endaround]

Capuano was a hope because he has talent and likely won't get big money. But the Brewers still need a viable multi inning guy(3-4 inning) and emergency starter in Milwaukee. It shouldn't be Parra. Rogers really shouldn't be counted on ath this point. You need a guy who can fill in for 10 or so starts over a season. Jaimie Moyer?

[Invader3K]

Moyer won't be able to pitch this season due to having surgery recently (Tommy John, I think).

 

They have guys they will be able to call up from AAA like Rivas and Dillard if needed. I'm really not that worried about this pitching situation right now.

[endaround]

That was more a joke. Yea they can call up someone but they need a 4 inning guy in Milwaukee. The whole call someone up thing is nice until they pitched the day before and your forced to go with option #3. I like the bullpen but its got a lot of handle gently labels on it. Loe shouldn't face left handers, Saito, Hawkins and Braddock likely shouldn't pitch on consecutive days or for more than 1inning, Parra is best if limited to 1 to 2 innings at most.

[JohnBriggs12]

I think it's better to have the 6th and 7th starter types be in AAA where they are stretched out and ready to be called up, rather than be a long man in the bullpen. Rogers is projected to about what a #5 starter can produce in 2011. Rivas and Peralta don't project for 2011 well, but they could come up and make some emergency starts.

 

I'm disappointed that Cap won't be back, but it's an understandable decision.

Absolutely. The notion that backup starters can be parked in the bullpen is rather silly anyway. The Brewers are all in for 2011. The time for sentimentality in roster decisions is over. Not only is the rotation set, so is the bullpen now. Barring an injury between now and opening day, the 12 man staff likely will be: Greinke, Gallardo, Marcum, Wolf, Narveson, Parra, McClendon, Loe, Saito, Hawkins, Braddock, and Axford. Every other guy in camp is a long shot.

[monty57]

I agree with kramnoj & Briggs. We are finally to the point that our minor league pithcers are nearing "major league ready" status, and I'd rather have them in AAA as starters ready to step in when needed. I hated the methodology of last season, when we stockpiled bad starters in the bullpen as "insurance." All it insured was that we had a bad bullpen. When we have a two-inning start at the major league level, someone like Loe or Parra will be fine to step in for multiple innings, as the two inning start likely means we're pretty much out of that game anyways. Because we'll have some relievers with options this season, we can always swap in a fresh arm like Kintzler or McClendon if the bullpen gets overworked by a short start.

 

If there is a need for a spot start, it really won't matter if it's Rogers, Rivas, Peralta or whomever. It's one start, so any of them could be lights out or terrible. If we need someone to step in for a few weeks, the Brewers should be able to work the rotation to make sure they bring up the guy they want from AAA. It's not going to hurt Greinke, Marcum, Yo or Wolf if they have to pitch once on three days rest mid-season.

 

Best wishes to Cappy. It was fun watching him when he was one of the few Brewers pitchers worth watching, and it's been a tremendous comeback story. While I doubt a contender will give him a rotation spot, I hope he can find a job with someone like Washington / KC / Pittsburgh and prove that he is capable of holding down a rotation spot.

[joepepsi]

If they have need for another starter the first couple months of the season, they'll make do with what they have, whether it's another shot for Parra, or Loe, or one of the minor league guys. If a starter goes down mid summer for a long period, and if they are in the race, look for Mark A to expand the payroll and for Doug to engineer a trade.

 

Same with ss, if Bentancourt is truly horrible, they'll be bringing some vet through trade by the deadline. Possibly JJ. Unless this thing falls apart early, the Brewers are going for it in Prince's last season.