Brewers acquire Nyjer Morgan -- Latest: Audio Fun, a must-listen, but the Nationals won't be amused

[YoungGeezy]

heres a fun Morgan/Plush interview from April last year, have to say, love his swag and attitude!

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/m...gos-hocke?urn=mlb-237924

[McDank]

Nyjer Morgan is to the Brewers what Taka Tanaka was to the Indians.

 

"Yuni, you got no... marbles!"

[The Truth]

I love watching Nyjer Morgan in a Brewers uniform.

 

Just remember, he is not (obviously) a .500 hitter. So don't flip out when he has 3 or 4 "Oh-For" games to bring his BA and OBP closer to his career averages. He's still an upgrade over Gomez vs right-handers and a real asset to the team in other ways too

[rluzinski]

Yes, I've enjoyed watching Morgan this year but as a regular, you shouldn't really expect anything more than great defense and a .270/.330/.350 line. His value would be maximized by playing CF and being platooned.

[DuWayne Steurer]

Yes, I've enjoyed watching Morgan this year but as a regular, you shouldn't really expect anything more than great defense and a .270/.330/.350 line. His value would be maximized by playing CF and being platooned.

.270./330 would make him far more valuable than Gomez. Morgan just shouldn't attempt to steal if there's a lefty on the mound.

 

The guy is what he is, I don't think anyone's expecting him to be a world beater, but he has brought a spark to the team since he's been playing, and he is exciting to watch.

 

I completely understand that exciting players aren't always good players. I believe Carl Crawford is vastly overrated, as he's very 'exciting' (hits lots of triples and steals lots of bases) but at the same time, if he's one of the 8 best guys on a given day, and he's a guy the fans enjoy watching, I'm all for him being in the lineup.

[Invader3K]

I suspect Morgan is quickly cementing himself as the everyday center fielder, which is fine by me at this point.

[hawing]

I suspect Morgan is quickly cementing himself as the everyday center fielder, which is fine by me at this point.

I read this and thought to myself, "Self, Invader has probably just guaranteed a Gomez start in Sunday's finale." Within five minutes, I saw the Braun-Gomez-Kotsay outfield lineup on the Brewers' Facebook page and sighed a little. Perhaps the cement is still settling.

[Invader3K]

Yeah, I noticed that too. I guess Roenicke wasn't impressed enough by Morgan's triple and stellar defense yesterday. Let's see if Kotsay can get his season OPS over .500. *sigh*

[Hammer]

I'd be willing to be that Morgan is back in the game by the 6th inning or so. Guys that play that "hot" need some time once in a while to rest the jets...

[Funketown]

I'm really curious to know Roenicke's justification for starting Ol' Man Kotsay out in right field. Plush would look so much better than Gomez in the two hole right now.

[brettac1]

As much as I was sort of down on this move, it's worked out perfectly with Gomez sucking it up and Nyjer hot. Hopefully it will bury Gomez on the bench. I'm all in favor of them platooning once Hart returns, and think that gives them their best possible lineup with Morgan hitting second. Hopefully Kottaras can cement himself as the every day C and 7th hitter and suddenly you have two more guys in the lineup that will give the team a good AB more often than not, and especially more often than the alternatives.

[TwinsBrewersWorldSeries]

I think it must be Carlos Gomez's mission in life to torment teams that I cheer for... I for the life of me can't see anything that he brings to the table to be starting EVER over Morgan right now

[Crew2323]

As much as I was sort of down on this move, it's worked out perfectly with Gomez sucking it up and Nyjer hot. Hopefully it will bury Gomez on the bench. I'm all in favor of them platooning once Hart returns, and think that gives them their best possible lineup with Morgan hitting second. Hopefully Kottaras can cement himself as the every day C and 7th hitter and suddenly you have two more guys in the lineup that will give the team a good AB more often than not, and especially more often than the alternatives.

Just for the sake of clarification, you'd rather have Kottaras be the everyday C and not LuCroy?

[brettac1]

As much as I was sort of down on this move, it's worked out perfectly with Gomez sucking it up and Nyjer hot. Hopefully it will bury Gomez on the bench. I'm all in favor of them platooning once Hart returns, and think that gives them their best possible lineup with Morgan hitting second. Hopefully Kottaras can cement himself as the every day C and 7th hitter and suddenly you have two more guys in the lineup that will give the team a good AB more often than not, and especially more often than the alternatives.

Just for the sake of clarification, you'd rather have Kottaras be the everyday C and not LuCroy?

Yes, I have doubts about Lucroy on offense. I would be cool with a 60/40 split, but I don't think Lucroy has earned every day playing time at this point. Kottaras is a good hitter, regardless of his AVG.

[PrinceEatMeat]

I think the point is that we really don't need that much offense from our catcher. Defense, and the ability to call a good game, is more important. That is why I want Lucroy in there almost every day. He's a decent hitter, and plays great defense. I think Kottaras might even be let go, just because he isn't as good as Nieves defensively. That was a huge play to throw out Byrd today, but he really doesn't throw runners out consistently. I would hate to see him go, but really our backup catcher will only play every 5 days or so anyway. Kottaras in no way deserves to be an everyday player.

[brettac1]

I don't think Lucroy is that great defensively, and he was terrible on offense last season. He's probably a below average defender. Obviously Kottaras isn't good on defense.

 

The Brewers' offense is not so great that it doesn't need contributions everywhere in the lineup. There are holes all over.

[Ennder]

I'd be really surprised if Lucroy isn't instantly the starter as soon as he is back, he has a lot more upside than anyone else. Then again I'd be surprised if Kotsay made the team and got a lot of PA and that seems to be happening.

[homer]

I don't think Lucroy is that great defensively, and he was terrible on offense last season. He's probably a below average defender. Obviously Kottaras isn't good on defense.

 

The Brewers' offense is not so great that it doesn't need contributions everywhere in the lineup. There are holes all over.

Let's not forget that Lucroy was supposed to be in AAA all last season. He was pushed because of Zaun's injury. I have faith that he'll be a solid defender and at least an average offensive player over his career. I like him over both catchers at this point.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Yeah, really potential is the important thing in this situation. Kottaras and Nieves are what they are. Lucroy is still developing, and is still probably better than both of them at this point. He's at least equally as good, and I'll play potential over the other catchers any day of the week.

[Robideaux]

I think Kottaras, if given the starting job, would put up an OPS of more than 700, which would be the highest by a Brewers starting catcher since Damien Miller. His OPS last season was right around 700 and that was with his BABIP barely above .200, which wasn't in line with his previous benchline. If everything fell into place, I wouldn't be shocked by a .330/.420 slash line. He hit 22 home runs in AAA a few years ago, so he has a little pop and we know he walks a lot. What I don't know is how bad his fielding is and how good his hitting needs to be to offset the fielding.

 

I agree that Lucroy has more "potential," but I don't think it is clear that Lucroy is appreciably better as a hitter at this point. Either way, Nieves should be gone as soon as Lucroy is healthy. But, I'm terrified that Melvin will decide to keep Nieves.

[jhart05]

I hope Lucroy develops as the everyday catcher and improves at the plate. Take a look at these stats.

(Player: PAs, BA / OBP / SLG)
Player 1: 490 PAs, .256 / .318 / .297
Player 2: 297 PAs, .253 / .300 / .329

Guess who these players are.

Answer (highlight to see names)

Player 1: 2010 - Jason Kendall
Player 2: 2010 - Jonathan Lucroy

[DuWayne Steurer]

I hope Lucroy develops as the everyday catcher and improves at the plate. Take a look at these stats.

(Player: PAs, BA / OBP / SLG)

Player 1: 490 PAs, .256 / .318 / .297

Player 2: 297 PAs, .253 / .300 / .329

Guess who these players are.

 

 

 

 

 

Answer (highlight to see names)

 

Player 1: 2010 - Jason Kendall

Player 2: 2010 - Jonathan Lucroy

I'm not sure what comparing Lucroy to a guy who was an .800 OPS catcher in his prime, who's now clearly over the hill and not really fit for everyday play proves.

[brettac1]

I agree that Lucroy definitely has potential, but I think with him missing all of ST, that's not going to help his development a whole lot.

 

Basically, I just am hoping that Kottaras stays. I don't care all that much that "not many are better" than Nieves at blocking balls, according to Schroeder. It's straight up Nichols' Law stuff.

[mtrebs]

I just was informed that my customized PLUSH navy-blue Brewers t-shirt with the number 2 on it was cancelled. Boo.

 

http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/mad.gifhttp://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/mad.gifhttp://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/mad.gif

[hawing]

I just was informed that my customized PLUSH navy-blue Brewers t-shirt with the number 2 on it was cancelled. Boo.

 

http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/mad.gifhttp://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/mad.gifhttp://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/mad.gif

That is a drag, if not a complete surprise. I wonder if the Brewers still have a custom T-shirt place at Miller Park. Last year I had a Lucroy shirt made during a game in the terrace level Fan Zone. I checked this last homestand and the custom counter is no longer in that location, but I didn't visit the field level stores to see if they're there instead.

 

The shirt I got last year would never be mistaken for a "real" shirsey like the one you tried to order, but the name/number font was the same, and it was about $10 cheaper than the mlb.com custom order. Could be worth a try.

 

Your post reminds me that I was going to publicly (well, forum-wide) offer $5.00 to anyone here who gets a Brewers license plate customized with PLUSH, and provides non-photoshopped proof (ideally in-person proof) of same. So there is my offer, because it would be awesome.