The Bring Brandon Boggs to the Majors Thread

[PrinceEatMeat]

I really wish Boggs was on this team right now. He's currently hitting .296 with 2 HR 7 RBI .500 OBP 1.056 OPS and 9 walks at AAA. Also has 2 outfield assists. He'd look a lot better out in RF than Almonte has so far. But instead we kept Almonte and Reed both over him. I really hope Melvin comes to his senses and at least drops Almonte for Boggs at some point. I know Kotsay won't be dropped, but Almonte isn't that wishful of thinking.

[derflotr]

Too late now, should've been on the team straight away out of spring training. Hart will be back and Morgan's bruise will heal. The 5th OF will get little to no playing time once that happens.

[PrinceEatMeat]

I don't care. He'll be better in that role than anyone else also. He's a better option as our right-handed pinch-hitter than Almonte also.

[GormanHarvey]

Boggs is currently 2-3 with a double, RBI, and a walk in game 2 of their doubleheader. That brings his average to .313.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Yep, he just keeps further stating his case, and making Melvin and Roenicke look stupid. Would've looked nice in the lineup today.

[BREWCREW5]

Yep, he just keeps further stating his case, and making Melvin and Roenicke look stupid. Would've looked nice in the lineup today.

Dude, relax.

 

Almonte could be hitting .400 for all we know in AAA. When he becomes the next Nelson Cruz, you can call them stupid.

[TooLiveBrew]

Right, but Boggs can actually defend, unlike Almonte & Kotsay.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Yep, he just keeps further stating his case, and making Melvin and Roenicke look stupid. Would've looked nice in the lineup today.

Dude, relax.

 

Almonte could be hitting .400 for all we know in AAA. When he becomes the next Nelson Cruz, you can call them stupid.

He doesn't need to be Nelson Cruz. He needs to actually be able to play good defense and hit occasionally, which Almonte and Kotsay can't do. Boggs can provide some pop from both sides of the plate, and play good defense. That's what we need off the bench in a backup outfielder. That's the point I'm making. It makes no sense to have guys like Almonte and Kotsay on the roster, who we know can't play the field, and are average hitters at their absolute best. I'd rather give a guy like Boggs a shot. At worst, he can play well in the OF, and probably hit better than the .100 Almonte is hitting. He also would be a pinch-hitting option against right and left-handed pitching, and has some speed unlike Almonte and Kotsay.

[brettac1]

I'm thinking we'll see him in Milwaukee before too long.

[danzig6767]

Yep, he just keeps further stating his case, and making Melvin and Roenicke look stupid. Would've looked nice in the lineup today.

Dude, relax.

 

Almonte could be hitting .400 for all we know in AAA. When he becomes the next Nelson Cruz, you can call them stupid.

He doesn't need to be Nelson Cruz. He needs to actually be able to play good defense and hit occasionally, which Almonte and Kotsay can't do. Boggs can provide some pop from both sides of the plate, and play good defense. That's what we need off the bench in a backup outfielder. That's the point I'm making. It makes no sense to have guys like Almonte and Kotsay on the roster, who we know can't play the field, and are average hitters at their absolute best. I'd rather give a guy like Boggs a shot. At worst, he can play well in the OF, and probably hit better than the .100 Almonte is hitting. He also would be a pinch-hitting option against right and left-handed pitching, and has some speed unlike Almonte and Kotsay.

Ditto

 

It truly is baffling to me as to why Boggs isn't on the team? I'd love someone to ask Melvin to name just one single thing that Almonte is better at than Boggs? On top of the fact that Boggs is a switch hitter as you mentioned and there already have been a few instances where we had to put Kotsay or Counsell in there to pinch hit vs a lefty. The same Kotsay who hit .000 vs lefties in 25 at bats last season.

[Hate those Rodents]

We know Kotsay is here to stay this year and we have Morgan in reserve as well. I do think Almonte goes down when Hart is brought back. At that point, if one of our five OF'ers get hurt, we'd probably give Boggs the shot at that point.

[PrinceEatMeat]

I really see no reason to carry 3 catchers. Boggs would provide a lot more than either of the catchers in my opinion. Nieves provides practically nothing, and Kottaras is about the same except that he can hit occasionally. I just don't see why we would keep both once Hart comes back. Just keep one, and use a player that actually brings something to the table and is more versatile, even if it is just in a pinch-hitting role. Versatility is important for bench players, which is why I have no idea why Almonte and Kotsay are on the team. Neither can field, Kotsay is worthless against lefties, and not much better against righties, and Almonte can't well against either.

[dadofandrew]

Not only will Hart be back soon, you can tell nothing about Boggs or Almonte by their 2011 numbers, as both have tiny samples.

 

Kotsay and Morgan will all but certainly be the reserve OF's when Corey comes back. I like Boggs for what he is, but I'm not going to pretend the 5th OF matters enough for me to worry about if he is in N-ville or getting a few PA's in MIL.

[PrinceEatMeat]

It does matter when a left-handed pitcher is in late in the game, and you need a right-handed batter to hit in a key situation. Right now, that would be Erick Almonte, or later on possibly Carlos Gomez. I would rather have that person be Brandon Boggs personally. That way we can use Gomez in other situation like pinch-running or as a defensive replacement. I really don't want Almonte and Gomez taking key at-bats. I really think that Boggs would be better than them, but we'd have to see I guess. I just like his versatility as a switch-hitter, and the fact that he can actually play well in the outfield and run pretty well. I just think he serves more of a purpose than Almonte does.

[danzig6767]

Not only will Hart be back soon, you can tell nothing about Boggs or Almonte by their 2011 numbers, as both have tiny samples.

 

Kotsay and Morgan will all but certainly be the reserve OF's when Corey comes back. I like Boggs for what he is, but I'm not going to pretend the 5th OF matters enough for me to worry about if he is in N-ville or getting a few PA's in MIL.

These games all matter before Hart gets back. Once he gets back, guys like Almonte, Kotsay, or Boggs if he was up will be asked fairly often to pinch hit late in close games. Even when Hart gets back, he could be forced to miss 3-5 game stretches because of any number of ailments. Boggs is a switch hitter and our bench is mostly lefthanded batters.

 

Point being is that yea the 24th and 25th guys on the roster will generally have limited impact on team, but they can factor into a few games. The Brewers could end up winning or losing a playoff berth by a single game or two. So the Brewers or any team that could potentially be in a very close race for a playoff berth would obviously be best served by having the best bench possible, regardless of the fact that the everyday players are vastly more important.

 

If Doug could say what exactly that Almonte brings to the table compared to Boggs, i'd love to hear it. Almonte is worse defensively. Nothing in his minor league stats suggest that he's a better hitter than Boggs. He can't switch hit. So why is he on the team instead of Boggs? Meaningless exhibition games stats? I'd be curious to know because there has to be a reason given Doug didn't just pull Almonte's name out of a hat because he feels the last few roster spots are as utterly meaningless as you do?

[TooLiveBrew]

It does matter when a left-handed pitcher is in late in the game, and

you need a right-handed batter to hit in a key situation. Right now,

that would be Erick Almonte, or later on possibly Carlos Gomez.

Don't worry, Gomez won't be an option -- he'll be already in the starting lineup, batting second!

 

 

Point being is that yea the 24th and 25th guys on the roster will

generally have limited impact on team, but they can factor into a few

games.

 

This is very well-stated, danzig. The dismissal of very valid complaints about the roster and/or lineups as being of small importance ignores the fact that these very simple moves would improve the MLB squad immediately. Why worry about making those smaller moves? Because this team really doesn't have much margin for error. Hart's missing a month+, Greinke's missing a month+... you just can't say that these things won't matter only because the month missed is at the front end of the season. The Brewers are 2 games behind the Reds, which could very well wind up being the margin which wins the NL Central.

 

I can see the dismissive counter-argument now -- 'Worrying about that kind of deficit is silly!' But it's not that any one of the small-ish concerns (Betancourt, Gomez, Kotsay/Almonte/Boggs, etc.) will singlehandedly derail the season, it's that making clearly less-than-optimal decisions isn't wise when your margin for error is so small.

[logan82]

But it's not that any one of

the small-ish concerns (Betancourt, Gomez, Kotsay/Almonte/Boggs, etc.)

will singlehandedly derail the season, it's that making clearly

less-than-optimal decisions isn't wise when your margin for error is so

small.

Yeah that's the issue. There are several easily fixable "we're just fine" things going on right now.

 

Think back to one of the first games where Kotsay made that diving catch and the umpires thought he trapped the ball. Morgan or Boggs probably make that catch easy and it's an out. Trip R has pretty consistently made bad lineup decisions and Melvin has given him lots sharp objects to play with.

 

I really don't see Gomez as much of a problem, yet. When Hart comes back and Morgan's healthy if he's still #2 in the lineup and playing against RHP, then we have big issues.

[Hammer]

This has been my thought for about 4-5 games already as Almonte is just horrible (that's why he starts so often). As Danzig said...game 15 matters just as much as game 162. We need the best product out there right now as well as in the end of the season. Almonte out, Boggs up, cut a catcher when Hart comes back = better top 25

[Invader3K]

Yeah, the Brewers really can't keep dinking around with these sub-standard roster decisions if they want to stay in the race. Guys like Almonte, Kotsay, and Nieves have no business regularly showing up in the lineup of a team trying to reach the post-season.

[CheezWizHed]

I'm in agreement about Almonte, Kotsay and Nieves on the MLB roster, but I'm not positive that Boggs is really the answer. The roles could easily be reversed with Boggs hitting .100 in the MLB and Almonte over .300 at AAA. He is probably an improvement, but I doubt he is the answer...

[endaround]

Reed should never have been on the team. But does having Boggs on the team really matter if Kotsay still gets 2/3rds of the starts? Morgan is a better player than Boggs and he can't get past the Kotsay juggernaught. Yes playing Almonte in RF is insane but it was insane from the beginning and yet it happened.

[joepepsi]

I guess I totally missed the real purpose of Almonte. I thought the point of him being on the 25 man was because he could play some infield. So he'd be the 6th IF/6OF on the team. So far he's only being used as the RH RF'er, not as an IF'er. Since Ron doesn't consider him viable in the IF, Counsell can seldom start at ss because he's the only backup IF'er in case of injury to a starter.

 

If Almonte isn't going to play the IF, then when Hart comes back both he and Nieves should be shipped out and a 6IF brought up. Where's Iribarren or Heether when you need them?

[JohnBriggs12]

I guess I totally missed the real purpose of Almonte. I thought the point of him being on the 25 man was because he could play some infield. So he'd be the 6th IF/6OF on the team. So far he's only being used as the RH RF'er, not as an IF'er. Since Ron doesn't consider him viable in the IF, Counsell can seldom start at ss because he's the only backup IF'er in case of injury to a starter.

 

If Almonte isn't going to play the IF, then when Hart comes back both he and Nieves should be shipped out and a 6IF brought up. Where's Iribarren or Heether when you need them?

His role to date has been the result of Hart being out. In hindsight, Boggs would have been more useful in Hart's absence. But once Hart returns, it's hard to see what situation that Boggs would be used unless Morgan stays on the shelf too. I'm also a little confused by your reference to the ability to use Counsell more as if that would have made a difference? He's 1 for 14. Almonte is 2 for 20. It's too early to judge either player based on so few AB's, but neither have contributed on offense yet. Both have made contact and figure to get some hits. It's not like Almonte starting a game in RF precludes him moving to the IF if needed.

[PKBadger]

I think people are understating the value of the 5th OF a bit. It's not like this person is going to sit on the bench all of the time.

 

Look at the 2009 Brewers - Frank Catalanotto appeared in nearly half the team's games and made 162 plate appearances. Boggs would absolutely get opportunities to hit even after Hart returns.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Yeah, I think that all 25 players on a team are important. Especially on a contending team. Like was just said, even the 5th outfielder can still be a big contributor off the bench as a pinch-hitter. All I want to see is Boggs be given a chance if Almonte continues to struggle. I don't see any reason to leave him on the roster if he can't hit or field. He will be given more time obviously, but I don't think he will end up cutting it off the bench.