Brewers 40-man roster

[brewmann04]

that the only reason for Green to be sent down that he get ab instead of rotting on the bench.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Not saying it won't work out for him eventually like it could for Gamel. I just feel bad for him getting put into that situation when he clearly has the talent to be with the big club. Just like Gamel did. That's not to say that he isn't better for him to be in AAA, just that he basically played well enough to win a job, but still won't get it. With Ramirez around, he likely won't get his shot to play everyday for a few years. Not sure he'll be kept around that long. May not have that same luxury like they did with Gamel. Might need to use him in a trade.

[RightFieldCoder]

I can't wait until we start Izzy in a postseason game. Let's trade Green for 1 or 2 years of an aging vet. I'm so glad we decided to take the Mets route to greatness.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Wouldn't surprise me to see Green on the bench again if we make the postseason. He'll be up for all of September.

[monty57]

Not saying it won't work out for him eventually like it could for Gamel. I just feel bad for him getting put into that situation when he clearly has the talent to be with the big club. Just like Gamel did. That's not to say that he isn't better for him to be in AAA, just that he basically played well enough to win a job, but still won't get it. With Ramirez around, he likely won't get his shot to play everyday for a few years. Not sure he'll be kept around that long. May not have that same luxury like they did with Gamel. Might need to use him in a trade.

 

I'm pretty much on the same wavelength with you throughout this thread, but I don't see Green being traded. I think it's a good move to send Green to AAA to play every day now, as I'd bet he will get plenty of playing time this season when Weeks and/or Ramirez have a month-long injury. I just hope we use him as a full-time starter, and Roenicke doesn't decide to go with the vet (Izturis) and let Green sit on the bench.

 

Ramirez is already getting old and I'd guess that before the end of his contract, Green will be a better option than Ramirez. Ramirez will be virtually untradeable, so it will be interesting to see if we play him to try to justify the contract, or let the sixteen-million-dollar-man sit on the bench while the league minimum guy plays. Either way, we'll need Green on the roster over the next few seasons.

[RockCoCougars]

I'm not as sold on Green as many here are... but at the same time, I think that it's foolish to send him to Nashville where he has nothing left to prove. Unless they are going to play him at shortstop down there (obviously not possible/happening), I fail to see the point.

[PrinceEatMeat]

I hope he's not traded, I'm just saying I could see it happening. I hope it doesn't. I know there's the camp that says he has nothing left to prove in AAA, but that's not really the point. The point is that the Brewers think he should be getting every day AB's. They have seen how Gamel struggled in a bench role, and they don't wanna put Green in the same situation.

[3and2Fastball]

Dillard claims the last bullpen spot

 

https://twitter.com/#!/Haudricourt/status/185777490671845377

[TooLiveBrew]

I'm not as sold on Green as many here are... but at the same time, I think that it's foolish to send him to Nashville where he has nothing left to prove. Unless they are going to play him at shortstop down there (obviously not possible/happening), I fail to see the point.

Yeah, this sums it up for me too. I like Green, and at the same time think his potential is vastly overrated by some Brewers fans. But the guy needs to be challenged with MLB pitching, not stuck behind Brooks freaking Conrad. Although he's also stuck behind Aoki in a way, since to get a decent number of PAs, Green would probably have to be the #1 PH option off the bench in addition to spelling Weeks & Ramirez.

[LouisEly]

"Not saying it won't work out for him eventually like it could for Gamel"

 

What's going to change between next year and this year? Ramirez, Weeks, and Gamel will still be under contract. Unless Gamel falls on his face and is let go, Green will be on the bench next year too.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Just saw on twitter that Amaury Rivas was outrighted to AAA. 40-man stands at 36. Makes me think that Ishikawa will make the roster if Hart's not ready. 1 spot for Rogers, 1 for Izturis. The other 2 are likely for Conrad and Ishikawa.

[TooLiveBrew]

So Kotsay v.2012 is going to be Conrakawa. Good god someone keep these dangerous objects away from our manager; he can't help himself.

[djoctagone]

amaury rivas has been outrighted off the 40-man roster. currently at 36, pending the addition of cesar izturis.

[RockCoCougars]

I'm not as sold on Green as many here are... but at the same time, I think that it's foolish to send him to Nashville where he has nothing left to prove. Unless they are going to play him at shortstop down there (obviously not possible/happening), I fail to see the point.

Yeah, this sums it up for me too. I like Green, and at the same time think his potential is vastly overrated by some Brewers fans. But the guy needs to be challenged with MLB pitching, not stuck behind Brooks freaking Conrad. Although he's also stuck behind Aoki in a way, since to get a decent number of PAs, Green would probably have to be the #1 PH option off the bench in addition to spelling Weeks & Ramirez.

 

Right. Green is not some raw 20 year-old phenom who projects to be a starter in the near term. He is blocked by Ramirez and to a lesser extent, Weeks. He's also 25 years old, and I see no point in a remedial course of AAA. I'd rather see what they have in him than a 'guy' like Conrad, the likes of whom could be snatched off waivers at pretty much any time. For all we know, they have the next Kevin Seitzer and have buried him.

[monty57]

"Not saying it won't work out for him eventually like it could for Gamel"

 

What's going to change between next year and this year? Ramirez, Weeks, and Gamel will still be under contract. Unless Gamel falls on his face and is let go, Green will be on the bench next year too.

 

True, but Aramis will turn 34 in June, 35 next June, 36 in the final June of his contract. He wasn't a good defensive 3B in his younger years. Next year, a 26-year-old Taylor Green could be a better option than a 35-year-old Ramirez. In the "post steroid era," not many players stay good into their mid-to-late 30's. Ramirez will play because of his contract, but I expect significant decline before the contract's over.

[JohnBriggs12]

I'm afraid Green's future in the Brewer organization rests almost entirely on Gamel's fortunes. Once they signed Ramirez, it pretty much relegated Green to more AAA action even though he has nothing to gain being there. That Green actually had a better year than Gamel last season matters less than the fact that Green has options and Gamel doesn't.

 

I didn't like the Ramirez signing when it happened and I still don't. A huge part of that is the money and the age of Ramirez, but part of that is that Green deserved a shot. I know they are thinking they can't afford to have to rely on rookies at both corner infield spots, but these are guys in the mid twenties with plenty of AAA experience. Besides they could have kept McGehee as a fall back.

 

To summarize, they've decided to go with a bench of an untested Aoki, the erratic offensively challenged Gomez, a light hitting defensive SS in Izturis, and either a contact challenged career minor leaguer in Conrad, or a power challenged 2nd middle infielder in Maysonet who's also a career minor leaguer.

 

The Cubs with Reed Johnson, Jeff Baker, Alfredo Amezega, and Blake Dewitt, have a considerably better bench than what the Brewers have.

[TooLiveBrew]

What matters is that Gamel actually projects to be an above-average hitter at the big-league level, while Green does not. Gamel has little or nothing to do with Green, Green will never hit enough to be a viable option at 1B. The Brewers asking Green to try out 1B this ST has to do with turning him into what he'll need to be to have a long MLB career, a super-utility LHB IF.

 

And I agree on the Ramirez signing, the further out we get from that, the worse it looks.

[JohnBriggs12]

What matters is that Gamel actually projects to be an above-average hitter at the big-league level, while Green does not. Gamel has little or nothing to do with Green, Green will never hit enough to be a viable option at 1B. The Brewers asking Green to try out 1B this ST has to do with turning him into what he'll need to be to have a long MLB career, a super-utility LHB IF.

 

And I agree on the Ramirez signing, the further out we get from that, the worse it looks.

 

No it does matter that there is no place for Green. Green did outproduce Gamel offensively last season. You can look at it that Green may not project to hit enough to play 1B in the majors, but that's irrelevant. If Gamel fails you have the option of moving a poor defensive 3B near the end of his career in Ramirez over to 1B and putting Green at 3B. But offensively it's the same. That's the only scenario for Green to ever win a regular job with the Brewers.

 

The fact is Green's numbers last year: (.336/.413/.513) are pretty darn impressive. AAA numbers don't always translate but I'd rather have that guy on my bench than the non-descript group they have.

[TooLiveBrew]

There's a place for Green, but like you alluded to it's currently being wasted on Brooks Conrad.

 

And I thought your point in your last post was about Green being blocked by Gamel, I see now in the edit that it was about the bench really, and where Green stands in the domino effect scenario of Gamel flopping, Ramirez being hurt or needing to move to 1B.

[MJLiverock]

I agree with TLB, what does Conrad add that Green doesn't provide? I typically don't look at spring training box scores much but did Conrad light the world on fire or something? I've read about Lucroy's torrid spring but Conrad?

[PrinceEatMeat]

I agree with TLB, what does Conrad add that Green doesn't provide? I typically don't look at spring training box scores much but did Conrad light the world on fire or something? I've read about Lucroy's torrid spring but Conrad?

 

Honestly the only reason seems to be that Conrad has hit left-handed pitching well in his career, and is a switch-hitter. Green has outperformed him this spring by a longshot.

[TooLiveBrew]

Conrad continually filled up the "gritty battler" line in the boxscore that is Ron Roenicke's heart.

[PrinceEatMeat]

Conrad continually filled up the "gritty battler" line in the boxscore that is Ron Roenicke's heart.

 

Yep, I have a feeling we'll be hearing a lot of complaints about Conrad and Izturis within the first few weeks of the season. Followed by continuous calls for Green and Maysonet. On the bright side, Aoki should be a welcome upgrade over Kotsay.

[MNBrew]

I've become an ardent Taylor Green fan over the past year and I don't like this in the least. There are a million reasons not to like the Opening Day bench. Thankfully, we've endured that often in recent years and we know it won't be permanent if it proves to be as bad as we fear. To wit...

 

Last year the bench had Almonte & Jeremy Reed & (shudder) Wil Nieves. None of them lasted much into June if even that. A couple years before, it was Duffy & Nelson. Taylor Green wasn't even on the 40-man but tore up AAA so well that he was up before Sept. 1 & on the postseason roster.

 

Just because Green's down at AAA now doesn't mean he'll stay there -- not that we can know for sure exactly what might happen that will bring him up. Last year he flat-out forced Melvin's hand. I'd think there's a good chance that one or more of these things could occur that would get Green back to MIL in a heartbeat:

 

- Gamel hurt or beyond terrible

- Ramirez on the DL (as he did notably last year)

- Conrad proving that he can't hit, can't play good defense, or a combination of both (he's already done so to our satisfaction, but RR &/or DM apparently have to witness it in person for prolonged periods, I guess)

- (ditto for Izturis, although the lack of SS experience wouldn't bode as well for TG in this event)

- Weeks on the DL (track record of major injuries)

- Gonzalez on the DL and Green raking so well at AAA that Izturis plays SS & Maysonet still never sees Miller Park

[PrinceEatMeat]

I honestly don't see him being called up to take a bench role. If they wanted him off the bench, he'd start the season there. The only way I see him getting called up is if Weeks,Ramirez, or maybe Gamel(Ishikawa might get the call there) gets hurt, in which case he'd get a lot of playing time. Other than that, I doubt it happens. If Izturis sucks, it'll be Maysonet getting the call. I don't see Gamel sucking. If Gonzales gets hurt, Maysonet will be called up also. If Conrad sucks, it'd be an interesting decision, but my gut tells me that either Ishikawa would get the call, or possibly Maysonet. Green being in AAA means the Brewers are dedicated to getting him consistent at-bats.