Brewer All Disappointment Team

[reillymcshane]

Welcome to the Brewer all disappointment team. The team consists of players who spent most, if not all of their career in the minors. Each was, at one time, considered a top prospect. I've tried to stick to guys who actually earned the 'top prospect' tag - and not just a high draft pick. But I do have some of the latter, just to fill out the team. I've limited it to the last 20-25 years. I'm sure I've missed quite a few guys, so add them if you want.

 

Here you go - with commentary:

 

C - Angel Salome - Some gaudy averages (.415 at Helena, .360 at Huntsville) couldn't overcome personal issues. 3 ABs for Milwaukee in 2008 was the high point. Just released by Seattle. Still only 25, so you never know.

 

C - Lou Palmisano - .391 rookie ball BA was the high point. The Captain topped out at AA.

 

1B - Billy Joe Robidoux - 468 ABs, 5 HR and a .209 BA in the majors. Sad results from a guy with a .300+ average in the minors. Billy Joe feasted in batter friendly parks (El Paso, Denver). Was never a power guy, but we always thought he'd hit.

 

1B - Joey Meyer - Dude hit 29 HR in less than 300 ABs at Denver in 1987. Power galore, but it didn't make him a major league hitter. In 474 ABs in the bigs he ended up with a .716 OPS. He never really got the chance after that.

 

1B - Brad Nelson - Just never quite got there. Perhaps he never got the chance. At 29, he's probably done. Maybe a cup of coffee or two is in the cards, but so far, he's topped out at 28 big league at bats (with only 2 hits).

 

2B - Hernan Iribarren - the Hurricane had an eye popping .439 BA in rookie ball. But that was the highlight. He hit for a decent average, but with no pop, he was nothing more than a middling prospect. His inability to play shortstop probably kept him from being a serviceable big league utility guy. He's 27, so he might manage to get back to the show. He did get 27 scattered big league at bats with Milwaukee.

 

SS - Danny Klassen - hit .331 at AA in 1997 before being lost to Arizona in the expansion draft. He only hit .226 over 261 major league at bats, never being more than a utility guy.

 

3B - Antone Williamson - the 4th pick overall in the 1994 draft (thanks, Sal!). Williamson was out of baseball by age 26. He did manage 54 ABs in the big league, but he never hit for power or average. Plus he was stiff in the field. He always showed good plate discipline, but that was about it.

 

CF - Dave Krynzel - 48 major league at bats. Never quite figured out how to hit.

 

OF - Ken Felder - I hesitate to include him, because he was never really very good. But the former #1 was consistently bad throughout his minor league career. It ended at at age 25, topping out at AAA. The power never really developed as Felder never had very good plate discipline. A .243 BA and a .732 OPS is not what you expect from a #1 pick.

 

OF - Chad Green - another former #1. Green had one skill - speed. Too bad he couldn't hit for average or power or take a walk. Like Felder, he never really was considered that good at any point of his minor league career.

 

P - Mark Rogers - still has time. Injuries have been brutal. Has shown flashes of greatness. Let's hope.

 

P - Jose Capellan - so much for the 100 mph fastball. Never really developed into anything more than an erratic bullpen guy.

 

P - Mike Jones - showed flashes of brilliance, but injuries ended it all. Everyone wanted so bad for Jones to make it. A shame he never got to the bigs - even for a day.

 

P - Manny Parra - Still has time, but has never really put it all together. Injuries have been a big factor.

 

P - Ben Hendrickson - Big Ben's curveball just wasn't consistent enough to make it in the bigs. His lifetime record is 1-10 with a 7.41 ERA. And we all miss his dad flaming anyone who questioned Ben's ability.

 

P - Will Inman - still time for Will, but scouts called this one. He just never quite had the velocity that was needed at the higher levels. Injuries have hurt him too. Still only 25, so you never know.

 

P - Nick Neugebauer - Classic 'what if' case. Neugie got hurt and his career was done at 24. Showed amazing strikeout ability in the minors. Started 14 games for Milwaukee in 2001-02. Could have been special.

 

P - Kyle Peterson - another pitcher with a career that ended on the DL. Peterson was in the Brewer rotation at age 23, then out of baseball at 25.

 

Please add others. I thought it was fun looking back at some of these guys.

[CheezWizHed]

Its too early to include Parra and Rogers here.

 

Inman wasn't a disappointment to me because he was the key part of a trade that eventually brought a 1st and a supplemental pick in return. What he did after he left us is no concern to me.

 

P: JM Gold, Tom Wilhelmsen, Dennis Sarfate, Dana Eveland, Evan Fredrickson, Eric Arnett

- granted Sarfate and Eveland were lower picks that raised our hopes at lower levels and couldn't sustain at upper, so that might be a little unfair...

2B: Jemile Weeks (for not signing)

The entire 2006 draft.

GM: Sal Bando.

[narwhalattack]

Can someone provide me a brief scouting report for JM Gold and Kyle Peterson from back in their glory days? I just want to see how good they were before making an all-disappointment rotation.

[jerichoholicninja]

Not to nit-pick but Capellan really doesn't belong on that list since he was traded for as a big leaguer and spent only about a year plus in the minors here.

 

Maybe Luis Martinez.

 

Doesn't quite fit the criteria but LaPorta is in the running for that list.

[brettac1]

The entire 1990's, pretty much.

[OglivieHomePerm]

Thank you for bringing up Luis Martinez. I remember being SOOO pumped when he made his major league debut with the Brewers after a great season in the minors. Ah the memories.

 

I also remember riding the Jose Mieses bandwagon at one point. I may have even been driving for a short time.

[brettac1]

I think so many of us jumped on those bandwagons thanks to the bad MLB team and Jim Powell's Down On The Farm updates during the radio broadcasts, along with the Link Report (of course). I know that's why I did.

[TooLiveBrew]

The entire 1990's, pretty much.

Yeah, this comment & this thread are just painful. It's so good to know those days are long gone.

[jjkoestler]

I know he didn't spend his career in the minors, but Gary Sheffield definitely deserves a spot somewhere on the list.

[homer]

Thank you for bringing up Luis Martinez. I remember being SOOO pumped when he made his major league debut with the Brewers after a great season in the minors. Ah the memories.

 

I also remember riding the Jose Mieses bandwagon at one point. I may have even been driving for a short time.

 

 

Didn't he have like 25 innings in a row without an earned run?

[sheetskout]

For the talent and how his career went Juan Nieves may deserve a spot on this list. So much promise.

 

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/n/nieveju01.shtml

[RockCoCougars]

I have some from further back in the day... these are based on their Brewer careers.

 

C: Tim McIntosh: Bloated numbers in MILB hitters parks. Did nothing in the majors.

1B: Joey Meyer: I watched him win a triple crown in Beloit. I watched him get the golden sombrero in Milwaukee, on his way to Japan.

2B: Ronnie Belliard: They traded Vina to make room for this guy? Actually churned out an OK career but nowhere near the hype.

SS: Gary Sheffield: Self explanatory. Not a very good player in Milwaukee, and an immature baby to boot.

3B: Rob Ellis: Before my time, but I believe the only Brewer to go from the draft to the MLB roster with the associated hype.

OF: Dan Thomas: Won a triple crown in the minors. Flaked out in the majors, later hung himself in jail.

OF: Dion James: The reason that Robin Yount originally moved to left instead of center. Had one decent season, brutal thereafter in Milwaukee, though he re-emerged later with the Yankees.

OF: Glenn Braggs: Perhaps the top prospect in minor league baseball when he got the call mid season '86. Was being compared to guys like Jim Rice at the time, but was pretty much a constant disappointment.

 

Pitchers: Juan Nieves (injuries), Ramser Correa (look him up, if you're not familiar), Nick Neugebauer (injuries), Angel Miranda (the 'next Higuera'...), with a litany of busted first round draft picks to fill out the bullpen.

[reillymcshane]

I have some from further back in the day... these are based on their Brewer careers.

 

C: Tim McIntosh: Bloated numbers in MILB hitters parks. Did nothing in the majors.

1B: Joey Meyer: I watched him win a triple crown in Beloit. I watched him get the golden sombrero in Milwaukee, on his way to Japan.

2B: Ronnie Belliard: They traded Vina to make room for this guy? Actually churned out an OK career but nowhere near the hype.

SS: Gary Sheffield: Self explanatory. Not a very good player in Milwaukee, and an immature baby to boot.

3B: Rob Ellis: Before my time, but I believe the only Brewer to go from the draft to the MLB roster with the associated hype.

OF: Dan Thomas: Won a triple crown in the minors. Flaked out in the majors, later hung himself in jail.

OF: Dion James: The reason that Robin Yount originally moved to left instead of center. Had one decent season, brutal thereafter in Milwaukee, though he re-emerged later with the Yankees.

OF: Glenn Braggs: Perhaps the top prospect in minor league baseball when he got the call mid season '86. Was being compared to guys like Jim Rice at the time, but was pretty much a constant disappointment.

 

Pitchers: Juan Nieves (injuries), Ramser Correa (look him up, if you're not familiar), Nick Neugebauer (injuries), Angel Miranda (the 'next Higuera'...), with a litany of busted first round draft picks to fill out the bullpen.

 

I considered some of these guys. Braggs, James and Belliard spent a lot of time in the majors, so while their careers were disappointing, it's not like they didn't do anything.

 

Sheffield a lot of people want to add, but we gave up on the guy way young (and he gave up on us).

 

I'd forgotten about Angel Miranda. That was a good one.

[CheezWizHed]

OF: Glenn Braggs: Perhaps the top prospect in minor league baseball when he got the call mid season '86. Was being compared to guys like Jim Rice at the time, but was pretty much a constant disappointment.

 

Can't believe I forgot this one... And I had his rookie card signed too (actually my only card I've ever had signed). Of course, he was really nice about signing stuff when Gantner and Bosio blew me off...

[Mass Haas]

To help jog your memory -- every player ever to appear on a Brewerfan Power 50

 

http://www.brewerfan.net/ViewPower50PlayerTrackerList.do

 

You can click on any name to see their P50 history. I definitely had personal favorites over the years that I was rooting particularly hard for, but wouldn't single anybody not already mentioned above as a true disappointment. Josh Murray never even really teased us...

[RockCoCougars]

I considered some of these guys. Braggs, James and Belliard spent a lot of time in the majors, so while their careers were disappointing, it's not like they didn't do anything.

 

True. But I tried to base things on hype/disappointment ratio. In doing so, I wasn't really fair to Tim McIntosh, as he wasn't really hyped too much with Surhoff in the fold. I'm going to go with Darrell Porter at catcher. He did make an all star team, but was largely a disappointment who developed drug/alcohol issues in Milwaukee. From what I've read, he was going to be the next Johnny Bench, an all-world H.S. athlete coming out of high school in Oklahoma. As a matter of fact, around the time of his debut, I've read that the Orioles offered a trade package including Dave McNally (who had several 20 win seasons at that time). The Brewers said no, kept Porter, he developed said personal problems and eventually was given to Kansas City where he finally developed into a good player.

[colbyjack]

The original Brewerfan.com, ahem, Brewerfan.net t-shirt is based off of this premise, although a few years way too early. I still have a few somewhere begging to be claimed.

 

Jim Tatum, George Canale and Mike Birkbeck are three notable omissions from the players mentioned so far. And as much as Salome and Palmisano are mentioned, Jason Belcher should have been all that first.

[hawing]

Does it count for any All-Disappointment Team street cred if I own a game-worn Hernan Iribarren jersey? Because I do.

I also have a Jason Belcher broken bat, won in Brewerfan's very first IGT haiku contest in 2005.

[DHonks]

Kade Johnson, Cristian Guerrero (wasn't he supposed to have like 300 homers in MLB by now?), Bill Scott, Cody Adams, etc

[CheezWizHed]

Cristian Guerrero

 

Oh wow, I think I repressed that one... wasn't he Vlad G that can play CF?

[3and2Fastball]

Brad Nelson is still hanging in there. He hit 24 HR's and put up a .861 OPS in AAA last year in the Rangers organization. Yes I know he'll be 29 this season

[HiAndTight]

OF: Glenn Braggs: Perhaps the top prospect in minor league baseball when he got the call mid season '86. Was being compared to guys like Jim Rice at the time, but was pretty much a constant disappointment.

 

Can't believe I forgot this one... And I had his rookie card signed too (actually my only card I've ever had signed). Of course, he was really nice about signing stuff when Gantner and Bosio blew me off...

 

 

No surprise. Anyone who knows Gantner knows that's just the type fo guy he is. We always hope that the players we root for, ESPECIALLY a player like Gantner who played his whole career with one organization and was part of one of the best trio's of all time....but Gantner is one of the slimiest guy I know.

[recte44]

Mark Ciardi?

[MNBrew]

Good thread!

 

Guys like Chris Saenz & Sid Roberson deserve to be on a list kinda like this, but maybe just not this one -- maybe guys who actually kinda had it going (didn't actually disappoint by their play) but injuries basically ended anything good.

 

Along the way were plenty of "you've got to be kidding that the Brewers will give this guy a job" types -- another potential separate list -- like Kiki Diaz, Juan Castillo, Willie Lozado & Jack Lazorko, Ron Rightnowar, Brian Givens, Carlos Ponce (I don't care what they thought his potential was, I was always convinced he'd always be lousy), & George Canale . . . gotta be plenty of others out there like these guys!

 

In all fairness, Dion James was showing plenty of promise 'til he badly separated his shoulder diving for a ball in CF. Can't remember the opponent or the year, but I remember watching the game. He finally did put it all back together (well enough, anyway), but not 'til after the Brewers finally gave up on him.

 

Putting 2 & 2 together to make 4, as someone basically said on p. 1 of the thread, Sheffield flat-out gave up on the Brewers long before his constant selfish & self-glorifying immaturity forced the Brewers to finally get what they could for him. At the time, it actually seemed like a decent trade, esp. given that there was no way they could justify keeping him when he even started trashing Bud Selig to the media -- the only guy who absolutely stood behind him no matter what. Knowing what we tend to know these days, on average, about most prospects, likely would've changed what we got in return OR how we viewed the return we did get (Valentin = good power but an error machine (51 errors the year before the trade, I believe); Mieske = 2x straight MVP of his league in the minors; Bones = MLB-caliber pitcher, albeit one whose ceiling was really that of a #4 starter). (Side note: Sheffield's condemnations of Harry Dalton did indeed starting bringing to light a few flaws in the way the once-beloved GM had gone downhill in how he ran the team. Remember the whole mess about guys like Etchebarren & Haney basically being Dalton's "eyes & ears" in the clubhouse, and players not feeling like they could actually speak freely because they never knew "who" was actually listening, not unlike the reputation of the Communist governments at the time? Very scary!)

[SoCal Brew Crew Fan]

I've never seen a guy punish a ball like Glenn Braggs in BP...including Prince. Guy didn't have an inch of fat on him. He seemed like the perfect five tool player. At the time I thought for sure his bust would be in Cooperstown next to Yount, Molitor and Cecil Cooper.

 

Didn't Joey Meyer hit 1000 homers at El Paso? I remember getting his autograph at a baseball card show. The line was out the door...at the same show there was no line for Bob Feller...he couldn't believe the line for Joey, but I got to talk to him for 10 minutes. Joey Meyer...unreal.