Brewers sign Mike Gonzalez

[JohnBriggs12]

I have to laugh at the guys saying DM is doing nothing and now adds another bullpen arm

 

I think a lot of fans get caught up in the national talk and perception of the Brewers needs. Everyone nationally was aware that the Brewers dealt away Greinke, and that Marcum was gone too so the assumption was that their number one need was starting pitching.

 

But those guys pay scant attention to the years Estrada and Fiers had, how well Rogers and Peralta looked late in the year and the fact that Narveson is healthy now. They also don't see Thornburg, Burgos, Jungmann, Nelson, and others on the near horizon. We all know, or should remember, just how god-awful the bullpen was for 4 1/2 months of the season. The national media glosses over that. Some poster on MLBtraderumors was surprised to read the Brewers had a worse bullpen than the Mets. Obviously we knew, but apparently nobody else did. So Melvin improved the club almost immediately by subtracting many of those responsible: Loe, K-Rod, Parra, and Veras. The guys he's added aren't huge names, but together it's a solid group.

 

The price for starting pitching is so out of whack that it behooves the Brewers to see what they have in these guys before they overpay to replace them. If 2 or 3 of them pan out, they save a ton in the long run plus with this offense, they should be able to be competitive enough early that if there is a glaring need to add a vet arm for the stretch, they have the ability to do that.

[DHonks]

I love this signing. It reminds me of the Hawkins signing. A very good pitcher--maybe we got him 2-3 years too late--but still very good