Positive Feelings?

[rickh150]

I know that I'm supposed to have a positive, upbeat feeling about the year. We were waaaay better than planned. The team finished ten games above .500. We had many players take another step (Nelson, Anderson, Knebel, Shaw, Santana), go to another level in their development. Plus, these are players we have control of for a few more seasons. Late season add ons did well, from our ol favorite Jeffress to Swarzak, Walker, and Voight. The underdog team was fun to watch nightly, playing in close games while enjoying each other's presence with demonstrative cheering celebrations. Much fun. I went to ten games, and win or lose had fun with family and friends. Love Brewers baseball and all that. Yet, I have very little positive feeling for this season. The negatives way outweigh the positives. They probably shouldn't, but they do.

 

I have no desire to watch the playoffs. I don't want to see the games, not even seeing the Cubs lose. It just stinks. We should have been in the playoffs. We were up 5 and a half games at the break. Did any other team give up that big of a lead this season? We gave away too many games, giving up more leads than anyone in baseball. We couldn't score late. We could barely make contact or foul balls off in innings 7 thru 9. How many 1,2, 3 innings did we have in innings 7 thru 9?

 

For as great as the offense was in the first half of the year, it was that awful in the 2nd half. Everyone in baseball scored more than us after the All Star break. And that is with our best minor leaguers up and Neil Walker playing.

 

We have our best player in Braun talking about how much he hates Spring Training, how it is too long, how the best at bat is a double play lineout. It makes me question and wonder about the patience and commitment of the team when tight games get long and a walk is as good as a hit, when we are trying to hit the ball out the park when a grounder to short gets the run home. Are they bored? Want the individual chest bump moment? Simply want to get home?

 

I don't even want to get into the strikeouts, but back to back years setting the K total in the entire history of baseball? Spanning over 100 years? The math is too boggling for me. It doesn't take a great mathematician to see that we strike out too much and that big swing and miss teams have a tough time making contact against good pitching, especially late in season (and playoffs).

 

And while I am venting, the team keeps trying to make itself look good with attendance. Now, I have been to games for many years, and usually get to around a dozen a year. No year has the attendance numbers been more inflated. None. I'm sitting at a game with maybe 20 to 21 thousand fans, and the reported attendance is 30,000. I can't believe it. Unless they are counting free tickets some how dropped by a plane on the city of Milwaukee, I have no idea how they can arrive at such a total. There isn't enough no shows to make it work, not with low amounts of season ticket holders. If you are thinking no shows for BP dates, that might account for an extra thousand or 2. No, there is some very questionable accounting at work here. No way 2.5 million fans came here this year. None. No way 2 million fans walked in the park this year. The numbers were that inflated nightly.

 

Now, this attendance thing really wouldn't make me upset on its own. Put that with the selling out of our best fans and season ticket holders to get the almighty $ from division rival and main blockage of the Brewers to the playoffs, the hated Cubs fans, and the blood pressure rises. I kick myself as well for not making more games, especially against the Cubs this season. I laugh when I read the Brewers thank you letter.....

"When we are playing well, you are there to share in the excitement. When we need support, you are there to pick us up. When our backs are against the wall and everything is on the line, you rally behind us and remind us that no matter what happens -- whether we achieve our ultimate goal or whether we suffer heartbreak -- we are in this thing together."

 

This is a load of crap. We didn't come in droves like we did in 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2011, selling out week night games. We doubted the team's ability more than anything. Even our owner talked about not getting caught up in wins/losses this pre-season. When the season was on the line, at home, we filled it with Cubs fans. I believe we are a good fan base, but definitely not great. Not this season. A great fan base gets the team in the playoffs this season. A better baseball town gets them in this season. Better, more loyal fans gets them in this season, and I'm including myself in all this too.

 

One stinkin game out of the playoffs. One more earlier move by Stearns at the break rather than in late August gets them in. A couple hundred less at bats from Villar gets them in. Stopping Garza from pitching the last month, especially his last two games started, gets them in. Braun being Braun gets them in.

 

Bitter and upset. The season still stings.

[Thurston Fluff]

Literally every team in the league could have had more wins if they could use hindsight to base every decision on.

[JohnBriggs12]

Literally every team in the league could have had more wins if they could use hindsight to base every decision on.

 

Some of us don't wait until the season is over to question decisions. I predicted the day it happened that letting Gennett go would come back and bite them, and that letting the Cubs fix their rotation coming out of the break by nabbing a guy the Brewers were interested in was a fatal mistake. I agree with the sentiment that when you miss by one game it's a major disappointment. We have no idea when things will fall into place and give the Brewers the kind of opportunity they had in 2017. Stearns made some small moves that helped but he hesitated on the big move they needed.

[pacopete4]

If the Brewers have so many problems as the original poster alluded to, I sure am glad that Stearns stuck to the rebuild plan and did not make a big move for a team with too many problems. Then you are just possibly getting in to get in with no real chance at winning it.

[Jenkins5]

I'm not upset or disappointed at all. Really we still have one more year of true rebuild left. To complete rebuild, we need to fully to our prospects this year. This means Hader, Woodruff, Burns, T. Williams, Lopez ....maybe Peralta, Ortiz if they pitch way out of minors need to get their real looks to find out if they are parts of our future and how they will fit. Hader and Williams starters or bullpen arms? Brinson and Phillips need their AB's to prove worth. Dubon is another guy on the cusp of earning a look by mid season.

 

Our next big wave of top prospects will be in Biloxi and as we know that is the most defining league for prospect status. Many of them will raise or kill their prospect status this year there. Will they be Tyrone Taylor's and flame out there and fall off map or Arcia's and shoot up list? This is critical for rebuild because of we will have stronger pieces to trade off to get MLB talent going into 2019 (off-season or trade deadline when these guys should be in AAA knocking on door. Plus they can begin to mix in and add depth in 2019.

 

So some off you may hope for big run next year but 2019 is the season where I really care about winning. Next season I want to see our prospects develop and find out what we have. It is not a real rebuild if you aren't turning prospects into core players. It is unrealistic to think that all these guys will be instant stars in first full-season but you hope they play well enough to repeat level of competitiveness of this season.

 

Not to mention we still need to find out who Thames will be, see how OF shakes out, how Arcia continues to grow, wait for Nelson to return, and hope Shaw, Santana, Pina are all for real as core players.

 

I think it will be critical season for use moving forward and can be exciting to see the development but playoffs, no playoffs....doesn't matter to me....development to make real run in 2019 and after is what matters most

[rcc]

I do have positive feelings about the 2017 season. Many happy surprises happened with players while there were some disappointing things with other players. I think Stearns is a very smart baseball executive but not perfect like the Feliz signing. But if a player doesn't perform is it entirely the GM's fault. I don't think so. But the GM has to maximize the roster in terms of available payroll and available trade chips. They were in first place for a good amount of time and almost made the postseason as the wildcard. That is something to be proud of for the team and the entire organization.

 

This isn't a team of high priced free agents who didn't play well. There weren't any controversies in the clubhouse. No mutiny, no selfishness. Everybody rejoiced when someone hit a homer, big hit, big pitching performance.

 

I can't wait for next spring and see what changes Stearns makes. The bullpen needs work and maybe a change at 2nd. We shall see what happens.

[liveforoctober]

I appreciate the passion of the OP but that post was hard to read. I don't agree with the majority of it. Thank you for starting another thread on our feelings towards this last year.

 

The Brewers state ticket sales for games. If 31,000 tickets are sold and 23,000 people show up... do you want them to announce 2 numbers? Tickets sold and number of people that walked through the gate?

 

Thank you for spending your money at Miller Park Rick. Sorry the team couldn't fulfill the remainder of your desires. Yikes.

[homer]

Literally every team in the league could have had more wins if they could use hindsight to base every decision on.

 

Some of us don't wait until the season is over to question decisions. I predicted the day it happened that letting Gennett go would come back and bite them, and that letting the Cubs fix their rotation coming out of the break by nabbing a guy the Brewers were interested in was a fatal mistake. I agree with the sentiment that when you miss by one game it's a major disappointment. We have no idea when things will fall into place and give the Brewers the kind of opportunity they had in 2017. Stearns made some small moves that helped but he hesitated on the big move they needed.

 

 

You also predicted this:

Brewers MVP: Thames

Brewers Cy Young: Peralta

Disappointing Player: Shaw

[monty57]

Being positive about the direction of the franchise and for the future is different than being bummed that we just missed the playoffs. Everyone who loves the Brewers should feel down that we just missed the playoffs in the final days of the season. That doesn't mean you can't feel optimistic that we have a lot of good, young talent in the franchise which should bode well for future teams.

 

We were in the second year of a rebuild. We just sold off a lot of good MLB talent. Teams in that position generally go through a period of 90-100 loss seasons before they ever get close to reaching .500. We just missed the playoffs, so we are far ahead of where we "should" be at this stage of the game.

 

We still have areas that we can improve upon, but turning the ship around that quickly is borderline miraculous. After the shock of missing the playoffs passes, instead of fretting about the moves that weren't made, or those that didn't turn out the way we planned, try looking at all the moves that were made that turned out better than expected.

[KeithStone53151]

 

Some of us don't wait until the season is over to question decisions. I predicted the day it happened that letting Gennett go would come back and bite them, and that letting the Cubs fix their rotation coming out of the break by nabbing a guy the Brewers were interested in was a fatal mistake. I agree with the sentiment that when you miss by one game it's a major disappointment. We have no idea when things will fall into place and give the Brewers the kind of opportunity they had in 2017. Stearns made some small moves that helped but he hesitated on the big move they needed.

 

 

You also predicted this:

Brewers MVP: Thames

Brewers Cy Young: Peralta

Disappointing Player: Shaw

 

2 of those 3 predictions...ouch. You couldn't have possibly been more wrong. I'm disappointed we missed the playoffs, but we should have a better shot at it next year and into the future. The types of moves Stearns makes this offseason will tell us if we he views this as a contender next year. If we add payroll and make a couple higher level SP/RP signings, then buckle up because we could really have a shot next year.

[rickh150]

I appreciate the passion of the OP but that post was hard to read. I don't agree with the majority of it. Thank you for starting another thread on our feelings towards this last year.

 

The Brewers state ticket sales for games. If 31,000 tickets are sold and 23,000 people show up... do you want them to announce 2 numbers? Tickets sold and number of people that walked through the gate?

 

Thank you for spending your money at Miller Park Rick. Sorry the team couldn't fulfill the remainder of your desires. Yikes.

 

Another thread?

I'd rather have them announce the legit tickets sold number.

No thanks for your backhanded thanks.

[MrTPlush]

You are way way WAY too upset over a ticket sales number and a generic email. I mean why do you even care? They are trying to get fans excited and get good vibes from fans for next year. Big whoopie

[djoctagone]

I'd rather have them announce the legit tickets sold number.

this is what they already do.

[Jenkins5]

I appreciate the passion of the OP but that post was hard to read. I don't agree with the majority of it. Thank you for starting another thread on our feelings towards this last year.

 

The Brewers state ticket sales for games. If 31,000 tickets are sold and 23,000 people show up... do you want them to announce 2 numbers? Tickets sold and number of people that walked through the gate?

 

Thank you for spending your money at Miller Park Rick. Sorry the team couldn't fulfill the remainder of your desires. Yikes.

 

Another thread?

I'd rather have them announce the legit tickets sold number.

No thanks for your backhanded thanks.

 

Define attendance?

 

To me, attendance is money paid. Now before going back to grad school to become teacher, I was a Business Admin and Sports Mgt grad so I care more about the business and financial side of it (actually interviewed with Crew coming out of college) If people don't show.... too bad, so sad.... we still got paid. That is money in the pockets of the franchise. It does hurt in a way because people don't show, they don't spend which is a big part of revenue. The business and corporate tickets are paid for and many times people don't make it. Season tickets are paid for but many times those fans may miss games because things pop up. All that is still attendance. Brewers don't refund if you don't make it. At game, I don't focus on the number at all. I do care where we finish season though in tickets sold because that factors in a big way on payroll. Brewers for a small market team draw incredibly well.

 

Plenty to be positive about. Impossible not to love energy, personality, and grit of this team. They act like a family which is critical in success and love that.

[Thurston Fluff]

Literally every team in the league could have had more wins if they could use hindsight to base every decision on.

 

Some of us don't wait until the season is over to question decisions. I predicted the day it happened that letting Gennett go would come back and bite them, and that letting the Cubs fix their rotation coming out of the break by nabbing a guy the Brewers were interested in was a fatal mistake. I agree with the sentiment that when you miss by one game it's a major disappointment. We have no idea when things will fall into place and give the Brewers the kind of opportunity they had in 2017. Stearns made some small moves that helped but he hesitated on the big move they needed.

 

Saying no to trading Hader plus a couple other top prospects wasn't a mistake let alone a fatal one.

[FVBrewerFan]

Trading for a guy to keep your rival from getting him seems like a pretty sound strategy. Hold on. On second thought, no, not so much.

[rickh150]

I appreciate the passion of the OP but that post was hard to read. I don't agree with the majority of it. Thank you for starting another thread on our feelings towards this last year.

 

The Brewers state ticket sales for games. If 31,000 tickets are sold and 23,000 people show up... do you want them to announce 2 numbers? Tickets sold and number of people that walked through the gate?

 

Thank you for spending your money at Miller Park Rick. Sorry the team couldn't fulfill the remainder of your desires. Yikes.

 

Another thread?

I'd rather have them announce the legit tickets sold number.

No thanks for your backhanded thanks.

 

Define attendance?

 

To me, attendance is money paid. Now before going back to grad school to become teacher, I was a Business Admin and Sports Mgt grad so I care more about the business and financial side of it (actually interviewed with Crew coming out of college) If people don't show.... too bad, so sad.... we still got paid. That is money in the pockets of the franchise. It does hurt in a way because people don't show, they don't spend which is a big part of revenue. The business and corporate tickets are paid for and many times people don't make it. Season tickets are paid for but many times those fans may miss games because things pop up. All that is still attendance. Brewers don't refund if you don't make it. At game, I don't focus on the number at all. I do care where we finish season though in tickets sold because that factors in a big way on payroll. Brewers for a small market team draw incredibly well.

 

Plenty to be positive about. Impossible not to love energy, personality, and grit of this team. They act like a family which is critical in success and love that.

 

 

My guess is that the Brewers have a sponsor lined up in advance to buy 5 to 10 thousand seats on certain April, May, or Sept. weeknights that don't sell well, hand them out for free somehow, and figure those as paid attendance.

[rickh150]

I'd rather have them announce the legit tickets sold number.

this is what they already do.

Says who, exactly?

[rickh150]

You are way way WAY too upset over a ticket sales number and a generic email. I mean why do you even care? They are trying to get fans excited and get good vibes from fans for next year. Big whoopie

 

Certain things irk me..... same reason you decided to respond to this thread. I'd rather not be fed crap about the great support this year when it was obviously well below the past ten year normal in attendance and passion.

[pacopete4]

Even if a company buys 10K worth of tickets and throw them in the trash, they were still bought. Why wouldn’t they figure into the attendance? Makes no sense.

[monty57]

I don't understand how artificially inflating attendance numbers would benefit the Brewers in any way.

 

If they were doing it as leverage in TV negotiations, that would be fraud, so no one would let them get away with that. MLB would have to know about it, and the Brewers' accountants and other outside vendors would have to be in on this, putting themselves in a position to face prison time right along with Attanasio and Schleisinger (or however you spell it).

 

Are you suggesting that they are committing fraud simply to get the fans to feel better about themselves for supporting a sports franchise?

[rcc]

Every team must count seats sold in attendance figures.

 

If someone buys a ticket and can't make the game the team can't be held responsible for every single empty seat in the stadium. If a company buys up 20 tickets for their employees and 18 want to go the team still sold 20 tickets.

 

It's impossible for a team to keep track of every single ticket sold for every single game with a person sitting in every single seat.

 

Makes sense to me.

[KeithStone53151]

I don't understand how artificially inflating attendance numbers would benefit the Brewers in any way.

 

If they were doing it as leverage in TV negotiations, that would be fraud, so no one would let them get away with that. MLB would have to know about it, and the Brewers' accountants and other outside vendors would have to be in on this, putting themselves in a position to face prison time right along with Attanasio and Schleisinger (or however you spell it).

 

Are you suggesting that they are committing fraud simply to get the fans to feel better about themselves for supporting a sports franchise?

 

I'm not sure why this discussion has gone on so long. All tickets have barcodes, and can be easily tracked and audited. I guarantee external auditors review ticket sales and match a number of selections to cash receipts coming in. If nonsense was happening, it would be caught quickly. And catching something like this would be kid stuff for auditors. Point being, it isn't happening...the numbers they put up on the board are tickets sold. Whether all those people with tickets show up is another conversation...but I guarantee those ticket sold numbers are accurate.

[danzig6767]

Every team must count seats sold in attendance figures.

 

If someone buys a ticket and can't make the game the team can't be held responsible for every single empty seat in the stadium. If a company buys up 20 tickets for their employees and 18 want to go the team still sold 20 tickets.

 

It's impossible for a team to keep track of every single ticket sold for every single game with a person sitting in every single seat.

 

Makes sense to me.

Yea, every team in every pro sport does this.

 

Attendance is announced based on tickets sold, regardless of how many actually show up.

 

Given the Brewers are the smallest market in baseball, their attendance numbers for almost a decade now are pretty amazing and a credit to the fan base in the Milwaukee area.

[rickh150]

Every team must count seats sold in attendance figures.

 

If someone buys a ticket and can't make the game the team can't be held responsible for every single empty seat in the stadium. If a company buys up 20 tickets for their employees and 18 want to go the team still sold 20 tickets.

 

It's impossible for a team to keep track of every single ticket sold for every single game with a person sitting in every single seat.

 

Makes sense to me.

Yea, every team in every pro sport does this.

 

Attendance is announced based on tickets sold, regardless of how many actually show up.

 

Given the Brewers are the smallest market in baseball, their attendance numbers for almost a decade now are pretty amazing and a credit to the fan base in the Milwaukee area.

 

Amazing in 2007 thru 2012ish...... not now.

 

Ticket sold does not equal an actual person off the street buying it, a ticket for actual person. The mainstream perception is that there must be many no shows (individuals/families with tickets bought in hand who decide not to come) up thru ten thousands people to explain the difference. Seems obviously false, in my opinion, with no real explanation on why tickets sold and actual attendance is so different. I would guess at attendance each game I go to before the four choices of attendance are revealed in the 8th inning. I usually guessed that Miller Park was in the 20,000 to 25,000 range, and the choices would be in the 30,000 to 35,000 range. Huge differences.

 

BP gas tickets also are free, but are they counting all the tickets BP gave out to customers or every last ticket BP got for the promotion, regardless of distribution? It probably is better business for the team (or sponsor) to buy a bunch of their own tickets at a $1 a pop, throw them to the curb, announce higher attendance numbers, give off a perception of a 30,000 plus avg game attendance, and take in the benefits of future sales/income. And of course the perception of higher attendance matters. People want to be where the action is, especially young adults with cash to burn. Sponsors will then pony up more $ for ads/ad space/signage when they believe a higher number of potential customer is there. Suites are sold better when the perception is that space is limited in the park.

 

All I'm saying is that the support of the team was not at 2.5 million or even 2 million fans in the ballpark. No one in the this thread argued against this point. I'm also saying that the amount of paid attendance versus in the park attendance had less to do with no shows. The gap in paid attendance vs actual attendance was way too large to offer as the only reason.

 

We had very solid support again this year, but 30,000 avg strong in paid attendance? No shows up in the five figures range in thrifty Wisconsin? All tickets sold at adverised pricing rates? Too many questions to not ask more questions. Inflated numbers can be expected everywhere. This year, especially, numbers seemed inflated to the point of questioning our intelligence.