2020-07-24 (Opening Day): Brewers (Woodruff) at Cubs (Hendricks) [Brewers lose, 3-0]

[Eye Black]

 

 

Brandon Woodruff: Batter (Cubs) vs Pitching Stats

 

Kyle Hendricks: Batter (Brewers) vs Pitching Stats

[Eye Black]

Brewers‘ 30-man opening day roster:

 

[liveforoctober]

With how well Gamel is swinging the bat, I'm curious if Braun sees much of the outfield at all this year? Seems like it would keep him healthier to just swing and Gamel is the superior defender to give the Big 3 spells... just a thought. We begin our Brewers Ryan Braun farewell tour by saying goodbye to his glove first?

[pacopete4]

With how well Gamel is swinging the bat, I'm curious if Braun sees much of the outfield at all this year? Seems like it would keep him healthier to just swing and Gamel is the superior defender to give the Big 3 spells... just a thought. We begin our Brewers Ryan Braun farewell tour by saying goodbye to his glove first?

Might not be his farewell tour: Brewers' Ryan Braun says he's now more likely to play beyond 2020

[KeithStone53151]

With how well Gamel is swinging the bat, I'm curious if Braun sees much of the outfield at all this year? Seems like it would keep him healthier to just swing and Gamel is the superior defender to give the Big 3 spells... just a thought. We begin our Brewers Ryan Braun farewell tour by saying goodbye to his glove first?

 

It's hard to know for sure, I think the DH is a greater factor than Gamel. It's super easy to just throw Braun in at DH, if that weren't an option...he'd still play and it would probably be RF/1B. As is, I think Braun will mostly DH and play 1b against lefties...occasionally he'll play the outfield if he's feeling good(which is rare). Which yes would mean Gamel sees plenty of time in the outfield.

[homer]

Play ball!

[owbc]

[sarcasm]After that painful exit in the Wild Card game it felt like this offseason dragged on way longer than usual.[/sarcasm]

[KeithStone53151]

[sarcasm]After that painful exit in the Wild Card game it felt like this offseason dragged on way longer than usual.[/sarcasm]

 

I would have been just fine forgetting that ever happened...

[Zad Fnark]

Funny that the Brewers scored more against the Nats in that game than the Cards did in the entire NLCS.

[markedman5]

Interesting lineup......

 

[Eye Black]

Lineups added to the opening post.

 

Three more hours to go before the 2020 season is underway for the Brewers!

[markedman5]

With how well Gamel is swinging the bat, I'm curious if Braun sees much of the outfield at all this year? Seems like it would keep him healthier to just swing and Gamel is the superior defender to give the Big 3 spells... just a thought. We begin our Brewers Ryan Braun farewell tour by saying goodbye to his glove first?

 

It's hard to know for sure, I think the DH is a greater factor than Gamel. It's super easy to just throw Braun in at DH, if that weren't an option...he'd still play and it would probably be RF/1B. As is, I think Braun will mostly DH and play 1b against lefties...occasionally he'll play the outfield if he's feeling good(which is rare). Which yes would mean Gamel sees plenty of time in the outfield.

 

So if Braun is at 1B vs lefties who is DH?

 

I mean Hijra will get some time there I’m sure but if you do that then Holt or Sovard plays 2nd......do they have good splits vs lefties?

[pacopete4]

Hard to forget how truly awful Sogard was with us but hopefully he has a last years stretch in him still.

[TURBO]

With how well Gamel is swinging the bat, I'm curious if Braun sees much of the outfield at all this year? Seems like it would keep him healthier to just swing and Gamel is the superior defender to give the Big 3 spells... just a thought. We begin our Brewers Ryan Braun farewell tour by saying goodbye to his glove first?

 

It's hard to know for sure, I think the DH is a greater factor than Gamel. It's super easy to just throw Braun in at DH, if that weren't an option...he'd still play and it would probably be RF/1B. As is, I think Braun will mostly DH and play 1b against lefties...occasionally he'll play the outfield if he's feeling good(which is rare). Which yes would mean Gamel sees plenty of time in the outfield.

 

So if Braun is at 1B vs lefties who is DH?

 

I mean Hijra will get some time there I’m sure but if you do that then Holt or Sovard plays 2nd......do they have good splits vs lefties?

 

I am going to assume your spellcheck is in over drive here?

[TURBO]

Hard to get too excited about that line-up when you look at it closely...

[Eye Black]

Hard to forget how truly awful Sogard was with us but hopefully he has a last years stretch in him still.

Agreed, still seems a bit strange he’s back.

 

He started last year with a 10 game hitting streak, and over his first 15 games of 2019 he hit .375 BA / .470 OBP / .696 SLG / 1.166 OPS with 9 extra base hits. While unlikely to be near that level, if he could start hot again this year I would feel really great about the top of the Brewers lineup.

[topper09er]

Last opening day DH was Dave Nilsson, 1997

 

Question: Ryan Braun has 344 career HRs right now. Can you name the only 2 players who had more career HRs than that when they played on the Brewers besides Hank Aaron who retired with 755 in 1976?

 

As a hint, 2 honorable mentions that are not correct are:

2018 Curtis Granderson 332 career HRs the last time he was a Brewer

1990 Dave Parker 328 career HRs the last time he was a Brewer

[Oxy]

 

Jim Diego Edmonds?

 

 

Aramis Ramirez?

 

[owbc]

 

I was thinking maybe Julio Franco

 

 

edit...and I'm way wrong LOL.

[Devinep]

I would’ve liked to see Holt in there instead of Arcia vs RHP (with Sogard at SS) and I don’t get some of the choices on the order, but it’s a reasonably deep lineup

[KeithStone53151]

It's hard to know for sure, I think the DH is a greater factor than Gamel. It's super easy to just throw Braun in at DH, if that weren't an option...he'd still play and it would probably be RF/1B. As is, I think Braun will mostly DH and play 1b against lefties...occasionally he'll play the outfield if he's feeling good(which is rare). Which yes would mean Gamel sees plenty of time in the outfield.

 

So if Braun is at 1B vs lefties who is DH?

 

I mean Hijra will get some time there I’m sure but if you do that then Holt or Sovard plays 2nd......do they have good splits vs lefties?

 

I noticed there's a bit of a gap here as well. Smoak will probably 1b/DH some of it, otherwise you probably end up with Holt/Sogard in the game with some sort of shuffle. Not ideal obviously, will be interesting to see how it plays out.

[Devinep]

It's hard to know for sure, I think the DH is a greater factor than Gamel. It's super easy to just throw Braun in at DH, if that weren't an option...he'd still play and it would probably be RF/1B. As is, I think Braun will mostly DH and play 1b against lefties...occasionally he'll play the outfield if he's feeling good(which is rare). Which yes would mean Gamel sees plenty of time in the outfield.

 

So if Braun is at 1B vs lefties who is DH?

 

I mean Hijra will get some time there I’m sure but if you do that then Holt or Sovard plays 2nd......do they have good splits vs lefties?

 

I noticed there's a bit of a gap here as well. Smoak will probably 1b/DH some of it, otherwise you probably end up with Holt/Sogard in the game with some sort of shuffle. Not ideal obviously, will be interesting to see how it plays out.

 

Sogard hits lefties pretty well so it would be OK to have him in there, especially with Huira being able to DH and Sogard being a defensive upgrade at 2B

[reillymcshane]

Excited that this thread exists.

 

Go Crew!

[topper09er]

Jim Diego Edmonds?

Aramis Ramirez?

 

Got em both, nice job

[sveumrules]

Sure, Sogard was useless in 2018 (113 PA, 12 OPS+). The year before that he was fine (103 OPS+) over a larger sample (299 PA). Last year he put up a 116 OPS+ in an even larger sample (442 PA). One of those things is not like the others.

 

Despite slugging 10% less than league average over the last three seasons, Eric has still managed to get on base 8% better than league average over that time on the strength of a walk rate 27% better than league average coupled with a strikeout rate 35% below league average.

 

I'd probably have gone with Cain at leadoff myself, though that 238/238/238 triple slash in 21 career PAs against Hendriks isn't very inspiring, but Sogard is a perfectly cromulent choice.

 

Go Brewers!!