Brewers sign Jackie Bradley Jr. (2-year/$24M with player option after first year.)

[brewers888]

I realize I am the only one that doesn't like this signing but I don't like so much of our monetary assets tied up into one position (outfield) when we are likely to have the weakest left side of the infield in the league and very likely an offense that struggles to get hits much less score the runs necessary to win enough.

 

So you've said!

 

Fortunately, 4-2 wins count the same as 8-6 wins.

 

I think scoring 4 runs is going to be a challenge.

[RollieTime]

“I give the Brewers credit. Mark Attanasio the owner. He obviously did not have a good year financially. Even compared to other owners last year. The Brewers really depend on the fans in the stands. Their TV contract is not big in a small market” -Jon Heyman

 

“This might be one of the best values in this free agent market” -Anthony Castrovince

 

This is a great signing and one that gives the Brewers one of the top defenses in baseball. Pair that with an elite bullpen and “deadened” baseball, run prevention is the driving force for the moves this offseason. The pitching staff has to be excited knowing who they have in the field behind them. Yelich, Hiura, and Narvaez are locks to improve on their 2020 seasons. Cain, Wong, and Bradley Jr. added to the roster that we didn’t have in 2020. This is a 90+ win team if healthy.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

I realize I am the only one that doesn't like this signing but I don't like so much of our monetary assets tied up into one position (outfield) when we are likely to have the weakest left side of the infield in the league and very likely an offense that struggles to get hits much less score the runs necessary to win enough.

 

So you've said!

 

Fortunately, 4-2 wins count the same as 8-6 wins.

 

I think scoring 4 runs is going to be a challenge.

 

Agree to disagree, but ehh, you do you

[Eye Black]

The thing I do like about the run prevention strategy is there is a lot less potential variance in counting on good defenders than there is with relying on hitters. I am as guilty as anyone in dreaming about watching a lineup that pounds the ball all over the yard, but as we saw last season even the worst of offenses can be a middle-of-the-pack team overall with good pitching and defense. If the offense bounces back and can be around league average than this team will remain a solid playoff contender.

[Jopal78]

In 2019, Gamel had 350 at bats, Grisham had 150+ at bats, Thames, Hernan Perez and Spangenberg combined for 15 starts in the outfield. I’m sure their squad of OFers in 2021 will all have regular playing time regardless which 3 start NL opponent or home games.

[monty57]

I realize I am the only one that doesn't like this signing but I don't like so much of our monetary assets tied up into one position (outfield) when we are likely to have the weakest left side of the infield in the league and very likely an offense that struggles to get hits much less score the runs necessary to win enough.

 

I get that you don't like our offense.

 

Instead of signing Bradley today, who would you have signed to upgrade the "weak left side of the infield?" Sign Braun and put him at third?

 

There is no one left out there at this time. The team tried to sign the biggest name at third base, but missed out because he'd rather stay in LA. Stearns isn't magic. He needs to have a player that's available to sign, and that player has to sign.

 

Other than possibly Odorizzi, I don't see a name on the board right now that would "move the needle" as much as Bradley. Might not be an ideal signing, but he makes the team better, and the signing shouldn't have long-term negative effects for the team financially. At worst, he flops and the team has to pay him more than they'd like next year.

 

The Brewers and Cardinals are the likely front-runners to win the NL Central, and the Brewers just got a little bit better.

[RollieTime]

JBJ balls in play in 2019 overlayed on Miller Park. I don't know if you can limit the graph to ABs at home. This is every ball in play in every stadium.

 

 

This can’t be stated enough and should excite everyone. Something like 12-14 more home runs if every ball put in play in 2019 was at Miller Park. He’s a 25 home run hitter for us with great defense. I expect to see him in the 5 hole with Yelich 3rd and Hiura 4th.

 

Wong

Cain

Yelich

Hiura

Bradley Jr.

 

It sure would be nice to have a 1-5 like that basically every day and not continue to shuffle guys at the top. This is going to be an exciting team to watch!

[sveumrules]

How many games did this team go into the 5th inning or later before getting its first hit of the game. Besides Yelich I don't think we can count on one other hitter being above average for their position. I believe that Hiura can be that guy but he won't be if he doesn't count down on the strikeouts.

 

Its great that Stearns is the anti Melvin in regards to prioritizing pitching and defense but I think he is too focused on defense at the expense of hitting the baseball. We don't need to be a beer league softball team but geez this offense is weak.

 

Do you believe the Brewers will finish 2021 closer to 30th or 15th in runs scored?

 

Not sure if they've incorporated JBJ yet, but Baseball Prospectus currently has the Brewers projected for 13th in runs scored, which if the pitching & defense hold up their end of the bargain should be enough for the fifth consecutive summer of competitive baseball...

 

https://www.baseballprospectus.com/standings/

[Brewcrewin07]

I realize I am the only one that doesn't like this signing but I don't like so much of our monetary assets tied up into one position (outfield) when we are likely to have the weakest left side of the infield in the league and very likely an offense that struggles to get hits much less score the runs necessary to win enough.

 

So you've said!

 

Fortunately, 4-2 wins count the same as 8-6 wins.

 

Yes, but the getting to 4 is the issue. Could be a lot of 2-1, 1-0 losses this year, which will then have the same people applauding their pitching-defense approach, to be saying "why didn't DS go get a bat or two this offseason". You know what wins games?? Scoring runs...you MUST score more then your opponent. Can the Brewers do that consistently?? The problem is...the Brewers as a franchise always plays the "well if" game with their roster. Last year it was signing a bunch of older vets HOPING they would have career years...how'd that work out?? Then it's "well IF our Pitching is as good as last year and IF Yelich and Hiura etc hit like we know they can". That's all well and good, but what if those things don't happen?? Which I'd say is at best a 50-50 proposition that it works(that's probably being generous). You can't play the "well if this" game every year and hope you hit lightening in a bottle every year.

 

Why not hedge your bets?? Why not have at least one more big bat in your lineup so IF the things don't happen that you think will, you don't completely fall of the face of the earth offensively. Why can't you have a good offense, defense and pitching staff? This dart throwing and hoping will never work consistently.

[rickh150]

Can we now put to bed any notion that this team won't spend money or has no money? That has been strongly disproved.

 

Most teams have more, make more, and spend more. That hasn't changed.

Still, that does not prevent the Brewers to do deals like this.

[Eye Black]

In 2019, Gamel had 350 at bats, Grisham had 150+ at bats, Thames, Hernan Perez and Spangenberg combined for 15 starts in the outfield. I’m sure their squad of OFers in 2021 will all have regular playing time regardless which 3 start NL opponent or home games.

Even in 2018 when Cain, Yelich, and Braun all remained relatively healthy the Brewers saw Dominigo Santana, Hernan Perez, Keon Broxton, Eric Thames, Curtis Granderson, and Brett Phillips each play in more than 10 games in the outfield apiece.

[sveumrules]

Another aspect of offense is baserunning.

 

In 2020 the Brewers ranked dead last on the bases (-17.6 runs in only 60 games!!) by a considerable margin (next worst was -11.1). Now with JBJ (+7.6, 27th) to go along with Wong (+9.7, 16th) and Cain (+7.0, 30th) returning we have essentially added three of the top thirty baserunners over the last three seasons to the 2021 team.

 

Stearns & company continuing to play the margins to eke out every ounce of potential value. That's how you win the 11th most games over the last five seasons despite only spending the 26th most on payroll.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

The problem is...the Brewers as a franchise always plays the "well if" game with their roster. Last year it was signing a bunch of older vets HOPING they would have career years...how'd that work out?? Then it's "well IF our Pitching is as good as last year and IF Yelich and Hiura etc hit like we know they can".

 

Every team in MLB that isn't the Dodgers and sporting a $300 million payroll is playing a degree of the "what if" game. Heck, even the Dodgers played the "what if" game for three decades before things came together for them last year, despite playing in a huge market and annually having the biggest payroll in MLB.

[PeaveyFury]

Could be a lot of 2-1, 1-0 losses this year

 

Could be. But by continually upgrading the defense, you could also flip a 2-1 loss to a 2-1 win in several places. Better defense means more competitive in close games.

[RollieTime]

This was arguably the best way for us to upgrade our offense at this point in the offseason. I liked the Garcia signing last offseason, but he was so bad offensively that we couldn’t risk him not rebounding. We went from a potential black hole in right to a great defender that will conservatively hit 20 home runs for you. The floor of this team was significantly raised with this addition.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Could be a lot of 2-1, 1-0 losses this year

 

Could be. But by continually upgrading the defense, you could also flip a 2-1 loss to a 2-1 win in several places. Better defense means more competitive in close games.

 

The Brewers have been so successful in those games over the last four seasons, it's just not a coincidence at this point. They know what they are doing. They clearly ID'd some kind of market inefficiency for DRS and figured out it was a more practical attempt than loading up on one big bat. I'm really excited to watch this team. I feel like most of my life has been watching a team that doesn't really play defense swing for the fence and hope they can score 8 runs.

[PeaveyFury]

They clearly ID'd some kind of market inefficiency for DRS and figured out it was a more practical attempt than loading up on one big bat.

 

Couldn't agree more. MLB is a two-sided equation, and the Brewers are focusing on the run prevention side on purpose.

[sveumrules]

Could be a lot of 2-1, 1-0 losses this year

 

Could be. But by continually upgrading the defense, you could also flip a 2-1 loss to a 2-1 win in several places. Better defense means more competitive in close games.

 

Over the last four season the Brewers have played 547 regular season games. 32 of those games (less than 6%) ended with a 2-1 or 1-0 score. The Brewers went 18-14 in those games.

 

I don't think we'll be in for a lot of 2-1 or 1-0 losses this year.

[brewerfan82]

Does this open the door for Vogelbach to stick as the backup 1B/PH/DH if we only need 4 outfielders?

 

C - Narvaez/Pina

1B - Hiura/Vogelbach

2B - Wong

3B - Shaw/Robertson

SS - Urias/Arcia

OF - Yelich/Cain/JBJ/Garcia

 

That roster has a lot of flexibility and I like the ability to have Vogelbach as a power option off the bench every game, DH during interleague games, and keeping him on the roster for the future when the DH is likely in place.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

I feel like most of my life has been watching a team that doesn't really play defense swing for the fence and hope they can score 8 runs.

 

Exactly! But this seems to be exactly what a few posters are upset they aren't doing. As they say, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

[liveforoctober]

I realize I am the only one that doesn't like this signing but I don't like so much of our monetary assets tied up into one position (outfield) when we are likely to have the weakest left side of the infield in the league and very likely an offense that struggles to get hits much less score the runs necessary to win enough.

 

So you've said!

 

Fortunately, 4-2 wins count the same as 8-6 wins.

 

I think scoring 4 runs is going to be a challenge.

 

Last year's Brewers scored the 5th LEAST amount of runs in baseball and still averaged over 4 runs per game. Our offense this year will be better than last with ANY bounce back from Yelich, Hiura, Garcia, Narvaez, etc. Our defense will also be better than last year's. If our pitching can replicate last year's performance... the Brewers have gotten better.

[FVBrewerFan]

Guessing in 8 pages someone has brought it up, but Garcia has played 3B in the past. Is that a possibility? Also, Garcia or Yelich could play some 1B I would think?

[ReverendBrewmeister]

I like the signing. Not a franchise changer, but makes the team more competitive. It ensures that the Brewers have four MLB-level outfielders on the roster, even if there still may be a hole at 3B.

 

If JBJ can get close to his 2016 output or if his 2020 statistics are a sign of what he potentially could being to the lineup, then we're looking at a good chance that he puts in a season like Mike Cameron had during his time with the Brewers. That's a decent reachable ceiling. There's also no question about the defensive prowess that he brings.

 

If JBJ stays for two years, he's also a potential bridge to Mitchell or someone else who can develop to being ready to take over CF for the 2023 season.

[brewers888]

How many games did this team go into the 5th inning or later before getting its first hit of the game. Besides Yelich I don't think we can count on one other hitter being above average for their position. I believe that Hiura can be that guy but he won't be if he doesn't count down on the strikeouts.

 

Its great that Stearns is the anti Melvin in regards to prioritizing pitching and defense but I think he is too focused on defense at the expense of hitting the baseball. We don't need to be a beer league softball team but geez this offense is weak.

 

Do you believe the Brewers will finish 2021 closer to 30th or 15th in runs scored?

 

Not sure if they've incorporated JBJ yet, but Baseball Prospectus currently has the Brewers projected for 13th in runs scored, which if the pitching & defense hold up their end of the bargain should be enough for the fifth consecutive summer of competitive baseball...

 

https://www.baseballprospectus.com/standings/

 

I expect the Brewers to be a lot closer to 30th than 15th. Besides Yelich and Hiura I don't see much offensive upside. Hopefully the pitching and defense allow us to win a lot of 3-2 games.

[brewers888]

I realize I am the only one that doesn't like this signing but I don't like so much of our monetary assets tied up into one position (outfield) when we are likely to have the weakest left side of the infield in the league and very likely an offense that struggles to get hits much less score the runs necessary to win enough.

 

So you've said!

 

Fortunately, 4-2 wins count the same as 8-6 wins.

 

Yes, but the getting to 4 is the issue. Could be a lot of 2-1, 1-0 losses this year, which will then have the same people applauding their pitching-defense approach, to be saying "why didn't DS go get a bat or two this offseason". You know what wins games?? Scoring runs...you MUST score more then your opponent. Can the Brewers do that consistently?? The problem is...the Brewers as a franchise always plays the "well if" game with their roster. Last year it was signing a bunch of older vets HOPING they would have career years...how'd that work out?? Then it's "well IF our Pitching is as good as last year and IF Yelich and Hiura etc hit like we know they can". That's all well and good, but what if those things don't happen?? Which I'd say is at best a 50-50 proposition that it works(that's probably being generous). You can't play the "well if this" game every year and hope you hit lightening in a bottle every year.

 

Why not hedge your bets?? Why not have at least one more big bat in your lineup so IF the things don't happen that you think will, you don't completely fall of the face of the earth offensively. Why can't you have a good offense, defense and pitching staff? This dart throwing and hoping will never work consistently.

 

This is where I am at. This lineup is in desperate need of at least one more big time bat to go along with Yelich and hopefully Hiura. Putting all the resources towards defense and just ignorong the fact that this team couldn't score at all last season is a big mistske.