Its that time of year. No, not time for Brett Favre to vascillate once again on whether he'll play or not..... But rather the midpoint (plus a couple games) of the baseball season. And its also time for Who's in Right Field? to take a look back and review the performances of Brewers players, coaches, and staff.
Tastes Great:
Salomon Torres--He has really bailed out the bullpen after Gagne's struggles. He's shown some signs recently of cracking, so hopefully he can continue to get the job done.
Jason Kendall--Despite slugging lower than any other regular and producing very little offense since he was moved out of the 9 spot, his defense and throwing ability have really been a blessing for this team. I would like to see him do a little better job blocking balls and he's had a relatively high number of passed balls, but in all he's been solid. Who would have thought he'd be one of the better catchers in the majors in terms of throwing guys out?
Corey Hart--A lot of people like him in the 5 spot so he give some protection for Prince, but with the way Prince swung the bat in the first half Corey is having to pick him up more than provide protection. He's been great and earned an All-Star berth.
Ben Sheets--Has shown why he should be considered a legitimate ace and one of the best pitchers in the league. The only bad thing is he may be pitching himself out of the Brewers being able to afford him in the off-season.
CC Sabathia--I know he's only been here for two starts, but his presence has electrified this team and this city and provided them with a second dominant starter. A pitcher going 8 innings and allowing only a couple runs sure can cover up a lot of deficiencies in the bullpen and lineup.
Doug Melvin--The CC trade put him over the top. He's missed a little on a couple things (Cameron, not getting more lefties, building a lineup so reliant on the longball with no OBP guys, Gagne, Mota), but his additions to the club have improved it overall. Kendall, Branyan, CC, Torres, Kapler have all been big boosts.
Gabe Kapler--Out of retirement, into the preferred pinch-hitting role. Plus he's proven that he can and should get 2-3 starts a week. Hpefully he can continue in the second half.
Ryan Braun--While he hasn't quite matched his freshman numbers, his overall game is much better due to his move to left, where he's been solid. Plus he's performed well enough to rightfully get voted into the starting outfield in the All-Star game. Increased patience, walks, and OBP with fewer strikeouts is all that is keeping him from being a Top 5 or 10 player in the majors.
J.J. Hardy--His hot streak in June carried the team for a bit. He's proved that his first half last year wasn't necessarily a fluke. Whether he can keep it up in the second half and not get worn down by nagging shoulder injuries remains to be seen. A .275 average with 20-25 homers and 75 RBI would be a nice follow-up to last year. Plus I think he plays as good of a shortstop as anyone in the league.
Russell Branyan--The lift he gave this team upon his callup in May coincided with their turn around. I don't think it was pure coincidence. However, he's really cooled off lately and I think we might have gotten the once a year hot streak out of him. It'll be interesting to see how his role develops in the second half.
Manny Parra--I was pretty hard on him early in the year due to his high pitch counts, inability to get through the 6th inning, and constant nibbling but once he figured out that he could pitch to contact occassionally he became a much better pitcher. He gives us a legitimate number 3 pitcher.
Seth McClung--He's slowed down a little lately and may lose his rotation spot, but his rather successful move to the starting rotation bailed this team out for a good while. He didn't work deep in games, but kept them in it while he was in.
Brian Shouse--Just keeps being solid and consistent. His load has lightened recently and he should be able to stay strong through the end of the year.
Mike Rivera--Despite playing much less than most backup catchers, he's made the most out of his time when he gets in there. He does struggle to throw guys out a bit, and I'm not sure he'd hold up if he was a full-time starter. But for what he is and what he does its a positive for this team.
Mark Attanasio--Has shown a tremendous commitment to the team. Increased payroll before the season considerably while still maintaining a relatively affordable ticket price structure. Then gave the go-ahead to take on additional salary with the Sabathia trade. He does claimi to be losing money by doing this, but I think with all revenue factored in (tickets, merchandise, sponsorships, TV, radio, parking, concessions, etc.) that he'll actually be fine.
Kind of warm and flat, but still drinkable:
Prince Fielder--Maybe I'm being a little hard on Prince, but after last year there certainly was higher expectations for him. He's struggled to produce runs and his average has dipped to .270. However, if/when he gets hot in the second half he can really carry this team.
Craig Counsell--Its a good thing we don't really expect anything out of him, because other than a few timely hits and the ability to play multiple positions he really doesn't bring much to the table. Its always nice having a guy like him around because he is so versatile, but you'd sure like to have a little more production for someone that plays so much.
Rickie Weeks--Yes, I do expect and want more out of him than a .217 average. But the team is asking him to be a leadoff hitter, and his on base percentage is considerably higher than his average. Its still not where you'd like it to be, but I think he'll turn it on in the second half. He's hit a lot of balls pretty well that he's made outs on. Ending the year around .245 with a .350 OBP would be a success.
Mike Cameron--Yes, I do expect and want more out of him than a .231 batting average. But when he was hot there for a while he really helped win some games. Plus despite slowing from his past glory and misplaying a few balls, he's been pretty good defensively in center. Ending the year with a .250 batting average and 25 homers would be a success.
Jeff Suppan--Has had a couple really bad outings, but also was really good for a stretch. His last outing really hurt his numbers and afterwards it was revealed he was pitching hurt and subsequently ended up on the DL. He needs to be a solid number 4 option down the stretch and earn his payday.
Dave Bush--Wow, what a turnaround. I'm still not sold on him being a sub 4.50 ERA pitcher, but he's somehow gotten it to 4.39 after an absolutely horrendous start that saw him temporarily lose his position in the rotation. If he can stay under 4.50 the rest of the year that would be huge.
Mitch Stetter--Got sent down early in the year due to wildness, but still only has a 2.45 ERA on the year. Gives the Brewers another lefty option to lighten the load on Shouse.
David Riske--Somehow only has a 4.66 ERA but it seems like he's allowing runs to score every time he's out there. His track record says he should be much better in the second half though.
Carlos Villanueva--Was pretty bad in the rotation despite high hopes. Has been much better in the bullpen and done a nice job as the mopup/long reliever guy. His splits: as starter-6.43 ERA, as reliever-2.33 ERA.
Ned Yost--I still don't know if he's the right guy to get us to the playoffs, but I guess we'll find out this year. Isn't making as many horrible in-game decisions lately, but the team has been playing better and not forcing him to make those decisions. I still don't like the atmosphere he's created where "his kids" aren't held accountable enough. We'll see if he can lead a team to actually improve over the course of the year.
Mike Maddux--Was very close to ending up on the Less Filling list. Early in the year the young pitchers (Villy, Bush, Parra) weren't working deep into games, were nibbling and walking too many guys, and showing no sign of improvement. Plus Gagne and Mota admitted to mechanical flaws that should have been corrected but apparently haven't. However, Parra and Bush pitching better in the last 6 weeks have saved Maddux for now. We'll see how the staff holds up over the full season, and whether mechanical flaws continue to show up in some of the relievers without getting corrected early enough.
Less Filling:
Eric Gagne--Ah, as much as I like him and want to root for him he just continues to show that his signing may have been the worst in all of baseball. Thank God its only a 1 year deal. Its pretty sad that hoping for a sub-4.50 ERA in the second half from a guy making $10 million may be wishful thinking.
Guillermo Mota--I guess now we know why the Mets wanted to get rid of him so bad. He's got great stuff, but a pea-sized brain and heart it seems. He was very close to getting cut but Ned and Doug think they can salvage him. Another guy where you're just hoping for a sub-4.50 ERA in the second half.
Bill Hall--Has hit better lately, but still has been pretty bad on the whole. Despite good tools, he's been terrible on defense as well. Offensively you have to wonder if he'll ever get his head out of his butt long enough to realize something that should be blatantly obvious: he is a right-center field hitter. When he pulls off the ball especially on the outer half it is one of the worst things to watch in baseball. I've said it time and time again, and either he is too stupid to realize it himself and make the change, too stubborn to do so, or simply not good enough to. Skaalen and Yost have really failed him as well.
Jim Skaalen--Do we just bring in the same guys with different faces as hitting coaches? Why is it that with different personnel over the past 5-6 years we always strike out too much, walk too little, and generally don't hit when it counts. I heard him talking in-game on Sunday about Homer Bailey dominating the hitters and he basically said that there's nothing he can do and nothing the players can do. They are what they are and aren't going to make adjustments. Well then we'll continue to make the same mistakes, rely too much on the longball, strikeout too much, get on base too little, be consistently inconsistent, and not improve.
Joe Dillon--Similar to Counsell in that he's pretty versatile. However, you still need production. And he hasn't provided it either as a starter or as a pinch-hitter. In fact he's hitting .172 with a .514 OPS as a pinch-hitter. Yet Yost still trots him out there when better options are available.
Skunky beer that was good 2 years ago but got left out too long and is terrible now:
Derrick Turnbow--Pulling a Mark Wohlers and wild-pitching his way out of baseball. It's too bad the Brewers couldn't have moved him in the off-season to get rid of his salary. No way they bring him back next year of course, and it'll be interesting to see if he gets picked up by anyone.
Got stuck behind the fruit preserves in the fridge and kind of forgot about but might get brought out by the end of the year:
Yovanni Gallardo--Showed all the makings of a true ace before getting hurt in a freak accident in Chicago. Some think he can come back and help down the stretch, but I doubt it. Plus if he does come back it will be after the playoff roster deadline so his 2 or 3 starts may not be worth risking. Remember, there's a good chance he'll be our number 1 starter next year if Sheets and Sabathia leave.
