Jason Trumpy is a life-long Brewer fan who shares his passion with his readers on the True Blue Brew Blog..
There are a lot of exciting changes in store for the 2009 Milwaukee Brewers. I might as well start off with the most obvious change, just like every other preview I’ve seen on the ‘net this year.
The losses of C.C. Sabathia and Ben Sheets have left a gaping hole at the front end of the Brewers rotation this season. Most reports I’ve read have said that this loss will be impossible to overcome and the Brewers are doomed to another October without baseball. I say not so. Benji and C.C. combined for just 24 wins last season. Sabathia only played in 17 games, and the Brewers were right in the thick of the Wild Card race before he showed up. I think it is safe to say that the Crew would have been sitting home for the post-season had they not made that trade, but I don’t think it’s fair to say they had no chance without him.
Sabathia’s addition would not have been necessary if it weren’t for the bullpen’s lack of ability to hold a lead. The bullpen had just 45 saves in 71 opportunities last season. Eric Gagne started off the trend by blowing a ton of games early, and the situation didn’t stabilize until the end of May when Salomon Torres became the closer. Torres did a good job, saving 28 games and posting a 3.49 ERA, but even he blew 7 saves over the course of the year.
So, the question of the year is, “How will the Brewers make up for the losses of C.C. Sabathia and Ben Sheets?” I say it can be done. They have the talent in the bullpen, they are returning the same starting 8 on the field, and they have added some intriguing young pitchers to their starting rotation. New manager Ken Macha might be just what the Brewers need to pull this thing together.
Ken Macha was among three candidates to become the permanent replacement for Ned Yost after his dismissal with 12 games to go. Dale Sveum was the interim manager, of course, and guided the Brewers into the post-season despite a 7-5 record. The other candidate was Willie Randolph, who was relieved from his position of manager of the Mets last June. All three guys impressed the Brewers enough to win jobs with the team. Sveum is now the hitting coach and Randolph is the bench coach.
The Brewers’ entire starting lineup is returning intact. This should make for a good summer. The Crew’s impressive offense scored enough runs to win a lot of games despite some awful pitching at times last season, and that was with Ryan Braun and Corey Hart going through late season slumps and Prince Fielder’s power numbers being down from the year before.
Braun’s slump was due to a lower back strain that bothered him for about the last month, but even during that time he got some key hits that helped the Brewers win some very important games down the stretch, including the Wild Card clincher over the Cubs on the final day of the regular season. There is some concern with Braun this year because of a similar injury suffered during the World Baseball Classic, but early indications are that Braun will be ok to start the season.
Hart blamed fatigue for his massive drop in batting average and his ridiculous propensity to strike out down the stretch. He claims to have conditioned better this winter to avoid a similar problem, and Macha should know enough to sit him out if he needs to, so expect Hart’s numbers to be back up.
Fielder may not be with the Brewers all season. As I mentioned a couple of months ago, Fielder could be traded by the All-Star break.. Prince’s high salary, agent, and weight make him a liability to the organization, and I believe the Brewers will be trying to get as much as they can out of him while they still can.
Bill Hall, fresh off of Lasik surgery, and Craig Counsell, with a new batting stance, seem to be benefitting from Svuem’s instruction this spring, and if that carries over into the regular season, third base could become a solid spot for the Brewers.
The bullpen problems will hopefully be solved with the addition of all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman. Hoff is also suffering from a back strain, which could be a concern given his age, but all signs point to him missing no more than the first week of the regular season.
The starting rotation seems to be the biggest question mark of the season. Young guns Manny Parra and Yovani Gallardo have potential but little experience to back them up. If they are as good as I think they can be, they will be as strong as any 1-2 punch in baseball. The back three, Jeff Suppan, Braden Looper, and Dave Bush, are all career .500 pitchers with ERAs between 4 and 5. The offense and revamped bullpen could pull all of them above .500, but don’t look for anything big out of those three. Seth McClung, who would be the leading candidate to step in due to injury or ineffectiveness, is in the same boat.
All in all, the Brewers should put up between 85-90 wins again this season and make a run at the Wild Card, if not the division title. All the fun begins on April 7 vs. the Giants at AT&T Park. See you at the game!
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