Greg Amsinger hosted and was joined by Dan Plesac and John Hart for the Brewers season preview. Trenni Kusnierek did reporting and interviews from Spring Training in Arizona.
- John thinks that the Brewers were a great baseball story last year in their run to the postseason.
- The Brewers were 25th in MLB in batting average in 2008, 5th in HR, 4th in ERA, 6th in saves, and 8th in Opp. Average.
- Jason Kendall think Yovani Gallardo is a future Cy Young winner
Gallardo talks with Trenni:
- The off season was very hard for him.
- He has been rehabbing his knee.
- The most important thing for him is to forget about the injuries.
- He wants to get 32-34 starts and get close to that 200 inning mark this year.
- Yovani loves to hear things like what Kendall said about him.
-Kendall will not catch as many innings as he did last year.
Trevor Hoffman talks with Trenni:
- Hoffman is excited to be with a young team and have a chance to get back to the playoffs.
- He gets a sense that there is something special with the Brewers team.
- Trevor says it has been fun being the new guy on the block.
- He likes being looked at as a leader.
- It is a neat feeling to be in the Brewers clubhouse right now.
Offseason arrivals:
- Braden Looper
- Trevor Hoffman
- Chase Wright
- Jorge Julio
- Trot Nixon
Departures:
- CC Sabathia
- Ben Sheets
- Brian Shouse
- Salomon Torres
- Eric Gagne
- Guillermo Mota
- Gabe Kapler
Possible Rotation:
1. Yovani Gallardo
2. Dave Bush
3. Jeff Suppan
4. Manny Parra
5. Braden Looper
More about the pitching:
- Dan says Gallardo has the goods but has not been battle tested for 162 games.
- John says Manny Parra has really good stuff.
- Hart calls Dave Bush the stabilizer.
- Plesac thinks Braden Looper is going to be key in the rotation.
- Hoffman knows how to get it done and is a leader according to Hart. Plesac says Hoffman will use up all the rest of the gas left in the tank this year.
- John says the 7th and 8th innings are going to be big questions for the Brewers.
Trenni with Prince Fielder:
- Prince says that the fact that they clinched in the last game last year shows how every game counts.
- Fielder says it doesn't matter how you start the season, it's how you finish.
- He says "it's real cool" that he knows he is with Milwaukee for the next few years.
- The loss of CC won't hurt the team that much according to Prince.
- Fielder would love to be with the Crew for a long period of time.
Brewers possible batting order:
- Rickie Weeks, 2B
- J.J. Hardy, SS
- Ryan Braun, LF
- Prince Fielder, 1B
- Corey Hart, RF
- Bill Hall, 3B
- Mike Cameron, CF
- Jason Kendall, C
More on the infield:
- Dan doesn't think Fielder is that bad of a fielder at 1B.
- Plesac thinks Prince will get even better as he learns the league more.
- Hart thinks J.J. Hardy is very underrated.
- John thinks Weeks needs to improve his glove.
- Dan says Kendall is as tough as they come.
- Hart thinks Bill Hall is going to get a shot starting at 3B.
Greg and John were joined by Brewers GM Doug Melvin:
- CC did everything and more than what the Brewers expected.
- Doug likes the Braden Looper signing.
- The Brewers have a solid front office and the key is that they all trust each other.
- Doug gives credit to the fans for coming out and supporting the team in the years that they were not winning.
- Gallardo is a big game pitcher. Parra has a lot of physical ability.
Corey Hart joined Trenni:
- Hart doesn't want to have a bad September like he did last year.
- Corey was in the spot light for the first time and it was just a learning curve when he did not hit well in the final month of 2008.
- He always plays good defense and does not take his bat to the field or his glove to the plate.
More on the Brewer's outfield:
- John thinks Corey Hart has tons of ability.
- Plesac says Braun is the best low ball right handed hitter in the NL.
- John used one of Ron Santo's favorite words when he called Braun a "gamer."
- Cameron is the stabilizer to the outfield.
J.J. Hardy with Trenni:
- Hardy says that losing to the Phillies in the NLDS "sucked".
- J.J. says that the expectations are high again and they know what to expect this year.
- Ken Macha stresses fundamentals and those are very important.
- He is still trying to figure out how to get hot at the beginning of the year and stay hot for the whole year.
List of Brewer's homegrown players:
- Yovani Gallardo
- Manny Parra
- Prince Fielder
- Rickie Weeks
- Bill Hall
- J.J. Hardy
- Ryan Braun
- Corey Hart
More on the homegrown talent:
- Hart says this is how you win when you are a small market team.
- John says it is a tribute to the entire organization.
Top Prospects:
- Jeremy Jeffers, RHP
- Jake Oddrizzi, RHP
- Wily Peralta, RHP
- Alcides Escobar, SS
- Brett Lawrie, C
- Mat Gamel, 3B
More on those guys:
- It is not if but when for Escobar according to Hart.
- John says that Gamel is very close to the big leagues.
- Dan thinks if Jeffers takes care of his off the field issues he could be in the rotation soon. Jeffers has long term potential.
- Hart says position players are a little easier to scout and develop than pitchers.
Sausage Race
- Brett Wurst
- Stosh JonJak
- Guido (last place with only 12 wins)
- Frankie Furter (First Place, 26 wins)
- Cinco
Brewers Attendance for last 5 seasons:
- 2003- 1.7 M
- 2004- 2 M
- 2005- 2.2 M
- 2006- 2.3 M
- 2007- 2.8 M
- 2008- 3 M
Dan says Miller Park is one of the best kept secrets in MLB.
Brewers All-Time Team:
Starting Lineup:
- Paul Molitor, DH
- Robin Yount, SS
- Gorman Thomas, CF
- Prince Fielder, 1B
- Ryan Braun, LF
- B.J. Surhoff, C
- Geoff Jenkins, RF
- Jim Gantner, 2B
- Don Money, 3B
Manager- Harvey Kuenn
Pitchers and Bench:
- Ted Higuera, SP
- Dan Plesac, CL
- Ben Sheets, P
- Rolie Fingers, P
- Ted Simmons, C
- Cecil Cooper, 1B
- Jeff Cirillo, IF
- Ben Oglivie, OF
Ken Macha said that the Brewers have a great group of young guys.
Predictions:
- Dan- 2nd
- John- 4th
I'll continue my recap of the other NL Central Teams "30 Clubs in 30 Days" episodes. Up next is the Cardinals.
No comments:
Post a Comment