The Redemption of Ryan Braun

At the start of July, questions were raised about Ryan Braun. People didn't think he had it anymore in the same way he did before his suspension. Many started to consider Braun a second or third banana of the team with Jonathan Lucroy submitting an Most Valuable Player-like season, same with Carlos Gomez. Braun became an afterthought as the team was winning without the strong play of their once-leader. Just when people thought Braun was another player, he tears through the month of July like a hellcat and making everyone remember his name.

Braun is having the best month of his season thus far, and an argument could be made for him to win National League Player of the Month.  Braun is currently hitting .356 with an OBP of .405 as he has three home runs in the month with 10 of his 21 hits being extra-base variety.  Braun is currently on a 12-game hitting streak with only two games this month where he didn't have a a hit.  The strikeouts are down as well with only 14 in July. In five of the last six games, Braun drove in at least one run which means he is not producing meaningless hits, he is making them count every night out.  Last night in a 9-1 victory over New York Mets, Braun hit a massive 432 foot home run to left-center something we haven't seen all season.

ESPN's Buster Olney wrote an article on Tuesday morning where he pondered about Braun's pulling ability. Basically, the numbers showed Braun didn't have it like he did before his suspension. Olney did infer about not taking the PED's factored in to the Brewers slugger not being able to... well slug anymore. Braun did take the PED's not to make himself better more so to cure the lingering injuries that would be bother him although it is unknown how long Braun was a user. The national media made the assumption he did for his entire career versus one-time during an MVP run. I like to believe the latter yet I am not ignorant if that makes any sense.

Braun's injuries are the exact reason why the numbers were down this season, not the lack of PED usage. These are all the injuries Braun dealt with this season thus far... Oblique, hand, thumb and back injuries plagued him all season. All of those injuries directly involve his swing, most notably his ability to pull the ball hence why Braun's numbers to opposite field are off the charts. It is more impressive Braun found a way to change his complete approach at the plate amid all of the injuries and still be a productive player. Instead, we are staying up late at the night wondering why Braun isn't a power hitter and inferring it had something to do with special pills.

Ryan went Stone Cold Steve Austin on the haters with two middle fingers chugging beers on the way. That blast on Thursday night was a 'I am back, and you're all in big trouble.'  When the pull power isn't there, you don't hit 432 foot blasts. Braun has went through hot streaks in his career, and I feel we are on the verge of another one. This 12-game hit streak is child's play right now for what Braun is going to do in the the coming weeks.  It is almost like Braun wants to throw his name into the ring for MVP consideration. It is not ridiculous think about if he gets uber-hot for the next two weeks where the ball is flying out of the park, and his average gets around .320, he will need to be in the conversation.

Braun is back and his demise was greatly over-exaggerated.

Charlie.

Tap's Hangover Cure: Carlos Gomez, The Ninja Turtle

Carlos Gomez is the clubhouse jokester without question for the Milwaukee Brewers team. He loves to have fun with the guys and always seems to do weird things. So it shouldn't come as a surprise when Gomez dressed up in a full Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle costume to bother Mark Reynolds doing an interview with International Talk on MLB Network. The reason Gomez has the full costume is for his son, Yandal, who loves the Turtles like any four-year old. But apparently he wanted to meet Donatello, not Leonardo.   You have to love this stuff as a Brewers fan and a baseball fan really, the team is having fun again and it seems like the rain cloud that hovered over them  (WATCH THE VIDEO HERE, my browser can't support iframes, I guess)

Also Reynolds's 'Count' shirt with Garza's name and goatee on it is a must-have. I need it badly.

Charlie.

Brewers First Half Offense Grades

This is an annual post here with SnoTap industries where we grade the Brewers offense and their pitching staff.  I would like to think I am a fair grader and some think I am a little too nice to people. Pitching grades are coming later. 

Jonathan Lucroy - Easily, the MVP for Milwaukee thus far this season and maybe the MVP of the entire National League. Lucroy is having a fantastic year. He had a rough July so far with his average dipping 20 points, that's okay because he is still at .315.  Lucroy has 42 doubles and only 42 strikeouts. Really strong start to the season for Johnny Luc. GRADE: A

Carlos Gomez - I nearly downgraded Gomez to an A- because I am a little concerned about his swing rate where he is a little too aggressive with pitches lately, yet it has been a banner year for Gomez again netting him an All-Star starting appearance. Currently, Gomez has a six-game hitting streak and starting to get warm again which is an encouraging thing for Milwaukee.  GRADE: A

Ryan Braun - Some people might think this grade is a little high, but there are couple reasons behind when Braun got the third-highest grade on the offense. First, Braun started the year with everyone wondering about where his head might be with all of the Biogenesis stuff. Second, he is starting to heat up in a major way which is going unnoticed given Braun is battling all sorts of injuries, he is hitting .364 for July with six hits in his last three game. GRADE: A-

Aramis Ramirez - You have to be impressed with what Rami is doing this season. He battled through an injury that kept him out nearly a  month, but before that, he had his hottest April ever then came back to give Milwaukee a much-needed lift. Ramirez had a torrent June month hitting .348 with 31 hits including six home runs. Ramirez is also playing solid defense at third base for Milwaukee as well. Even though he notched an All-Star appearance, I think the best is yet to come. GRADE: B+

Scooter Gennett - We have went over a couple times about how wrong I have been about Scooter. He is having a good season, and some of it had to do with moving to the top of the order. Gennett hit nearly .400 for the month of June with big extra-base hits as well as getting on-base. He bounced back nicely after having a terrible May where I called for his head as Rickie Weeks was excelling. Gennett is doing work for the club. GRADE: B+

Khris Davis - This has been a really impressive start for Khris because he had a great deal of pressure going into this year. He needed to replace the production of Nori Aoki in a different way. Davis hit the skids hard to start the year, and people wondered whether there was a needed platoon. He went on a complete tear for the next month and a half plus currently leads all Brewers in home runs with 15. Davis scuffled a bit in the last month, but he's been hitting around .260 before then which is encouraging. GRADE: B

Rickie Weeks - Even though he is a bench player and his run with the Brewers might be done soon, I am happy for Weeks. He had a good season after a terrible 2013 thus far. The run in May brought me back to the old Weeks days when he would have two great weeks hitting everything in sight. Hopefully, they keep him around until the end of the year.  GRADE: B

Lyle Overbay - I went back and forth whether I wanted to give Overbay a B or B-, but it ended with a B. People didn't expect much from Overbay this season, and many people wanted Juan Francisco over him. He is hitting .243 with an OBP of .322. That's nothing to be mad about honestly. Sure, you want more from first base, but it's been better than what Milwaukee had last season. GRADE B

Mark Reynolds - For the first couple months, it seems like the relationship with Brewers and Reynolds would be a wonderful one then he completely fell off a cliff in the last two months. Reynolds only has two home runs since the start of June and currently, he is hitting .100 for the month of July. What's the use for him if he is not hitting home runs. GRADE: C

Jean Segura - This might be a tough grade for him, but I am hoping he finds his stroke again. No greater story would be Segura having a massive second half of the season  as he is dealing with the death of his young son. Segura has been pretty tremendous defensively and right there for a Gold Glove even if Troy Tulowitzki will win it. GRADE C-

Charlie.

MLB All-Star Game: Brewers Shine, Waino Misstep, Jeets & No Tony Gywnn Tribute?

When All-Star Game happen no matter what the sport is, the recap of it is usually a pretty light one. We discuss a little bit about the game, but mostly, the discussion is about the plays that happen or one inning where all of the action took place. Moreover, team beat writers are talking about how their guy or guys did out there versus having any sort of reason to write about controversy. This year is completely different. There are so many storylines emerging from the All-Star Game and you wonder if it's due to social media or just a weird year?

Milwaukee Brewers were fortunate to get three players starting in the All-Star Game with Aramis Ramirez, Carlos Gomez and Jonathan Lucroy, two of them made an impact for the National League on Tuesday night. Ramirez added two hits including a double scoring the first run of the game. Lucroy was the first catcher since Mike Piazza to get two doubles and two RBIs. Anyone whose a baseball fan should be happy for Luc as people begin to focus on how he is a great baseball player not just the whole issue with the faux rivalry with Yadier Molina. 

St. Louis Cardinals found a way to screw up the All-Star Game. I didn't even know that was possible but here we are. Mike Matheny's arrogance was the start of it and Adam Wainwright finished it with the fanbase sprinkled in. Matheny wanted his guy to start the All-Star Game. Despite Clayton Kershaw's tremendous two-month stretch, Wainwright was the option even though he started on Saturday.  The first batter he faced was the legend Derek Jeter who hit a double off him. It led to a bad first inning for Wainwright as he gave up three runs including a two-run homer to Miguel Cabrera. Unlike a normal game, the players are available to the media earlier than usual, and Wainwright gave his thoughts on the first inning.

Wainwright said he 'grooved' a couple pitches to Jeter as a sign of respect. This took over the game in the social media realm as everyone rushed to criticize Wainwright for his bullshit attitude towards the whole thing. He acted like 'Ha!  I am a great baseball player, would that inning really happen to me?!' He made an excuse for struggling in his only inning. That's pathetic. Wainwright rushed to backtrack saying it was a joke which many of the media whom were there said, the Cardinals ace didn't joke there. Basically, Wainwright should have kept his mouth shut about the whole thing. There is no need to explain what happened there just say 'Derek hit a good pitch.'  He looked like a complete assclown. Naturally, the St. Louis fanbase believed Lucroy was the reason for Wainwright or Waino as they call him, struggles which is so Cardinals it hurts truthfully. The fanbase is full of world-class idiots and some of the worst in baseball. My favorite was Lucroy distancing himself away from 'grooving' pitches as he explained how the first batter was called. 

The Cardinals weren't the only ones with pie of their faces, Major League Baseball and FOX Sports ended up having a major misfire as well. After the game, people begged the question where was a tribute for Tony Gywnn who died a month ago and is revered as one of the best players in baseball. FOX Sports 1 did do a tribute before the game, but most of the time when baseball or any sport loses one of the best, they find someway to honor them on a grand stage. MLB should have done something Gywnn and Don Zimmer for that matter. Both men cared about the game of baseball so much and loved it dearly. The fact, baseball decided to ignore some of their greats is truly odd and puzzling.

The weirdness increases when you think about how much time MLB and FOX dedicated to Jeter. He is one of the best players to ever live as well as one of the most-respected guys in baseball. The latter is a huge part to why this all happened last night. Deadspin counted Jeter's name said a cool 100 times within the three and a half hour broadcast. I had little to zero problem with all of the Jeter theatrics. The guy deserved all of it. The two at-bats were both hits, he nearly made a great play to get Andrew McCutchen and honored like one of the best of the last 25 years. This is the type of stuff that makes All-Star Games for baseball so cool.

Although it made me pleased Jeter didn't get the Susan Lucci Lifetime MVP award as Mike Trout took home the crown. Trout deserved it as he drove in the first run of the game for the American League and the winning run in the fifth as well. Trout's two hits were a triple and double netting him his first of what will probably be many MVP trophies. On a night where MLB honored Jeter, it was cool to see one of the best young players take home the All-Star MVP.

Now begins the push to the playoffs. For some, this is where baseball becomes fun knowing there might be a chance for October baseball. It also becomes deathly terrifying in that same regard holding on to a slight lead in the division. Just remember Milwaukee was the only team helping the National League on Tuesday thus talking myself into an eight-game winning streak.

-Charlie.

Phillies-Brewers: Everything Sucks.

It is really hard to have a blog post about highlights and lowlights when the team you do it for loses all four games against a last place. Simply, it cannot happen. This isn't a state of the Brewers blog, rather, trying to figure out what's going wrong and how it can be fixed. It should be known that baseball happens like this sometimes where it is terribly weird and things go terribly wrong. Milwaukee Brewers have lost nine of 10 games, only one win since June 28th and somehow things are still alright.

There are problems all over the place with Milwaukee right now. Where would you like me to start? Offense seems to be a main concern with everyone right now so let's start there. Carlos Gomez has been a shell of himself in recent weeks.  It seems like he reverted back to some of his old ways with more swings and misses than in the early stages of the season as Alec Dopp of Gammons Daily pointed out a couple days ago.  Ryan Braun's bad back isn't helping things either. He missed two games in the series plus batted fifth yesterday although still added a hit. Jean Segura's struggles where he is now batting .232 is a true life concern. That's a panic button for me. It could be a sophomore slump, but something needs to change at the plate for him.

Milwaukee is a weird one too when it comes to hitting because they have come up with hits in some of these games during the losing streak, just not timely ones. Rickie Weeks deep fly ball on Monday or Scooter rope right at a left fielder on Tuesday come to mind. Only the last two days where the Brewers had a combined seven hits are days really feeling like Milwaukee has zero offense whatsoever.  I keep thinking back to Tuesday. They had a four-run lead early with a Lyle Overbay grand slam. If they hold that lead and break the streak, does Milwaukee win one or two of these games?  Who really knows because the pitching failed them in that game.

Pitching is still an issue for this team. Some of it has been good like Matt Garza. He pitched great in his two starts in the month of July continuing on with a strong June. Wily Peralta is dealing with some issues right now giving up four or more runs in the last three starts with him blowing up on Tuesday night with a nine-run debacle. One could argue teams have gotten a better book on Peralta, and he needs to make some changes to what's he is doing out there. The other could say he pitched in two hitter friendly ballparks for only the first and second time and shit happens like the Philly start. It's a mix of both in my opinion. One of the major problems right now is giving up early inning runs. In the last four of five games, Milwaukee gave up at least one run in the first inning. Brewers are putting themselves behind far too often early.

It is not just starting pitching either. Will Smith has been a major problem. He could worn out from making 50 appearances already this season. If I had it my way, Smith isn't playing in the series against St. Louis.  He needs a week off. Ron Roenicke wanted to use him carefully, but it seems like the bullpen management from him has been shortsighted. At some point, Smith will be fine because all relievers go through shitty stretches like this unless they have unreal seasons. Brandon Kintzler hasn't been great, and only Rob Wooten seems like a sure thing at this point. All July has done is making it a priority for Milwaukee to make a deal for a reliever. They need one badly. If they could get a closer to basically do what they did in 2011, it would be vital to their success. Huston Street or Koji Uehara sounds awesome in a Brewers uniform.

The crazy thing about all of this struggle is Milwaukee still has the best record in the National League. They have lost nine of the last 10 and still have the top dog position. Brewers have brought St. Louis, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh back into the fold as all three teams are four or less games back from the National League Central division. It is completely wide open. No one expected this to be easy and if someone did, they should really start watching more baseball. With St. Louis coming to town this weekend, Milwaukee could win two of three games and have a three-game lead heading into the All-Star Break. Any Brewers fan or player would have taken that in the month of March. Honestly, it feels right St. Louis and Milwaukee are tied at the All-Star Break. Brewers played a bit over their head in parts of June. It is hard to see the Brewers running away with this division.

The last weekend before the All-Star with Milwaukee holding a .500 record at home. This is a time to strike for them to gain back a little what's been lost in this already terrible month.

Charlie.

DON'T FREAK OUT: Milwaukee Brewers Edition

It was time. I told myself if the Brewers lose to Cole Hamels on Monday night, I would provide a little voice of reason talk. I realize there are people that will go with the sky is falling technique over the blind optimism, but I want to believe. It didn't help Milwaukee lost a game that pisses you off to the core and makes you wonder why do I care so much about this team?  Regardless, it is time to put on some happy music and think about what's ahead for the Brewers meaning yes you shouldn't worry about their recent scuffles.  

 Losing Streaks Happen - I realize Milwaukee isn't technically on a losing streak, but I am trying to provide perspective here. I am also not saying Milwaukee will win the World Series, but four of the last five World Series Champions had one losing streak five games or longer. Every good team has a rough patch in their schedule. May wasn't really that bad with Milwaukee ending .500 for the month. That still can happen with July as well. No team is perfect, and skids happen like this to every baseball team. They will bounce back.   

Marco Estrada isn't going to start all season - Milwaukee's management, both front and clubhouse, are stubborn without any question. Brewers Twitter is taking the pitchforks to Estrada right now and wants to see Jimmy Nelson whose dominating Triple A right now. Estrada isn't a good starting pitcher right now, and maybe, he needs a change of scenery. Further, there is nothing to think Nelson will be a much better pitcher than Estrada although I agree watching Nelson struggle is far different than seeing Estrada puke on his shoes every five days.  

They are going to make a move - I have no doubt in my mind Milwaukee will have a new Brewer before the trade deadline is over. Brew Crew Ball did a great job at looking at the three Boston Red Sox's players the Brewers might be interested in. Currently, the three Boston guys are the only ones rumored to be a possible Brewer. Doug Melvin downplayed a major trade which I have to think stands for "No, we are going to make a move at some point yet I have no idea what it will actually be ."  Milwaukee will not go quiet into the night with three teams nipping at their heels. 

Carlos Gomez will find his swing again - He is going through a slump which should be almost expected at some point. This guy has been completely on fire for months, and he had a bad week a his job. Haven't we all honestly. Sure, we don't get paid like Gomez, but he will find his stroke again. I wouldn't be surprised if Ron Roenicke changes the order if Ryan Braun ends up playing again tonight. I would go for a lineup of Scooter-Braun-Lucroy-Ramirez-Gomez  or Gomez-Braun-Lucroy-Ramirez-Scooter (Yes hitting Scooter fifth is not ideal, but hey, he gets hits so why not at this point?)  

Ryan Braun will go on a 'Ryan Braun' streak - I felt like we were so close to having that happen after the Toronto series, but he ended up hurting his back which made him miss most of Saturday's game and all of Sunday plus he had to leave Monday night from running after a lead-off double in the eighth inning. Although Braun is still stinging the ball despite the bad back issues. I am telling you this becomes a different team without question. The thumb will always be an issue for him, but Braun will come fresh at some point soon. 

A part of me still believes in Jean Segura - I am not saying he will end up being an All-Star in the second half, but I refuse to believe he is only a .240 hitter. I refuse to believe the numbers of him July 1st 2013 and beyond are Segura's true ceiling. He is going to figure this thing on offense. That's going to happen at some point, and when it does, Milwaukee becomes a more dangerous team. 

This isn't part of my whole "Don't freak out", but the fact, Milwaukee finishes the year by playing the division for the entire month except for a home series against Miami is what you want as a fan and player. They control their own destiny. If they want to bury the rest of division and we as fans are celebrating in mid-September, hell yeah, let's do it. If they want to screw around and Milwaukee fights for a division title to the final game of the year, welp better give me all the alcohol in the world.  

To quote the great Alfred from "Batman Begins", 'Why do we fall Master Wayne?"   "To pick ourselves back up again."  Everything will be fine, y'all. 

-Charlie.  

Phillies-Brewers Preview (7/7-7/10)

Brewers previews to get you ready for the series where we have five things to watch, pitching matchups and prediction. We add a YouTube video in the mix, it could be really anything.  

Pitching Matchups & TV Times
Monday: Cole Hamels (2-5 2.98) vs. Marco Estrada (7-5 4.94)            7:10 pm FSNWI
Tuesday: Kyle Kendrick (3-8 4.12) vs. Wily Peralta (9-5 3.35)             7:10 pm FSNWI
Wednesday: Roberto Hernandez (3-8 4.48) vs. Kyle Lohse (9-3 3.18)  7:10 pm FSNWI
Thursday: David Buchanan (4-5 4.82) vs. Matt Garza (6-5 3.78)            1:10 pm 620 WTMJ

Five Things to Watch 
1.) Brewers hit the skids a bit - They are back in Milwaukee after a horrendous road trip where they went 1-5. Granted, these were against two of the better teams in baseball, but some people are getting a little nervous the bottom is ready to fall out with this team. I don't think it is time to push the panic button, but right now, I have my hands in my pockets, whistling near the button.

2.) Philadelphia isn't playing good baseball - While Milwaukee might be through their worst stretch of the season thus far, it isn't going much better in the City of Brotherly Love. They were swept this weekend at Pittsburgh, and Philly also has lost 12 of their last 15 games. Phillies were only five games under .500 three Saturdays ago, and now, the whole thing blew up on them again.

3.) Phillies offensive offense - This isn't the power-hitting, scary Phillies of team of yore. Their offense is completely anemic. The team has only scored more than three runs four times in the last 15 games, three of them were wins for Philadelphia. Ryan Howard completely fell off a cliff after a hot June. He is two for his last 19 at-bats, and the last time he hit a home run was June 19th.  

4.) Carlos Gomez heat up? - This hasn't been a great start to the month of July for Gomez. He did not have a good road trip and suffering his first slump of the season. I wouldn't be surprised if we see more bunts from Gomez as he attempts to get himself going more in different ways.

5.) Dealing with Cole Hamels - Even though Philadelphia isn't a good team, Cole Hamels is one of the best pitchers in Major League Baseball. Milwaukee is currently struggling meaning Hamels could be an issue for this team tonight. But if you want some optimism, Jonathan Lucroy has great numbers against him in a small sample size, same for Mark Reynolds and if he plays tonight, Ryan Braun hits .321 with three home runs off Hamels. Milwaukee has found a way to handle lefties pretty well this season.

Apporirate YouTube Video 


It is obvious Panic Switch by Sliversun Pickups. Don't push it yet Brewers fans. If they lose three of four against Philadelphia, we can all collectively freak out.

Prediction 
A split would be fine with me, but I think they end up getting three of four including beating Hamels tonight. They will lose one dumb game somewhere.

Highlights-Lowlights: Brewers-Reds (7/4-7-6)

This is SnoTap's version of recap of the two, three or four game series Milwaukee Brewers will play this season. We focus on the positives and negatives with topics about the game and topics that were nowhere near close to part of the game

Highlights
Matt Garza - This is the Matt Garza Brewers fans hoped for when Milwaukee signed the right-hander. This might be peak Garza, but still it was a joy to watch him pitch on Saturday afternoon. Garza looked completely dialed in with a complete game shutout only allowing two hits and struck out nine batters. Finally, Garza's ERA dipped below four, the first time it has been under four since April 14th, but Garza did have a 2.88 ERA in the month of June.

Jonathan Lucroy - He really didn't have a good series, but it is worth giving him credit for calling a great game on Saturday with Garza. Lucroy did also add a home run on Friday trying to bring the team back after a four run deficit early on. I honestly cannot remember the last time Lucroy wasn't on the highlight-lowlight chart for highlights. He deserves it almost every time out.

Logan Schafer - It has to be tough being Logan Schafer and other Brewers that get shifted around in Triple A and MLB. Schafer took his knocks but made the most of his opportunity on Sunday playing for Ryan Braun with a triple and double off Mat Latos whose been virtually unhittable lately. I like Elian Herrera, but it seems like Logan really helps out the team more. He is a better defender whom can play all three outfield positions and seems to come up with big hits every now and again.  

Aramis Ramirez - Good weekend for the All-Star starter at third base. He played really well on Saturday having two hits and driving in the only run of the game. Ramirez had hits in both of the other games as well. Ramirez also made a hell of a defensive play late in the game on Saturday with a bunt which is always a detriment of Garza

Lowlights
Ryan Braun's back spasms - Another Braun injury to deal with which really does suck even though it is not considered to be serious. This seems like Braun's sixth or seventh injury already this season, and yes that's probably an overreaction yet it is just a bummer. Braun is having a fine season, but it is unfortunate for him. Hopefully, this doesn't delay what seemed to be the start of a Braun hot streak too.

Kyle Lohse - We really shouldn't be concerned about Lohse because he arguably has been the best Brewers pitcher of the season, but the last four starts are a little unsettling. Three of the four starts he has given up three runs with a couple unearned runs mixed in there as well, and he goes only five innings in two of the last four starts. Lohse's runs came quick on Friday, and before you know, Milwaukee is trailing by four runs in the fifth inning.

Will Smith - As we talked about this in the last couple weeks, this had to be expected from Smith. He cannot be perfect for the rest of the year. Smith was so good and him regressing a bit shouldn't be surprising at all. Granted, Smith giving up a two-run homer to Known Brewer Killer President Jay Bruce is much better than him giving up multiple hits allowing multiple runs yet I realize this is flawed logic.

Carlos Gomez - Milwaukee had a road trip from hell and so do Gomez with going two for 18 during the five games. He dipped below .300 for the first time since May 23rd. I am not very concerned with Gomez's recent struggles. It is the law of large averages. He goes on a huge hitting streak and it seems inevitable there will be a little dip there.

Gotta figure out Cincinnati - At some point, Milwaukee will need to win a series against Cincinnati. They play them 10 times in the month of September. Cincinnati has the pitching and they might make a move for some hitting at some point in the trade deadline. Brewers need to find their way against the Reds sooner rather than later. Next matchup comes at The Keg on July 21st.  

Charlie.

Brewers All-Star Vote Confusion

I am not an All-Star voter. I used to be, but as my days go on, I do not find the time to do it. Granted, I am not knocking it whatsoever. It is a cool way to incorporate the fans as well as drive up the support with social media campaign as they have done in the past couple of years. Two of the Milwaukee Brewers are National League MVP candidates with Carlos Gomez and Jonathan Lucroy. In turn, Milwaukee fans want to see those players in front of the national audience getting attention from the start of the game. They are driving up the fan votes elsewhere yielding some weird results thus far

The funniest thing about All-Star voting right now is the fact the most deserving Brewers player Jonathan Lucroy is not a starter right now and probably will not be with only a couple days left. Lucroy trails Yadier Molina by way too far of a margin, but hopefully, Matt Matheny will not be spiteful when it comes to adding him to the roster given how great Lucroy has been all season plus Evan Gattis is currently on the Disabled List. If Lucroy ends up on the 'Last Five', that might be one of the most disrespectful thing I have seen in all season. He is an All-Star and doesn't need a frivolous fan vote to get him into the dance at Target Field. Lucroy should tell them to eff off if this ends up being the case.  

There are a lot of confusing Brewers on the list. It is hard to decide what's the most confusing on the list... Jean Segura in second, Aramis Ramirez in first or Mark Reynolds in second. It sounds like one of the weirdest MFK's in the short-term history of the game. Let's start with Ramirez because there is a chance he could be starting in the All-Star Game especially since David Wright is flirting with the Disabled List battling an injury. The only guy in the top five deserving of being the All-Star starter is Todd Frazier of the Cincinnati Reds. He is hitting .287 with 17 home runs with a .857 On-Base Percentage. If Cincinnati's fan base actually gave a damn and had decent attendance numbers, Frazier would be the pick for the third base All-Star. 

Segura and Reynolds make little sense at all.  Neither of these players are close to being All-Stars by any means. Segura plays really good defense and probably will be in some consideration for a Gold Glove yet defense doesn't usually earn you an All-Star game unless you are Omar Vizquel. Let's be clear, Segura isn't Vizquel by any way, shape or form. Although, most of National League shortstops not named Troy Tulowitzki have been slightly better than Segura, but not by a large margin so maybe Segura is not as ridiculous but he's been pretty damn bad offensively this season. Reynolds is also very confusing. Paul Goldschmidt, like Tulowitzki, will be the starter and deserves to be, but look at the list behind Reynolds... Adrian Gonzalez, Freddie Freeman, Matt Adams. Even though he battled injury, does anyone know Adams is hitting .324 this season?  For all of the Cardinal fans put in Yadier Molina, they have seemingly ignored the rest of their team which is such a Cardinals things to do.  

Some might ask why waste a bunch of words on this topic. It's fair because it will all be meaningless when starters are named over the weekend. But I find it interesting how Lucroy is a deserving number two compared to the fact all of these Brewers are near the top in other spots. It is clear the Brewers fan base did wonders to help Lucroy get closer in the two spot plus driven Gomez to the second position in the outfield to ensure his spot as well. 

From the looks of it, the Brewers will have two All-Stars with a chance at a third on offense then when it comes to pitchers, there will probably be one or two there as well. Milwaukee will have their hands all over Target Field's All-Star Game. 

Charlie.  

Highlights-Lowlights: Rockies-Brewers (6/26-6/29)

This is SnoTap's version of recap of the two, three or four game series Milwaukee Brewers will play this season. We focus on the positives and negatives with topics about the game and topics that were nowhere near close to part of the game

Highlights 
Ryan Braun - Big weekend for Ryan Braun. I don't want to be like 'BRAUN BACK' and go all crazy because he owned Colorado's pitching which is as easy as finding a drunk underage Milwaukee suburbanite at Summerfest. Braun came through with his first walkoff hit in three years giving Milwaukee the win on Friday night. Braunie also added his eleventh home run in a loss on Sunday. In the last five games, Braun has two hits in four of them as well as driving in seven runs getting his average back to .290.

Kyle Lohse - Good start for Lohse on Friday night and probably deserving of the win, but things happen plus wins are silly. Lohse pitched well for seven innings working out of one jam that allowed a run, but nothing more. In the last two starts prior to this one, Lohse had allowed three runs and this one he only let one through seven innings with four strikeouts only yielding four hits. Good to see Lohse bounce back and hopefully the longish layoff will not affect him.

Lyle Overbay - I have said it before and I will say it again, I made a mistake with Lyle Overbay. He delivered a big sixth inning hit in Saturday's game driving in a vital insurance run which Milwaukee would need as Colorado slowly started to bang down the door. He added another hit in his only appearance for the weekend but came up in a big way. It has been really good to have Overbay on the roster plus I felt very comfortable with him playing defense for Matt Garza on the mound.

Carlos Gomez - He didn't really have a great weekend, but the three-run home run to lead off Saturday's game was ideal. Colorado obviously mad about losing to Milwaukee six straight times with the Brewers getting a walk-off the night before then BAM!  Carlos hits a homer. Also worth nothing since Gomez had his 0 for 6 night on Tuesday, he has one hit in each games putting him at four-game hitting streak meaning he has hits in 22 of his last 23 games.

Jonathan Lucroy - At this point, we are out of things to say about Lucroy, but once again, he came up big with some timely hitting driving in key runs in all three runs. Lucroy tied up the game Thursday night with a single after Wily Peralta gave up a grand slam. He put the Brewers ahead on Friday with the first run of the game in a tight pitcher's duel and added a RBI groundout on Saturday. Lucroy is a national treasure.

Lowlights
Injuries - Cramps, Face injuries, etc - Not a great weekend for the Brewers when it came to injuries. Jean Segura had to leave Saturday with cramping issues putting him out for Sunday's game, but it appears he will be back for Tuesday's game. Carlos Gomez had a collision with Braun leading to a face injury which could be described by the scene in Tommy Boy at the diner. Hopefully, Gomez will be back for the weekend. I don't really expect him for Toronto but with two days off this week, no reason to send him to the Disabled List.

Yovani Gallardo - Yeah not a great start for Yo, but I am not worried about it. There seems to be a vodoo hex over why Yo cannot beat the Rockies, the only National League team he hasn't beat for his career. It started off bad for him, and that's always how Yovani gets beat up is if he struggles early. I am a little worried about his seven-day layoff too.

Francisco Rodriguez - It was an up and down week for Frankie as he did get saves in both Thursday and Saturday's game. But he did blow one on Friday giving up a home run to Josh Rutledge. I am not worried at all about Frankie, but four runs in his last 10 appearances plus two home runs in the last week is never good.

Brewers schedule this week - Man, this sucks. We got two day games during the week which doesn't affect me too much but then we don't get a day game on the Fourth of July which is ludicrous. Further, they only play five games on which is a bummer, but Brewers do get some much-needed time off.

Highlights-Lowlights: Nationals-Brewers (6/23-6/25)

This is SnoTap's version of recap of the two, three or four game series Milwaukee Brewers will play this season. We focus on the positives and negatives with topics about the game and topics that were nowhere near close to part of the game

Highlights
Marco Estrada - He has been the punching bag of this Milwaukee Brewers team for some time now, but he delivered a big start when the Brewers needed him. They were on the verge of getting swept for the first time this season. They are coming off a 16 inning heartbreaking loss the night before meaning the bullpen is completely taxed. Estrada is facing Stephen Strasburg as well. Estrada only gave up two hits, two runs and only walked two batters. And he went for 6 plus innings. Overall a great start for the Brewers fifth starter and hopefully, a step in the right direction.

Scooter Gennett - Look I was wrong about Scooter. I basically scorched the earth when he got called up to replace Rickie Weeks. I didn't want Scooter to fail, but I was convinced he wouldn't be a better player than Weeks. I couldn't have been more wrong. I want to apologize about how much I bungled the whole thing last summer. He's been great for the team. Gennett has the second-highest batting average since August 2013 in all of Major League Baseball. Scooter hit a grand slam and drove in an added run in the only Brewers win this week.

Yovani Gallardo - It continues to be a great month for Yovani, and my assumption would be he will win Brewers Pitcher of the Month. He again pitched great in a no-decision against Washington on Tuesday night. Gallardo only gave up four hits in six innings. If Gallardo is this way for the most part for the rest of the season, Milwaukee can contend with anyone. Whatever he went through in the month of May, he is over it. Gallardo's ERA is now down to 3.23 and keeps pitching strong for the Brewers.

Ryan Braun - In the sixth inning, Braun stepped to the plate with runners on second and third with two outs. He is having a disastrous June for the greater part, but this is a situation where Braun has to deliver the big moment. He did just that with a two-run single giving the Brewers the lead against the tough Jordan Zimmernmann. Hopefully, this is a sign of things to come for the Brewers slugger. It seems like we are just waiting on a Braun hot streak

Mike Fiers - Even though he is hanging out in Nashville for a couple days, he did a great job for Milwaukee on Tuesday night despite taking the loss. Fiers went four innings only giving up four hits with two of them coming in the 16th inning. Fiers also struck out four batters and had no issue with the Nationals bats. He made a campaign pitch to be a starter on Tuesday night.

Lowlights
Carlos Gomez's Extra Inning At-Bats - This was easily the most frustrating part of the whole series. Not the 16 innings, not the lack of hitting in the first two games, but Gomez's at-bats in the extra frames. He had a chance to win it twice and jumped over the first pitch both times when the pitchers were a bit shaky in the first place. Gomez is the biggest first-pitch swinger in baseball so it's understood he would swing at the first pitch a great deal of times. It is honestly hard to be mad at him, but he needs to show a little more discipline in late at-bats.

Will Smith - Another player on the Brewers where it is hard to be mad at, but Smith didn't do his job on Tuesday night giving up a home run to Anthony Rendon. Is it time to push the panic button on Smith? Probably not because he played at such a high level in the first three months of the season. Smith giving up three runs in his last 10 appearances isn't a big deal... yet.

16 Inning Baseball Games - I realized how much I hated late extra-inning games. I like West Coast trips without question because of the late night atmosphere for a night owl, but my goodness, the 16 inning game on Tuesday night was horribly boring. The game dragged on and no one could get a hit to save their soul. Maybe 16 inning games are more exciting when we have teams going back and forth with runs, but Christ, this was bad.

Scary Nats - Brewers thankfully got a game from Washington, but this is a scary team without question. They have front line pitching with Strasburg, Zimmermann and Gio Gonzalez. They will be getting back Bryce Harper and Wilson Ramos. Additionally, the Nats have a great bullpen. This is a lethal team moving forward.

Charlie.

Nationals-Brewers Preview (6/23-6-25)

Brewers previews to get you ready for the series where we have five things to watch, pitching matchups and prediction. We add a YouTube video in the mix, it could be really anything.   

Pitching Matchups 

Monday:     Gio Gonzalez (3-4 4.85) vs. Matt Garza (4-4 4.02) 7:00 pm ESPN2/FSNWI 

Tuesday: Jordan Zimmermann (5-4 2.95) vs. Yovani Gallardo (5-4 3.34) 7:10 pm FSNWI   

Wednesday: Stephen Strasburg (6-5 3.24) vs. Marco Estrada (6-4 5.22) 1:10 pm MLB Network 

Five Things To Watch 

1.) Happy to be home - Milwaukee has spent 15 of the last 18 on the road. They did pretty well winning eleven of those 15 games including the current four game winning streak the Brewers are on as they head back to Miller Park for the week. The only series they have lost in that time span was the one at home versus Cincinnati. Hopefully, Washington doesn't pose too much of a problem. They won their last two games, and the Nationals beat Milwaukee two out of three last season at Miller Park.

2.) Aramis Ramirez month to continue? - It is the hot topic of the Brewers offense right now. Aramis Ramirez exploded on the West Coast and hopes to keep it going against Washington. He will be facing three tough pitchers with only have real success and experience against Jordan Zimmerman. Ramirez is flourishing hitting behind Carlos Gomez and his hitting streak right now because it always seems like Rami has a duck or two on the pond to drive in consistently. Ramirez being healthy and playing at this level is so important to the Brewers being a deep postseason contender.  

3.)  Jordan Zimmermann returns to Wisconsin -  One of Wisconsin's own returns to the home state which I am sure the folks at FS Wisconsin will talk a great deal about in the coming days. Zimmerman is one of the better pitchers in baseball for the month of June. In four starts, he has only allowed three total runs with scoreless outings in two of them. The last two times through he has seen barely any run support as Washington has only given him one run in the last two outings. Against Milwaukee, he has been virtually unhittable with a sub-one ERA at Miller Park in the last three years. Brewers will have a tall task Tuesday night.  

4.) Time to strike - St. Louis is five and a half games back of Milwaukee currently. Both Jaime Garcia and Michael Wacha are on the Disabled List with shoulder issues. St. Louis is embarking on a three-team West Coast trip where they will be playing Los Angeles and San Francisco. Milwaukee needs to make a dent here in the division. I am not saying this race will be over by any means as Cincinnati and Pittsburgh are hanging around too, but Milwaukee can definitely tack on some games to their lead before the All-Star Break. 

5.) Possible playoff preview - Who knows how the cookie will crumble but these two teams could meet in the playoffs. They see each other again right after the All-Star Break in Washington for three games so a tone can be set. I don't know if winning four of six will really make that much of an impact come October, but it is still nice to know you can beat a team you might see in the playoffs.  

Appropriate YouTube Video


In honor of playing our nation's capital, let's get a little American in this blog post. Also I am emotionally hungover from Sunday's World Cup and need a bounce back.

Prediction 
Honestly, I want to say Milwaukee can get two out of three, but with two great Washington pitchers, I don't really feel comfortable saying they can grab two here. Brewers will have to manage with a one win this week.

Charlie. 

Highlights-Lowlights: Brewers vs. Rockies (6/20-6/22)

This is SnoTap's version of recap of the two, three or four game series Milwaukee Brewers will play this season. We focus on the positives and negatives with topics about the game and topics that were nowhere near close to part of the game

Highlights
Jean Segura - This is more for his Friday than anything else he did over the weekend, but Segura came into Coors Field with a bang. He doubled his home run total with two dingers, his first multi-homer game of his career. They were important home runs too as Segura hit the first one after Colorado added two runs to pull the Rockies within one early on. Segura's second home run broke a tie and brought the Brewers back from trailing 6-4. He also added an RBI single in the next at-bat to complete the day. Segura can start building off this piece by piece he could get going again on offense.

Wily Peralta - Most people would look at a start where the pitcher gave up four runs and scoff he didn't really do his job, yet I disagree with how Coors Field been playing this season. Peralta went into the eighth inning with full control of the game. One of the things Brewers coaches have been trying to do more with Wily is him pitching to contact versus trying to get the strikeout every time out. He only had two strikeouts and really settled in after a tough first inning. Wily isn't yet an ace, but games like these where he needs to have a different approach shows ace-like abilities.

Aramis Ramirez - RED HOT. HOT HOT HOT. Rami usually does this in June and it is a sight to see really. He added a home run in the last two games, and his average has went from .261 10 games ago to .297. In his last eleven games, Ramirez is hitting .463 with nine extra-base hits. Further in the last four games, Ramirez has at least two hits. This is when the Brewers can really start cooking as Ramirez becomes damn near unpitchable and can win a game nearly by himself.

Scooter Gennett/Rickie Weeks - Good weekend to be a Brewers second basemen. Gennett got it going on Friday night with three hits including two doubles plus scoring on all three hits. The lead-off spot is paying off dividends as Scooter's average is up to .310 on the season. Weeks took over the spot over the weekend and added an RBI triple Saturday plus a two-hit game on Sunday. It will be interesting to see if Weeks gets a third straight start as Milwaukee faces another lefty or if Ron Roenicke will give Scooter a chance against a left-handed pitcher.

Carlos Gomez - The hitting and the on-base streak continue as Gomez pushes it out to 18 games with 35 straight on-base. He had multi-hit games on both Friday and Saturday along with driving in a run on Friday. Gomez continues to be one of the best Brewers on the team and continues to prove why he needs to start in the All-Star Game this coming July.

Lowlights
Colorado's Wild Pitch - Since MLB's videos do not want to work on Blogger, watch it here if you haven't already, but it is straight Micky Mouse silliness from the Rockies. I don't know how that happens. It feels like a computer glitch in MVP Baseball or something. It sums up the weekend though for Colorado's pitching staff whom gave up 28 runs over the weekend. These teams will meet again for four games this weekend in Milwaukee.

Marco Estrada - I am still not wild about anything Marco Estrada is doing right now for this team. He gave up seven earned runs on Friday and only three of them came from the home run. He shockingly got the win in the game against the Rockies, but there is really no reason for Estrada to be starting for this team. Estrada is the one problem for this team and Ron Roenicke will not believe it for reasons I cannot explain.

Francisco Rodriguez - Not the best Sunday for Frankie. Milwaukee held a two-run lead, and would have blown the save if it were not for a baserunning error by Corey Dickerson. Even though this was nerve-wracking, it is important for Rodriguez to have these kind of outings every now and again. I realize that sounds like flawed logic, but K-Rod cannot rest on his laurels knowing improvements are always needed.

Brandon Kintzler - Once again, not a great weekend for him. He battled through Sunday's outing with giving up three hits but finding a way out of the inning. Friday, he gave up a run which would make back-to-back outings. Hopefully, we are not going through another dip for Kintzler because it hurts how Milwaukee manages their bullpen.

Charlie.

Brewers-Rockies Preview (6/20-6/22)

Brewers previews to get you ready for the series where we have five things to watch, pitching matchups and prediction. We add a YouTube video in the mix, it could be really anything.   

Pitching Matchups 

Friday:     Marco Estrada (5-4 4.82) vs. Christian Bergman (0-1 3.75)  7:40 pm FSNWI 

Saturday: Wily Peralta (7-5 2.98) vs. Christian Fredrich (0-0 0.00)       3:10 pm FSNWI   

Sunday:    Kyle Lohse (8-2 3.09) vs. Tyler Matzek (1-1 3.75)              3:10 pm FSNWI 

Five Things To Watch 

1.) Exorcising Coors Field's Demons - In the last two years, Milwaukee has won one of six games at Coors Field. This is not a place that treats the Brewers well in the past couple years. Brewers have not won a series in Denver since 2005 (To be fair, Milwaukee got a split in 2011 during a four-game series at Coors Field). That was nine years ago! Victor Santos and Chris Capuano were the winning pitchers of the series. WES HELMS hit a home run in the first win of the series. Hopefully, things can change this weekend.

2.) Marco Estrada's Do or Die Start - Everyone expecting the worst with Marco Estrada tonight at Coors Field. I really do believe if Estrada struggles again tonight, Jimmy Nelson will face Colorado next weekend at Miller Park. Estrada has been downright awful in the last month or so. Estrada needs to avoid the walks without question because he will probably give up a home run or two tonight, that's the expectation. Everyone is expecting a dumpster fire so hopefully Estrada will use that as motivation and deliver a complete gem. 

3.) Trying to avoid Troy Tulowitzki - We always talk about Brewers killers, but maybe the most notable and the President of the whole thing is Troy Tulowitzki. Whenever he faces Milwaukee, he mashes against the Brewers. In the last three years, Tulo has 24 hits against Milwaukee with a little over half of them being for extra-base hits including five home runs. This equates to an average of about .358.  For the season, Tulowitzki has 18 home runs with batting .356 having an MVP-like season as well as three of his last seven games featured three hit games.  

4.) Dealing with a no-hit team - The last game Colorado played they did not fare well losing 8-0 with Clayton Kershaw no-hitting them striking out 15 batters. Colorado is come in pissed wanting to make a point. Now, they were swept by the Dodgers where Colorado only scored three runs. Is the regression monster looming given how outrageous their offensive numbers have been this season and Milwaukee catching them at the right time?  Or is this a case of Colorado being a wildly inconsistent baseball team?   

5.) Carlos Gomez hit and on-base streak deserves attention - I don't know why people haven't talked about Carlos Gomez's streaks right now. He reached on-base 32 straight games whether it be on a walk, error or base hit. Gomez also has a 15-game hitting streak going which is the best of his career. Honestly, I believe Gomez can have a field day at Coors Field. It seems like a place where he could completely rake and have a massive series. 

Appropriate YouTube Video


I have to go with the Dumb and Dumber line about John Denver. So good every time.

Prediction 
As much as I want to think the Brewers will reverse their luck here and take a couple games, I have them winning one. Let's go with Peralta's start on Saturday.  Usually when the opposing team has three pitchers with a combined four total MLB starts plus one making their Major League debut would give you encouragement, Milwaukee makes those guys look like Cy Young. Even one win gives the Brewers a .500 West Coast trip.   

Highlights-Lowlights: Reds vs. Brewers (6/13-6/15)

This is SnoTap's version of recap of the two, three or four game series Milwaukee Brewers will play this season. We focus on the positives and negatives with topics about the game and topics that were nowhere near close to part of the game

Highlights
Yovani Gallardo - Who knows what changed with Yovani in the last couple starts, but he has come back to life. Gallardo delivered another great start only allowing one run in seven innings giving up six hits with eight strikeouts. In the last two starts, Gallardo allowed only one run striking out 16 batters with only 10 hits off of him. Yovani is not going to be this good all the time, but it is refreshing to see him bounce back after the brutal six-game stretch. You wonder if it motivated him to see Kyle Lohse starting to get attention as the quote 'ace' of the staff. I could be looking too far into it, but Gallardo does seem to be handling opposing batters like he did at the start of the year.

Scooter Gennett - You think he likes the lead-off spot? In the last four starts for Scooter Gennett, he has two hits in each of the games. He really does seem to flourish in a spot where Gennett says he is the most comfortable. He had two doubles on Saturday and added another one yesterday which drove in a run therefore he is not just getting on-base with singles, Gennett adds a little bit more. It would be great if he started taking more walks. Gennett's OBP is only .335 which isn't good for a player hitting .296.

Carlos Gomez - He continued his hitting ways this week as Gomez extended his hitting streak to 13 games. Gomez added a big hit on Friday night driving in the game-tying run. Gomez had two hits on Sunday as well as the run scored to tie Saturday's game. It is fair to say Gomez is the straw that stirs Milwaukee's drink. He helped ignite all of the big Brewers innings this weekend. Even though he dropped to fourth place in the All-Star voting, I think it is guarantee he will be in his second-straight All-Star Game.

Khris Davis - He started the scoring attack on Friday night with a solo home run off Homer Bailey, Davis' first home run since June 5th against Minnesota. Davis had a productive groundout Saturday to tie the game late on Saturday as well. The most important thing is Davis hasn't wavered after the hot streak he had in late May. He could have faltered a little bit, but Davis remained consistent throughout the last 10 games which is encouraging to see from a young player.

Ryan Braun's home run - He didn't really have a highlight weekend as Braun only had one hit during the weekend dropping his average to .281, the lowest its been since April 23rd. But we will not worry about that right now. Braun hit his first meaningful home run of the year. Eighth inning with one out and a runner on second, he hits an opposite field home run. People are waiting on Braun to get hot again, and with two hitter-friendly ballparks, he might have an opportunity to breakout.

Lowlights
Marco Estrada's home runs - They continue to be a problem for this Brewers team. He gave up homers to Billy Hamilton, Todd Frazier and Brandon Phillips allowing for the first five runs of the game. Milwaukee came back to tie the game at three only to see Estrada giving up a two-run shot in the subsequent inning. It is not good right now. He didn't even walk a batter today. They were all gopher balls. Estrada is a problem on this Brewers roster right now. I don't know how starting him again will help this Brewers team because it seems like a given Estrada giving up at least one homer.

Matt Garza's defense - PUKE. Matt Garza's defense reared its ugly head on Friday night with a short-arm throw to second base and airmailing a ball into the stands later in the game. He had four unearned runs. Garza actually pitched great if it weren't for the errors as he only gave up an earned run. Garza's next start is against Arizona, and I fully expect them to try to bunt more offense plus try to put more pressure on him as teams will notice this start.

Rob Wooten - Not the best outing for Mr. Wooten. He gave up six straight hits and allowed five runs. He is the first pitcher since John Gelnar in 1970 to give up six straight hits in an appearance without getting an out. Let's chalk this up to a bad outing by him. It is a bummer to see because the Brewers had a chance to get back into this game only being down a run and Wooten puked all over his shoes. It happens now and again unfortunately.

Francisco Rodriguez - Yes he got a save on Saturday night, but he blew the game on Friday night. That's one you would have loved the Brewers to have after coming back from a four-run deficit, but K-Rod gave up a run leading to Cincinnati's win. I have no idea what's wrong with closers when they are playing in non-save situations, but the wheels always seem to come off for them. Hopefully, Frankie will find the secret of pitching in non-save situations.

Irving Falu - Ron Roenick gave Jean Segura a night off on Friday night, and it did not work well for the Brewers.  The now-Nashville player Irving Falu added a couple errors to give Milwaukee four on the night with him and Garza's ineptitude on defense. He also came up multiple times in big spots with runners on and Falu went like a fart in the wind. Happy to see him back in Nashville.

Charlie.

Highlights-Lowlights: Brewers-Mets (6/10-6/12)

This is SnoTap's version of recap of the two, three or four game series Milwaukee Brewers will play this season. We focus on the positives and negatives with topics about the game and topics that were nowhere near close to part of the game.

Highlights
Jonathan Lucroy - Is this guy real life right now? Johnny Luc had another big series to cap off a fantastic eight-game road trip. He hit a two-run homer on Thursday night to break a 1-1 tie in the 13th inning as well added a run in on Tuesday night. Lucroy is currently hitting .336, but he had his average at .341 yesterday. No matter what happens with the All-Star game, Lucroy needs to be under consideration for the National League MVP right now. He is near the top of every offensive category other than home runs, but others have shown us in this era, home runs don't really matter in an MVP conversation. Lucroy handled this pitching staff perfectly and done a great job offensively.

Aramis Ramirez- Quietly, Aramis has came back pretty nicely for this Brewers team. He broke their home run drought comparable to my experiences on Tinder on Thursday night with a second-inning homer plus he added two more hits last night. In the first eight games back, Ramirez has six hits along with two home runs moving his average up to .261. I don't know if Ramirez will get warm here, but if he does, watch out. He's been known to just obliterate the baseball for a couple weeks.

Carlos Gomez - Does anyone know Gomez is on a 10 game hitting streak? Maybe, I am just a Luddite and missed this whole thing yet Gomey is playing pretty prettay well. He had hit in every game of the road trip. Gomez had multiple hits in three of these games including back-to-back games with runs driven in on Monday and Tuesday. He is in the starters group for the All-Star Game and he deserves it. The last time Gomez had an average under .300 was May 21st. Oddly enough, the last time he wasn't hitting in the cleanup position.

Wily Peralta - Milwaukee's manager Ron Roenicke asked Peralta to pitch more to contact and not try to strike out everybody in attempt to avoid his pitch count rising up. He did that on Wednesday night only striking out three batters. Peralta only allowed four hits through six and third inning with only one run allowed. Even though it was only three runs, Peralta actually had some run support to work with this game instead of Milwaukee putting up only one or two runs.

Brandon Kintzler - Is it really a highlight even when you have 40 pitches in two innings with four walks? I am going with yes because no runs were allowed in those two innings. Kintzler bridged the gap in two big innings, and he found a way to get it done. Sure, they were two Claudio Vargas-like innings and he got a favorable strike three at the very end, but still, a needed performance. Hopefully, he will figure out a bit because Kintzler will not always get this lucky all the time.

Lowlights
Ryan Braun - He does have hits and a run scored in the last two games, but Braun has seen his average dip to .294. It is a little flawed because he went one for seven last night in a 13 inning game. The more alarming thing is the amount of strikeouts. Braun has struck out at least once in the last six games and struck out three times last night. It could be the stadiums, and Braun needs some Miller Park love then heading to two hitter-friendly ballparks after it.

Marco Estrada - Another bad start for Marco as his home run and walk totals continue to rise at troublesome rates. Estrada gave up six runs on Tuesday night including a grand slam to Taylor Teagarden. We can argue all day if Ron Roenicke left him too long, but the fact remains Estrada cannot be giving up home runs to guys like that plus having all four walks score is never a good thing. The drum for Jimmy Nelson or Mike Fiers will continue to get louder.

Jean Segura - He is playing some great defense right now, and he did drive in a run on Wednesday night yet Segura is still struggling at the plate. In the last seven days, Segura is hitting .154 with only four hits in 26 at-bats. Granted, he added two of those last night, but hopefully, he will break out of his slump soon. I am curious to see where his spot in the order will be at the end of the day. It seems like like eighth or seventh when it is all said and done.

RISP problems - Once again, this has been a problem for the Brewers. On Tuesday night, they started to mount a comeback with runners on second and third with one out before both Aramis Ramirez and Khris Davis struck out. They would do the exact same thing on Wednesday night in the first inning. Too many men are getting left on-base right now. It is hard to complain with wins in four of the last five games, but still, Milwaukee needs to be a little more productive when runners are on third or second.

Charlie.

Brewers-Mets Preview (6/10-6/12)

Brewers previews to get you ready for the series where we have five things to watch, pitching matchups and prediction. We add a YouTube video in the mix, it could be really anything.   

Pitching Matchups
Tuesday: Marco Estrada (5-2 4.19) vs. Daisuke Matsuzaka (2-0 3.21) 6:10 pm FSNWI
Wednesday: Wily Peralta (5-5 3.03) vs. Jacob deGrom (0-2 3.19) 6:10 pm FSNWI
Thursday: Kyle Lohse (7-2 3.27) vs. Jonathon Niese (3-3 2.68) 6:10 pm FSNWI

Five Things To Watch
1.) Catching New York at the right time? - All the sudden, the bottom has sort of fallen out of the Mets season. They were hovering around the .500 mark after taking three of four from Philadelphia, but then they were swept by both Chicago and San Francisco resulting in a disappointing end to their road trip. Although, none of their losses have been blowouts by any means. Five out of the six games, New York lost by two or less runs with the only one being a three-run defeat. While New York is losing games, they could have easily won three or four of them becoming one of the warmer teams in baseball. Milwaukee shouldn't take them lightly despite the six-game losing streak

2.) Patience Brewers fans, late-game winners could be possible - These could be three really frustrating games for everyone involved in watching the Brewers. New York has the starting pitching to make them a a competitive team, but they have one of the worst, if not the worst bullpen in all of baseball. New York has only converted 56 percent of their save opportunities this season. That's barely half! This explains all of the close losses this season, and as someone whom watched Milwaukee's 2012 bullpen puke all over their shoes consistently, I can relate with Mets fans on this one. It is literally one of the worst things to watch as a fan. If New York finds an offensive breakout which is about as probable as me hitting it off with a supermodel,  all hope is not lost with the Mets bad bullpen. Brewers will get a chance to comeback if they do trail in a game this week.

3.) Ideal situation for Marco Estrada? - The last month has not been kind to Marco Estrada. On April 26th, Estrada had an ERA of 2.87 and now it is sitting around 4.19 with the Brewers starter giving up 16 runs in his last four starts. He needs a good start. Enter in the New York offense which has been anemic all season plus Citi Field is as big of a pitcher's park as we get in baseball. This seems like the door opening for Estrada to have a big start and start trending back down with his earned run average. Curious to see how he handles the pressure of Michael Fiers being up in the big leagues because we all know what the story will be tonight if Estrada struggles again.

4.) New York media and Ryan Braun - We have talked about a little bit on the podcast, but not really in the blogs yet how the media has been generally quiet on Ryan Braun. Although with the New York media involved this week, you have to figure Braun will see some attention. I don't know if we will get a scathing editorial or a good story on Braun yet I am curious to see if he is a part of the media's plan this week. My assumption would be unless he does something big in a game this week, it will probably be pretty tame. With New York Yankees being in Seattle this week, all of the New York media's focus can be on Braun taking on the Mets. I assume he will get some boos as well which we all know Braun uses as fuel to mash home runs.

5.) Can Milwaukee build a winning streak? - Brewers have a chance to go 13 games over .500 at some point in this series, and that would be their best record since their 20-7 mark at the end of April. They finally won two straight after alternating wins since last Tuesday. It is not a bad thing per say rather just annoying to toy with my emotions trying to decide whether this team is warming up or not. Honestly though, one more win and the team secures a .500 road trip which all you can ask for.

Appropriate YouTube video


KFC from Barstool Sports is one of the biggest Mets fans out there. He would be a good Twitter follow this week and for other purposes too, he also has a great podcast network. Here's a sample.

Prediction 
Brewers take two of three meaning the Mets break their streak at some time. Niese or deGroom will make the Brewers bats go silent, most likely deGroom.

Charlie.

Highlights-Lowlights: Twins-Brewers (6/2-6/5)

This is SnoTap's version of recap of the two, three or four game series Milwaukee Brewers will play this season. We focus on the positives and negatives with topics about the game and topics that were nowhere near close to part of the game.

Highlights
Jonathan Lucroy - We have talked a lot about him in the highlights section. He is almost a given Lucroy is somehow featured, but Luc is having a great season.  He added a little power this week doubling his home run total having two home runs this week. He also added multi-hit games in Monday and Thursday's game with scoring runs in three of the four games.  Lucroy hit both dingers late in the game giving his team much-needed insurance runs in both wins.

Matt Garza - We have been critical on the blog of one bad inning that would come back to bite Garza, but this Monday, we got the full Matt Garza greatness. He pitched really well going six and a third innings with eight strikeouts and only giving up six hits. Garza seemed in control of all his pitches and did not really get phase when Minnesota started to threaten a little bit. He mixed his pitches real nicely. Hopefully, we can seeing this more from Garza.

Aramis Ramirez - Quite the way to welcome yourself back to the roster by hitting a three-run bomb on Wednesday night to tie the game on Wednesday night. Ramirez mashed the ball and looked like he's been on the roster all season. He added a hit on Thursday which resulted in a run as Khris Davis hit a go-ahead two-run homer. It is good to have Ramirez back in the lineup and makes the Brewers that much more a dangerous offense. What to watch this weekend is how he plays third base. My guess is he will play two of the three games, probably missing Saturday's game.

Khris Davis -  A man-crush is growing with Davis. The last 15 to 20 games has shown great improvement by Davis in all facets of his game. Taking a tough pitch the other way and it results in a home run is a fine piece of hitting from Davis. Arguably the best we have seen from Davis in his career. He has a hit in his last three games including scoring at least one run. Davis' average is up to .259, the highest its been since April 23rd. Davis seems to be really taking all the coaching to heart and putting it on the diamond.

Carlos Gomez - What a Thursday night for him. It has been awhile since we had a Carlos Gomez game where he finds a way to get himself involved in many ways of the game. He made a great catch that included a DX crotch chop at the end of it. Gomez hit a big three-run homer the half-inning after Wily Peralta gave up a grand slam. Gomez has a hit in his last four games and scored a run in the last three of them. The average might be down slightly but Gomez played a large part in Thursday's win.



Lowlights
Yovani Gallardo - Is it time to push the panic button on Yovani?  The last six starts his ERA has been 6.55 and in the last three of four games, Gallardo gave up at least two home runs. It is a complete mess for him right now. Gallardo went through these struggles last season around the same time of the season. He went on the Disabled List and figured some stuff out and finished strong. He is nibbling a bunch on the corners in an attempt to make the perfect pitch. Gallardo doesn't trust his pitches, and that's a problem.

Double plays - Hopefully, this is a trend that ends with Minnesota. Milwaukee had players on bases throughout the four game series yet they hit into seven double plays. Brewers could have definitely swept the Twins had it not been for the double play monster especially on Tuesday. That's a killer for this team as they are built on the home run so you hope every now and again, they can do it without one.

Will Smith - This was bound to happen at some point, right? Smith is finding a little bit of regression which is perfectly okay because let's be real, no one is expecting Smith to be a sub one ERA reliever for the entire season. Smith will also be fine. There is no reason to panic. He needs to rework his command a little bit, and it will be fine for him.

Stranded Runners - This has been a small theme to the season. Brewers end up having a player on third base with one or two out, and they fail to drive them in. This goes along with the double play business, but also this team needs to be more opportunistic because when they are hitting, this offense can put up five to six runs nightly.

Charlie.

Don't Waste Time Worrying About MLB All-Star Game Starters

A wise man once said 'MLB All-Star Game starters are a popularity contest."  That wise man once said that to me a couple weeks ago. The second week of voting came out, and Brewers officially have no starters currently. Ryan Braun sits sixth, Jonathan Lucroy third, Jean Segura third, Aramis Ramirez third and Carlos Gomez fifth. There was some outrage last week, and it is continuing this week. This is one thing where people really shouldn't look too far into it, and fans shouldn't take it personally if their players do not become starters.

In all honesty, two of these players are clear All-Stars after the first two months of the season and it is Gomez and Lucroy. They have both played great this season. Everyone knows it whose watching Milwaukee this season. But this is all about the casual fans and teams featuring very public fanbases. As for Gomez, the national media made him out to be a bat-flipping hot head with one regional Sports Illustrated cover. This is how things go with a small market baseball player without much national appeal. It is such a tired thing to say but if Gomez played in Los Angles or New York, he would be a top vote-getter without question.  

Lucroy is playing like one of the best players in baseball, but he is in a tough spot. Catchers are premium position in the National League with some of the biggest names in baseball. San Francisco has Buster Posey. St. Louis has Yadier Molina. Atlanta has Evan Gattis.. oh shit wait that doesn't make sense. Yes, it is a joke Gattis is even in this discussion with Lucroy, Molina and Posey, but it is due to the large public fanbase of Atlanta around the whole South. It is not about the votes inside the ballpark. Some fan tweeted a Milwaukee radio personality outraged about all the ballots on the ground at Miller Park Monday night. Those votes are minuscule compared to what's being done on the Internet.

The best part about the month of June is the Brewers will be traveling for a great deal of it. If they continue their strong play and show opposing teams fanbases what they are missing on a nightly basis maybe the votes will increase for the non-public Brewers like Lucroy and Gomez.  Starting an All-Star Game is special, but at the same time, it really doesn't matter after the introduction. Most of the players get into the game plus there are so many replacement players, it is really hard to have a true blue snub for the All-Star Game especially when it comes to the offense players on the roster. Pitchers can be another story since a portion of them are not selected by the fans. 

If you really want to point where the flaws run deep in the voting system is Aramis Ramirez is the third-leading vote getter at third base. Granted, the third base options are weaker than a freshman high schooler's bird legs, but still, Ramirez has barely played in a month. It is all off name recognition thus why the Brewers aren't seeing more guys as top vote-getters. Ramirez is nowhere near an All-Star this season, but his name is one many fans know across the country hence why he is getting votes.

These things also have a slow build to them. If a player keeps playing well, the other fanbases start noticing whether it be due to fantasy baseball or something like FanDuel. Both Gomez and Lucroy will make a push towards the top with Braun maybe coming close to taking the top two outfield spots. Right now, the Brewers will have three or more All-Stars. They keep playing well that number should swell greater. This is nothing to waste energy on. 

Charlie. 

Cubs-Brewers Preview (5/30-6/1)

Brewers previews to get you ready for the series where we have five things to watch, pitching matchups and prediction. We add a YouTube video in the mix, it could be really anything.   

Pitching Matchups
Friday:     Travis Wood (5-4 4.35) vs. Marco Estrada (4-2 3.98)    7:10 pm FSNWI
Saturday:  Jason Hammel (5-3 3.08) vs. Wily Peralta (4-4 2.12)      3:10 pm FSNWI
Sunday:    Jeff Samardzija (1-4 1.68) vs. Kyle Lohse (6-1 2.92)      1:10 pm FSNWI

Five Things To Watch
1.) Whose bat stays the hottest? - If you didn't hear the Brewers are have a 10-game streak going where
they have 10 hits or more hits and if they get 10 tonight, it ties the franchise record set in 2011. Carlos Gomez and Khris Davis both have hitting streaks going as well Jonathan Lucroy has a hit in nine of his last 10 games. At some point, the bottom has to fall out a little bit on the offense. Not all of these guys can remain hot, but who really knows with this team. My vote is definitely not Friday as Brewers bats have thrived off left-handed pitchers all year.

2.) Big time Braun series - I have a feeling this will be the series where Braun hits multiple home runs and we proclaim "HE'S BACK." It seemed like he had a different pep in his step on Wednesday night. He was stealing bases, running a little better and naturally making good contact. Braun is due for a big series to get in on all the fun the rest of the guys in the lineup are having right now. Currently, the Brewers slugger has a sneaky five-game hitting streak with multiple hits in three of them. It seems like this is the type of thing that happens before Braun goes completely off and he loves Cubs pitching.

3.) No easy pitchers this weekend - Two out of the three pitchers (Hammel and Wood) dazzled against the Brewers this season already, one with a shutout and the other with one mistake to Rickie Weeks. The other (Samardzija) is pitching like a Cy Young on a last place team. I will say this about Hammel and Wood though. Both of these pitchers faced the Brewers when they were terribly beaten up with injuries. I'm interested to see how they both handle the Brewers at near full strength. Both pitched well in their last outing so it could one of those things where something has to give and I am betting on the Brewers bats personally given what we saw this week already.

4.) 7th inning blues hopefully disappearing - For the season, the Brewers are averaging .5 runs in the seventh inning which ranks 19th in MLB, and obviously, the last six games haven't helped one bit. Good news, the Cubs are one of the worst teams at producing runs in the seventh inning at 26th. For reference, Baltimore is in the top ten at producing runs in the seventh. I might be grasping for straws here looking for answers, but I am starting to believe it is a little bit of an aberration of one series. I could also be totally wrong and it continues to be a problem this weekend.

5.) Marco Estrada home run watch - I realize this has been a personal conquest of mine this season, but Estrada has given up 16 home runs already this season which leads all of baseball. Roof should be open, but I don't know if the panels will be open as well meaning some balls might stay in the park. But the Cubs have a great deal of power with Anthony Rizzo, Junior Lake and Starlin Castro. Estrada needs one of those games where he dominates in all facets instead of 'Well Marco pitched great except for the two home runs he gave up."

Appropriate YouTube video


I wanted to go with some Kanye West after hearing some snippets of his first single, but let's ride with the best of Harry Carey done by Will Ferrell.

Prediction
A sweep would be awesome, but with the pitchers lined up for this one, it is reasonable for me to expect two out of three in some way.

Charlie.