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.

Highlights-Lowlights: Reds-Brewers

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
Wily Peralta - The young Brewers pitcher continue to dazzle in the last couple outings. He pitched great against Cincinnati going seven innings strong with three hits allowed, one run earned and five strikeouts. Peralta seemed in full control all game long with great command and did not face many problems all game long. In the last two starts, Peralta pitched 15 innings only allowed six hits and striking out 10 batters. The last part is key, it seems like Wily is pitching more to contact than anything else which is important.

Ryan Braun - I wanted to write a longer blog post about Braun, and I might do it on Friday regardless of how he plays against New York. Braun seems fully healthy for the first time all season. He had another great series against Cincinnati. Braun went 5 for 12 in the series driving in five runs with a home run as well. He is in complete control of his swing whether it be pulling the ball or taking to the opposite field.

Zach Duke - When Milwaukee signed Zach Duke in the offseason, I didn't think much of it. Personally, I thought Duke wouldn't be on the roster by this time, or I would hate him like I did Mike Gonzalez. Duke is the best left-hander in baseball in terms of ERA. He struck out the side in the eighth inning of Tuesday night's game. Duke also came in to get out Billy Hamilton in the seventh inning with two outs and a runner on second.  He is one of the MVP's of the Milwaukee team thus far.

Mark Reynolds - Honestly, I had no idea if Mark Reynolds still existed with this Brewers team. He went radio silent for two months of the season then came through in a major way on Wednesday afternoon. Reynolds hit two home runs pushing the Brewers ahead by two runs and then added a solo shot in the eighth putting Milwaukee up by four runs and ensuring Francisco Rodriguez didn't have pitch for a third straight game. Hopefully, this is one of Reynolds' hot streak for the next couple of weeks.

Jean Segura - For the first time in a long time, Segura made an impact in a baseball game on the offensive side of the game. Segura had two hits on Monday night, one being a triple where he ended up scoring on a bad throw by the Reds defense, and he ignited the inning in the fourth scoring on Carlos Gomez's ground-rule double.

Lowlights
Instant Replay - If Major League Baseball is going to have instant replay, they need to use it right. Zach Cosart attempted to bunt the baseball to move the runners over, but the ball hit the bat plus his hand to go with it. The umpiring crew thought Cosart was hit by a pitch when in reality, it was a foul ball. Umpires felt sorry for Cosart because he had an injury. Simple as that. MLB needs to call it like they see it instead of trying to aid the player because he got hurt on the play. It doesn't mean shit, he still swung at the baseball.

Roenicke's not pulling Jimmy Nelson - With having a sweep, there is not much to complain about truthfully, but the manager of the Brewers had a couple mistakes this week with the pitching staff. Roenicke is damn lucky Jimmy Nelson did not get roughed up in the seventh when he gave up two straight singles then 'hit' two batters allowing a run in. Nelson still pitched great, but he could have really had a start spoiled in the seventh with Roenicke leaving him in too long.

Duke's one-pitch outing - This is another move by Roenicke that I failed to understand on Wednesday afternoon. Duke had only 13 pitches the night before and Hamilton swung at the first pitch. Duke could have easily stayed out for another inning saving Will Smith whose already pitching way too much for a day. Roenicke's logic on Wednesday afternoon baffled me. There is no reason Duke should have came out of the game.

Knowing these aren't the real Reds - I really hate to be a cynic. I really do, but we all know this isn't the Cincinnati team that owned Milwaukee for the first couple months of the season. They are without Brandon Phillips and Joey Votto plus missing some other pieces as well. Still, it is nice to build some momentum as well as a two and a half game lead in the National League Central.

Charlie.

Highlights-Lowlights: Brewers-Nationals

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 - Milwaukee might be struggling in the month of July, but Braun has found his stroke at the plate. He added hits in all three games this weekend including a two-run homer on Saturday night amid a blowout. Additionally, at least one of Braun's hits scored a run for the Brewers this weekend. If other parts of Milwaukee can get working with Braunie, it would be a beautiful thing. While his average has not went over .300 yet, Braun still rocking an eight-game hitting streak into their home trip this week.

Khris Davis - A good weekend for the young Brewers left fielder who had another home run against Stephen Strasburg on Friday night and drove in a run on Sunday putting the Brewers temporarily ahead in the game. It might be unknown but Davis currently has a seven-game hitting streak for the Brewers. It is good to see him still being able to handle pitching in July. Davis being a reliable hitter is going to help Milwaukee in a major way.

Ryan Zimmerman - Have we officially put Zimmerman on the known Brewer Killer list? He probably deserves a spot there. He had two hits in each game of the series, drove in two runs on Saturday night and hit a game-tying home run on Sunday. While it is encouraging to see how Milwaukee handled Stephen Strasburg, it is discouraging to see how Milwaukee pitchers cannot figure out Zimmerman. He hurt the Brewers all weekend.

Aramis Ramirez - Clutch is such an arbitrary thing to talk about when it comes to sports. I probably talk about it too much, but it is the one 'old man' thing I still like to think exists in sports so sue me. Ramirez came up with a two-run, two out single putting the Brewers up four runs against one of the league's best pitcher. Rami always seems to come through for this team. He added two more hits in Saturday's blowout.

Marco Estrada - I know he has been a whipping boy for this team, but he saved Milwaukee's bullpen on Saturday night. He pitched nearly six innings and yes did give up three runs yet preserved the pen for a team that doesn't have a day off until July 31st.

Lowlights
Matt Garza - Should we really be mad at Garza for his performance on Saturday night?  I am going to say no. There are a couple factors playing in here.  The first one is Garza didn't pitch since last Thursday. From what I gather he is not one to pitch out of his usual five-day rotation and do it well. The second is all of the hits were bullshit. It wasn't like Garza got hit around like a ragdoll in that inning. He caught some bad luck, and yes, Ron Roenicke should have walked Wilson Ramos to face the pitcher instead Ramos drove in two runs putting the Nationals up 5-0.

Mark Reynolds - I believed in Mark Reynolds to start the season. I wanted him to be 'my guy' and be like 'I told you so!!!' at some point. Hell, I nearly bet my buddy Eric that I would get five dollars every time he hits a homer and give him a dollar every time he strikes out. I am glad I decided against taking that bet. Reynolds has been a shell of himself in the last two months, and Milwaukee is back to looking for a power bat for the next two weeks.

Yovani Gallardo - There are certain things in life where you just don't want to believe it to be true like the Lyla Garrity-Tim Riggins relationship (FNL comparsions are going to be heavy in the coming weeks FYI). Everyone keeps saying how Yo cannot pitch in the fourth through sixth innings. Like everything goes to shit and things change for Gallardo. It happened again on Sunday. Milwaukee had given him a two-run lead only to have it evaporate by the sixth inning. He is a third starter at best, more likely a fourth.

Rob Wooten in the Ninth - I don't really get the move by Roenicke on Sunday afternoon. Tom Gorzelanny hasn't allowed a run since coming back from injury albeit not pitching in the most high-pressure situations. He would have seen one or two lefties and could have handled a second inning if he got through the first one. It stresses the need for middle reliever before the trading deadline.

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.

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.  

Brewers-Pirates Preview (6/6-6/8)

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:     Kyle Lohse (7-1 2.60) vs. Brandon Crumpton (0-2 6.85)    6:05 pm FSNWI
Saturday:  Matt Garza (3-4 4.43) vs. Edinson Volquez (3-4 4.25)        3:05 pm FSNWI
Sunday:    Yovani Gallardo (3-4 4.08) vs. Charlie Morton (2-7 3.31) 12:35 pm FSNWI

Five Things To Watch
1.) Continued success for Kyle Lohse - I talked about this a week ago or so, but Lohse is really pitching like an ace. The talks of him being the number one on this staff grew after his 93 pitch complete game shutout on Sunday. So what does he have for an encore? He pitched well against the Pirates in the two times he faced them in April. He nearly went complete at Miller Park, and at PNC, he pitched well with a poor defensive effort behind him. What's weird is many of the good Pittsburgh hitters have good numbers against Lohse in decent sample-sizes with the winner being Jose Tabata hitting over .400 against him.

2.) Dreading a first base platoon - With the Brewers being back in National League ballparks, it means Aramis Ramirez will be moving back to third base. It also means Mark Reynolds and Lyle Overbay will be taking over the role of first baseman. Both players are hitting around the .210 mark, but more importantly, Reynolds has 13 home runs with 10 against right-handed pitchers. I pray on everything holy Ron Roenicke doesn't platoon these two players because there is no reason Overbay should be getting starts over Reynolds for a platoon sake. Personal opinion, I would rather see Hunter Morris as the left-handed first base versus Overbay even though he's probably not as good as a defensive first baseman.

3.) Yovani's redemption? - We already talked about in Highlights/Lowlights regarding how bad Yovani has been in the last six starts. He typically has done well for his career against Pittsburgh. Gallardo needs what Garza got last Monday. A carefree start where he was able to move through the lineup and take care of business. But Garza did that by going right after batters and that's something Gallardo cannot seem to do as of late especially the second time around in the order. Batters are feasting when they see Yovani for a second time around. Something has to change. I have no idea if they can make that quick of a fix, but it is needed as soon as possible.

4.) Pittsburgh is sort of, kinda of, warm right now - Pittsburgh currently sits three games under .500 seven games behind the Brewers. Grantland's Jonah Keri wondered if they were beginning to hit the regression train with their limited spending and pitching decisions. Pittsburgh's fanbase went at Keri like defensive parents at a soccer match. Weirdly, it feels like 2009 Milwaukee in Pittsburgh. But I will say this, they won six of nine games on the West Coast coming into this series. Milwaukee might be heading into a buzzsaw, and Pittsburgh knows damn well it could be in second place by the end of the weekend if it is a really good one (Granted, they would still be several games back, but regardless, it should be motivation).

5.) Which Volquez comes to PNC on Saturday? - One of the players prominently featured in Keri's column is Volquez talking about how bad he has been defensively all season plus giving up eleven home runs in 65 innings pitched. Volquez is having an up and down year truly. He pitched well against the Brewers earlier this season in two starts but has known to hit a wall against Milwaukee. The last couple games for Volquez were solid, he only gave up two runs, but only pitched five innings.

Appropriate YouTube video


I went with a clip from 'She's Out of My League.' One of my sneaky favorite movies and it takes place in Pittsburgh so there you go.

Prediction
I understand Milwaukee beats up Pittsburgh, but something tells me the Brewers could drop two here. I will go against the voice in my head and say they find a way to scrap out two wins.

Highlights-Lowlights: Cubs-Brewers

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 - I told ya. I thought Braun would have a big series, and he did exactly that with two big
performances on Friday and Sunday night. He hit two home runs so we can retire the whole thing about 'Braun cannot hit homers at home' which I don't think really was a thing but I got sick of everyone talking about it. Braun also drove in another run on Friday night plus he scored four times as well in those games. Braun tends to go on these tears for about a week or so meaning it should be a real fun time for Minnesota this upcoming week.

Kyle Lohse - What a game for Lohse needing a little bit of a bounce-back after his Memorial Day start. He finished the game with a three-hit shutout striking out six batters for his seventh win of the season. He messed around and picked up a Maddux as well. He finished the game with 93 pitches. An extremely efficient outing for Lohse on the mound whom seemed in full control. Lohse also did some damage with his bat driving in two runs. He apparently jokes about what a bad hitter he was, but he had Brewers fans fooled on Sunday afternoon. Lohse is pitching better than anyone on this team. Pretty good for a guy some fans believed to be the next Jeff Suppan.

Khris Davis - Sure, his hitting streak ended today at 10 games, but Davis had another big series. He added a hit on Saturday, but the headlines stem from his Friday night performance. Davis had two hits, both doubles and scored on both hits as well making for a very productive day at the plate. Who knows if Davis will hit as high as five again this season, but he seemed very comfortable at there. It is nice to see he can hit at any spot of the order.

Jason Hammel - It is time to annoint Jason Hammel with the Known Brewer Killer crown. He dominated the Crew for the second straight appearance at Miller Park. He did not give up a run once again and remained in control for most of the game. Hammel did not walk one batter, he struck out eight and only gave up four hits. It appears like Hammel will be dealt at some point this season, and Chicago should definitely consider it because he has been one of the brightest spots for the Cubs this season. He will garner some value.

Wei-Chung Wang - I need to give credit where credit is due, and Wang did pretty well in his two appearances this weekend. He pitched well on Friday night not allowing a run and only one hit given up. On Saturday, he did allow a run in his second inning of work, but that was sort of  Braun's fault as he attempted to dive for a ball yet he missed it. It does appear Wang feels comfortable on the home mound which is a good thing, and hopefully, he will start figuring out more stuff becoming an actual option out of the Brewers bullpen.

Scooter Gennett - He deserves this honor for his Sunday performance. Gennett added a home run and two doubles scoring all three times he reached base. Even though everyone else struggled against Hammel, Gennett found some success getting two of the four hits the Cubs hurler gave up on Saturday. Scooter has moved his average up to .281, the highest its been since May 14th against Pittsburgh. If he gets warm, it will only add to the potent Brewers offense.

Lowlights
Cubs accuse Brewers of 'stealing signs' - Oh so this is back? Cubs after Sunday's ass-kicking accused the Brewers of possibly taking some of their signs. This is flat out stupid. This is sour grapes from a team whose ace got dominated for the first time of the season. Guess what? Even the best pitchers have bad starts every now and again, and that's what happened with Jeff Samardzija on Sunday afternoon. The most ridiculous thing about the sign-stealing stuff is how bad the Brewers lost on Saturday. If they were taking signs, you think they would have swept the series, right?

Wily Peralta - Things really got out of hand quickly for the Brewers righty with his first real bad start of the season. He gave up two home runs to Anthony Rizzo and his whole sixth inning went to complete shit with Peralta giving up six runs on only five hits. Peralta did not have his best stuff out there, and the Cubs took advantage of it especially Rizzo. I don't think this is the regression truck coming around rather just an abberation in the game logs. Wily should be just fine for the next start against Minnesota.

Tyler Thornburg - Fair to be a little concerned with him as of late? Thornburg gave up two runs in the ninth on Friday night, and granted, they were meaningless, still Thornburg is having an issue serving up runs. In three of the last four appearances, Thornburg has allowed at least one run.  It is clear he needs to fine tune some of his skills because it appears the opposing teams have a good book on him finally after not being able to figure him out in the bulpen.

Mark Reynolds - Not a good weekend for him. He had five strikeouts this weekend including three at the plate on Friday night. Reynolds didn't really seem comfortable at the plate all weekend. Reynolds' average has dipped to .205.  Good thing, there are other Brewers to pick up the slack where he can be placed lower in the order.

Charlie.

Highlights-Lowlights: Brewers-Braves (5/19-5/22)

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
Kyle Lohse - Brewers really don't have an ace to their staff, but they do have a number one pitcher, right now that's Lohse. No one is pitching better than him on this roster. He continued to dazzle against Atlanta going for eight innings giving up four hits and striking out eight batters with only walked one. Lohse looked in complete control for the full eight innings. He didn't really deal with any sort of problems, and won his six start of the season. Nine out of Lohse's ten starts have seen him go at least six innings.

Jonathan Lucroy - This man is on a complete tear. I know Buster Posey and Yadier Molina hang out in the National League, but Lucroy is playing like an All-Star starter. He is currently eighth in the league in batting average and on-base percentage. Lucroy reached base safely in 11 out of 17 at-bats against Atlanta, and hit over .500 for the season against the Braves. Lucroy is having the best May by far of any Brewers batter, and I do think you seriously have to consider Johnny Luc for the cleanup position even when Aramis Ramirez comes back.

Mark Reynolds - He was the main benefactor as to why Milwaukee won on Wednesday night with his grand slam. Reynolds is not going to give you the base-hits you want all the time, but he will bring the home run power. It is why Reynolds should stay in the lineup because now and again, he will hit a big home run for the team. Yes, he will also strikeout too, but you just roll with the punches there with Reynolds. But keeping him on the bench and starting Jeff Bianchi is not something that will win you baseball games. Simple as that.

Khris Davis - Decent series for him, and it would be great if he got hot at some point. I still believe he is figuring out Major League Baseball pitching even after two months. Davis hit a two-run homer on Monday night to pull the Brewers within two runs of Atlanta before shit hit the fan, and Davis drove in two runs on Thursday. He can hit against left-handers without question, but the struggle comes against the righties. Hopefully, Davis can find his groove in Miami and carry over to the homestand against Baltimore and Chicago.

Ryan Doumit -Known. Brewer. Killer. He always seems to do something against the Brewers, doesn't he? Doumit hit the home run that opened the Wang floodgates on Monday night, and then drove in two runs including the go-ahead on Thursday night. Doumit needs to stay far away from the National League Central.

Lowlights
Ron Roenicke's Decision Making - Not the best week for Ronald. He has been sort of above criticism for the season given how good the Brewers have been, but he is not helping things with all the injuries. There was the Wang decision on Monday which we already discussed, here and here. And then last night was a complete trainwreck with not having someone warm in the bullpen. Will Smith did give up two runs, but ended up getting an out as well. So help me God if he gets hurt in the coming days. Roenicke needs a full deck because he doesn't know how to handle one when it's limited.

Yovani Gallardo's ankle - To make matters worse on Tuesday night, Yovani Gallardo sprained his ankle meaning he could be out for Sunday's game against Miami. He will probably not see any Disabled List time for this one, but it is always disappointing to see a starting pitcher go down. Thankfully, it is just a sprained ankle, and not anything more serious to his legs. I wouldn't push Gallardo starting on Sunday, but the fact, Mike Fiers or Jimmy Nelson isn't up therefore the Brewers don't have a backup plan putting them at odds.

Ryan Braun's side - I feel like Michael Scott seeing Toby again... NOOOO GOD NOOO. Braun looked like he was struggling at the plate, and he pulled himself out of the game on Thursday night. It becomes a waiting game to see if Braun plays tonight. He is a former Miami guy so this series has some meaning to Braun and probably wants to be in the order. My guess is he will play tonight, sit out Saturday and play Sunday. Hopefully, he doesn't have to miss the whole series.

Wily Peralta - I don't think there is a reason to push a panic button on Peralta rather he just had a bad start against a good team. Peralta gave up a home run as well as walked four batters in five innings. Peralta still hasn't given up more than three earned runs in a game so far this season. Just a bad start from Wily, he will be fine.

Charlie.

Brewers-Cubs Preview (5/16-5/18)

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:     Kyle Lohse (4-1 2.75) vs. Jeff Samardzija (0-3 1.45)             1:20 pm FSNWI
Saturday: Matt Garza (2-3 4.98) vs. Edwin Jackson (2-3 4.56)              1:20 pm FSNWI
Sunday:   Marco Estrada (3-1 3.28) vs. Travis Wood (3-4 4.91)           1:20 pm FSNWI

Five Things To Watch
1.) Rickie Weeks weekend - If Rickie Weeks spends any time on the bench, it is clearly out of spite from his manager. We already talked a bit in Highlights/Lowlights this morning regarding the Weeks redemption tour. It needs to continue in Chicago. I realize Scooter Gennett is the future second baseman of this team, but right now, Rickie needs to stay in the lineup before the bottom falls out. Honestly with Carlos Gomez out and the way Weeks excelled in the one hole yesterday, he should just stay there until Gomez comes back hopefully on Sunday. Weeks numbers at Wrigley Field are nothing to write home about, but right now, I don't think any of that matters to him.

2.) Scooter to play third or left field? - Let me keep beating this drum. Scooter Gennett told Joe Block he would be open to playing/learning outfield, but no one has asked him yet. I still cannot believe they haven't talked about putting him at third base although Mark Reynolds' defense looks like Brooks Robinson of late yet we cannot expect that to continue all season. He has a .287 average and to keep him out of the lineup with a struggling offense really hurts the team as a whole. The only real way seems to be for Reynolds to play first base and Scooter third base. It will be interesting to see how this storyline progresses in the next couple of weeks.

3.) Carlos Gomez's health - Hopefully, the Sports Illustrated cover jinx is not a real thing in Milwaukee. Even though he is suspended, it really has to do with his back injury right now. It is a weird situation because the Brewers do not have a day off until May 29th meaning the Brewers probably need to be careful with this one especially with the way Gomez plays the game. I will say the offense looks more quiet without Gomez versus where they were without Ryan Braun. And yes, it doesn't help Aramis Ramirez is out of the lineup as well. Speaking of his cover story, this is an AWESOME comment from Gomez.

#RichPeopleConversations RT @nelses1: Carlos Gomez y'all pic.twitter.com/4FPqQLrn2p”
— Jaymes Langrehr (@JaymesL) May 16, 2014

4.) Struggling Cubs but offense is still potent - Chicago is a weird team. They are 13 games under .500, they have lost nine out of their last eleven games, but in the two wins, Chicago scored 12 and 17 runs. They have also been in extras three times during this struggle session for the Cubs. Additionally, eight of the games have been outside The Friendly Confines. I guess what I am trying to say is... Yes I know the Cubs are 13 games under .500 but they have the ability to score runs, keep games close and find ways to win if their bullpen isn't involved so don't be cocky Brewers.

5.) Chicago's weather issues - It is the middle May, we are a week away from Memorial Day weekend so we should be ready to bust out the tanktops, right? Welp the weekend in Chicago looks like complete shit this weekend minus Sunday. 50 percent chance of rain on Friday, 30 percent chance of rain on Saturday. The nice thing is we have two games during the day meaning we could wait out the rain for awhile plus some of us will be working during the first two games as well.

Appropriate YouTube Video


Rickie Weeks' walkup song right now and one of my favorites in the last six months.  It also is getting played in every NBA arena everywhere. 

Prediction 
Brewers need to get off to a good start to a long 10 game road trip. Winners of their last four of five, I am going with they take Saturday and Sunday. The Shark dominates the Crew this afternoon.

Charlie.

Highlights-Lowlights: Pirates-Brewers (5/11-5/13)

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 - When Marco gave up a first inning home run to Known Brewer Killer Neil Walker, I thought here we go again with Estrada in the month of May. But he proved me wrong taking control of the baseball game from there with six strong innings giving up only five more hits and no more runs after the Walker solo shot. Estrada giving up nine home runs is concerning but expected. He is a fly ball pitcher and he works a ton of change-ups. If one of those hang, it will head out of the ballpark. Estrada's ERA is down to 3.28 after Tuesday's performance, and that's pretty damn good for a back-end starter.

Rickie Weeks - Did you know Weeks is hitting .625 for the month of May? Do you know people still hate Weeks like the plague? Do you know he is the better option at second base right now? Weeks is playing his ass off. He had two opposite field hits on Thursday afternoon with a double and a home run. Weeks had a big RBI pinch hit on Tuesday night. He is on complete fire folks. Either get with it, or get behind. Also, let's stop with the trade nonsense right now. I will write about this next week whether Weeks is still hot or not but it's the wrong move by the Brewers.

Wily Peralta - We need a losing effort horn like The Solid Verbal Podcast because Peralta dazzled again knocking his earned run average to 2.05. Peralta pitched great going seven innings only allowing one run and gave up five hits with striking out four batters. For the season, Peralta only walked 10 batters in eight starts this season, and in the last two, he walked just one batter. The biggest criticism about the young right hander was his control. It seems to be fixed, at least for now, and if that's the case, the Brewers could be looking at a frontline pitcher.

Khris Davis Walk-Off - I wish I could explain Khris's thrill for the dramatics, but it seems like he has it. Three big extra inning hits on the road that all helped the Brewers win baseball games, and then a walk-off hit at home. With this team likely to be contending for a National League Central crown, Davis' ability to be clutch in the moment is a big, big thing. Hopefully, he puts it together in other innings than the ninth or extras though.

Mark Reynolds defense - When Milwaukee signed Mark Reynolds, most people including myself, saw it as a way for the Brewers to add some power, but no one expected him to be this good on defense. He made two run-saving plays on Thursday afternoon including the start of a great double play after Tyler Thornburg walked the first two batters in the eighth. With how bad the Brewers were at defense last season, this is a much-needed boost to their piss poor defense of last season. It's appreciated.

Lowlights
Ron Roenicke has a decision looming and it's terrifying - I have no idea how the whole Scooter and Rickie thing is going to play out. We never had this problem last season because Weeks never really got hot all year minus the one little spurt when Gennett got called up. Roenicke has to know he cannot move Weeks from the lineup, but at the same turn, Gennett is playing too good to keep him on the bench. I hope he just rides the hot hand for awhile and see what happens. Heaven help me if he continues to straight platoon.

Francisco Rodriguez - You know this is a lowlight because it is the reason why the Brewers lost on Wednesday night as Frankie gave up four straight hits leading to three Pirates runs. But it is a good thing. Rodriguez isn't going to be perfect all year. I would much rather have him 'blow up' in a tied game versus him blowing a three-run save or something dumb like that. He did fine on Thursday afternoon and hopefully, it will continue this weekend.

Andrew McCutchen - I don't really call the best players on teams, Known Brewer Killers, unless it is Troy Tulowitzki whose the president of the club. But McCutchen usually does some serious damage against the Brewers. But he went 1 for 12 with only one run scored. It is apparent McCutchen is bothered a bit from his foot injury he sustained on Saturday. I don't think for one season the Brewers figured out McCutchen or something dumb like that. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up on the Disabled List or takes some time off this weekend.

Spotty Brewers offense - Even though they won two of three against the Pirates, it doesn't mean their offense didn't look like complete shit at times. They only scored one run on Wednesday night and nine out of eleven batters before Weeks's single in the eighth inning struck out. Carlos Gomez not being in the offense might be hurting this team more than the Braun injury. The jury is still out on that one, and who knows how long they will be without Gomez yet let me tell you, it isn't that fun.

Charlie.

Smart, not Selfish Move For Rickie Weeks to Decline Outfield Opportunity

Ask most Milwaukee Brewers' fans opinion on Rickie Weeks, you will hear pretty much the same thing. Weeks is a frustrating player to watch as he tends to strike out too much for people's liking and doesn't have the defense, some would like at the second base position. But despite all of the negative fan reaction, rarely do we ever see Weeks react against the fanbase. He never made comments about how he 'hates the booing' or didn't want to be in Milwaukee because Scooter Gennett took his job. Overall, Weeks rolls with the punches and knows he will get an opportunity again.

Over the weekend, Ron Roenicke let the media know Weeks was asked if he wanted to learn left field to get some more playing time and he declined. Many people saw this as a selfish move by Weeks. The Brewers second baseman responded with a huge weekend.  It is really hard to understand the frustration of the fans with Weeks not wanting to learn another position at his age. Left field would have been a terrible idea for Weeks, but now an opportunity presents itself to have Gennett and Weeks both in the lineup.

Weeks is not a left fielder or an outfielder, let's clear that up right now. I might be mistaken, but management whether it be Ken Macha, Ned Yost or Roenicke asked Weeks to try out center field or it might have been a hot topic with the fans. Weeks either declined or it never actually happened. The thing with Weeks is he understands his defense isn't very good. At times, he can be instinctive and make some nice plays, but nothing at second base would make you think Weeks could play another full-time position. He feels the most comfortable at second base, and Weeks will probably not move positions unless it was an absolutely need. It is not about being lazy or selfish, rather knowing and playing to their strengths versus trying to do too much.

One thing people might not be considering about Weeks in the outfield would be the amount of shit he would get from the pinheads in the bleachers. Fans would assault Weeks in left field thinking they could finally give the much criticized player a piece of their mind. Some people believe this wouldn't happen, but Brewers fans are a fickle bunch with insanely high expectations at times. I don't think they would handle having Rickie in left field well despite him playing well in the last week. Weeks knows left field might not be good for his strength of play, but also for him not hear from the fanbase up close and personal.

If Aramis Ramirez goes on the Disabled List before Tuesday night's game, an opportunity presents itself where Weeks and Gennett could get on the field at the same time. Both are hitting over .275 right now, and with the Brewers' injury concerns, they need to be in the lineup. Weeks might not be comfortable in the outfield, but why couldn't he play third base or Gennett for that matter?  Range needed is limited, and I could see the struggle of fielding bunts yet that's about it. Mark Reynolds moved to first base to have all three in the lineup with Lyle Overbay on the bench is the way to be in the next couple of weeks with Ramirez out. Roenicke has shown a little more creativeness this season and hopefully he will think about this in the following couple weeks.

Who knows when Weeks redemption will end, but right now, it is enjoyable to see how well Rickie is excelling. My assumption would be Weeks is on the trading block right now, and they are just waiting for the rest of the team to get healthy, or maybe Brewers are happy to have two strong second basemen.

Charlie.

Highlights-Lowlights: Yankees-Brewers (5/9-5/11)

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
Rickie Weeks - On Saturday night, Rickie Weeks got his chance to start after having five straight pinch hits.
He made the most of two starts this weekend as Weeks went five for nine driving in three runs. Weeks looked absolutely great out there.  The thing about Weeks and this has been true throughout his career, 'When Rickie is right, he is really right.' If I am Milwaukee, I would ride the hell out of his hot streak and see what happens from there. I will have more today about Weeks turning down the chance to play left field.

Mark Reynolds - Nobody really talked about this subplot this weekend, but Reynolds played with a chip on his shoulder this weekend. He played for 36 games for the Yankees last season and struggled mightily for them. Reynolds showed off some great leather at both first and third, sent a homer flying on Friday night and oh by the way, he had a walk off to send Milwaukee home on a late Sunday afternoon. Reynolds' offense has been so valued from this team with all the injuries they have dealt with for the first 40 days of the season.

Jonathan Lucroy - Big weekend for the Brewers catcher as he drove in a run in every game this weekend including his second home run of the year on Saturday. He came up with a big hit on Sunday afternoon with the team in need of a hit as runners were on first and second and the Brewers were stranding base runners left and right. Lucroy is another guy that if he gets warm, look out. We haven't seen red hot Lucroy where he is hitting the ball out of the park consistently and having extra bases all over the place. If he gets warm, it could be added value.

Masahiro Tanaka - I am very happy he will be playing in the American League East this season, and the only other time Milwaukee could see Tanaka would be the World Series. He is the real deal and going to make a push at Cy Young. Tanaka's control is incredible and seems like he could be an ace for this Yankees team in the not-so-distant future.

Will Smith - Currently, the Brewers seem to have revolving door at who is the true set-up man of this team. Right now, the spotlight is on Smith. He pitched in the two wins when Milwaukee was ahead in the eighth inning. Both games Smith utilized his nasty slider to strikeout three batters in two innings. Smith's ERA is currently at 0.45 which is phenomenal for the Brewers left-hander. Smith should never be a left-handed specialist for this team.

Lowlights
Khris Davis - What the hell is going on where with Khris at home? My dad would make the assumption Khris is probably partying too much at home leading him to only hit .100 at the friendly confines of Miller Park. I myself cannot explain it. We have seen it in the past where the Brewers use a home and away platoon. When the Brewers get back to full strength meaning Ryan Braun is healthy and Carlos Gomez isn't suspended, Logan Schafer deserves to get some looks in left field.

Aramis Ramirez's hamstring - Old age is a bitch. Ramirez made what looked like a routine play and heard a pop in his hammy meaning he will likely be headed to the Disabled List. Ramirez had two hits on Saturday with a home run before hurting himself. We will see what happens with his season from here. Hopefully, this is a 15 day thing, but it could be longer, you never really know with hamstrings.

Yovani Gallardo's Fourth Inning - Almost all of the action in Yovani's stat line happened in one inning. He allowed all four runs in the fourth including a three-run homer by Yangrevis Solarte. He gave up four of the five hits given up also in the fourth. Gallardo didn't pitch that well, but curious to see what happens if he doesn't give up the homer.

Matt Garza's First Inning - Another start where Garza looks like complete shit in the first inning and then settles down. This leads me to believe Garza is trying too hard in the beginning of the game. Remember the comments were Garza believes 'he is letting the team down right now.' He could be overthrowing early on then realizes he needs to relax. Hopefully, Garza will find a way to figure out his first inning issues soon because it is a slight concern. Starting 3-0 in the first doesn't really work this well.

Francisco Rodriguez's streak ending - Just bummed to see it leave. Hopefully, Frankie bounces back alright when he faces Pittsburgh or the next team he will face.

Charlie.

Brewers-Reds Preview (5/1-5/4)

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
Thursday: Marco Estrada (2-1 2.87) vs. Homer Bailey (1-2 6.15)      6:10 pm FSNWI
Friday:     Wily Peralta (3-1 2.56) vs. Mike Leake (2-2 3.82)             6:10 pm FSNWI
Saturday:  Yovani Gallardo (2-0 1.91) vs. Johnny Cueto (2-2 1.15)    6:10 pm FSNWI
Sunday:     Kyle Lohse (4-1 2.70) vs. Alfredo Simon (4-1 1.60)         3:10 pm FSNWI

Five Things To Watch
1.) No Disabled List for Braun, Ramirez and Segura return - Brewers decided to send down Elian Herrera and bring up Rob Wooten as Aramis Ramirez and Jean Segura return to the lineup tonight. Ryan Braun will be missing from the lineup for the fifth straight game. There is no Disabled List appearance, but you wonder if he will be there by Saturday when Logan Schafer's stint is up on Saturday. Getting Ramirez and Segura will definitely help this offense, and hopefully, their injuries will not affect their play this weekend.

2.) Why is Wei-Chung Wang on the team? - I am even more convinced if Wei-Chung Wang would get put back with say Seattle or Kansas City, he wouldn't be on this roster, but since, Milwaukee would give him back to Pittsburgh, they want to avoid it if they can. Yet it would be really nice to have Caleb Gindl, a quality outfielder with a little bit of pop. The other thing is Mike Fiers is dominating Nashville right now striking out everybody in sight, and he has already proven to be an adequate long reliever. Same goes for Jimmy Nelson who did okay his first time around.  This is a very timely article from Jim Owczarski from OnMilwaukee about Wang.

3.) Mark Reynolds is playing right field for two games, is this real life? - With Milwaukee only having two infielders, my guess is Reynolds plays right field tonight which could get real ugly. At least Great American Ballpark is bandbox which means it could be easier for Reynolds than other places even like Miller Park. The other thing is keeping  Lyle Overbay's hot bat in the lineup plus add Reynolds' home run ability at GABP is a sneaky part of it and yes, I just talked myself into having Reynolds in right field. Also Dan provides a solid point here.

@SnoTap12 We'll get through it. Can't be any worse than Kotsay in Center in a crucial NLCS game.
— Dan Maciejewski (@dmaciejewski) May 1, 2014

4.) Gallardo vs. Cueto should be quite good - While Yo has been good so far this season, Cueto is having one of the best seasons thus far as a pitcher. He isn't getting run support, but Cueto has not allowed more than five hits in any of his starts this season.  Additionally, he struck out 27 batters in the last three outings. If you want a silver lining, Ramirez handles Cueto pretty well. Gallardo is not a slouch against Cincinnati either. He shut them out three times last season, once at GABP. I think we are in for a dandy on Saturday night.

5.) Great American Ballpark struggle bus - My apologies for not finding the statistics on what Milwaukee's exact record at this stadium, but they have not played well there in the past. Weird shit always tends to happen especially late in games. One of those places that makes you nervous as a fan.

Appropriate YouTube Video


I wish I could have some Skyline Chili. It's freezing in Milwaukee today. Also the mascots are TERRIFYING.

Prediction
I am seeing a split. Cannot expect them to beat both Simon and Cueto plus today's game with a still beat-up bullpen makes me a bit nervous even if Cincinnati is not playing well.