The glass slipper slipped off the Brewers foot last year as the club came crashing back to Earth after a Cinderella run in 2008. Of course, after the free agent departures of longtime ace Ben Sheets and half-season workhorse Carlston Charles Sabathia, the slide wasn’t all together unexpected. The Brew Crew finished the year with a record of 80-82, good for third place in the NL Central.
The club has added a couple of arms for the rotation, but they will not make anyone forget Sheets or Sabathia. The offense is outstanding, but the paucity of starting pitching will condemn the squad to a finish similar to last year.
Key Additions: LHP Doug Davis, OF Jim Edmonds, OF Carlos Gomez, RHP LaTroy Hawkins, LHP Randy Wolf and C Greg Zaun
Key Subtractions: CF Mike Cameron, SS JJ Hardy, C Jason Kendall and RHP Seth McClung
Key Performer, 2010: Manny Parra
Starting Rotation
The Brewers had the worst starting pitching in the National League last season, recording the worst ERA and WHIP in the league, and posting the next-to-worst BAA. They had only one complete game and didn’t record a shutout.
The starting pitching should improve marginally this season, but not nearly enough to make the club competitive.
Three years ago I declared the Big Three pitching prospects in baseball were Tim Lincecum, Yovani Gallardo and Clay Buchholz - in that order. Lincecum was the first to truly establish himself with his Cy Young Award seasons in 2008 and 2009. Gallardo (13-12, 3.73 ERA) “arrived” last year and laid claim to the title of staff ace.
(NOTE: it says here that Buchholz will similarly establish himself in 2010)
The signing of veteran lefty Wolf (11-7. 3.23) and Doug Davis (9-14, 4.12) will help, but the Brewers lack depth at the back end of the rotation. RHP Jeff Suppan went 7-12 (with a 5.29 ERA) last season and, as I suggested last year, he was nothing more than a warm body filling out a uniform. The club has high hopes for 27-year-old southpaw Manny Parra (11-11, 6.36)… they will need him to life up to those expectations if they are to have any chance at making a run at St Louis and Chicago.
Bullpen
This should be a better-than-average bullpen. The Brewers have all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman (3-2, 1.83, 37 saves) at the back end, with newly-signed RHP LaTroy Hawkins (1-4, 2.13, 11 saves) and holdover RHP Todd Coffey (4-4, 2.90) serving as the primary setup men. They need to hope that RHP Claudio Vargas (1-0, 1.74 in 36 games) can replicate his career year of 2009.
Lineup
The ballclub has the best offense in the division and provides hope that it can be competitive in spite of the paucity of pitching. The lineup is anchored by 1B Prince Fielder (.296, 46 HR, 141 RBI), who is one of the best sluggers in the game. Across the diamond is 3B Casey McGehee, who made the most of his first opportunity in the big leagues by hitting .301, with 16 HR and 66 RBI.
The middle infield is not nearly as fearsome. 2B Rickie Weeks (.234, 14 HR, 46 RBI) has a huge hole in his swing (231 K in 884 AB over the last 2 years) and has not come close to living up to expectations. Rookie Alcides Escobar, 23, takes over at shortstop with only 129 AB of major league experience.
The corner outfielders are solid. LF Ryan Braun (.320, 32 HR, 114 RBI) is one of the beset hitters in the league. RF Corey Hart (.260, 12 HR, 48 RBI in just 115 games) is hoping to rebound after a rough year that included a summer-long dry spell and an appendectomy. CF Carlos Gomez (.229, 3 HR, 28 RBI, 14 SB) came over in the trade that sent J J Hardy to Minnesota.
C Gregg Zaun (.260, 8 HR, 27 RBI) is serviceable behind the plate, but nothing more.
Outlook
The club will go only as far as the hitting can take it because the starting rotation leaves something to be desired. They will need Parra and another pitcher to step up in order to make a run at the post-season.
SOX1Forecast: 81-81, 3rd place (tie).
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Milwaukee Brewers — Top 5 Prospects
1. SS Alcides Escobar
2. 3B Matt Gamel
3. 2B Brett Lawrie
4. RHP Eric Arnett
5. OF Kentrail Davis
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