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Bob Uecker (left) talks with center fielder Nyjer Morgan (right), I assume about politics. Jeff Curry-US PRESSWIRE

This is a new segment that I will be doing every Wednesday for the duration of the season.  Basically, it is exactly as the title describes it.  If your house is anything like mine you have one drawer designated for miscellaneous knick-knacks and junk that you can’t really put anywhere else.  To prove  a point I just pulled three random things from my junk drawer without looking; A rewards club card to Tulalip Resort and Casino (Washington State reference, sorry), a box of green tea dietary supplement pills, and one of those sweet things you attach to your sunglasses when you are on a boat so that they don’t fly off.  Thus will be the essence of the Brewers Junk Drawer Wednesday. 

I figure, hump day is probably the ideal day to just tie up some loose ends that this site has overlooked to that point in the given week.  Even though we are an amazing site, with unlimited awesomeness, we will miss things from time to time.  The junk drawer is specifically reserved for things that are not entire article worthy, but still have value to todays Brewers fan on the go.  Enjoy!

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Before I even get started, I would like to acknowledge that lists are played the F out.  That is why I reserve it for Holidays.  Look, I have a life too folks.  I’m married.  You think today sucks when your single?  Or even when you just have a girl/boy friend?  It doubley sucks when you are married.  So, I got stuff to do…your getting a list.  Even better, it is a short list.  
 

The 3 Things I love most about the 2012 Brewers, as of today:

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May 9, 2011; Pittsburgh,PA, USA: Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Jose Veras (43) pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the eighth inning at PNC Park. The Pirates won 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USPRESSWIRE

Reading Lou’s article really got me to thinking about the future of the Brew Crew. Does it start with pitching? How about with the offense? All I know that is you need to learn to crawl before you can walk. Brewer Nation does not want to see the Dark Ages again, and frankly, it starts with keeping what they already have. Jose Veras could perhaps be a stepping stone in the right direction, but nobody really knows at this point. He was traded to the Brewers in December for Casey McGehee, but he needs to prove himself before he can start demanding money. That said, the Brewers really aren’t in a position to start nitpicking at who they have and who they don’t. Takashi Saito is gone, K-Rod only has a year left and nobody really can say for sure how the younger guys like Amaury Rivas, Wily Peralta and Michael Fiers will even perform.

Looking at this situation realistically, the Brewers winning the arbitration case over Veras proves a point, they’re not messing around. Coming so close to the World Series last year, they want to continue this feeling of victory. To me, it really looks like the Brewers are saying “Hey, we don’t know how you’ll (Veras) perform, so you need to work to earn your pay”. That’s an approach most teams should take, especially when it comes to relief pitchers. Nobody wants a starter to pitch his heart out, go seven solid innings, giving up one run only to end the day with a loss or no decision. That solely falls on the shoulders of relief pitching and here’s to hoping Veras can give us that.

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Jeff Curry-US PRESSWIRE

Earlier today I read an article written by a man I respect and quite frankly, aspire to be.  His name is Adam McCalvy (you need to follow him on Twitter @AdamMcCalvy).  Adam is the MLB writer for the Brewers and he is the best Brewers writer I know of.  The article he wrote today addresses something that I have not been ready to think about, seeing as how the season has not even started yet.  Ok, fine.  I had not thought about it at all.  Sometimes I am not the brightest crayon on the tree.  Anyway, today McCalvy asked this question, Is this the “all-in” year?

I am man enough to admit that this thought had never even occurred to me.  I also am man enough to admit that the thought of this terrifies me.  Like, being 8 years-old and watching the first Chucky movie…you know, before they got campy and kind of hilarious.  That movie scared the liquid waste out of me.  Not nearly as much as 2013 does all of a sudden.

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Kyle Terada-US PRESSWIRE

Aside from being the brother of current bench coach, Jerry Narron, Johnny has a pretty impressive resume as a coach and hitting instructor.  Replacing Dale Sveum will not be easy, but I think Narron could be an upgrade.  Arguably his biggest accomplishment, is the resurgence of Josh Hamilton, or as he is known in my home, “The Natural”.  Narron spent the past few seasons as the assistant hitting coach of the Texas Rangers and acountabili-buddy to Hamilton.  In my opinion, the Rangers have been the best offensive team in baseball over the last two seasons.  It would be naive of me to think that Narron had no influence on the success of that team.  I can not wait to see what he will bring to this lineup. 

Now Johnny never played in the big leagues, but he did spend a few years in the minors with both the Yankees and  White Sox.  That should not bother anyone, because very rarely do ex-players turn into successful coaches.    There will always be exceptions to that rule, but most successful coaches have, at the very least, spent their entire adult lives in the game.  Johnny fits into that second category.  In fact, the Narron family has had 9 different members involved in major league baseball (in one capacity or another).  The guy understands the game and know what it takes to win. 

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The NL Central in 2012 is going to look very different than it did in 2011. The best first baseman in the division- possibly the whole league- in Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols have departed for the American League and will compete in brand new pennant races (at least for them). Ryan Braun could be gone for 50 games. The Cubs have a revamped front office. The Reds might finally have some pitching to work with.

However, the division is going to look even more different in 2013, considering it’s going to be missing a team.

Come on fellas!! Jerry Lai-US PRESSWIRE

Earlier today news broke, from a source that does not exist, that the 3 men in charge of Ryan Braun‘s fate will need a few more years to really get to the bottom of all of this.  Turns out that they will require one calendar year for each piece of paper that contains evidence, submitted by Ryan Braun. 

Bud Selig was not immediately available for comment, since he does not get phone reception in The Hall of Doom.  However, I was able to reach his partner in evil deeds Lex Luthor:

The Braun ruling will happen, when we say it is going to happen!!  But since you said please, I have it tentatively scheduled for April of 2016.  That is subject to change, but since the Justice League has no power in the MLB, you can probably put that in your calendar as well reporter man.  Superman and Batman have no power here!!! Mwahahaha!!! 

Kind words from a devious villain.

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Oct 5, 2011; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez (right) celebrates with teammate George Kottaras after hitting a two run home run in the eighth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks during game four of the 2011 NLDS at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

In 2011, the Brewers went to great lengths to fill their bench with aging veterans to help the team.  From what I saw this off-season, the team ran out of money, so they could only afford one or two old guys.  From my personal standpoint, this is excellent news.  Veterans should be starters, not bench warmers.  You need to have the young guys getting some opportunities to play in the big leagues, thus your bench should be littered with promising young talent. 

Over the past few seasons, the Brewers have gotten away from that.  Thanks to K-Rod and some well deserved raises, the team did not have the funds to add three to four players worthless players to fill the bench.  Since that is the case, lets meet the some potential bench candidates for the 2012 Crew.

So, here are our options and who I think will be on the opening day roster.

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You all remember Jeff Suppan right?  He was the guy who was never all that good at pitching, until the St. Louis Cardinals won the World Series in 2006.  Suppan was nothing short of amazing as a Cardinal, especially in the 2006 NLCS.  Not only did he pitch game 7 and win the NLCS MVP, but he also hit his 2nd career home run.  During that series, Suppan had a 0.60 ERA in 15 innings of work.   The Cardinals went on to win the 2006 World Series, with Suppan playing a vital role in that triumph.  Not a bad way to head into free-agency.  Now, all he had to do was find a team stupid enough to overlook his years of mediocrity and sign him to an enormous deal based off of that one playoff series.  But where could he find a team so moronic to fall for this trick that is as old as baseball?

Enter, the Milwaukee Brewers.

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Don’t panic, he’s not leaving Milwaukee. That said, it’s not everyday a player, manager or even parts of management inside the team make it into the Hall of Fame, but Doug Melvin has. Oh, that’s in Canada of course. Being from Ontario, I’m sure Melvin appreciates the honor.  The Brewers’ own GM Doug Melvin has been inducted into the Canadian Hall of Fame. On June 23, Melvin will be formally inducted, alongside former Expos‘ player Rusty Staub and former pitcher Rheal Cormier.

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