Tonight marks the eve of the 2012 Milwaukee Brewers quest for the World Series.  It is not an evening any of us should take for granted.  Believe you me, my wife is not taking it for granted, because starting tomorrow she loses me until October…and if I am lucky enough, November.   

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At yesterday’s ‘Brewers On Deck’,  Brewers head negotiator Teddy Werner said that negotiations with Shaun Marcum were “making good progress”.  Here is my question for Teddy, what kind of negotiations?  Because if I am being real with Mr. Werner, a one year contract for Marcum is about as useful as a house in Seattle made of cardboard. 

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This is something I have been wrestling with for the past couple of days.  Believe me, no one was holding out more hope for a one-year encore than yours truly.  By getting Prince back and pairing him with Braun and Ramirez, the Brewers would have been a powerhouse offense with a solid starting rotation.  No question that they would have been the number 2 favorite in the NL behind the Phillies.  In the end though, Prince got his money and he is gone.  So, how bad is it going to be without him?

Truth is, if everything goes according to plan, the team may not even notice him being gone.  Offensively that is.

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Sometimes you have to take a step back from the usual routine in order to appreciate all of the things you have.  This weekend with my family was a great opportunity for me to forego the present (free agency, Prince, and the MVP) and focus on the past 11 months of this year.  So, as I sat in my super swanky hotel room, I came up with a list of 5 things that I am truly thankful for in 2011.

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Since July of the 2010 season, we have all been prepared to say goodbye to Prince Fielder.  We knew all to well that his talent was too great for our humble city to keep for itself.  It seemed like an almost certainty that he would be traded at the deadline last year, but he never was.  Then most of us just presumed the Brewers would trade him to acquire pitching this past off-season, and we were half right.  They went and got their pitching and kept Prince in Milwaukee.  The 2011 season was going to be our “all or nothing season”, right?

Wrong.  The 2012 Brewers are going to be fine, so I never really agreed with that mentality.  Sure we don’t have a shortstop or bullpen, but we are certainly going to be in the NL Central race all season.  Will the 2012 team win the World Series?  Maybe.  Also maybe not.  A greater concern for me is the 2013 season…

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For the first time this off-season, we saw some major action today.  The Phillies went out and overpaid Jonathan Papelbon (some ridiculous number like 4yrs/ $50 mil) and the Twins snuck up on everyone and signed veteran shortstop Jamey Carroll (2yrs/ $? mil).  With one veteran shortstop and bullpen arm off the board, it makes me wonder if this is going to force the hand of Brew City management.  As you well know, the Brewers two biggest needs at the moment are shortstop and bullpen. 

Granted, I did not expect the Brewers to make a run at Papelbon, but I did expect them to put out feelers on Carroll.  All of that aside, they are gone now and the Brewers need to get their S together and fast.

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This one is really going to hurt.  Today’s WDTBGW, is one that I have been putting off because I did not want to talk about it.  So, inorder to ease ourselves into it, take a second to listen to this beautiful song.  It is entitled: “C’mon Prince (Stay in Milwaukee)”

Not only are the lyrics silly, but they are stirring and moving.  A special thank you to The Baseball Project for writing the most emotionally touching song since the Theme from Titanic.

If that is not enough to get you ready for the upcoming Prince Fielder buzz-kill, here is a terrific article from Lew Freedman at Call to the Pen.  Wherever Prince ends up, he is going to produce.  I am not a believer of the “weight dictates longevity”.  It certainly helps, but Prince has at least 5-7 more good years in him.  Would be better if they were in Brew City.

Ok, enough of the warm and fuzzy stuff, it is time to dig in to why the Brewers were unable to take down the St. Louis Cardinals.  It is an on-going segment, which is now on the verge of completion.

Today’s Episode: Prince Fielder falls apart

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On Wednesday night, the MLB gave out the Silver Slugger Award.  This award is given to the top offensive player at each respective position.  Last year Ryan Braun and Yovani Gallardo each took one home.  This year it was the Beast Mode Brothers, Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder.

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You did not need to be a baseball expert to know that Marcum was probably the worst possible option to pitch in a “win or go home” game.  The month of September showed us what was looming on the horizon.  Over the course of the season, his ERA slowly began to rise.  On June 22nd, Marcum’s ERA was a solid 2.95.  From that date forward, he gave up more and more runs.  The only bright spot for Marcum during that stretch, was back to back shutout performances against the Cardinals and the Astros at the end of August into the first week of September.  It was all down hill from there.

First let me say, this is not an article bashing Marcum.  My goal in this article is to provide stats that will justify why Roenicke made the wrong call in starting Marcum in Game 6 of the NLCS.  Shaun Marcum is an excellent pitcher and he is a large part of the reason the Brewers were in the postseason at all.  I look forward to having him back next season and do not doubt his abilities in the slightest.  Sometimes pitchers slump, the same as hitters do.  When a guy is in slump, sometimes the skipper has to sit that guy down.  Roenicke set Marcum up for failure.  Shaun does not deserve half of the criticism he received for that game.  The other playoff games though…

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