This was a common sight for Brewers fans in 2012, Nyjer Morgan striking out Photo: Joy R. Absalon-US PRESSWIRE

This decision was not as easy as I had initially thought it would be.  In order to truly define a players “value” (or lack there of in the instance of this article), you must look at every aspect and piece of the puzzle.  Primarily, their performance in 2012.  I can not stress that enough, because the person who I feel earned this un-prestigious honor was one of my favorite players in 2011. 
 
Nyjer Morgan is many things and many people.  In 2011, T-Plush fever was at an all-time high in Brew City and it seemed as if he could do no wrong.  Nyjer cemented himself in Brewers history/folklore for all-time, by delivering the series winning single in the NLDS.  It capped off a resurgent season for the feisty center fielder, a season that had us all thinking he would be in our lineup for many years to come.  Sadly, Morgan’s time in Milwaukee ended with a thud rather than a parade.   
 
Baseball is a fickle mistress that we as fans can only pretend to understand.  I for one have never been able to understand how a player can have such a sever drop-off from one season to the next.  And yet it is more common in baseball than any other American sport.  Here are the first 4 Brewers names that popped into my head that fall under this category; John Jaha, Pat Listach, Casey McGehee, and now Nyjer Morgan.  There is no rhyme or reason to it.  I have no doubt that Nyjer trained extra hard during the off-season, or that he had enough playing time in Spring Training.  Things just never got going for our boy Tony Gumbo.

 
Just so I can get this out of the way, (because it really had no bearing on my decision) here are his 2012 stats: 122 games, 69 hits, .239 BA, .302 OBP, 63 K’s, and 16 RBI’s.  The only stats that I really care about is that he had 6 more hits than strikeouts, and that his WAR went from 3.1 in 2011 to 0.1 in 2012.
 
Nyjer was not the least valuable because of his stats, he was least valuable because as Nori Aoki and Carlos Gomez started to catch fire…he became…well, less valuable.  In fact, he was cast in The Expendables 3 which starts filming in January…ok, that is not real.

By the end of the season he really only emerged from the dugout as a pinch-hitter.  His inability to provide the team with impactful plate appearances, lead to the end of his everyday playing time in Milwaukee, and landed him on the pine for the last half of 2012.  It got to a point where you almost forgot he was there, unless Roenicke needed a lefty bat late in the game.  And that was sad to see.
 
I love Nyjer Morgan and I wish him nothing but the best.  Regardless of how the rest of the nation views him, during his time in Brew City he was a gentlemen and a scholar.  That is how I shall remember him.  But the reality was that he just was not worth retaining, especially with guys like Brock Kjeldgaard, Caleb Gindl, and Logan Schafer waiting in the wings.   Which only added to his lack of value as the final days of September fell of the calendar.
 
I would also like to point out, that in this case, being the least valuable does not mean “worst”.  Tomorrow, when I post the least valuable pitcher of 2012…then it will mean worst.  Nyjer Morgan was not the worst position player on the team, he just lost some of that magic he had during the magical 2011 season.  With all my heart, I hope he finds it again wherever he lands. 

In closing, T-Plush is misunderstood, but ultimately a good guy.  Maybe his best days are behind him, but he will always have a home in Milwaukee. 

(This article turned into a love letter…for that I make no apologies.  Tomorrow’s will probably be classified as a hate letter…for that I make no apologies)

Well, my day just got a WHOLE LOT better when I read this little number by Bob Wolfley of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

If you don’t want to read the article, I will summarize it for you. It’s a review – of sorts – of a new book by Tony LaRussa, the St. Louis Cardinals former manager, master of gamesmanship, and owner of a well-worn Botox frequent customer card. The book is titled One Last Strike, and is set to hit shelves on September 25th.

I have not been given my advance copy yet (hint, hint, publishing company) so I can only go off the obviously selective retelling that Wolfley has provided the world – but there are some real gems in here that make me literally drool over this piece of what undoubtedly will be one the finest pieces of revisionist history in baseball.

Here’s what the ever-charming and always straight-shooting LaRussa had to say about his dust-ups with Milwaukee in 2011, which appear to take up some substantial length in his book.

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The Brew Crew’s dedication to the community is one of the best in all of sports, and does more to endear this franchise to its city and state as much as any box score.

We don’t talk about it much, but each season there are dozens of stories of Brewers players and personnel reaching out to fans in the Milwaukee area to make a difference. Here’s just a few of them.

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It was hilarious, and inspiring. I did some research, and uncovered a few startling facts as to why the Brewers find themselves on the wrong side of .500.

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It was not, of course, without weirdness as every Brewers win seems to come with a “Yeah, but…” caveat this year. And, as usual, this weirdness came directly from the epicenter of Milwaukee’s baseball oddities – Mr. Nyjer Morgan.

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The Brew Crew’s bats were on full tilt in the final game at Great American Ballpark to pick up a win for Milwaukee starter Zack Greinke.

Greinke did not have his best stuff today, but it was enough to keep the hard-hitting Cincinnati lineup at bay as Milwaukee salvaged one victory from the Reds before heading back to Miller Park.

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Two rookie pitchers faced off today – Michael Fiers for Milwaukee and the hard-throwing Jose Quintana for the Sox – and the young guns did not disappoint in a match-up that required extra innings. Both pitchers went deep into the game with no run support.

In the end, however, Chicago’s bullpen was able to go one step further and a walk-off hit to center field sealed the series loss for the Brewers with a heartbreaking final score of 1-0.

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However, one good thing came out of this series. Utility man Brooks Conrad finally sought out the gift he’s been waiting on for so long: a batting average.

Well, sort of. .061 isn’t much of an average, but it’s better than the .000 he wore for the first few months. His first hit of the season came on Saturday, in the game that wasn’t televised. He socked an opposite field home run off of Pirates starter Erik Bedard. After that, I made a joke that he can only get hits in games that aren’t on TV. But sure enough, the next day, that joke became obsolete when he hit another home run, this one off All-Star closer Joel Hanrahan. Coming into the game, Hanrahan’s opponent batting average was .162, so it’s pretty impressive Conrad did that.

June 2, 2012: Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Brooks Conrad (14) is congratulated by pitcher Shaun Marcum (18) after hitting a home run during the fourth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-US PRESSWIRE

But, as you’ll notice, Conrad’s only two hits so far are home runs. Not that it means anything, I just find it interesting that he has a season-long 0-for and ends it with two blasts. And neither of them were cheap shots; these were legitimate home runs.

It wasn’t just Conrad who broke out this series, however, as there were a few other Brewers players who showed signs of getting their seasons turned around. Nyjer Morgan was one of them, who, following a .304 season in his first year in Milwaukee, didn’t even have an RBI up until this series. But he turned that around in a hurry, hitting two home runs this series, just as Conrad did. The first one came off of Kevin Correia, and the second off James McDonald. Both of the home runs were no-doubt, low line drive pulls into the right field seats. This is the vintage Morgan we’re used to seeing, so if he keeps this up, he might finally become that consistent bat in the lineup that he was down the stretch last year.

Meanwhile, other utility players, such as Taylor Green and Cody Ransom, had their moments during this series as well. Ransom had a two-run single right before Conrad’s home run on Saturday, and Green is hitting over .300 in his last nine games.

But it’s needless to say these guys are heating up at the right time. The Brewers have been barraged with more injuries than the mind can handle, the latest addition to the disabled list being third baseman and cleanup hitter Aramis Ramirez. That means Ryan Braun, who has also dealt with his share of injuries, isn’t going to have much protection in the lineup. That means Green and Corey Hart are going to have to take the bulk of that job. Or even Conrad could do that, if he can start hitting on a consistent basis from here on out.

That, or he’ll maintain his .061 average, and hit a home run or two every 30 at-bats.