Let’s get into it. (more…)

Kottaras, originally a late round pick by the Padres in 2002, was picked up by the Brewers during the 2009-2010 offseason, on the same day that the Red Sox released him. He had served as the Brewers back-up catcher for most of the time since, except when he briefly took on the starting role in early 2010 after a season-ending injury to Gregg Zaun. He promptly lost it after the emergence of Jonathan Lucroy.

Kottaras hit .218 over his three seasons with the Brewers, which is what you’d expect from a back-up catcher most of the time. In his first season, 2010, he didn’t hit for a very high average (.203), but hit nine home runs and had 26 RBIs and showed some promising power. The power fell in 2011 (just five home runs), but he hit .252.

He got off to a very hot start this year, hitting three home runs in the Brewers’ first six games of the season. But, Kottaras hasn’t hit a home run since April 12^th, and his average fell from the mid-.400’s all the way to .209.

After Lucroy’s injury in late May, instead of using Kottaras as the starting catcher, Ron Roenicke opted to call up Martin Maldonado and try his hand at starting. Maldonado was hitting under .200 at Triple-A Nashville, but has been very productive at the plate since his call-up, with five home runs and a .275 average. With Lucroy recently coming back from his injury, there just wasn’t a place on the roster for Kottaras, who has just been serving as Randy Wolf’s personal catcher, on the roster any more. He was designated for assignment as the corresponding move for Lucroy’s return to the 25-man roster.

But the Brewers, who are still high on Kottaras, believed he still deserved a shot at playing in the Majors. Teams like the Indians, Blue Jays, and Athletics were interested in using him in the Majors, and it was the A’s who wound up getting him. The A’s definitely need help at the catching position, with their two catchers- Kurt Suzuki and Derek Norris- both hitting barely over .200. On the year, Athletics catchers are hitting for a cumulative .198 average. Kottaras won’t necessarily help with the average part, but he’s always had a massive on-base percentage (he had a .409 OBP despite his .209 average this year). His great eye helped with that, as he had more walks than strikeouts.

So best of luck to Kottaras in Oakland (or wherever else he winds up after). I’ve always tried to be high on him myself, but there isn’t room for him in Milwaukee any more.

Oh, how things can change in just two or so years.

Today, it’s the complete opposite. The Brewers offense has been sub-par, to say the least, this year. They’re .239 team batting average is the third-worst in the National League, only ahead of the awful offenses of the Pirates and Padres. Braun is still here and producing (but I have to admit he’s had some very bad at-bats lately, despite his success). Offseason pickup Aramis Ramirez finally appears to be heating up. The other consistent power source as of late, surprisingly, is Martin Maldonado (note that he was hitting .198 at Triple-A Nashville prior to his call-up). But, other than that, the offense is as inconsistent as it’s ever been. Corey Hart has produced solid power numbers at times, but it feels like he’s even streakier than in recent years. Weeks has been hitting below the Mendoza line pretty much all year, and it looks like he’s becoming the 2012 version of Adam Dunn.

But the one thing the Brewers can take pride in- at least right now- is the consistency of their starting pitching, especially lately. Coming into today, Brewers starters had a 2.25 ERA in their last nine games. And that ERA probably went down after Michael Fiers’ nice performance in Minnesota today. Unfortunately, though, the Brewers starters’ record in this ten game span is just 4-1. Not to say that’s a bad record or anything, but, thanks to the offense and bullpen, the starters aren’t factoring in near as many decisions as they should. And, the Brewers’ record in this span of great pitching is 6-4. That does include series wins against the Padres and Twins, but the crushing blow was the sweep in Kansas City, despite great outings from Zack Greinke, Randy Wolf, and Shaun Marcum. Wolf and Marcum should have each had wins that series, but the Brewers’ bullpen, paired with some questionable defense, managed to embarrassingly lose those games.

This run of starting pitching will have to return to earth eventually, but, before it ends, the Brewers need to capitalize on it. Their record currently stands at 30-35, fourth in the NL Central. Had the Brewers been able to win those two games they blew in KC, they could be hovering around .500, rather than sitting at the position they’re in. That position is 7.5 games behind the first place Reds, who are on a tear after winning their fifth consecutive game today. So the Brewers are still in shouting distance because of where we are in the season, but now is the time to pick up ground. The starting pitching has responded to this, but the offense and bullpen have yet to get the memo. They’ll need to soon if the Brewers want to make a season of this.

Not in the way they should have, no.

The Brewers finished what could have been an extremely easy homestand- and brought them at least close to .500- with a 5-4 record. By no means is that bad. But, if you consider the caliber of the teams they were playing, it was very mediocre, and could have been a heck of a lot better.

John Axford, Brewers closer, being removed in the ninth to fittingly end the Brewers' homestand.

The Crew started the series on a pretty bad note. They were up against the Pirates, who they have absolutely murdered at Miller Park ever since 2007. But that wasn’t the case this time. The Pirates began the series by hammering Randy Wolf, and from there went on to take two of three from the Brewers. The Brewers then took two of three from the Cubs, which was a decent bounce-back. The Brewers finished off the Padres yesterday, and also took two of three from them. So, when you go back and look at it, it was just the Pirates series that killed the Brewers. 6-3 is a lot more different from 5-4 than you think.

But, the Brewers have been given a blessing. They’re being given a chance to reach the .500 mark for the second straight week, and prove that they are in the race to defend their NL Central crown. Their next two series come against the Royals and Twins, two very beatable teams who live near the bottom of the American League right now. Here’s what the pitching matchups are looking like for the Royals series:

Zack Greinke (7-2, 3.13 ERA) vs. Luis Mendoza (2-3, 5.36 ERA)

Randy Wolf (2-5, 5.45 ERA) vs. Luke Hochevar (3-7, 6.57 ERA)

Shaun Marcum (5-3, 3.50 ERA) vs. ???

Looking at the matchups, this should be a series sweep (but with the Brewers, it’s never a good idea to assume these things). I know Greinke home-road splits this year will tell you that he’s been a lot worse on the road, but it’s actually been two- maybe three- starts that have killed his road ERA. The first one was his second start of the season, when he gave up eight runs in 3 2/3 innings against the Cubs. Then, there was his disaster start in Arizona (seven runs, 2 1/3 innings). But there are two somewhat legitimate excuses for those outings: Greinke has proven he simply can’t pitch at Wrigley Field, and he’s just historically bad against the Diamondbacks. Other than those starts, he’s been fine on the road. Plus, Kauffman Stadium might still feel like home to him-  it’s been a little over a year and a half since his last start with the Royals, the team he started his career with, at Kauffman. Royals outfielder Mitch Maier recently stated that he thinks that the Royals will beat up on Greinke, but I just can’t see it happening. So I think it’ll be a good start for ZG. Mendoza, on the other hand, has bounced back and forth between the Royals’ rotation and bullpen, and is coming back to the rotation to start in place of the injured Felipe Paulino and his 1.67 ERA (thank goodness the Brewers aren’t facing him). Mendoza hasn’t been what the Royals thought he would be this year, and hopefully the Brewers bats can get going against him.

Wolf will start the second game of the series. At first, I was worried about this, like I am for every Wolf start. But, we have to remember that Hochevar is equally as bad as Wolf- if not worse. Hoch has is one of the few starters in the Majors with an ERA higher than Wolf’s, so you’d expect the Brewers to tee off against him.

Marcum will start the last game of the series, and I’m not worried about that at all. Marcum has pitched well all year for the most part, and this start is coming on the road, where he’s especially dominant. He should be pretty familiar with the Royals’ lineup from his time in the AL, and he carved them up during his time with the Blue Jays, with a 3-1 career mark against them, along with a 1.58 ERA. The Royals haven’t officially announced their starter yet, but, judging by the way their rotation works, it should be Vin Mazzaro (2-1, 3.60 ERA). He made himself famous last year by giving up 14 runs in 2 1/3 innings (I think that’s what the final line was), although that may have been one of ex-Brewer manager Ned Yost’s “lessons.” But do I even need to mention that the Brewers will be reuniting with Yost again this series?

Like I said before, this appears to be a sweep-able series. But after this comes the Twins series, who the Brewers already dropped a series to earlier this year at Miller Park. None of the pitching matchups have been announced, but let’s hope the Brewers can take two of three in Minnesota. This would all add up to a 5-1 road trip, which is very wishful thinking. But the Brewers could certainly use it to get back in the race in the NL Central. The Brewers already wasted one opportunity to officially throw themselves back into the pennant race; now they need to use this one correctly.

Michael Fiers could be a great 5th man along down the road. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-US PRESSWIRE

Well the upside from injuries is that about 90% of the time, guys can come back from them full force. Hopefully having Marco Estrada back can settle things in the bullpen. I do not believe he should be a starter nor should Ron Roenicke have any inclination of putting him back there. Michael Fiers has only started two games and pitched decent in both. Estrada is a bullpen guy. There aren’t too many guys that can go physically from relief to starting or mentally either. If Fiers can prove himself in the time allotted, which is about a month til Estrada  is due back, then he has earned himself a well deserved spot. The Brewers need anything they can at this point because time waits for no one.

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The Ax-Man looks back on track. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

So if you would’ve told me Monday afternoon that the Brewers would’ve swept the Los Angeles Dodgers, the MLB’s best team so far this season, in four games, I would have called you insane and found you a psychiatrist. The way the Brewers had been playing before the Dodgers series was abysmal. To go into LA and sweep them in four, wow, that was amazing. Michael Fiers came up big in his first major league start, while also getting his first win. The offense, mainly led by Aramis Ramirez in this particular series, came through when needed. Ryan Braun’s two run homer in Wednesday’s game is all the Brewers needed to win. Yes, there were a lot of close victories, but a close victory is better than a loss. With that, the Brewers are now home to start a nine game home-stand that consists of playing the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Chicago Cubs and the San Diego Padres. These are games we “should” win because we know we’re a good enough ball club to do so. Now, actually going out and beating the teams you’re supposed to beat is an entirely different animal. The bullpen still is struggling with consistently outside of Francisco Rodriguez and John Axford, but if our starting pitching is back on track, the bullpen will have a lot of time to mull over their past outings. The offense isn’t necessarily all together yet, especially with all the injuries, but even still, we’re winning games with guys who we didn’t even think would be on our roster. That says a lot.

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Here's Cesar, just for you Colin. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-US PRESSWIRE

Here is our third episode of Brew Crew Online. It’s a bit late as our podcasts are usually on Wednesdays, but the next few weeks might see a Saturday release. As usual, Colin and I discuss practically everything and anything Brewers and branch out to other topics around the Majors. In today’s podcast, we discuss:

-Last night’s win against the Giants

-The rest of the series in the Bay Area

-Injuries around the MLB

-Marco Estrada’s role as the fifth man

-Bryce Harper

-Albert Pujols’ home-run drought

-Jered Weaver’s no-hitter

-Cesar Izturis (just for Colin)

-No concern for the Brewers’ record

Stay tuned for next week!

Greinke's role is crucial this year, espeically with Gallardo's struggles. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-US PRESSWIRE

Tomorrow begins our three game series with the San Francisco Giants. The first match-up is really the only one I’m going to talk about here. After our crushing defeats in San Diego, most notably last night’s game against Jeff Suppan, (seriously Milwaukee?!?) things don’t get much easier going north heading into the Bay Area. Tomorrow’s match-up features the Brew Crew’s Zack Greinke (3-1, 3.94 ERA) against the Giants’ Tim Lincecum (2-2, 5.74 ERA). I’m not saying this first game will necessarily dictate how the series goes, but beating Lincecum, aka The Freak, at his own home isn’t the easiest thing to do. Greinke on the road had a very bad outing against the Cubs, giving up eight earned runs, but went on to beat the Cardinals on April 29th at Busch Stadium. This start is certainly the biggest of the three game series, so let’s delve into the match-up:

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The Brewers came back from a dismal road trip today to take on the equally dismal San Diego Padres at Miller Park tonight. It was an important game for a few reasons:

1. Zack Greinke made his Miller Park debut tonight, and the Brewers issued rally towels to all in attendance as an insurance policy
2. The Brewers were in dire need of a win, and this home stand is the pivotal point of the season thus far.

The 2011 Padres had one of the worst offenses in the Majors coming into tonight’s game, making them one of the only teams the Brewers could beat on paper in the last 11 days. And beat them they did.

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