Tom Gorzelanny Is Too Little, Too Late

If you look at this picture closely, it appears as if the newest Brewer is throwing this into the dugout. Or his curve ball is wicked awesome. Photo by: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Last week the Brewers blew all of our minds and spent a couple of bucks on a left handed pitcher.  That pitcher is former Pittsburgh Pirate and Chicago Baby Bear Tom Gorzelanny.  Gorzelanny spent last season working behind a solid Washington Nationals starting rotation.  Now he will have to deal with our “6 year-old’s birthday party gift-bag” pitching roster.  My pessimism is already in mid-season form.   

While I do think Mr. Gorzelanny (I am already sick of typing out his last name, by the way) is going to be a nice veteran presence in our bullpen, I just don’t think his signing is enough for me to feel like the pitching staff is going to be anything more than it already is.  This is not the kind of signing that makes me stand up and say “We had a successful off-season”.  All this does, is gives me something to complain about…for the first time since I said goodbye to K-Rod, may he rest in prison.

To be clear, I am not complaining because I dislike the signing…I am complaining because I do not see the point in any signing this late in the game. It’s like bringing an aardvark to Antarctica, sure it is cool at first…until the poor things dies due to lack of ants.  In that scenario, I am the aardvark and the ants are Brewers signings.  One ant will not keep me alive in a barren wasteland.

Adding one veteran to a group of newbies, does not a bullpen make either.  John Axford will be back to hold down the 9th inning and I think that we have some nice young arms who will make a name for themselves in the pen this season.  Which is very exciting.  And is also why this signing just doesn’t do anything for me.

Now we have one left-handed pitcher in the bullpen…ONE!!  What happens if he gets hurt?  Do we have any sort of back-up plan?  My guess is, he will get hurt and we have no back-up plan.  And such is the life of a Brewers fan.

If the Brewers really want to make waves, trade away someone for a real bullpen piece.  Look at what the Braves have to offer in the way of bullpen power (a lot, in case you don’t feel like looking), or maybe the Blue Jays (now flush with talent) can afford to part with some young arms.  At this point, I have no reason to suspect that Mat Gamel is a Brewer by the time the 2013 All-Star Game rolls around.  So why not start shopping the guy now?  Teams are going to want a guy with his pedigree and years of minor league power numbers.  This seems like a no-brainer, but as always…what do I know? 

Gorzelanny is a nice piece.  But I am spoiled now and nice doesn’t cut it anymore.  The Reds, Pirates, and Cubs have all added multiple pieces to improve their teams.  The Brewers and Cardinals seem to be more than content to sit back and hope that the World Series trophy falls into their laps.  If you, as a fan, are really excited about this signing…what does that say about where we are as a team?  I would hope that no one is dancing in the streets about a guy who appeared in 45 games last season and posted a 2.88 ERA out of the bullpen, but I am wrong a lot.

I say again, this deal is nice.  It is also too little, way too late.

Hope everyone had a safe and Merry…Winter Celebration weekend.  You know me, always trying to be politically correct…