You know who really got fired today?

September 15, 2008

Chino Cadahia.

On the day Ned Yost loses his job with the Brewers and with just one year remaining of Bobby Cox in Atlanta, I would not want to be the present Braves bench coach. Because sir, you will be replaced by Ned before the end of October.

Sleep well, Chino.

You’re a HOFer. You don’t have to do this

September 15, 2008

I can’t believe Robin Yount works for Dale Sveum.

Google Suggest doesn’t lie

September 15, 2008

If the searchers of the world say Ned Yost sucks, then he must.

Ned Yost fired

September 15, 2008

According to the Associated Press, Doug Melvin finally pulled the trigger and fired Ned Yost.

The move comes after the horrid four-game sweep in Philadelphia, in which the Brewers’ lead in the wild card was reduced to zero.

Third base coach Dale Sveum, not bench coach Ted Simmons, will take over for the remainder of the year. In fact, Simmons has been “reassigned to an advisory role.”

Ben Sheets in a contract year? Not a myth

May 5, 2008

Vegas Watch takes a look at some of the MLB players in contract years, after acknowledging the fact that there is real evidence of improved performance.

Most notably here, Ben Sheets, who I believe they correctly peg between a tentative 1- to 2-year deal and $90 million over five years, depending on the rest of the season.

Sounds about right.

Ned Yost is totally owned by the players

April 14, 2008

I was wrong again.

Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun asked Yost if they could switch spots in the order, and he did it.

Proud of you, Ned. Though I notice you changed your tone a little. What you called a rash decision a few days ago is now …

“It’s not a major deal in the context of what we’re trying to do,” he said. “Failed experiment? I don’t buy it. It’s just a switch. They’re staying in the two premier hitting spots in the lineup.

Anyway, I’m sure it had a big effect. I’m sure those two started hitting immediately and didn’t go a combined 1-for-9 or anything.

If Ben Sheets weren’t the ace, there wouldn’t be one

April 13, 2008

Tom Haudricourt went for the gotchy’all after Saturday’s performance by Ben Sheets, stating again that Sheets is the team’s ace, and eff you if you’ve ever e-mailed him otherwise.

I agree. Most everyone agrees. Chris Capuano wasn’t an ace when he was recording all those wins. Jeff Suppan was never any team’s ace. Gallardo and Parra: maybe someday, who knows.

Where I disagree is with Tom’s implied statement that the best pitcher on the team is the ace. Nope. I think it’s perfectly acceptable for a team to not have an ace (Pittsburgh). I think it’s OK for a team to have two aces (San Diego).

If Sheets didn’t exist, it wouldn’t be necessary to elevate the next-best guy.

Well, if Prince and Ryan ask …

April 12, 2008

I guess I was wrong. I guess Tom Haudricourt was right. While I sure don’t care how Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun are positioned in the batting order, there are two people who do not work at the Journal Sentinel who do care: Fielder and Braun.

The Brewers’ site says the Nos. 3 and 4 hitters asked Ned Yost on Saturday if they could be flipped in the order for Sunday’s game.

The article recaps what Yost has been saying all along:

“It’s a placebo,” Yost said. “It’s the ebb and flow of a Major League season. You go up and you go down, you get hot and you get cold. It’s nothing to panic about. … You don’t start making rash decisions.”

Well, I wouldn’t call a decision like this rash, but otherwise, totally agree. There’s nothing about the move that should fix the two.

But.

If they asked … if it matters to them … just go ahead and do it already. It won’t make a difference, but if they think it makes a difference, it might make a difference.

Prediction: I believe Ned would have been much more likely to say yes if it weren’t already published that it was the players’ idea. Now he’s gotta represent. Players don’t tell managers what to do. He’s a 380-439 career manager, god dammit. I say Prince is still batting third and Braun fourth on Sunday.

J.J. Hardy looking out for J.J. Hardy

April 12, 2008

This MLB article about J.J. Hardy gets around to some greedy quotes, but first, it sets the table with something we’re accepting too unquestioningly.

Yost is batting his pitchers in the No. 8 hole when catcher Jason Kendall is in the lineup, relying on extensive statistical data that says such an alignment will boost the Brewers’ run production over the long haul.

How many people are writing about this “extensive statistical data” without actually seeing it? I haven’t found any publication of the data or list of metrics that contributed to the data or any of the specific findings of the data. I’ve only been told that there is data, and that this data has already proved the doubters to be incorrect.

Look, Brewers, I don’t care one way or the other if you bat the pitcher eighth. Just don’t pretend like you know something I don’t, unless you’re going to tell me what you know that I don’t. (And don’t pretend it’s working just because Jason Kendall has been hitting a lot of doubles.)

Now, here’s J.J., not hiding very well that individual numbers matter to him.

“It’s not going to be the 80 RBIs, for sure, if it stays that way all year,” he said. “I don’t want it to sound like I am unhappy. If we’re going to score more runs with Jason as the second leadoff guy, OK. But at the same time, it’s going to take away opportunities for me to produce runs. It’s, ‘flip a coin.’”

Exactly, flip a coin. No Brewer fan cares who produces the runs. Only J.J. Hardy and rotisserie baseball players who drafted J.J. Hardy and the future Mrs. J.J. Hardy, who will be living off J.J. Hardy’s salary, care whether J.J. Hardy produces the runs. (Bear with me here. I’m pretending J. J. Hardy said his quote referring to himself in the third person and mocking him accordingly.) Who is hearing this argument and agreeing, “Yes, he’s right. We need J.J. Hardy to be the one producing runs. This does not work for me when other people produce as many or possibly more runs.”

He did have a pretty good quote in the Journal Sentinel, though. Something that should make him a few friends in the pitching staff.

“When you’re hitting .180 (.212 now), it’s kind of like a pitcher anyway. It’s like back-to-back pitchers.”

And when Kendall finds his stroke, it’ll be three in a row.

Because Prince Fielder is left-handed, we must make every effort to protect him

April 12, 2008

This is why we have beat reporters. To investigate the questions no one is asking.

Neither Prince Fielder nor Ryan Braun has prospered in his new spot in the batting order over the first 10 games but Milwaukee Brewers manager Ned Yost said Friday that it was too soon to flip-flop them.

Fine. Nice tidbit for the bottom of your notebook. What else you got?

“I’m not apt to change this early,” Yost said before the Brewers lost, 4-2, to the New York Mets at Shea Stadium. “I’ll give it its due course. I’ll look at it awhile longer.

Oh, we’re still proving that first one? It’s been 10 games. One-sixteen-point-twoth of a season. See you in June. If Fielder still has no home runs and is still eating those muscle-crippling soy burgers, we will revisit this.

Fielder batted fourth most of the season last year, with Braun ahead of him. Braun won the National League rookie of the year award and Fielder became the youngest player to slug 50 home runs in a season.

Two nice seasons from two players who seem to be developing into nice hitters. Point made.

Because Fielder is the only left-handed hitter in the Brewers’ regular lineup this season, Yost decided to protect him with Braun.

Pardon?

Because Fielder is the only left-handed hitter in the Brewers’ regular lineup this season, Yost decided to protect him with Braun.

The sentence construction here boils down to “Because _______, Yost decided ________.” So many things would fit in these blanks, because it is Ned Yost’s job to make all sorts of decisions. “Because Derrick Turnbow is fragile emotionally, Yost decided to only use him when it doesn’t matter.” “Because Gabe Gross threw an opposing team’s batted ball over the fence for a home run, Yost decided a better defensive player should start in center field for the remaining 151 games.” “Because he was friends with Dale Earnhardt and believes in magical spirits, Yost decided to wear his 3 t-shirt under his uniform for every game.”

Haudricourt’s statement doesn’t follow the same formula. There is no need in the first clause that is solved in the second. They’re two independent statements.

[1] Prince Fielder hits from the left side of the plate. Often, he is the only such player in the lineup. This is true. [2] Ryan Braun has been batting immediately after Fielder in the lineup. True again. (We’re conceding the point that this “protects” Fielder, who, as was stated above, hit 50 home runs in 2007 while finding his crucial protection from a variety of other sources.)

But why does the fact that Fielder is left-handed necessitate his being protected? The annual “Left-Handed Performance By A Team Award” was canceled in 1987 after it was awarded to Tony Gwynn, John Kruk and Tim Flannery, whose Padres finished sixth in the NL West, exposing the myth that a hitting statistic for a subset of a team equals success.

Back to the thing.

Yost said the key was for Braun to be selective at the plate without Fielder behind him for protection. Braun has not been selective, however, drawing no walks in 44 at-bats while hitting .227 with three homers and seven runs batted in. …

Braun was not alone in his impatience at the plate. The Brewers have drawn only 19 walks, the lowest total in the league. Their .302 on-base percentage ranked 12th among the 16 teams.

“That’s the only real negative aspect of our offense right now,” Yost said.

No big deal. It’s just that one aspect.