It's time for one of our winter check-ins with Justin Hull.

The hot stove is getting hotter, but we're still keeping our hands close to bring you the latest smoking embers of offseason news.

We'll discuss that offseason news today as I visit with Justin Hull on 95.3 FM WSCO in Appleton at 4:30. I'll be in studio with Justin for about half an hour today taking your questions, which you can send in any of the following ways:

• Call us at (866)653-1570.
• Email HomeStretch@gmail.com.
• Tweet us at @BrewCrewBall or @JustinHullRadio.

Next in the countdown is a familiar left-handed pitcher.

Carsten Charles Sabathia (CC)

Starting Pitcher, 2001-2008

Height: 6'7" Weight: 290 lbs

Throws: Left; Bats: Left

How Acquired: First Round Pick, 1998 (20th overall)

Left Via: Trade, July 7, 2008: Tradedto theMilwaukee Brewersfor Rob Bryson, Zach Jackson, Matt LaPortaandMichael Brantley(PTBNL)

Background

The Indians had been in a drafting slump going into the 1998 draft. Their farm system, which had been one of the key reasons why they had become one of the best teams in baseball, was beginning to dry up. Between 1987 and 1991 they had drafted Albert Belle, Brian Giles, Jim Thome, Charles Nagy, and Manny Ramirez, but since then the only player drafted with that kind of impact talent was Jaret Wright, who had almost pitched the Indians to a World Series championship last fall. But there had been a lot of misses, from Daron Kirkreit (1st, 1993) to David Miller (1st, 1995) to Danny Peoples (1st, 1996). That fallow stretch meant that the payroll kept getting larger as the established young stars got closer and closer to free agency without any prospects ready to take their places.

And no area in the organization was worse off than the pitching. Although a dynamic offense and a weak division made sure the Indians made the playoffs, those playoff appearances came in spite of the starting rotation. In 1998, Baseball America ranked only three pitchers in the club's Top 10 prospects, and only one (Willie Martinez) in the top 7. In other words, after Wright and Bartolo Colon broke into the big leagues, the cupboard was completely bare, and if one of their current group of starters got hurt, there was little depth in the system.

So when the Indians made their selection in the first round of the 1998 draft, it was almost given that they'd take a pitcher. They were looking for upside, but given where they were selecting that year (20th), upside and risk came hand in hand. The best pitching prospect that year was Mark Mulder, but he had long since been selected. The Brewers selected the first high school pitcher of the draft (J.M. Gold) at pick 13, and the Indians selected the second in CC Sabathia.

Sabathia grew up in Vallejo, California, a major suburb in the Bay Area. He attended Vallejo High School, starring in baseball as well as basketball and football. When he was drafted he was headed to the University of Hawaii on a football scholarship, but his selection in the first round of the baseball draft changed those plans.

Sabathia even as a teenager was a very big man (he was already 6'7" when he was drafted), and size is a huge plus when it comes to a starting pitcher, but that size also perhaps scared some teams away. Big pitchers often struggle to repeat their delivery. There was also concerns over whether he'd be able to keep his weight in check as he got older. But the Indians looked past those concerns and saw the almost limitless potential.

The Prospect

The Indians were immediately rewarded, as Sabathia dominated the minor leagues. In his first full season, spent in Mahoning Valley (short-season A), Columbus, Georgia (Low A), and Kinston (Advanced A), he struck out 10 batters per 9 innings as an 18-year. The following season he ended the year in AA Akron, striking out 9.8 batters per 9 innings. Going into the 2001 season, Sabathia was rated the 7th-best prospect in baseball.

2001

Meanwhile the Indians were still struggling to find starting pitching. They missed the playoffs in 2000 largely because of injuries to the starting staff, and with the payroll stretched to its breaking point, the Indians couldn't just go out and sign a pitcher. With the departure of Manny Ramirez, it looked as though the run was about up. The Indians brought in Juan Gonzalez, Ellis Burks, and Marty Cordova via free agency, but they weren't able to sign a starter. So instead, manager Charlie Manuel looked at the young Sabathia as a possibility for the rotation. Sabathia had thrown just 90.1 innings at the AA level, but Manuel figured that the 20-year-old had a better shot at success than the group of retreaded veterans. So Sabathia made his major-league debut on April 8, 2001, pitching 5.2 innings against the Baltimore Orioles. Sabathia struggled at times with command, and rarely went deep into games, but with the Tribe offense that was more than enough. And in most years, Sabathia's rookie season would have been good enough to earn him the AL Rookie of the Year, but 2001 also marked the debut of Ichiro Suzuki, who not only won the Rookie of the Year award but also AL MVP.

The Indians, behind their offense as well as an improved rotation, won the AL Central but faced off against the Seattle Mariners, winners of an AL-record 116 games, in the ALDS. Even so, the Indians split the two games in Seattle, with Sabathia getting his first postseason start in Game 3. Sabathia would pitch an excellent game, holding the Mariners to 2 runs in 6 innings of work, which was more than enough for the Cleveland offense, who scored 17 runs off Mariners pitching. But the Mariners would win Game 4 and Game 5 to eliminate the Indians, ending their 2001 playoff run and overall run with that group of players.

Growing Pains

For the Indians were an old and expensive team. Sabathia was the only regular (rotation and starting lineup) under the age of 28, and given the payroll limitations, it was just a matter of time until the team was broken. That happened in June and July of 2002, with first Bartolo Colon getting traded, then Chuck Finley, then Paul Shuey, then Ricardo Rincon. After the season Jim Thome left for Philadelphia via free agency.

What was left of the club was a collection of veterans that the Indians couldn't trade along with prospects gotten from trades and a small group of young core players. Sabathia headed that group, along with Danys Baez, Milton Bradley, and Jody Gerut. And there were some serious growing pains. Sabathia, after his fantastic rookie season, struggled to take the step from a thrower (and a very effective one at that) to a pitcher. For the next several seasons, Sabathia would have good stretches and bad stretches, although he was a very durable pitcher. And at the time there was a lot of concern over whether that workload would lead to arm troubles.

Breakthrough

In baseball you rarely you see bright dividing line between stages in a pitcher's career, but I think one of those occurred in Sabathia's career on July 25th, 2005. The Indians were in Oakland, a place the Bay Area-native had always struggled, and this game was no exception. Sabathia was knocked out of the game in the third inning, and although I have no evidence to back this up, I think something clicked for Sabathia afterwards. Sometimes failure is a better teacher than success, and I think in this case it was for CC, for after that game he seemed a different pitcher. Over his next 12 starts he dropped his ERA from 5.24 to 4.03, quite an accomplishment that late in the year, and if the Indians had made the playoffs in 2005, he would have been the reason why.

No longer throwing in the upper 90s, Sabathia now sat in the mid-90s but was able to command the fastball. That lead to longer outings, and that was what propelled into the top echelon of MLB pitchers. He had a career-best 139 ERA+ in 2006, but the best was yet to come.

Cy Young

The Indians had been on cusp of contention for several years when the 2007 season began, but a near-miss in 2005 and an awful 2006 season had people thinking that they'd miss their window of opportunity. In 2007, though, they put it all together, dominating down the stretch and winning the AL Central comfortably. And Sabathia was the main cog in that machine. He threw an AL-best 241 innings, posted a career-best 141 ERA+, and won the AL Cy Young Award, the first time a Cleveland pitcher had won the award in almost three decades.

But in the postseason Sabathia struggled. He walked six batters in Game 1 of the ALDS, but kept the Yankees to just three runs, and the Indians would end up winning the game in extra innings. However, he wasn't so lucky in the ALCS against the Boston Red Sox. He was bombed for 8 runs in 4.1 innings in Game 1, and he was outpitched by Josh Beckett in crucial Game 5.

The Trade

Unlike the mid-90s clubs, the Indians' window of contention lasted only a couple seasons. In 2008 the Indians would quickly fall out of contention, and attention immediately turned to Sabathia, who was a pending free agent. The Indians had discussed an extension with Sabathia, but that didn't work out, so instead they chose to lock up Jake Westbrook and Travis Hafner. Sabathia was dominant again in 2008, so there was no shortage of interested clubs when the Indians started shopping him.

On July 7, 2008, the Indians traded Sabathia to the Milwaukee Brewers for Matt LaPorta, Rob Bryson, Zach Jackson, and a Player to be Named Later. The headliner in the deal was LaPorta, one of the best prospects in baseball, but the best player from the deal turned out to be Michael Brantley, who was the PTBNL. LaPorta, who will probably sign a minor-league contract with someone else this winter, has been a bust, and Bryson, who hasn't yet pitched in the majors, is also a minor-league free agent. Only Brantley will be with the club next spring.

Afterwards

Sabathia almost single-handedly carried the Brewers to playoffs, but Milwaukee lost in the NLDS to the Philadelphia Phillies. After the season, Sabathia signed a record-breaking contract with the New York Yankees. The deal, which at that time was the largest contract ever signed by a pitcher, was worth $161M over 7 years. In 2011, Sabathia signed an extension with the Yankees rather than exercise an opt-out clause in his original deal. His amazing streak of 12 consecutive seasons with at least a 100 ERA+ ended in 2013, but his

Indians Career Stats

Selected Awards/Leaders

• AL All-Star: 2003, 2004, 2007
• AL MVP: 2007-14th
• AL Cy Young: 2007-1st
• AL WAR: 7th, 2007-6.4
• AL WAR Pitchers: 2nd, 2007-6.3; 9th, 2006-4.6
• AL ERA: 3rd, 2006-3.22; 5th, 2007-3.21; 10th, 2003-3.66
• AL Wins: 2nd, 2007-19; 6th, 2001-17; 8th, 2005-14
• AL W/L Percentage: 3rd, 2001-.773; 3rd, 2007-.731
• AL WHIP: 4th, 2006-1.173; 5th, 2007-1.141
• AL Hits/9 IP: 1st, 2001-7.436; 6th, 2006-8.502; 8th, 2005-8.466; 9th, 2004-8.426
• AL Bases on Balls/9 IP: 2nd, 2007-1.382
• AL Strikeouts/9 IP: 4th, 2001-8.534; 6th, 2005-7.368; 6th, 2006-8.035; 9th, 2007-7.805
• AL Innings: 1st, 2005-241.0
• AL Strikeouts: 5th, 2007-209; 7th, 2001-171; 7th, 2005-161; 8th, 2006-172; 10th, 2002-149
• AL Games Started: 1st, 2007-34; 7th, 2002-33
• AL Complete Games: 1st, 2006-6; 2nd, 2007-4; 3rd, 2008-3
• AL Shutouts: 1st, 2006-2; 1st, 2008-2; 4th, 2004-1; 5th, 2007-1; 6th, 2003-1
• AL Bases on Balls: 2nd, 2001-95; 2nd, 2002-88
• AL Hits: 3rd, 2007-238
• AL Strikeouts/Bases on Balls: 1st, 2007-5.649; 5th, 2006-3.909
• AL Home Runs/9: 7th, 2002-0.729; 8th, 2005-0.870; 8th, 2006-0.794; 9th, 2007-0.747
• AL Earned Runs: 7th, 2002-102
• AL Hit By Pitch: 10th, 2007-8
• AL Adjusted Era+: 3rd, 2006-139; 5th, 2007-141; 10th, 2003-122
• AL Win Probability Added: 7th, 2007-3.7
• AL Errors as P: 4th, 2006-3
• AL Fielding Percentage as P: 1st, 2004-1.000

Cleveland Indians Career Leader

• 14th WAR Pitchers (27.5)
• 50th ERA (3.83)
• 13th Wins (106)
• 17th W/L Percentage (.599)
• t-23rd WHIP (1.265)
• 30th Hits/9 IP (8.449)
• 34th Bases on Balls/9 IP (2.932)
• 6th Strikeouts/9 IP (7.448)
• t-31st Games Pitched (237)
• 15th Innings Pitched (1528.2)
• 5th Strikeouts (1265)
• 12th Games Started (237)
• t-40th Shutouts (7)
• 8th Home Runs (144)
• 16th Bases on Balls (498)
• 15th Bases on Balls (1435)
• 4th Strikeouts/Bases on Balls (2.540)
• 19th Losses (71)
• 12th Earned Runs (650)
• t-25th Wild Pitches (30)
• t-14th Hit By Pitch (46)
• t-22nd ERA+ (115)
• 5th WPA (13.7)

Cleveland Indians Season Leader

• t-37th Pitching WAR (6.3; 2007)
• t-12th W/L Percentage (.773; 2001)
• t-25th W/L Percentage (.731; 2007)
• 13th Bases on Balls/9 IP (1.382, 2007)
• 15th Strikeouts/9 IP (9.049, 2008)
• 15th Strikeouts/9 IP (8.534, 2001)
• 34th Strikeouts/9 IP (8.035, 2006)
• 37th Strikeouts/9 IP (7.805, 2007)
• 20th Strikeouts (209, 2007)
• 40th Strikeouts (172, 2006)
• 41st Strikeouts (171, 2001)
• 1st Strikeouts/Bases on Balls (5.649, 2007)
• 10th Strikeouts/Bases on Balls (3.909, 2006)
• 15th Strikeouts/Bases on Balls (3.618, 2008)
• t-29th WPA (3.7, 2007)

We're examining the joys of being baseball's only inactive team in today's roundup of all things Brewers.

Some things to read while insisting on the hard g.

We are 72 days away from pitchers and catchers reporting to Maryvale and MLB Daily Dish reports that yesterday was the "greatest offseason day ever," but for the Brewers it was just a quiet Tuesday. Things may heat up at next week's Winter Meetings, though, and Adam McCalvy has the MLB.com preview.

Of course, given yesterday's flurry of moves, it's possible all the big offseason events have already taken place.

The Winter Meetings are threatening to be a snooze. So many big deals already done.

— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) December 4, 2013

Before leaving for Florida the Brewers may also make an offer to free agent Corey Hart. Hart finally received medical clearance from his doctor yesterday, opening the door for him to sign a new contract. The Brewers have previously been reported as being willing to offer Hart a one-year deal, but there are several other teams in that boat.

Every day without transaction news might actually be good news for Jim Henderson, who currently projects to remain as closer for the 2014 season. Jim Owczarski of OnMilwaukee.com talked to Henderson about his first full season in the majors and preparations for his second.

As long as Henderson remains with the Brewers, Ron Roenicke will be his manager again in 2014. Justin Schultz of Reviewing the Brew has a list of three ways Roenicke can improve as a manager. I agree with exactly one of them.

The Brewers do still have a fair number of holes to fill this winter but their core projects to be at least average. Jonathan Judge of Disciples of Uecker ranked their most notable players 15th in all of baseball, which makes them the fourth best in the NL Central.

Carlos Gomez is one of those core players, and he's still under contract with the Brewers for three more seasons. Yesterday we looked at his September 25 home run against the Braves, the ninth longest hit by a Brewer in 2013.

In the minors:

• Congratulations are due out to Helena outfielder and 2013 Pioneer League MVP Michael Ratterree, who added another accolade to his resume yesterday when MiLB.com named him a short season All Star (h/t @Haudricourt). The 2013 tenth round pick hit .314/.391/.585 in 65 games for Helena.
• Meanwhile in the Dominican Republic, Elian Herrera's hot streak continues as he went 2-for-4 with a run in Oriente's 4-3 loss to Aguilas (box score). Herrera has reached base safely in ten consecutive games and has multiple hits in five straight.
• Elsewhere on the island, Jason Rogers went 1-for-3 with a run in Este's 6-5 win over Licey (box score).
• And in Puerto Rico, Martin Maldonado went 0-for-3 in Mayaguez' 3-0 loss to Caguas (box score). Jose De La Torre pitched a scoreless eighth inning for the victors.

Back in the US, the Brewers' lease with the City of Phoenix for Maryvale Baseball Park could expire following the 2014 season if the city doesn't continue to make improvements to the facility. That makes this piece of news all the more interesting: Rich Kirchen of The Business Journal reports the Brewers are being mentioned as a possibility to move spring training to Florida and occupy a soon-to-be vacant stadium in Dunedin.

If you'd like more Brewers coverage today but you're sick of reading, my Tuesday appearance on The Home Stretch with Justin Hull on 95.3 FM WSCO in Appleton has been archived and can be heard here. We spent about half an hour yesterday talking Ryan Braun and more, and I'll likely stop back again sometime next week to talk Winter Meetings.

As promised above, here are all of yesterday's moves around baseball:

Athletics: Acquired outfielder Craig Gentry and pitcher Josh Lindblom from the Rangers for two minor leaguers and acquired pitcher Luke Gregerson from the Padres for outfielder Seth Smith.
Astros: Acquired outfielder Dexter Fowler and a PTBNL from the Rockies for outfielder Brandon Barnes and pitcher Jordan Lyles.
Cubs: Hired Eric Hinske as their new first base coach.
Marlins: Signed catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia to a three-year, $21 million contract.
Padres: Avoided arbitration with pitcher Tim Stauffer ($1.6 million).
Phillies: Acquired pitcher Brad Lincoln from the Blue Jays for catcher Erik Kratz and a minor leaguer and signed catcher Wil Nieves to a one-year deal.
Rays: Acquired catcher Ryan Hanigan and reliever Heath Bell as part of a three-team trade that sent minor leaguers to the Reds and Diamondbacks and signed Hanigan to a three-year, $10.75 million contract extension with an option for 2017.
Red Sox: Signed catcher A.J. Pierzynski to a one-year, $8.25 million deal.
Rockies: Signed first baseman Justin Morneau to a two-year, $13 million contract.
Tigers: Signed closer Joe Nathan to a two-year, $20 million contract.
Yankees: Signed outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury to a seven-year, $153 million contract.

Of course, all of yesterday's activity was piled atop a busy day on Monday, when dozens of players were non-tendered for the 2014 season. Brad Johnson of The Hardball Times has a look at the new free agents and broke them into groups.

On Monday news also broke that the Tigers had traded pitcher Doug Fister to the Nationals for a return most analysts are seeing as underwhelming. Ryan Connor of Reviewing the Brew looks at a package the Brewers could have put together instead.

Meanwhile in overshadowed news, yesterday the MLBPA announced longtime MLB first baseman Tony Clark as the union's new head. Clark is the first former player ever to hold this role.

Today in former Brewers:

• Amazin' Avenue has a recap of Shaun Marcum's year with the Mets.
• Dave Parker will be one of three players inducted into the Reds Hall of Fame in 2014.

Finally, with help from the B-Ref Play Index, we'd like to wish a happy birthday today to:

• Carlos Gomez, who turns 28. We covered his birthday in Today In Brewer History last year.
• West Allis, Wisconsin native, UW-Madison alum and 1975 and 1982-83 Brewers manager Harvey Kuenn, who would have turned 83. We covered his birthday in Today In Brewer History two years ago.

Plunk Everyone notes, by the way, that Gomez (38) and Kuenn (15) are the third and fourth most plunked batters born on December 4.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to call IT.

Drink up.

Jonathan Lucroy capped off one of the season's biggest days with one of its longest homers.

Even if the May 31 game against the Phillies had only been eight innings long, Jonathan Lucroy would've had a big day.

Lucroy drove in the Brewers' first run with a double in the second inning, then plated another with a single in the third. He homered to lead off the fifth (380 feet to left) and singled to lead off the seventh for his fourth hit of the day. He wasn't done, though.

With the Brewers leading 7-5 and two outs in the top of the ninth, Lucroy came up for a fifth time and connected for this blast off Mike Adams:

The hit actually could've been bigger, as Carlos Gomez was caught stealing with Lucroy at the plate.

Nonetheless, that ball traveled 429 feet to right center. It was the seventh longest homer hit at Citizens Bank Park in 2013, and the longest Mike Adams has given up since Hit Tracker started keeping track in 2006. Adams only allowed five homers in 2013 but Lucroy had a pair of them.

Brew Crew Blasts is a multi-part series looking at the longest and most notable home runs hit by Brewers in 2013. You can see them all in their special section, or follow the links below to their individual posts:

The Brewers finally put something on the slightly warm stove by signing two minor league free agents

The Brewers finally got involved in offseason transactions by signing two minor league free agents today. Both infielder Irving Falu and catcher Matt Pagnozzi have signed minor league contracts with invitations to major league spring training.

Falu, 30, has spent his entire career in the Kansas City Royals organization. He was a 21st round draft pick in 2003 out of an Iowa community college. He spent a little over 3 years at AAA Omaha before making his major league debut in 2012. He spent most of 2013 with Omaha again before being called up in September. He's currently playing winter ball in his native Puerto Rico for Indios de Mayaguez (along with Martin Maldonado and Hiram Burgos) and he's batting .200 in 55 AB right now. Falu is a switch hitter but even more importantly he plays almost all the positions. His primary position now is third base but he played second base, shortstop and right field this season and has played the other outfield positions before. He has been playing 2B for Mayaguez this last month. He doesn't catch or play first base, but we can't have everything. Those positions are what the other player signed today is for.

Pagnozzi, also 31, started his career in the Cardinals organization and made his major league debut with them in 2009. He's also played in the Rockies, Pirates, Indians and Braves organizations, seeing some big-league time with the Rockies and Pirates. His last stop in September was Houston; the Astros purchased his contract from the Braves at the beginning of that month. He played in 9 games this season and hit .143. Pagnozzi bats right but doesn't seem to use it much; his lifetime minor league batting average over 11 seasons is .219 with a .297 OBP. He seems to be around as this year's version of Blake Lalli and perhaps insurance if Adam Weisenburger doesn't pan out at the AAA level. Robinzon Diaz is the other half of Nashville's projected catching team this year, but Diaz's other position is third base. Pagnozzi's is first base. The trend with the Brewers at the AAA level is to have players who play multiple positions; Diaz, Eugenio Velez and Sean Halton are proof of that and here are two more who can fill in at multiple spots.

We're talking about two new Brewers and more in today's news roundup.

Some things to read while consulting the experts.

We are 71 days away from pitchers and catchers reporting to Maryvale and yesterday the Brewers made their biggest additions of the offseason to date, signing infielder Irving Falu and catcher Matt Pagnozzi to minor league deals with invitations to major league camp.

Falu is a 30-year-old with professional experience at second base, shortstop, third base and right field. He's an eleven-year pro but has played just 25 games in the majors, including one as a member of the Royals last season. He's a lifetime .278/.342/.357 hitter in the minors, including the last five seasons with AAA Omaha. He's also a switch hitter, so it's hard to resist the urge to compare him to recent waiver claim Elian Herrera.

Meanwhile, Pagnozzi is a 31-year-old catcher who has played 42 games over parts of four MLB seasons, including nine appearances with the Astros last season. He's a career .272/.323/.326 hitter in the majors, but carries a .219/.297/.312 slash line across almost 800 career minor league games. He's played at the AAA level every year since 2007. He's unlikely to make a significant impact as a Brewer, but one can never have too many catchers in spring training.

Adam McCalvy notes (in twoparts, via Twitter) that Pagnozzi is both the nephew of former All Star Tom Pagnozzi and a one-time Madison Mallard.

Meanwhile, @Mass_Haas points out that both Falu and Pagnozzi are on Twitter.

Pagnozzi is probably not a threat to take significant playing time away from Martin Maldonado, but one never knows for sure. Benjamin Orr of Reviewing the Brew asks what the Brewers should do with Maldonado after his weak offensive 2013 season.

Norichika Aoki's future also remains in limbo. Craig Brown of Royals Review wonders if the veteran outfielder could be a fit for Kansas City.

While Aoki could move this winter, it's probably safe to assume these three Brewers will not: Jonah Keri of Grantland has Jonathan Lucroy 44, Jean Segura 49 and Ryan Braun 50th on his ranking of baseball's top 50 players by trade value.

Lucroy, by the way, hit the eighth longest home run by a Brewer in 2013. We looked at that yesterday in our latest installment of Brew Crew Blasts.

Yovani Gallardo is presumably outside the top 50 on Keri's list, but still could carry a fair amount of value if the Brewers decide to find him a new home. Nicholas Zettel of Disciples of Uecker reassessed Gallardo's value in light of recent contract developments.

Juan Francisco, on the other hand, will almost certainly be a 2014 Brewer after getting an arbitration offer from the Brewers earlier this week. Justin Schultz of Reviewing the Brew makes the case for him to get another shot.

While Irving Falu and Matt Pagnozzi got most of the attention, the Brewers also made a couple more minor transactions yesterday: Donovan Hand and Michael Olmsted have signed their 2014 contracts. Neither player was eligible for arbitration, so they'll almost certainly make the MLB minimum or slightly more for their time in the majors.

In the minors:

• New Brewer Irving Falu went 1-for-3 with a walk, stolen base and home run in Mayaguez's 9-2 loss to Santurce in Puerto Rico last night (box score). Martin Maldonado also went 0-for-3 in the game.
• Elsewhere in Puerto Rico, Jose De La Torre struck out the side in the eighth inning of Caguas' 3-0 win over Ponce (box score).
• And in the Dominican Republic, Jason Rogers went 1-for-4 in Este's 4-1, 10 inning loss to Licey (box score). Fellow Brewer minor leaguer Hector Gomez also went 1-for-4 in the game.

Back in Milwaukee, Nick Michalski of The Brewers Bar has a proposal that might eliminate some of the strain on the parking lots around Miller Park: He'd like to see Milwaukee's proposed streetcar run a line out to the ballpark.

Around baseball:

Athletics: Designated pitcher Andrew Werner for assignment.
Cubs: Signed reliever Wesley Wright.
Tigers: Designated infielder Dixon Machado for assignment.
White Sox: Re-signed first baseman/DH Paul Konerko to a one-year, $2.5 million contract.
Yankees: Signed second baseman Kelly Johnson to a one-year, $3 million contract.

Today in former Brewers:

• Amazin' Avenue has a look at John Axford as a possible free agent target for the Mets.
• Let's Go Tribe listed CC Sabathia as the 25th best all-time member of the Cleveland Indians.
• David Schoenfield of ESPN says Ball Four, Jim Bouton's book about life with the 1969 Seattle Pilots, is still a classic over 40 years after its release.
• Darrell Porter is one of several one-time Brewers featured in Chris Mehring of Rattler Radio's collection of Kansas City Royals cards.
• Baseball Card Vandals had some (potentially NSFW) fun with a B.J. Surhoff card.

Today in baseball economics: Our Tweet of the Day is a fun fact to remember for the next time someone tells you baseball is dying:

Seattle Pilots fact: Averaged just 8,268 fans per game. Drew more than 20,000 twice. STILL outdrew Indians, White Sox, Phillies, Padres.

— David Schoenfield (@dschoenfield) December 4, 2013

Finally, with help from the B-Ref Play Index, we'd like to wish a happy birthday to Beaver Dam, Wisconsin native and 1901 Milwaukee Brewer Pink Hawley. He would have turned 141 today, and we covered his birthday in Today In Brewer History two years ago. Hawley's 210 career hit batsmen are also easily the most ever for a pitcher born on December 5, according to Plunk Everyone.

Today is also the 23rd anniversary of the Brewers signing first baseman Franklin Stubbs as a free agent in 1990 and the sixth anniversary of the team picking up reliever David Riske in 2007. We covered those events in Today In Brewer History last year.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I feel naked.

Drink up.

The Brewers have traded versatile outfielder Norichika Aoki to the Royals in exchange for left-handed pitcher Will Smith.

The Brewers and Royals have struck a deal that will send outfielder Norichika Aoki to Kansas City and left-handed pitcher Will Smith to Milwaukee, according to Ken Rosenthal.

The move shores up areas of weakness for both teams, as Aoki gives the Royals versatility (he can play all three outfield positions) and an ability to get on base (his career OBP is .355). In addition, Royals right fielders hit all of .254/.304/.392 in 2013, 17 percent below-average according to Baseball-Reference -- while Aoki's bat is just average for the position, that's still a huge step forward for the Royals, and it doesn't even begin to count his high-quality defense.

More from our team sites

Kansas City Royals

Follow

Milwaukee Brewers

Follow

Smith is a versatile arm that has experience starting and success in the bullpen. The Brewers see him as a starter and he will come to camp as one, according to Tom Haudricourt. They like that he has experience in the bullpen, too, should starting not work out. The Royals moved Smith to the bullpen halfway through the 2013 season and reaped immediate dividends, as he posted a 3.24 ERA with an impressive strikeout-to-walk ratio of 6.1.

Aoki came to the Brewers in 2012 from the Yakult Swallows of NPB. He played well, finishing fifth in Rookie of the Year voting in the NL. He provides little in the power department (he has slugged .399 in his two years with the Brewers) but he gets on base and plays good defense. He will make only $1.95 million in 2014 before being eligible for arbitration for the first time.

The move comes as rumors swirl that the Royals have a three-year, $48 million offer out to Carlos Beltran. The addition of Aoki likely won't preclude them from signing Beltran, but it could have implications on the future of Billy Butler. Rosenthal notes that trading Butler was always an option, but getting Aoki and potentially Beltran as well makes a Butler trade "even more likely." Beltran, who will be 37 in the first year of any free agent deal, could use time at designated hitter to extend his career and effectiveness, and Butler could very well end up bringing in another significant piece to the contention-hopeful Royals.

More from SB Nation MLB:

• Jacoby Ellsbury signs with Yankees | Rob Neyer: 7 years is a long time | MLB hot stove’s busiest day

• New MLB/NPB posting deal in the works | What it means for Masahiro Tanaka

• Yelp reviews of the 2013 Blue Jays season

• M’s targeting Cano&Price, too? | Beltran has offer from ‘mystery team’ | More rumors

• Death of a Ballplayer: Wrongly convicted prospect spends 27 years in prison

Are you ready for the Ryan Braun, right fielder era?

Opening day. March 31, 2014. Miller Park. Player introductions:

And playing right field for your Milwaukee Brewers: RrrrrrryanBraun.

The last part of that is familiar. Very familiar. The first part, the right field part, is foreign in relation to Braun. But that doesn't sound too bad, does it? Has a nice ring to it? Especially when preceded by:

In left field...Khris Davis!

Because that is almost certainly what those introductions are going to be. The Brewers have traded Norichika Aoki to the Kansas City Royals, leaving them with a hole in right field that looks like it will be filled by Ryan Braun.

The return in the trade is so-so. I'm alright with it, a lot of people will probably be underwhelmed. The Brewers are receiving Will Smith, a 24-year-old left handed pitcher.

Smith has pitched in parts of two major league seasons thus far. He made 16 starts in 2012, posting a 5.32 ERA and 1.60 WHIP. He moved to the bullpen primarily in 2013 and looked better. He spent most of the year in the minors, but made 19 appearances for the Royals with a 3.24 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. He also struck out an outstanding 11.6 batters per nine innings with just a 1.9 BB/9 which, by golly, I can get into. His numbers were also good in the minors last year, while also still making 10 starts.

Smith has a career 3.80 ERA in the minors and, up until last year, had never been really outstanding. Still, he's a left-hander, which the Brewers don't have many of, and he's a left-hander with control, so he's not Manny Parra. He may not work out, but he's still pre-arbitration and there's a decent chance he can at the very least be useful out of the bullpen. For one year of Aoki, five years of Smith is not too shabby of a deal. The Brewers lost a speedy leadoff hitter, but they got a pretty decent lottery ticket.

The Brewers will bring Smith into camp as a starter because, if that works out, a starting pitcher is certainly more valuable than a reliever. It would be a pretty easy switch to move him back to the bullpen if he struggles.

And, of course, this opens up room for both Ryan Braun and Khris Davis to play the outfield which very well might be a significant improvement to the 2013 squad. Aoki is good, but he really does probably profile better as a fourth outfielder for most teams. Davis has hit at every single level (including the majors!). Braun is an MVP. They should both probably play a lot next year, unless Davis shows that 2013 was an aberration.

Smith could be another guy that could slot into the back of the rotation. He could, based on last year's numbers, be a future closer. He could burn out and be nothing. But Aoki held little value to the Brewers going forward and they weren't going to get anything big for him in a trade. I'd say Doug Melvin did a pretty good job with this deal.

Anyway, the long and short of it is, get ready for a lot of Will Smith, the actor jokes. Milwaukee may have lost Prince Fielder a couple years back, but they have a new, Fresh Prince.

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• Thursday's Frosty Mug: Depth charges
• Brewers sign Irving Falu, Matt Pagnozzi to minor league contracts
• Brew Crew Blasts #8: Lucroy's encore
• ARCHIVED: Kyle's Tuesday spot on The Home Stretch (Appleton)

In the latest baseball move in a busy off-season, the Brewers traded outfielder Norichika Aoki to the Royals in exchange for left-handed reliever Will Smith. What are the fantasy implications?

Another day, another baseball move.

The Kansas City Royals added an outfield bat to the mix, acquiring Norichika Aoki from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for left-handed reliever Will Smith, the Brewers announced Thursday.

Aoki, 31, owns a career line of .287/.355/.399 with 50 steals in 70 attempts in two seasons with the Brewers. He'll have an everyday outfield job and -- likely -- bat first for the Royals, who struggled to get anything from their No. 1 hitter this season, posting a .309 OBP from the leadoff spot. Aoki played 150-plus games in both seasons for Milwaukee, including a 162-game average of 85 runs, 30 doubles, 10 home runs, 46 RBIs and 26 steals, according to Baseball Reference.

The latest projected lineup for Kansas City, courtesy of MLB Depth Charts:

1. Norichika Aoki, RF

2. Alex Gordon, LF

3. Eric Hosmer, 1B

4. Billy Butler, DH

5. Salvador Perez, C

6. Mike Moustakas, 3B

7. Lorenzo Cain, CF

8. Emilio Bonifacio, 2B

9. Alcides Escobar, SS

The Royals are reportedly still in the mix for Carlos Beltran, which, in turn, could make Billy Butler that much more expendable. Regardless, Aoki's presence in a leadoff capacity has a huge trickle-down effect for the rest of the lineup, which allows Alex Gordon to settle into the No. 2 spot, followed by Eric Hosmer, Butler (or Beltran?) and Salvador Perez. Two plus on-base hitters at the top of the order is great news for the middle of Kansas City's lineup. (I'm looking at you, Hosmer.)

After hitting 10 home runs and stealing 30 bases in 2012, Aoki's stats declined some this season (most notably his power numbers), but everything else stayed roughly the same. His strikeout and walk rate both improved, and he scored 80 runs for the second consecutive season. He makes great contact and could see his runs scored tease the century mark; he'll also be given the green light on the base paths, as Ned Yost's group led the league with 153 stolen bases. Overall, Aoki's fantasy value goes up in Kansas City.

As for the the other end of the deal, Smith, who pitched primarily in a relief role with the Royals, could end up in Milwaukee's starting rotation. The 24-year-old struck out a filthy 11.61 batters per nine while posting an impressive 6.14 K/BB ratio (in 33 1/3 innings), but it remains to be seen what role the Brewers choose to use him in. He's not worth rostering in standard formats.

More from Fake Teams

Follow @faketeamsFollow @SBNationMLB

• Updated Top 50 Starting Pitcher Rankings for 2014
• Fantasy Top 5 for 2014: Chicago Cubs
• 2014 Minor League Keeper Thoughts: Atlanta Braves
• MLB Trade Rumors: Red Sox in on Matt Kemp?
• Fantasy Football: Week 14 Rankings, Waiver Wire and More
• Fantasy Top 5 for 2014: Pittsburgh Pirates
• Fantasy Impact: Changes afoot in Oak-town

Let's take a closer look at the newest Brewer.

Earlier today the Brewers made their first major offseason move, trading Norichika Aoki to the Royals for pitcher Will Smith. We all know about Aoki and what he brought to the Brewers, but what do we know about Will Smith?

Background

Smith was a relatively unheralded minor leaguer. The Angels took him in the seventh round of the 2008 draft and traded him to the Royals in 2010 as part of a package for infielder Alberto Callaspo. Before the 2012 season John Sickels of Minor League Ball left Smith off of his list of the Royals top 22 prospects, listing him as an honorable mention and ranking him behind guys like Jeremy Jeffress.

Smith made 16 starts as a 22-year-old for the 2012 Royals and struggled, posting a 5.32 ERA and striking out just 5.9 batters per nine innings. He moved primarily to relief in 2013 and had his best season, posting a 3.03 ERA in 89 innings for AAA Omaha and a 3.24 mark in 33.1 innings for the Royals.

Smith's minor league numbers are relatively unimpressive: He has a career 3.80 ERA over 133 appearances, striking out 7.6 batters per nine innings with 2.2 walks. To put those numbers in context, though, I think it's important to remember that he was pretty young for every level. Smith pitched in the low-A Midwest League in his age 19 season, reached AAA as a 20-year-old in 2010 and was only 22 when he made his MLB debut.

Smith is still only 24 now. To put that in perspective, he's younger than Jimmy Nelson, Tyler Thornburg, Wily Peralta or Johnny Hellweg.

Arsenal

Smith is left handed and FanGraphs shows his fastball as sitting in the low 90's, averaging 91 as a reliever in 2013 and 90.5 as a starter in 2012. This year as a reliever he relied very heavily on his slider (almost 30% of all pitches), but he also has a curveball and changeup. He's listed at 6'5" and 250 lbs, so he'll be one of the Brewers' bigger pitchers.

Smith shows reasonably solid control numbers, having walked just 2.2 batters per nine innings in the minors and 2.9 in the majors. The troubling side note to that stat, though, is that he's prone to allowing home runs: He gave up 1.3 per nine innings in two seasons as a Royal.

Statistically, it looks like Smith keeps his walk rate low by throwing hittable pitches in hitters' counts. Admittedly these are small sample size numbers, but check out these MLB splits:

The Brewers may have some work to do to convince Smith not to "give in" after falling behind in counts.

Role

One of the first assumptions we frequently make when we see a lefty reliever is that he'll be a situational lefty. Let me make this clear on Day One: There is very little in Smith's past that suggests he'll be effective in that role.

Over 123 career MLB innings, here are Smith's platoon splits:

Smith was better against lefties in the minors in 2013, but in 2012 he was actually better against righties for Omaha. In 2011 he was roughly neutral.

For now the Brewers say they're planning on treating Smith as a starter in camp. It's hard to believe, barring injury, that he'll beat out a guy like Tyler Thornburg or Jimmy Nelson for a rotation spot, though. At the moment he's likely better suited for a long relief role and "swingman" duties, freeing up Tom Gorzelanny for more consistent late-inning work.

Contract Status

Despite having pitched in the majors in both 2012 and 2013, Smith has slightly less than a year of MLB service time. He'll be a pre-arbitration player again in 2014 and 2015, then will likely qualify for Super 2 status for 2016. Assuming all of that is correct, he'd be eligible for free agency following the 2019 season.

Perhaps more importantly, Smith was added to the Royals MLB roster in 2012 and optioned back to the minors in 2012 and 2013, so it appears he has one minor league option remaining.

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• Brewers deal Norichika Aoki to Royals, acquire Will Smith
• Thursday's Frosty Mug: Depth charges
• Brewers sign Irving Falu, Matt Pagnozzi to minor league contracts
• Brew Crew Blasts #8: Lucroy's encore

Are you ready for the Ryan Braun, right fielder era?

Opening day. March 31, 2014. Miller Park. Player introductions:

And playing right field for your Milwaukee Brewers: RrrrrrryanBraun.

The last part of that is familiar. Very familiar. The first part, the right field part, is foreign in relation to Braun. But that doesn't sound too bad, does it? Has a nice ring to it? Especially when preceded by:

In left field...Khris Davis!

Because that is almost certainly what those introductions are going to be. The Brewers have traded Norichika Aoki to the Kansas City Royals, leaving them with a hole in right field that looks like it will be filled by Ryan Braun.

The return in the trade is so-so. I'm alright with it, a lot of people will probably be underwhelmed. The Brewers are receiving Will Smith, a 24-year-old left handed pitcher.

Smith has pitched in parts of two major league seasons thus far. He made 16 starts in 2012, posting a 5.32 ERA and 1.60 WHIP. He moved to the bullpen primarily in 2013 and looked better. He spent most of the year in the minors, but made 19 appearances for the Royals with a 3.24 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. He also struck out an outstanding 11.6 batters per nine innings with just a 1.9 BB/9 which, by golly, I can get into. His numbers were also good in the minors last year, while also still making 10 starts.

Smith has a career 3.80 ERA in the minors and, up until last year, had never been really outstanding. Still, he's a left-hander, which the Brewers don't have many of, and he's a left-hander with control, so he's not Manny Parra. He may not work out, but he's still pre-arbitration and there's a decent chance he can at the very least be useful out of the bullpen. For one year of Aoki, five years of Smith is not too shabby of a deal. The Brewers lost a speedy leadoff hitter, but they got a pretty decent lottery ticket.

The Brewers will bring Smith into camp as a starter because, if that works out, a starting pitcher is certainly more valuable than a reliever. It would be a pretty easy switch to move him back to the bullpen if he struggles.

And, of course, this opens up room for both Ryan Braun and Khris Davis to play the outfield which very well might be a significant improvement to the 2013 squad. Aoki is good, but he really does probably profile better as a fourth outfielder for most teams. Davis has hit at every single level (including the majors!). Braun is an MVP. They should both probably play a lot next year, unless Davis shows that 2013 was an aberration.

Smith could be another guy that could slot into the back of the rotation. He could, based on last year's numbers, be a future closer. He could burn out and be nothing. But Aoki held little value to the Brewers going forward and they weren't going to get anything big for him in a trade. I'd say Doug Melvin did a pretty good job with this deal.

Anyway, the long and short of it is, get ready for a lot of Will Smith, the actor jokes. Milwaukee may have lost Prince Fielder a couple years back, but they have a new, Fresh Prince.

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• Thursday's Frosty Mug: Depth charges
• Brewers sign Irving Falu, Matt Pagnozzi to minor league contracts
• Brew Crew Blasts #8: Lucroy's encore
• ARCHIVED: Kyle's Tuesday spot on The Home Stretch (Appleton)

Who's going to leadoff the bottom of the first on Opening Day?

Norichika Aoki did a lot of things well during his two seasons as a Brewer, but it's possible his biggest contribution to the team was his ability to be a viable leadoff hitter, something the organization hasn't had in quite some time.

The Brewers have already announced how they plan to fill Aoki's spot in the field: Ryan Braun is expected to move from left to right to free up a spot for Khris Davis, who we'll discuss at greater depth later. The organization is going to have a harder time, though, finding someone to hit at the top of the lineup on Opening Day.

Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel spoke to Ron Roenicke about the vacancy earlier today, and tweeted this:

Just spoke with #Brewers manager Ron Roenicke. He said leadoff candidates are Segura, Gennett and Gomez, assuming Weeks isn't in lineup.

— Tom (@Haudricourt) December 5, 2013

Let's look at those three guys, in order:

Jean Segurais probably the most likely to fill the spot on Opening Day, although he may also be the least likely to do it well. Segura blew expectations out of the water by hitting .294/.329/.423 in 2013, but I think it's important to remember how he got there. Segura hit .365/.400/.569 in his first 49 games, and .258/.292/.350 in the 97 after that.

Segura drew just 25 walks in his first full MLB season, so his .329 OBP would also be a little low for the #1 spot.

Scooter Gennett

Scooter's meteoric rise continues today, as he's gone from organizational side note to likely everyday second baseman to potential leadoff hitter in a span of about ten months. Gennett hit the cover off the ball in his MLB debut season in 2013, appearing in 69 games and posting a .324/.356/.479 batting line.

The challenge with Scooter is twofold, though: First, his MLB sample size is still pretty limited so it's tough to tell if he'll continue to perform at this level. Second, unless Scooter suddenly learns to hit lefties he's probably going to need to be platooned or pinch hit for against tough southpaws.

Rickie Weeks has hit leadoff before, and there are certainly worse options than a Gennett/Weeks leadoff platoon. It's hard to tell, though, if the Brewers will be willing to be swapping guys in and out at one of their key spots in front of Ryan Braun.

Carlos Gomez

This is an intriguing possibility but almost certainly a non-starter. Gomez led the Brewers with 24 home runs and set a career high with his .506 slugging percentage in 2013, so it's unlikely at best that the Brewers will put him somewhere where he won't frequently bat with runners on base.

Depending on what happens at first base I could see Gomez potentially batting second in front of Braun, but I think the combination of Gomez's power and .303 career OBP make him a poor choice to bat first.

Assuming more lineup changes don't happen before spring, the other less likely options would presumably be Jonathan Lucroy, Aramis Ramirez, Ryan Braun, Khris Davis and the new first baseman, whoever it may be. I could see a small case to be made for Lucroy, but the remaining three known commodities are all obviously better utilized elsewhere.

What do you think? Who's the top candidate in your mind to fill this spot?

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• Brewers deal Norichika Aoki to Royals, acquire Will Smith
• Aoki Trade: So who is Will Smith?
• Brewers deal Norichika Aoki to Royals, acquire Will Smith
• Thursday's Frosty Mug: Depth charges
• Brewers sign Irving Falu, Matt Pagnozzi to minor league contracts

The Royals just pulled off an awfully nice trade. We should do that too!

.

More from Let's Go Tribe

Follow @LetsGoTribeFollow @SBNationMLB

• Indians interested in Oakland starting pitcher Brett Anderson
• Non-tender deadline creates new free agent possibilities for Indians
• Top 100 Cleveland Indians: #25 CC Sabathia
• Tigers targeting free agent Shin-Soo Choo
• What if the Indians don't sign another pitcher?

Brian Creagh takes a look at the top 5 fantasy assets for the Milwaukee Brewers

Compiling this list of Top 5 fantasy players on the Milwaukee Brewers has been my most difficult to date. Now I've only officially written the Twins, Orioles, and Mets (I Carlos Gomez, Jean Segura, Khris Davis, and Scooter Gennett - do you feel confident that any of these players are for real? Gomez has the skills, Segura has had the pedigree so maybe there is some reason for optimism, but it's tough to justify paying full price for them to repeat (or maintain) their 2013 pace.

How about the players with down years: fantasy staples like Ryan Braun, Aramis Ramirez, and Yovani Gallardo. Sure it's easy to suggest a bounce back is likely in 2014, but to what extent? Braun has legitimate concerns post-steroid debacle like his ability to maintain productivity without any performance enhancement supplements, plus the pressure of being vilified in every stadium across the majors. Aramis has been a model of consistency, so a rebound isn't out of the question in 2014. But he's also 35 years old and possibly facing a diminishing skillset and aging body that can't support the 25 HR, .280 AVG, 90 RBI we used to expect year in and year out. Yovani Gallardo has been an electric arm and a lock for big strikeout numbers, solid win totals, and a respectable ERA/WHIP. If anyone knows what happened to him in 2013, please let me know so I can adjust my expectations properly.

The Brewers are a collection of players coming off career-worst or career-best performances and trying to predict their 2014 values appears to be a practice in futility. But I'm going to give it a shot here. Without further ado, my Top 5 fantasy players for the Brew Crew.

1. Ryan Braun - The narrative can go either way. 1. Ryan Braun has something to prove and is going to come out and prove everyone wrong by putting up a monster season fueled by doubters. Or 2. He doesn't have PEDs to help him any more so he's going to fall off the face of the map. Personally I disagree with both lines of thought. The first assumes he didn't try his hardest in previous seasons, and that he has some sort of extra ability that he never offered up on the field. The second assumes that the PEDs Braun used actually had a meaningful impact on his performance. To be clear, I'm entirely against the use of PEDs and find it difficult to root for any former user, but until the impact of their use can be quantified I have a hard time devaluing any fantasy player for a change in usage patterns.

So what to expect from Ryan Braun? I think it's safe to expect the old Ryan Braun. Yes, the consensus Top 5 pick and arguably third best option in the entire fantasy baseball universe. Speed, power, productive lineup surrounding him, league-leading batting average, Braun runs the gambit of fantasy credentials. I will select him in all redraft leagues where he falls to me. If he starts falling in to second rounds, picks 12 & 13 at the turn will be the optimal place to draft this season and it won't even be close.

2. Carlos Gomez - The second best fantasy player last season on a strictly value basis (behind Chris Davis), Gomez has thrust himself into elite fantasy company. The best part about his breakout is that it looks almost completely sustainable. The HR/FB% and BABIP are a little on the lucky side, but changes in his batted ball profile tend to support the positive shifts in these numbers. Gomez is entering his age 28 season so he's well in his prime and is a safe bet for at least 20 HRs and 30 SBs.

I expect the career-high in AVG he put up last season to regress closer to the .260-.270 range but even at that level he's deserves to go in the top 3 rounds. An interesting shift in Gomez's value might be coming after the trade of Norichika Aoki to the Kansas City Royals. Gomez will remain in CF but is a possible candidate to move to the top of the Milwaukee order to fill Aoki's place. MLB Depth Charts currently has him slotted in the #2 hole. His career .303 OBP clearly wouldn't fit well there, but his .338 OBP in 2013 to go with the game-changing speed could be a nice table-setter for the Brewers. Whether he moves to the top or stays in the middle his R or RBI opportunities will be far better this season with the return of Ryan Braun to the lineup. There was some early buzz for Gomez as a First Round pick and while I think that's far too high for him, a late second, early third round draft pick feels right for Gomez. We saw his ceiling in 2013. Don't let those numbers dictate his 2014 value.

3. Jean Segura - A savior for not only fantasy owners but for the SS position in general, Jean Segura has established himself as a legitimate offensive threat. Off the top of my head, I'm only taking Tulo, Hanley, Desmond, Reyes, Bogaerts, and probably Everth Cabrera ahead of Segura. Double digit power and league-leading SB totals (I'm so excited to begin using the Billy Hamilton caveat for steals) hitting in front of Ryan Braun is a package worth drooling over when it comes from the middle of the diamond. He may not have the major league track record you'd like to see, Segura was a highly-touted prospect ranking 57 and 55 in BA's Top 100 in 2011 and 2012 respectively.

My largest unanswered question with Segura is what's the power going to look like this year and beyond? His minor league numbers maintain a similar ~50 AB/HR rate so there wasn't much of a power spike, but his numbers did fade in the second half, leading me to wonder if he just tired out or if the first half was a hot start we aren't likely to witness again. His AVG/HR numbers by month were:

April/March: .367/3

May: .345/5

June: .277/3

July: .281/1

August: .252/0

Sept/Oct: .214/0

Segura was pretty useless the last 3 months of the season. He did manage to steal 6+ bases every month, which is nice but not enough to sustain his value if the power isn't real. I have always believed there is something to the idea of lineup protection (sup Giancarlo) and even though it's difficult to quantify in a scientific testing model, anecdotal examples like Stanton and Segura here make me believe there's something to it. Segura's struggles almost directly begin and extend through the period of Ryan Braun's suspension last season. I'm willing to put faith that Braun's return lifts Segura's value closer to what we say in the first 3 months as opposed to the last 3.

4. Aramis Ramirez - Old Faithful, Aramis Ramirez was plagued with injuries in 2013 and managed only 92 games. Outside of his two DL stints, Ramirez still looked the part of a 25 HR, 80 RBI, .280ish AVG guy. He's been a model of excellence and consistency throughout his entire career and finally, entering the twilight of his career, us fantasy owners might finally be able to get a piece of A-Ram for a nice discount. There is no reason to expect Ramirez to struggle bouncing back from his injuries; in fact he tore up Sept/Oct pitching to the tune of .338/.413/.538 in 22 games. His age and poor raw numbers last year should shy managers away from him, especially with the exciting names breaking out at 3B (Donaldson, Arenado, etc.) and garnering more attention.

Coming off a 2012 season that earned him a few MVP votes, Ramirez was the 8^th overall 3B off draft boards on final ADP reports. His value was at a high point then, but I don't have too many problems taking him at that point this season. He should drop a few spots lower providing a nice value opportunity in a position that has grown more and more polarizing - the gap between top tier and second tier continues to grow. I'd take Ramirez over Sandoval, Headley, Frazier, Seager, Arenado, and Alvarez next season.

5. Khris Davis - A guy I'm learning to like, Khris Davis had the Quad-A label written all over him even after his impressive major league debut. That is until the Brewers decided to ship away Norichika Aoki and commit to playing Khris Davis full time in leftfield. The Brewers aren't rebuilding so it's not a move that allows the Brewers to "see what they have". It's a move designed to give who they feel is their best 3 OFs (Braun-Gomez-Davis) a chance to play every day and free of platoon situations. The clubs willingness speaks volumes of positive future they see for Davis and their plan to stick him in the middle of their lineup with full expectations of major league production.

Davis' power has never been in question as he was considered a slugger in the minor leagues long before hitting 11 HRs in only 153 PA's in Milwaukee. The strikeout rate of 22% is nothing alarming and he's shown the ability to take a walk. His 29% HR/FB ratio screams regression, but I don't think anyone was expecting him to maintain his 35 HR pace either. What we could be looking at with Davis is a 20-25 HR OF with a handful of steals, an AVG that keeps the line moving and R/RBI totals reflective of a middle of the lineup hitter surrounded by quality hitters. 70/20/80/9/.270 is a good starting point for a projection. And all that will cost you is a late 20^th round flier pick. The SB/HR/AVG will never come together in a package to make him a star or sexy fantasy player a la teammate Jean Segura, but he's currently an undervalued asset that can provide depth if needed.

Follow me on Twitter (@BrianCreagh)

We're gathering notes on the winter's biggest trade and more in today's roundup of all things Brewers.

Some things to read while finding someone who cares.

We are 70 days away from pitchers and catchers reporting to Maryvale, which means the clubhouse attendants have a little more than two months to replace Norichika Aoki's locker with one for Will Smith. The Brewers traded Aoki for the young lefty yesterday, ending ongoing speculation about his role with the team.

If you're not familiar with Smith, we've got a quick introduction for you. And yes, he's heard all of your Fresh Prince jokes. Go ahead and get them all out of the way. You guys are all so original and clever.

Instead of talking about Smith's name, I think he'd prefer we talk about his slider. Mark Simon of ESPN and Alec have great notes on it in our two-part Tweet of the Day:

Will Smith's nasty slider to lefty hitters in heat map form ... pic.twitter.com/IbHZuVYHpv

— Mark Simon (@msimonespn) December 5, 2013

Will Smith's slider held batters to .093/.130/.186 line in 2013 & generated 55.6% chase rate -- 2nd highest amg pitchers w/ 33 IP. #Brewers

— Alec Dopp (@alecdopp) December 5, 2013

As you might expect, we've got much more on the deal from around the web:

• Adam McCalvy reports that the trade made sense for both Aoki and the Brewers, with Aoki seeking a guarantee of more playing time with Khris Davis moving into the lineup.
• Andrew Vrchota of Wisconsin Sports Blog gave the trade a B-.
• Old Time Family Baseball said "It's not a sexy move, but it's a smart ploy from both Midwest teams looking to achieve different things."
• Badgernoonan of Ron Roenicke Stole My Baseball took the opposing view, making the case that the Brewers have overvalued Smith.
• Royals Review approved of the move, saying, "It's rare that (Royals general manager) Dayton Moore makes a move that is supported almost universally amongst us critical spirits, so we should give credit when it is due."
• Kings of Kauffman piled on, saying, "Getting that type of a player for a pitcher who may not have even cracked the Royals roster for the next couple of seasons may turn out to be a steal for the Royals."
• Keith Law (via Twitter) called the move a "great pickup" for the Royals.
• We looked at the Brewers' top candidates to bat in the leadoff spot with Aoki gone.
• Jonathan Lucroy (via Twitter) called Aoki one of his all-time favorite teammates, but said he's also looking forward to seeing what Smith can do.
• Smith appeared on WTMJ yesterday.
• Smith and Johnny Hellweg are friends from their time together in the Angels organization, and are already making plans to room together next spring. (h/t @AdamMcCalvy)
• Howie Magner has a reminder (on Twitter) that Aoki will be back in Milwaukee when the Brewers and Royals play exhibition games at Miller Park on March 28-29.
• John Steinmiller reports (via Twitter) that the Brewers are working on a plan for Aoki's scheduled bobblehead day in June.

Smith, by the way, is on Twitter as @White_Willy31.

If nothing else, the Aoki trade took most of our minds off of Corey Hart free agency stories for a while. Derek Harvey of The Book of Gorman predicted Hart's new contract will be one year for about $5-6 million, with incentives that could more than double its value.

Meanwhile, there continues to be almost no chance the Brewers would consider trading Carlos Gomez, 2013's most valuable Brewer. Jonah Keri of Grantland wrapped up his trade value rankings yesterday and has Gomez as the 33rd most valuable player in all of baseball.

Gomez was also second on Brian Creagh of Fake Teams' ranking of fantasy players on the 2014 Brewers. Ryan Braun, as you may have expected, was #1.

In the minors:

• Irving Falu went 1-for-6 with a triple and scored a run in Mayaguez's 4-3, 12 inning win over Carolina in Puerto Rico last night (box score). Martin Maldonado went 0-for-5 with a walk in the game.
• Meanwhile in the Dominican Republic, Elian Herrera went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI in Oriente's 4-3 loss to Este (box score). Jason Rogers went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI for the victors.

Juan Francisco's winter ball season may be over, as he hasn't appeared in a game for Licey since November 26. Curt Hogg of Disciples of Uecker has a look at Francisco's past and potential future as a Brewer.

Back in Milwaukee, this weekend is the Brewers' annual Clubhouse Sale, and John Steinmiller and Caitlin Moyer have a preview.

Around baseball:

Cubs: Forfeited their 2013 Rule 5 draft pick to the Phillies to settle a grievance over 2011 Rule 5 pick Lendy Castillo.
Dodgers: Re-signed reliever Brian Wilson to a one-year, $10 million contract with a player option for 2015.
Marlins: Signed infielder Rafael Furcal to a one-year, $3.5 million contract.
Orioles: Signed pitcher Ryan Webb to a two-year, $4.5 million contract.
Phillies: Signed pitcher Jeff Manship to a minor league deal.
Rangers: Signed pitchers Jose Contreras and Nate Adcock and outfielder Bryan Petersen to minor league deals.
Red Sox: Signed reliever Edward Mujica to a two-year, $9.5 million contract.
Twins: Designated pitcher Liam Hendricks for assignment.
White Sox: Signed reliever Ronald Belisario to a one-year, $3 million contract.

Today in former Brewers:

• Roch Kubatko of MASN says the Orioles are becoming more likely to sign John Axford.
• Halos Heaven listed 1974 Brewer (and 20-game loser) Clyde Wright as the 55th greatest Angel of all time.
• Today's strangest story comes from Jim Gantner, who had a shotgun stolen when it flew off the back of his pickup truck on the highway.

With help from the B-Ref Play Index, we'd like to wish a happy birthday today to Seattle Pilot Freddie Velasquez. He turns 76.

Today is also the third anniversary of the Brewers acquiring Shaun Marcum from the Blue Jays in 2010 and the 37th anniversary of the Brewers acquiring Cecil Cooper from the Red Sox in 1976. We covered those events in Today In Brewer History last year and two years ago, respectively.

Now, if you'll excuse me, it's time to make a change.

Drink up.

If high OBPs are your goal, then these are your favorite Brewers.

I pushed the Thinker back a day this week because of the Norichika Aoki news, but this week's quiz is about him.

Aoki is one of 19 players in franchise history to appear in at least 300 games with an OBP at or above .350. How many of those players can you name in five minutes?

If the quiz isn't displaying correctly for you here or you'd simply prefer to take it over there, follow this link to play the quiz at Sporcle.com.

This quiz also contains nine bonus answers: Players who have appeared in at least 300 games as a Brewer with an OBP over .340.

Please post your score in the comments below, but also remember that comments on this post may contain spoilers. If you get all 19 answers correct, post your time along with your score in the comments.

If you've finished this quiz and would like another challenge, here are this offseason's other Thinkers:

• Name the 15 players who have played first base for the Brewers since Prince Fielder.
• Name the Brewers who have hit 25 or more home runs in a season.
• Name the nine Brewers under contract for 2014 (as of November 14).
• Name the 12 relievers that have faced the Brewers at least 25 times since 2007.
• Name the 28 position players who have made at least 200 plate appearances against the Brewers since 2007.
• Name the 18 starting pitchers who have faced the Brewers eleven times or more since 2007.
• Name the eight former Brewers who have appeared in the 2013 postseason.
• Name all 40 members of the 2013 Milwaukee Brewers.

You can also check out the archives for all of last winter's quizzes.

Have fun, and don't forget to post your score in the comments!

Our series on home runs takes a detour today to remember some of Norichika Aoki's best shots.

During his two seasons as a Brewer, it's possible Norichika Aoki surprised us the most with his power. He clubbed ten home runs as a rookie in 2012, and eight more in 2013. Today Brew Crew Blasts takes a break from chronicling the season's longest homers to remember some of Aoki's most notable shots.

The first one

Aoki was just starting to show flashes of his potential when the Brewers opened a series against the Rockies on April 20. The inside-the-park home run he hit off Jhoulys Chacin that day was only his fourth MLB hit, and his first for extra bases. Here's the highlight:

Aoki is one of just 18 players in franchise history to hit an inside-the-park homer.

Walking off

Aoki's first homer was pretty dramatic, but he topped it a few weeks later with his second and third. On June 7 against the Cubs he broke a scoreless tie in the fourth inning with the first out-of-the-park homer of his career, and six innings later he ended the game with a walkoff shot against Casey Coleman in the tenth.

You can see the highlights from both homers here:

Leading off

Later in 2012 Aoki had established himself as the Brewers' leadoff hitter, a role he held through all of 2013. On September 19 of 2012 he became just the 24th batter in franchise history to lead off a game with a homer, taking Pirates starter Kyle McPherson deep to give the Brewers a 1-0 lead. Here's that highlight:

Aoki's final home run as a Brewer was also a leadoff shot, against Carlos Torres and the Mets on September 27.

The longest one

Aoki came to camp in 2013 having bulked up a bit, inspiring some talk that his power numbers could actually improve in his second MLB season. That wasn't the case overall, but he did hit the ball a little further: This 408-foot blast against Wandy Rodriguez on April 29 was his longest as a big leaguer:

That was also the back half of back-to-back home runs with Yovani Gallardo. Clearly, Aoki inspires all of us to do great things.

This week's lessons include the Aoki trade, the non-tender deadline, and the start of a new BCB series.

Norichika Aoki is no longer a Brewer.

The move we all expected to happen for weeks (possibly months) finally happened on Thursday.  The news came in Thursday morning that the Brewers traded Norichika Aoki to the Royals for left-handed pitcher Will Smith.  With four starting outfielders currently on the roster, the Brewers had to do something to clear up the jam.  A few other possibilities were discussed, such as Ryan Braun or Khris Davis moving to first base, but this one was the most likely.  With the move, Ryan Braun will move to right field to clear a spot for Khris Davis to start next season.  The pressure is now on Davis to perform well so the Brewers can compete in 2014.

Another spot that is opened with the trade of Aoki is the leadoff spot.  The Brewers will have to shuffle the lineup a little with Aoki gone, and someone will have to step up and fill the spot.  Kyle analyzed the situation as of now and looked at the possibilities for who could fill that role.  No options look very good at this point, but someone will have to fill the role.  It could change as the offseason progresses, though it's too early to say for now.

Meanwhile, we don't know much about Will Smith right now, though will need to know more before next season.  Shortly after the trade, Kyle looked at Will Smith and the basics of what type of player he is.  There will be discussions entering the season whether he should be a starting pitcher or a relief pitcher, as he has played in both roles before.  There is also the possibility that he could spend a year in the minors since he has an option available.  The one thing we know for sure is this: the Will Smith references will be overused every time he comes up in the news.

A few other things happened outside of the Aoki trade.

While the Aoki trade was the big news of the week, there were a few other things that happened this week.  Entering the week, the next arbitration deadline came with the deadline date for tendering contracts to arbitration-eligible players.  The Brewers had only two eligible players: Marco Estrada and Juan Francisco.  On Monday, the Brewers officially announced that they will tender contracts to both players.  Estrada wasn't a surprise, the expectation the whole time was that he would be tendered a contract.  However, there was uncertainty around whether Francisco would be tendered a contract or not.  With both tendered contracts, the next deadline will be the exchange of arbitration figures (unless both sign contracts before then).

With the non-tender deadline coming up, another rumor that came out this week was in regards to Logan Morrison.  With the Brewers looking for first base help, rumors came out that the Brewers are interested in acquiring Morrison from the Marlins.  The Marlins did tender Morrison a contract on Monday, but rumors are still out there that the Brewers are interested in acquiring Morrison.  This is one that will be out there until the Brewers address the first base position.

Minor League/Other Random Notes

• The other big news of the week for the Brewers came on Wednesday, when the Brewers signed Irving Falu and Matt Pagnozzi to minor league contracts.  Both also received invitations to spring training.
• In the FanPosts, nullacct continued his Face of the Franchise series with a look at 1988.
• Going back to the last week of November, morineko has a look at the key players playing in winter leaguesfor the Brewers.
• Kyle had a radio interview on Tuesday, and you can hear the archived audio here.

Reviewing the Brew Crew Blasts Series

#10: Segura, Francisco start the series
#9: The Carlos Gomez incident
#8: Lucroy's encore
Special: An Aoki Edition

The Collection of Mugs

12/2/2013: Arbitration countdown
12/3/2013: Keeping Juan around
12/4/2013: Everyone's having fun without us
12/5/2013: Depth charges
12/6/2013: Aoki trade reaction

Test Your Knowledge

The Friday Thinker: Getting on base with Aoki

After playing all eleven seasons of his career in the Royals organization, the Omaha fan favorite is moving on.

The Faluuuuuuuuuuu chants will be heard no more at Werner Park in Omaha - unless Irving Falu comes back in a Nashville uniform, which is quite possible.

The Kansas City Royals released the Omaha fan favorite last week and he agreed to terms with the Milwaukee Brewers on a minor league contract this week, with an invitation to spring training.

At the age of 30, and given the number of players the Royals wanted to protect from the Rule 5 Draft, the move doesn't come as a huge surprise - although, you have to wonder why he never got more than two brief looks in Kansas City given the number of problems they have had at second base in recent seasons. In his 95 plate appearances for the Royals, he hit .337/.366/.427.

He didn't play a lot of second base for Omaha in recent seasons for various reasons - one of which is the Royals wanted to give other guys a look at second. And Falu can play multiple positions, so he could always find a spot in the Omaha lineup.

With that said, his offensive numbers took a nosedive in 2013, including his batting average which dipped from .329 to .256. He also drove in fewer runs and had fewer total bases in 2013 than he did in 2012, even though he played 47 more games for Omaha in '13.

That didn't make him any less popular with the fans though. When the Storm Chasers posted a photo of him on its Facebook page on Thursday in appreciation of a "true franchise legend," fans referred to him as a gentleman and a role model. Parents and grandparents expressed their thanks to him for taking time to talk to their kids at the ballpark. And one woman ... well, she'll always have a story to tell.

"We will miss you Falu!!! But we still have our dog named after you in which you met at Bark in the Park!:)," Tawnya Masters Wortman posted.

No minor league player wants to climb the all-time minor league stat charts, but Falu's name is embedded in Omaha's record books. Here's where he ranks in several categories:

• 3rd in games played (578)
• 3rd in at-bats (2,232)
• 2nd in hits (631)
• 3rd in runs (309)
• 10th in RBIs (214)
• T-8th in doubles (84)
• 2nd in triples (29)
• 4th in stolen bases (89)

Irving Falu's interesting week, Eric Marzec down under, Jose De La Torre pitches a lot and more

2013-12-01

2013-12-02

2013-12-03

2013-12-04

2013-12-05

2013-12-06

2013-12-07