The Uniform Review hits the midwest to check out some classic outfits.

The Amazins visited a couple of great ballparks this past week in Wrigley Field and AT&T Park. Would the uniforms be just as classy as the hardball cathedrals? That depends on your sense of style, but no matter your taste, you'll probably want to see what the Cubbies wore on Sunday.

Mets vs. Cubs

Photo credit: Brian Kersey

The SNY guys weren't too hot on the Cubs' home uniforms, but I don't know what's not to like about them. They're like the classic Yankee pinstriped jerseys, but more fun with bright blue and red. Plus, the names on the backs and the fun sleeve logo give make this beauty a modern classic. The Cubbies only wear their blue alternates on the road, and it's not hard to see why.

The Mets were smart to match Chicago's home whites with "New York" road grays during the first two games of the series. There's no need to add more blue to the attire when these two clubs get together, and the old-school uniforms go great with Wrigley Field's charm, even under the lights.

Mets. vs. Giants

Photo credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

I really like what the Giants did with their funky orange alternates this season. They switched the script from the modern block letters to the classic script "Giants" that the franchise brought over from New York back in 1958. The result is a great mix of old and new that is chicken soup for the uniform-lover's soul. Plus, the upward-slanting script gives the Giants a chance to wear numbers on their shirts, which is something that this team usually doesn't do.

Of course, if the Giants were going to wear bright orange, the Mets had to counter with the road blues. I wonder if this combination caused Mets management to further think about the possibility of orange alternates... We all know last year's "Los Mets" jerseys were orange in order to gauge a reaction from fans about the look. I'm fine with what the Mets have for now, but the team has been pretty aggressive with new uniforms in recent years.

Twins vs. Brewers

Photo credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

The Brewers have been busting out their blue 80s pinstripes pretty regularly these days, but this week we got a surprise when the Twins joined the fun with baby blue road jerseys.

I'm not the biggest fan of Milwaukee's current ensemble, and I would have thought that by now they would have switched back to royal blue full-time, but it hasn't happened yet. The "M" underlined with wheat they they wear on their modern caps just doesn't compare to the old "MB" glove design that is beautiful in its simplicity. That said, the rest of the uniform is pretty generic, so maybe the Brewers can mix the old with the new to create something truly awesome.

Photo credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

The blue road jersey fad was just a bit before my time, and I always have trouble understanding it when I see it. For example, why blue? Why not any other light color that goes with a team's color scheme? The Twins have been wearing navy for years, but this jersey -- which Minnesota wore from 1973 to 1986 -- is sky blue, presumably because that's what everyone else was doing. I guess it's slightly better than the pinstriped grays that the Twins wore in the late 80s until 2009, but in my estimation, Minnesota has never had a great road jersey. Maybe the club should mess around some more with the "TC" that looks so good on its hats. Maybe try putting "Twin Cities" instead of "Minnesota" would work? I'm open for ideas, Twins fans.

Marlins vs. Cubs

Photo credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

As part of the Wrigley Field 100th anniversary celebration, the Cubs are wearing a bunch of throwback uniforms this season to celebrate each decade in which the franchise played in. On Sunday, the Cubs broke out a zippered vest design from 1942, and it looked fantastic. I didn't even know vests were worn by baseball players before the 1990s, but these uniforms look ahead of their time, especially with the sporty striped undershirts that match the players' socks. The "Health" patch worn opposite of the Cubs logo was something worn by all MLB teams in 1942 to promote physical well being, and I love how it matches the Cubs' colors and gives the vest a double-breasted feel.

As for the Marlins, they dressed as the Miami Sun Sox, a minor league team that played from 1940 to 1954. You have to give the Marlins credit for helping to add to to old-school atmosphere, but unfortunately their jerseys were dreadfully boring and they didn't have matching batting helmets like the Cubs did.

Uni-Watch has some more great pictures from Wrigley.

Independence Day Preview

Possible 4th of July MLB hats have been leaked on SportsLogos.net. The good news is that it doesn't look like teams will have to wear camouflage this year. The bad news is that these hats might be worse. Nothing is official yet (although real news regarding these hats should be coming soon), but it looks like it could be stars and stripes for everyone this Independence Day. You know what would really be independent? If a team wore a hat that looked good instead of the one the league told it to!

I've always disliked the Yankees for what they stand for. I dislike the Mets because they suck. Well, it's less about disliking them and more about enjoying making fun of them.

The Mets are currently 28-35. They should probably be better than that on paper as they've scored about as many runs as they've allowed.  Their main problem is scoring runs. They're tied with the Pirates for the 10th lowest mark with 4 RS/G. (Sidenote: Holy suck Padres 3.10 RS/G!!!). They have a few competent or semi competent bats. David Wright is better than his 100 wRC+. I'm buying Daniel Murphy's 121 wRC+, or at the very least I don't think it's so out of line that he can keep it up for a while. Lucas Duda's 119 wRC+ is also reasonable for him. Mets are probably regretting the contract they gave to Curtis Granderson right about now.

Their pitching has been reasonable giving up 4.08 runs per game, which is right behind the Brewers with 3.98. At different points in the season the Mets bullpen has been home to a metric cuss ton of suck. However, the current squad seems pretty reliable. The top three are Carlos Torres, Jeurys Familia, and Jenrry Mejia. I like each one of those guys. After that it gets hard to tell because of limited sample size.

Scott Rice is their LOOGY and if he enters the game tell your friends you think whoever is batting will walk or get a hit and there's a pretty damn good chance you'll look pretty smart. Dude's rocking an 18.2 BB% to go along with a 1.98 WHIP. It's a small sample though as he's pitched a total of 13.2 innings in 32 appearances. Vic Black looks serviceable if not good. Former Brewer alert: Dana Eveland has CRUSHED the competition...in the 3 innings he's pitched this year. I have a feeling the Brewers will crush him is he pitches, being a lefty and all. By "all" I mean historically he's kind of been not good at all.

Tuesday June 10th 6:10 pm CT: Marco Estrada vs Daisuke Matsuzaka

I have to tell you, I'm impressed with Matsuzaka. Not because he's pitching well. He isn't. I'm impressed that he's still pitching in the majors at all. He currently has a .153 BAA but that's probably partly because he's mostly come out of the bullpen this year. I'd also credit his 17.1 BB% since it's hard to work that BAA up when he's gifting you first base. He does throw a multitude of pitches, so there's a chance he can keep batters off balance. I could see how some of the Brewers' more hyper aggressive batters might succumb to that. Also, he has a 51.4% first strike rate this year. That's about as extreme a coin flip as I've ever seen. I think at a certain point we have to accept that certain guys are never going to learn any patience at the plate, but this is a night where I'd sit them down and tell them to take a couple of pitches the first time up.

Of note for the Brewers: I still love Marco Estrada. Also, the Mets don't have a whole lot of HR power. Granderson and Duda have hit 8 each but then Daniel Murphy, David Wright, and Chris Young are tied for next highest with 4 whole home runs a piece. Citi Field is a pitcher's park so I think we see a good game from Estrada tonight.

Wednesday June 10th, 6:10 pm CT: Wily Peralta vs Jacob DeGrom

DeGrom seems like he could be a solid starter for the Mets. He came into the season 7th on FanGraphs' Mets top prospect list. He has a fastball that sits around 93 mph and compliments it with a solid mix of slider and changeup with the occasional curveball. It's hard to gauge his current talent level because he's only pitched 31 innings at the major league level. Seems like he's had some home run issues. If he makes mistake pitches against the Brewers that might continue.

Of note for the Brewers: Wily Peralta is coming of his two worst starts of the season. I don't think he's going for 3 in a row.

Thursday June 11th, 6:10 pm CT: Kyle Lohse vs Jon Niese

I like Jon Niese. I think he gets underrated a lot because he sits in the high 80s/low 90s with his fastball, but as Brewers fans we know that a big time fastball isn't necessary if you've got command. Niese also has a cutter and a curve, with a change up in his back pocket that isn't very good.

Of note for the Brewers: Kyle Lohse's last two starts were the best of the year followed by the worst of the year. I actually think this could be quite a fun pitchers' duel. I think Lohse mixes his pitches better than Niese and the Brewers offense is better than the Mets so I think we win which is where the fun part comes in.

Prediction

The offense is starting to look how I thought it would before the season started. In the last 18 games, the Brewers have failed to score 4 or more runs only 3 times. I'm always hesitant to predict a sweep and I think the Brewers are facing two of the Mets better pitchers. I'll play it safe and say they take two out of three.

Statistics courtesy of Fangraphs

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• 2014 BCB NL All-Star Roster Vote: Catcher
• An interview with Patrick Ebert on the Brewers draft Part 1
• An interview with Patrick Ebert on the Brewers draft Part 2
• Brewers 2014 Draft: Signing Tracker
• What we learned: June 10, 2014

Chicago Cubs
1-4) Kyle Schwarber, C, Indiana University
2-45) Jake Stinnett, RHP, University of Maryland
3-78) Mike Zagunis, C, Virginia Tech
4-109) Carson Sands, LHP, North Christian HS, FL
COMMENT: Looks like a clever use of the bonus rules here once you consider the potential of fourth-rounder Sands (who was mentioned as a first-round talent pre-draft), fifth rounder Justin Steele (LHP, Mississippi HS) and sixth rounder Dylan Cease (RHP, Georgia HS). All would require above-slot bonuses to pass up college and all three were rated among the most intriguing high school arms available. Stinnett was the best college senior available this year and won’t take long in the minors, while Schwarber has a strong college bat, if not the strongest given the relative paucity in that department this year. The rest of the class was college-oriented but they picked some good ones: James Norwood (RHP, 7^th round, St. Louis University), Jordan Brink (RHP, 11^th round, Fresno State), and Jeremy Null (RHP, 15^th round, Western Carolina) are three arms of high regard who could have gone many rounds higher under different circumstances.

Cincinnati Reds
1-19) Nick Howard, RHP, University of Virginia
1-29) Alex Blandino, INF, Stanford University
2-58) Taylor Sparks, 3B, UC Irvine
3-94) Wyatt Strahan, RHP, Southern Cal
4-125) Gavin LaValley, 3B, Cal Albert HS, OK
COMMENT: Straight-forward selections. Howard closed in college due to team needs but he has three big league pitches and could advance quickly even if moved to the rotation. Blandino shot up draft boards late due to solid production with power and plate discipline, overcoming stigma often attached to Stanford hitters. Sparks has better physical tools than Blandino and hit .360/.388/.581, although his very aggressive approach is questionable (six walks, 40 strikeouts). He could have gone in the first round if not for that. Strahan can hit 95 and was successful in college despite occasional command troubles. LaValley crushed Oklahoma high school competition due to enormous power and could be a steal in the fourth round. The class was filled out with a mixture of picks from different sources, from the polished college end (Seth Varner, LHP, Miami-Ohio, 10^th round) to raw high schoolers (Montrell Marshall, INF, Georgia HS, 12^th round).

Milwaukee Brewers
1-12) Kodi Medeiros, LHP, Waiakea HS, Hawaii
CB-41) Jacob Gatewood, SS, Clovis HS, CA
2-50) Monte Harrison, OF, Lee’s Summit HS, MO
3-85) Cy Sneed, RHP, Dallas Baptist
4-116) Troy Stokes, OF, Calvert Hall College HS, MD
COMMENT: After being criticized for years of conservative college-tinted drafting, the Brewers switch gears to a high-reward, high-risk approach with the top rounds this year. Medeiros has an unusual low-angle arm slot but also hits 95 on his best days and has a nasty slider and changeup. Gatewood and Harrison were two of the most tooled-up preps in the draft. Gatewood has enormous power but opinions differ on how often he can get to it in pro ball. Harrison could develop into Andrew McCutchen. . .or Bubba Starling. Cheap but productive college seniors in middle rounds like Dustin DeMuth ( 3B, Indiana, 5^th round) and Javi Salas (RHP, Miami Hurricanes, 10^th round) enable the overslot bonuses at the top to fit into the budget. Not to be ignored: sixth rounder David Burkhalter, a highly-projectable high school arm from Louisiana.This is the kind of draft that can make a farm system. It can also break it, and the history of similar all-upside strategies by other teams in previous years shows that there is no guarantee here.

Pittsburgh Pirates
1-24) Cole Tucker, SS, Mountain Pointe HS, AZ
CB-39) Connor Joe, OF, University of San Diego
2-64) Mitch Keller, RHP, Xavier HS, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
CB-73) Trey Supak, RHP, La Grange HS, Texas
3-100) Jordan Luplow, OF, Fresno State University
4-131) Taylor Gushue, C, University of Florida
COMMENT: Tucker was a surprise pick, although he did have late helium once scouts decided that he can stay at shortstop. He’s got the defensive chops, good speed, and a chance to hit. Keller was another helium guy: Iowa doesn’t have spring high school baseball, but scouts took notice when Keller started throwing 95 MPH and showing a good curve in workouts. His arm is fresh and he could be a steal even that high. Supak was better-known than Keller three months ago and fits the profile that the Pirates like in prep pitchers: projectable and athletic. Joe, Luplow, and Gushue were all solid college performers, with Gushue particularly interesting as one of the youngest college players available at age 20, but with a proven track record on both offense and defense for a top program. Also keep an eye on Nelson Jorge (SS, International Baseball Academy in Puerto Rico, 7^th round) and Kevin Krause (C, SUNY Stony Brook, 9^th round) as middle picks with more upside than most.

St. Louis Cardinals
1-27) Luke Weaver, RHP, Florida State University
1-34) Jack Flaherty, RHP, Harvard Westlake HS, CA
2-68) Ronnie Williams, RHP, American Senior HS, FL
CB-71) Andrew Morales,RHP, UC-Irvine
3-104) Trevor Megill, RHP, Loyola Marymount University
4-135) Austin Gomber, LHP, Florida Atlantic University
COMMENT: Luke Weaver personifies college pitching polish while Morales was an affordable senior option necessary to get the high school arms signed. Flaherty has four pitches and is polished for a high school guy. Williams has been up to 94 MPH and has an athletic, easy delivery. Megill is a 6-8 right-hander who missed the spring with Tommy John surgery but was a strike-thrower with a 93 MPH fastball before getting hurt. Gomber is another strike-thrower with good size (6-5) and the ability to change speeds, a type the Cards have had good success with. The rest of the class was similarly college-oriented. Picks of particular interest include Nick Thompson (OF, 8^th round, William and Mary, good power), Daniel Poncedeleon (RHP, 9^th round, Embry-Riddle), Danny Diekroeger (INF, 10^th round, Stanford) and Jordan DeLorenzo (LHP, 12^th round, West Florida). Late-round Cardinals sleeper sabermetric pick: Chase Raffield, OF, 37^th round, from Georgia Southern hit .368/.449/.650 with 24 homers and good strike zone judgment in 108 college games.

New-old backup backstop Taylor Teagarden hit a grand slam in his Mets debut, which proved the difference as the Amazins finally ended their six-game slide.

Fresh off his trip to the White House, Daniel Murphy gave the Mets an early lead with a two-run shot in the bottom of the third. The Brewers got a run back in the top of the fourth on a Lyle Overbay RBI single, but the Mets expanded their lead from an unlikely source in the bottom of the sixth, when three walks set the stage for a two-out grand slam by recent recall Taylor Teagarden. Daisuke Matsuzaka limited the damage in his six innings on the mound, despite getting hit in the leg with a line drive, and the bullpen allowed one run but nought else to help snap the Mets' six-game slide.

Full recap to come.

GameThread Roll Call

Nice job by MetsFan4Decades; your effort in the GameThread embiggens us all.

The Brewers lost, it was stupid.

W: Matsuzaka, 3-0

L: Estrada, 5-3

HR: Murphy (5), Teagarden (GS, 1)

Real Box Score(Fangraphs is currently down)

The Brewers played a very stupid against the Mets tonight. In related news, the Brewers lost to the Mets tonight.

Things started out fairly promising. Braun and Gomez walked in the 1st but the Brewers did not score. In the bottom of the 3rd, Estrada fell victim to his nemesis the home run ball. The good player on the Mets, Daniel Murphy, hit a line drive homer out to right field. The Brewers got one of those back in the bottom half. Khris Davis was hit by a Matsuzaka pitch and Lyle Overbay, who got a start at first and hit ahead of Jean Segura for some reason, doubled to drive him in.

In the bottom of the 6th and Estrada's pitch count in the 80s, things got worse. With 1 out, Estrada walked David Wright and Curtis Granderson back to back. He struck out Chris Young but then walked Lucas Duda to load the bases with 2 out. With the bases loaded and an unnamed writer of this article yelling at Ron Roenicke via the TV to get a tiring, home run-prone pitcher who had walked 3 out of 4 batters out of the game. Taylor Teagarden-- I repeat, Taylor Teagarden-- then hit a grand slam to right to give the Mets a 6-1 lead.

The best opportunity for a Brewer rally came in the 8th. Scooter Gennett singled to lead it off, but then Braun took a called third strike. With one out, Jeurys Familia hit Jonathan Lucroy, and then gave up a double to Carlos Gomez that scored Gennett. He then came back to strike out Ararmis Ramirez and Khris Davis. The final was 6-2.

Fair or not, Marco Estrada has emerged as the frontrunner for "Jimmy Nelson placeholder"  at this point in the season. We'll save figuring out if that is a good idea for another day.

Also of note, Mike Fiers made his first appearance with the big league club in 2014, giving up 2 basrunners in a scoreless inning.

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• The more crappy New York team: Mets series preview
• MLB 2014 All Star Game: A look at the latest update on NL vote totals
• Prognostikeggers 2014 - Week 11
• 2014 BCB NL All-Star Roster Vote: Catcher
• An interview with Patrick Ebert on the Brewers draft Part 2

The Brewers' minor league outfielder made a fantastic play on Tuesday for Double-A Huntsville.

Brewers minor league center fielder D`Vontrey Richardson went above and beyond to rob Dodgers minor leaguer O`Koyea Dickson of a two-run home run on Tuesday night. In the fourth inning of this Double-A Southern League matchup, the Huntsville Stars' Henderson leaped to rob the Chattanooga Lookouts' Dickson of two RBIs.

It was a key play in a game won by Hunstville 7-6.

Hat tip to Ryan H. Marshall of WAAY TV in Alabama.

@HuntsvilleStars OF D'Vontrey Richardson leaps wall 2 take away @ChattLookouts Home Run #WOW. http://t.co/ueosZcA1uGpic.twitter.com/amwQGHNRAa

— Ryan H. Marshall (@RMarshallSports) June 11, 2014

In his Mets debut, Taylor Teagarden belted a sixth inning grand slam that proved the margin of error in snapping the team's six-game losing streak.

For the last week, while watching the Mets, it was difficult for fans to believe that they would ever win another game. Sheer probability said they would, but you'd be hard pressed to think so while watching them build feeble leads in Chicago and San Francisco, only to blow them all.

It fell to Daisuke Matsuzaka to be the stopper tonight. While the pitcher acquitted himself well enough, the longball would prove the Mets' saving grace, as homers accounted for the entirety of their runs. They even managed to hit them with men on base, with the biggest blow coming from a guy who last played for a team called the *consults media guide* 51ers? No, that can't be right.

Matsuzaka pitched much the same way he has all season, turning in an unglamorous but solid outing. He didn't exactly erase memories of his rough outing in Chicago, but he kept Milwaukee off the board in the early going. A pair of walks in the top of the first were stranded, and his second inning went smoothly with 2Ks and a groundout. In the third, Dice-K allowed a leadoff single to his opposite number, Marco Estrada, and a two-out hit to Jonathan Lucroy, but induced a fielder's choice from old friend Carlos Gomez to end the inning.

Meanwhile, the Mets batters picked up right where they left off on their deadly 11-game road trip, which is to say nowhere. They went quietly in the bottom of the first against Brewers starter Marco Estrada, save for a long fly ball from Ruben Tejada that stubbornly refused to leave the yard. Chris Young bunted his way on with one out in the second and stole a bag, but that's as far as the rally went.

Two quick outs to start the bottom of the third didn't bode well for the home nine either, but Tejada turned in a tough at bat and worked a walk. That brought to the plate Daniel Murphy, who spent his off day giving a speech at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue on the subject of paternity leave (and implicitly telling a certain drive-time sports yakker where he could stick it). Murph transitioned back from pol to pull hitter by belting a fat pitch barely over the fence in right field—a spot where no lefty but Chase Utley has thought to hit a ball—for a two-run homer.

Throughout the latter half of their roadtrip, the Mets had no problem taking early leads. Keeping them was another matter, and that pattern looked like it might play itself out immediately after Murph's dinger. With one out in the fourth, Matsuzaka nailed Khris Davis with a pitch. Lyle Overbay then snuck a double down the right field line, and Davis, who was running on the play, scored easily to cut the Mets' lead in half. Dice-K caught a break shortly thereafter when Overbay tried to run to third on a grounder hit in front of him and was tagged out by a mile.

Milwaukee's threats ended there, and the rest of Matsuzaka's evening was punctuated by jam-eluding. The top of the fifth began with a free pass issued to the adorably named Scooter Gennett (who I think was friends with either Dobie Gillis or Gidget), but Dice-K recovered by inducing a GIDP from Ryan Braun, and caught Lucroy looking to end the frame. The sixth started even rougher for the pitcher, as a line drive off the bat of Gomez nailed him in the back of the right leg. Somehow, he had the presence of mind to track down the ball and throw out Gomez before collapsing to the field in a pained laugh-cry. The shot didn't have any adverse effects, as Matsuzaka retired the next two batters with little trouble.

Over this stretch, the game had felt eerily similar to the bulk of the Mets' recent roadtrip, because while Matsuzaka held down the fort, his teammates made few threats to add onto their lead. After going down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the fourth, Matt den Dekker hit a one-out single in the fifth and moved to second on a sac bunt. That was as far as he got, however, as Tejada lined out to left.

The sixth looked like it would play out in a similarly frustrating fashion. David Wright and Curtis Granderson walked with one out in the sixth, and after Chris Young struck out, Lucas Duda took four wide to load the bases. Lately, the Mets have been putting tons of runners on base—not for baseball but for science, so they can see how many ways those runners can be stranded. In this particular case, three walks left the bat in the hands of the recently recalled Taylor Teagarden, who switched places with Travis d'Arnaud and fit right into the Mets' offense by striking out in his first two at bats. He did not appear a likely candidate to end the Mets' allergies to RISP.

Amazingly, the catcher took a cue from Murph and lofted a ball into Utley's Corner, where it bounced on top of the fence and into the crowd. Barely a grand slam, to be sure, but still worth four runs. In so doing, Teagarden became the first Met to hit a grand slam in his team debut since the immortal Colin Cowgill did it on opening day in 2013. More importantly, his blast gave the Mets a 6-1 lead.

With five runs to play with, the Mets swapped a bruised Dice-K for Vic Black in the top of the seventh. He allowed a leadoff single by Overbay, but erased him by getting Juan Sgeura to bounce into a groundball double play.

Things got a little dicey in the top of the eighth, when Jeurys Familia took the mound and gave up a leadoff single to Gennett and, after a strikeout of Braun that pleased the crowd (and the broadast booth, who stuck it to Braun all night), hit Lucroy in the ribs to put two men on base. Gomez then belted a double to the gap in right-center that scored Gennett. The Brewers were in a prime position to launch themselves right back into this game, but Familia fanned Aramis Ramirez and Khris Davis to wriggle off the hook.

The Mets had a few chances to expand their lead late, but couldn't convert. In the seventh, Tejada hit a one-out double against new Milwaukee hurler Mike Fiers and Murphy walked, but neither would come around to score. Chris Young reached in the eighth when a line drive bounced off Gennett's glove, but Zach Duke struck out Duda and got Teagarden to bounce into an inning-ending double play. What a bum, that Teagarden. What have you done for us lately, ya bum?!

Jenrry Mejia made these failures immaterial, as he set down the Brewers in order in the top of the ninth, capping the night with a K of Irving Falu (one of my favorite Bob & Ray characters).

In summary: The Mets hit more than one homer with men on base, did not relinquish a lead, and wrapped up their first victory in over a week in less than three hours. Made it look easy, too. Maybe they should try this "winning" fad more often.

SB Nation GameThreads

* Amazin' Avenue GameThread
* Brew Crew Ball GameThread

Win Probability Added

(What's this?)

Big winners: Daisuke Matsuzaka, 22.0%; Daniel Murphy, 21.3%
Big losers: Ruben Tejada, -3.6%; Daisuke Matsuzaka (batting), -2.8%
Teh aw3s0mest play: Daniel Murphy two-run homer, bottom third, 24.4%
Teh sux0rest play: Lyle Overbay RBI double, top fourth, -14.0%
Total pitcher WPA: 24.4%
Total batter WPA: 25.6%
GWRBI!: Taylor Teagarden grand slam, bottom sixth

Today's lessons include more about the All-Star rosters, draft analysis, and the Mets series.

Yesterday's Results

Mets 6, Brewers 2

Marco Estrada's problems with the home run ball continued last night, though they were amplified by walks. Estrada allowed two home runs in the game, and the extra four runs that were on base between those two home runs came as a result of four walks issued by Estrada, including three in the seventh inning. Lyle Overbay ended up leading the offense with a 2-for-4 days with an RBI, and Carlos Gomez also had an RBI in the loss.

Cram Session

Unfortunately, I'm having some computer issues today, and my feed reader isn't working as well, so we're going to go through the rest of the links in cram session style.

Other Notes

• Derek finished up his interview with Patrick Ebert of PerfectGame.org yesterday. The second part of their interview focused on round two through ten of the draft.
• We started a new series on constructing an All-Star roster for the NL yesterday. Part one covered the catchers, and asked if Jonathan Lucroy can finally make it on the team.
• Noah looked at how vote totals for the All-Star game starters have changed since the first announced totals, as well as who has gained the most and fewest votes.
• Derek provided a series preview for the Mets series, breaking down each of the starting pitcher matchups.
• Some good news on Tyler Thornburg came out yesterday. Tim Healey of Brewers.com reports that Thornburg's UCL is fine and does not need Tommy John surgery, though the exact issue with his elbow is still unknown.
• Yesterday's lineup featured Scooter Gennett leading off and Jean Segura batting eighth. Tim Healey has some comments from Ron Roenicke explaining his thoughts on the move.
• On yesterday's episode of Off the Bat from the MLB Fan Cave, Carlos Gomez was one of the hosts for the episode. If you missed it, it will be airing again early tomorrow morning at 2:30 am, as well as Sunday at 9 am on MTV2.
• John & Cait have some more details for Friday's unveiling of the Brewers walk of fame.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• Wisconsin played its longest game in team history last night, a 17-inning loss to Beloit.
• The minor-league season is at the halfway point, and Caitlin Swieca of Brewers.com has some highlights from the first half of the season, led by Huntsville's playoff berth.
• The Brewer Nation blog has the tentative roster for the Helena Brewers. Their season begins on Monday. They also have a podcast covering the 2014 draft for the Brewers.

Check out morineko's daily minor league update for a more in-depth look at yesterday's minor league results.

Division Update

• Cubs 7, Pirates 3
• Dodgers 6, Reds 1
• Cardinals 1, Rays 0

Today's Division Games

• Cubs (Jason Hammel) @ Pirates (Brandon Cumpton) - 6:05 pm
• Dodgers (Hyun-Jin Ryu) @ Reds (Johnny Cueto) - 6:10 pm
• Cardinals (Michael Wacha) @ Rays (Erik Bedard) - 6:10 pm

Today's Action

The series against the Mets continues this evening. Wily Peralta will duel Mets rookie Jacob deGrom in game two of the series. First pitch is at 6:10 pm, and Alex Halsted of MLB.com has the preview.

Don't forget about Prognostikeggers.

Jacob deGrom gave up three runs in 5.2 innings pitched and the Mets offense was anemic against Brewers pitching.

The Mets offense struggled against Wily Peralta the Brewers bullpen and Jacob deGrom got knocked around a bit in a 3-1 Brewers win.

The Mets led this game 1-0 after two innings, thanks to a Lucas Duda sacrifice fly. That would be both the beginning and the end of Mets scoring on the night. All told, the lineup mustered just five hits and one walk. Curtis Granderson had a nice game at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a double and a walk. David Wright went 0-for-4.

deGrom pounded the strike zone, walking just one while striking out four in 5.2 innings pitched. However, the Brewers made solid contact against him, notching nine hits. Their first run came on a Jonathan Lucroy RBI groundout in the third inning that tied the score 1-1. Then Jean Segura gave his team a 2-1 lead with an RBI single in the fourth inning. Carlos Gomez closed the Brewers' account with an RBI single in the fifth inning. The Brew Crew had runners on base all game and the Mets were lucky to give up just three runs.

Terry Collins was ejected in the fifth inning for arguing a call that umpires reviewed, upheld, and, apparently, still got wrong. Taylor Teagarden was called out on a bang-bang play at first base, but replays seemed to show that he was safe. Weird.

Francisco "Perp-Rod" Rodriguez pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to earn the save.

GameThread Roll Call

Nice job by Steve Sypa; his effort in the GameThread embiggens us all.

Wednesday's Brewers minor league action

Nashville Sounds (AAA) 37-30
Won 3-2 vs Reno Aces (ARI) (box / pbp)

Huntsville Stars (AA) 43-24
Won 3-2 (11 inn.) vs Chattanooga Lookouts (LAD) (box / pbp)

Brevard County Manatees (High A)
Postponed at Lakeland Flying Tigers (DET)

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Low A) 33-32
Won 6-2 vs Beloit Snappers (OAK) (box / pbp)

Player/Pitcher Points of Interest

Today's lessons include more on the MLB Draft, the rotation, the bullpen, and more.

Yesterday's Results

Brewers 3, Mets 1

The Brewers put up single runs in the third, fourth, and fifth innings to back a solid start from Wily Peralta. Peralta pitched 6 1/3 innings and allowed only one run, allowing four hits, a walk, and striking out three. Meanwhile, Jonathan Lucroy led the offense with a 3-for-5 day, and Carlos Gomez and Scooter Gennett also recorded 2-for-5 games. Francisco Rodriguez closed the game for his 20th save of the season.

Cram Session

MLB Draft

• Contrary to reports, Kodi Medeiros has not agreed to a deal with the Brewers yet, but is closing in on one. Adam McCalvy has full details on the current situation with Medeiros.
• John Sickels of Minor League Ball has an analysis of the National League Central following the draft.
• The Nebraska football team took a hit when Monte Harrison signed with the Brewers, as Nerbraska lost a highly recruited wide receiver prospect.

Other Notes

• The series on the NL All-Star roster continued yesterday, looking at which first basemen should make it on the team.
• The recent trouble in the rotation is a concern in the long term. Jonathan Judge of Disciples of Uecker looks at how the Brewers rotation compares to other contenders.
• David S. Grant of Reviewing the Brew gives Doug Melvin a gold star for his offseason moves, looking at how they have played out so far this year.
• Will Smith is always ready to pitch in the bullpen. Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel looks at how Will Smith has adjusted to coming out of the bullpen this season.
• Scooter Gennett was inserted into the leadoff spot yesterday, but it's not his first experience there. Adam McCalvy wrote about Gennett's leadoff experience and approach to the spot.
• Steven Jewell of Reviewing the Brew looks at Rickie Weeks, what he has put together so far this season and what to expect from him as the season continues.
• AK of Ron Roenicke Stole My Baseball put together a team of the worst players on the best Brewers teams.
• The Brewers Wall of Fame will be unveiled tomorrow, and Adam McCalvy has a profile of the event.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• Teddy Cahill of Brewers.com notes that Mitch Haniger had a two home run game for the second straight day on Wednesday.

Check out morineko's daily minor league update for a more in-depth look at yesterday's minor league results.

Division Update

• Rays 6, Cardinals 3
• Pirates 4, Cubs 2
• Reds 5, Dodgers 0

Today's Division Games

• Dodgers (Zack Greinke) @ Reds (Alfredo Simon) - 11:35 am
• Cubs (Jeff Samardzija) @ Pirates (Edinson Volquez) - 6:05 pm
• Cardinals have the day off.

Today's Action

The series against the Mets concludes this evening. Kyle Lohse will face off against Jon Niese tonight. First pitch is at 6:10 pm, and Caitlin Swieca of MLB.com has the preview.

After a strong junior season, it was expected that Pitt's Joe Harvey would be selected in the MLB Draft. The pitcher was taken in the 19th round by the New York Yankees, and now the wait to see if he returns is officially underway.

Overall, Harvey had an outstanding season. He wasn't even a guaranteed pitcher in the Panthers' rotation at the beginning of the year, but by the end of it, was the team's most effective starter. He was only 2-2, but his 2.90 ERA was by far the best of the regular starters. His 56 strikeouts was also a team-high.

If Harvey leaves the team, it will be a tough loss for the Panthers.

The three-man rotation already will be without seniors Rhys Aldenhoven and Matt Wotherspoon. If Harvey leaves, head coach Joe Jordano will be starting from scratch in trying to piece together an entirely new starting staff. To make matters (potentially) worse, Pitt may also be losing Luke Curtis, who was drafted in the 18th round by the Milwaukee Brewers. Curtis had a team-low 2.17 ERA in serving as a part-time starter for the Panthers.

One thing to watch as a factor could be the case of Matt Wotherspoon. After being taken in the 20th round last year, Wotherspoon struggled a little this season and fell to the 34th round in this year's draft. Harvey's stock could take a similar tumble with a bad year and you have to wonder if that will be in the back of his mind. I was also intrigued by Wotherspoon's recent comments about he and Harvey both playing for the Yankees as Wotherspoon was also selected by the team in the draft.

If Harvey goes, the baseball team will have no choice but to move on. The rotation will be in much better shape if he returns, though.

Be sure to join Cardiac Hill's Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @PittPantherBlog for our regular updates on Pitt athletics. Follow the author and founder/editor @AnsonWhaley.

More from Cardiac Hill

Follow @PittPantherBlogFollow @AnsonWhaley

• Devin Street Dallas Cowboys Rookie Photo Gallery
• CBS Sports picks Pitt fifth in early look at ACC basketball
• Pitt Football Recruiting: Alex Hornibrook commits to the Panthers
• Steven Adams hilarious exit interview with Oklahoma City media
• Five Pitt track and field performers reach NCAA Outdoor National Championships

On a middling team it would make sense for Marco Estrada to work out his problems in the rotation. But there are too many bad signs, and too good a replacement option, for the contending Brewers to wait it out.

In the first half of the 2013 season Jimmy Nelson was tearing up AA. He struck out nearly 5 batters for every 1 he walked. In 69 innings his ERA was just 2.74 and his FIP was 2.81. He earned a well-deserved promotion to AAA around midseason and started to be talked about as the Brewers #1 prospect.

His 83 innings to close out the year at AAA did not go quite as well. He showed he had the stuff to dominate at the level, striking out roughly the same amount of batters that he had at AA, but his walk rate jumped from 5% of batters to about 14%. His results were reasonable but not anything near good enough to be in line for an MLB promotion.

Clearly, he has found the command this year at the higher level of competition. He's struck out over 28% of the batters he's faced, walked 7%, and given up a home run to .3%. There's a decimal in front of that last 3, representing the fraction 1 out of 301 batters.

If you're of the thought background that Nelson is a pretty good prospect who is having an uncharacteristically good year but might have some control issues and might not immediately be an above-average starter in his first go at the big leagues, it makes sense to consider him and Marco Estrada about equivalent options in the major league rotation at this point.

If you think Nelson is a top prospect who has taken the logical next step of his development and having a dominant season, it makes sense to think of him as an immediate upgrade to the starting rotation.

Nelson turned 25 a few days ago. He's tearing up AAA. He's as ready now as he's ever going to be. He's now thrown around 160 innings at the AAA level. He does have a pattern throughout the minors of struggling with walks when moving up a level. However, leaving him to continue to crush the souls of minor league hitters is not going to help him limit walks when he does get to the big leagues. And for me, when it comes down to it, it's a lot easier for me to see the Brewers actually making 2014 special with a playoff run if Jimmy Nelson is what we think he can be. And I think it's time to start finding out.

I don't look at this so much as Marco Estrada having lost his spot in the rotation as I do Jimmy Nelson forcing his way in and pushing against the only vulnerability. Estrada's peripherals may look fairly good at a glance, but his strikeout and walk numbers have gotten worse in each of the past 3 years and his current FIP is 5.7. Conversation about him getting unlucky due to solid K/ BB numbers must also include reference to the remarkable amount of solo home runs he has given up. He has been able to rack up wins due to providing starts in which he scatters some solo homers. But as we saw on Tuesday night in New York, these things tend to even out over time and are probably not indicative of some sort of skill. He has also stranded 81% of his baserunners this year, a very high number, which is another indicator that he has been fortunate to limit runs given the way he has pitched. He's also a 30-year old with an 88 mph fastball (which has declined 2 mph since 2012).

Marco Estrada has value. The odds are that one of the other 4 starters or Nelson will miss some starts due to injury the rest of the way. Marco will likely be first in line to jump back in the rotation, and hopefully he can work on the control of his changeup in a few lower-leverage innings before moving back into the middle relief role he did well in a few years ago. The problem, of course, will be finding room for everybody on the roster in the next 2.5 months.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Nelson struck out 10 and walked 2 in 6 innings last night. He gave up 1 run. Sounds like as good a game as any to make his final career minor league start.

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• Brewers 3, Mets 1: Wily Peralta pitches a gem
• 2014 BCB NL All-Star Roster Vote
• 2014 BCB NL All-Star Roster Vote: First Basemen
• What we learned: June 11, 2014
• Brewers 2, Mets 6: The Estrada home run curse

It was a wacky 13 innings but the Brewers pulled out a big victory with 4 runs late in extra innings.

W: Duke, 4-0

L: Torres, 2-4

HR: Ramierez (7), Lucroy (5)

Fangraphs WPA Box Score

There were nearly 360 pitches thrown, 4 hours and 10 minutes of gameplay, 3 minutes of rain delay, and 13 innings, but the Brewers somehow beat the Mets in New York tonight to win the series 2-1 when Jonathan Lucroy hit a two-run homer to put the Brewers up 3-1 in the 13th after Brewers relievers escaped from jam after jam.

Aramis Ramirez was the only Brewer batter to get to Jon Niese in 7 and 2/3 innings with a home run to left center field. He struck out Rickie Weeks and Ryan Braun, the 1/2 punch at the top of the lineup, twice each and struck out a season-high 8 batters.  Niese had the Brewers off balance all day and required only 97 pitches before being pulled when Carlos Gomez hit a single to left with 2 outs in the 8th. Juerys Familia came in to get out Aramis Ramirez, who had collected a second hit after his home run at that point in the game.

Kyle Lohse was excellent once again; the only trouble came in the 4th inning in which Carlos Gomez both cost the Brewers a run and then saved the Brewers another one. The record will show that the only run Lohse allowed was unearned, and he finished with 8 innings pitched, 3 strikeouts, 1 walk, and 0 earned runs. Daniel Murphy led off the 4th with a single to center that Gomez badly misplayed and allowed Murphy to advance to 3rd. Bobby Abreu then hit a deep sacrifice fly to drive him in. David Wright then hit a deep fly ball off the wall in left, but Gomez played the bounce well and threw a strike to second base to get Wright out.

Familia came back out and dominated the Brewers with a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the 9th, including a pretty embarrassing strikeout of Mark Reynolds. Will Smith got the first two outs in the bottom of the 9th with relative ease but then walked lefty Lucas Duda. Chris Young then hit a rocket down the third base line, but Ramirez made a fantastic stop to save an extra base hit but could not throw out Young at first base. Ruben Tejada pinch hit in the pitcher's spot with 2 on and 2 out, but grounded out to Ramirez to end the inning.

Collins used a lefty specialist, Josh Edgin, to face Irving Falu to open the tenth and retired him on a flyout to left with one pitch. Apparent Mets closer Jennry Mejia then came on to get Weeks and Braun, who notched his third strikeout of the day. In the bottom half Brandon Kintzler worked a stressful scoreless inning around a single and a walk, getting Eric Campell, a righty who pinch-hit for Bobby Abreu in the ninth, to ground out to third with David Wright on deck.

Mejia injured himself while warming up before the 11th, so Gonzalez Germen came on take his place and promptly struck out Lucroy. Play was interrupted with a quick rain delay, but the umpires sent the players back to the field after a few minutes with significant precipitation still coming down. It appeared that a groundskeeper with a pocket doppler convinced the umpires to not pull the tarp and delay the game at that point. It didn't affect Germen, who came back on to strike out Gomez and got Ramirez to pop out to right.

The bottom of the 11th got wacky. Kintzler walked Wright, who stole second and went to third on Lucas Duda's groundout. He then got behind and walked Chris Young with the 5-man infield in alignment. Then the injured Curtis Granderson had to pinch hit for Germen, and despite his inability to run well (and Kintzler's wildness) they put him on intentionally to load the bases, where he was promptly pinch-run for. Backup shortstop Wilmer Flores grounded to Reynolds, who threw home to get Wright on the force. Next, with the defense back to conventional configuration, Kintzler fell behind Anthony Recker 3-1 but came back to strike him out looking with some help from Angel Hernandez. Recker did not appreciate the call and was thrown out of the game immediately, leaving the Mets with no extra position players.

With 1 out in the top of the 12th, Mark Reynolds and Jean Segura singled back to back against Carlos Torres-- the first time the Brewers had more than a hit in an inning all night. Gennett (pinch-hitting) and Weeks then struck out back to back to end the threat. Zach Duke cruised through the bottom half.

Torres came out again (after throwing almost 2 innings yesterday) for the top of the 13th and Ryan Braun had his first good at-bat of the night with an infield single to short. With nobody out and Braun taking off for second, Lucroy launched a home run out to left. That opened things up a bit, as Carlos Gomez smoked a hit to left, followed by a double down the right-field line from Aramis Ramirez, a walk to Khris Davis, and a single for Mark Reynolds. Dana Eveland did an admirable job trying to mop up the mess, getting a couple of outs before hitting Weeks to drive in a fourth run of the inning. K-Rod, already warm, finished off the 5-1 victory with a perfect bottom half.

Thursday's Brewers minor league action

Nashville Sounds (AAA) 38-30
Won 12-6 vs Reno Aces (ARI) (box / pbp)

Huntsville Stars (AA) 44-24
Won 11-5 vs Chattanooga Lookouts (LAD) (box / pbp)

Brevard County Manatees (High A) 33-30
Lost 3-0 (7 inn.) at Lakeland Flying Tigers (DET) (box / pbp)

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Low A) 34-32
Won 8-2 vs Beloit Snappers (OAK) (box / pbp)

Player/Pitcher Points of Interest

Today's lessons include Jimmy Nelson, Brad Mills, and Jonathan Lucroy.

Yesterday's Results

Brewers 5, Mets 1

A pitcher's duel dominated most of the game, with Kyle Lohse pitching eight strong innings and Jonathan Niese matching with 6 2/3 good innings of his own. The game went into extra innings, and after enduring a 3 minute rain delay and a bases loaded jam in the 12th inning, the Brewers finally broke through in the 13th inning. They scored four runs in the 13th, led by a two-run home run from Jonathan Lucroy. Francisco Rodriguez finished the game in the 13th inning to secure the series win for the Brewers.

It may be time for Jimmy Nelson to join the rotation.

After Marco Estrada's most recent bad start on Tuesday, and another great start from Jimmy Nelson in the minors, the talk to get Nelson in the rotation is increasing. With a competing team, allowing an underperforming starter to remain in the rotation is not something they can do for too long. Yesterday, Jordan asked the question that everyone is asking, if it is time to promote Jimmy Nelson. Nelson's performance in the minors may force the Brewers hand, especially if Estrada continues to struggle. If everything remains as is, it's only a matter of time before the change happens.

The Brewers need to get something for Brad Mills.

While Jimmy Nelson is tearing up the competition in Nashville, Brad Mills is also performing very well there as well. Unfortunately, there's no space for him on the Brewers roster, and an opt-out date is coming up this weekend. What should the Brewers do? Derek had a proposal yesterday, saying that the Brewers should trade Mills. While a trade for a role player could be tough, there's another possibility by trading for international slot money. Something has to be done this weekend, it's just a question of what it will be.

Cram Session

• The BCB NL All-Star series continued yesterday with a look at second base.
• Jonathan Lucroy is one of the most undervalued players in the game. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports has a profile of the catcher and how he has struggled to get respect throughout his career.
• Lucroy has also been performing well at the plate in this time. Tim Healey of Brewers.com looks at the great season that Lucroy is putting together.
• Marco Estrada is the popular topic right now. Over on Disciples of Uecker, Ryan Topp asks what the Brewers should do with Estrada.
• Meanwhile, while the focus is on Marco Estrada, Yovani Gallardo has had his own struggles. Ben Tannenbaum of The Brewers Bar looks at what to expect from Gallardo.
• The Brewers have signed seven more of their draft picks. Tim Healey has details on the signings.
• While in New York, Ron Roenicke and a group of other people went to MLB's command center to check out how replays are conducted. Tim Healey has some details on the visit.

Minor League Update

Check out morineko's daily minor league update for a more in-depth look at yesterday's minor league results.

Division Update

• Reds 4, Dodgers 1
• Pirates 4, Cubs 0
• Cardinals had the day off.

This Weekend's Division Games

• Nationals @ Cardinals
  Friday: Jordan Zimmermann vs. Lance Lynn - 7:15 pm
  Saturday: Stephen Strasburg vs. Shelby Miller - 6:15 pm
  Sunday: Doug Fister vs. Jaime Garcia - 1:15 pm
• Pirates @ Marlins
  Friday: Jeff Locke vs. Nathan Eovaldi - 6:10 pm
  Saturday: Charlie Morton vs. Randy Wolf - 3:10 pm
  Sunday: TBD vs. Henderson Alvarez - 12:10 pm
• Cubs @ Phillies
  Friday: Jake Arrieta vs. Roberto Hernandez - 6:05 pm
  Saturday: Edwin Jackson vs. David Buchanan - 2:05 pm
  Sunday: Travis Wood vs. AJ Burnett - 12:35 pm

This Weekend's Action

The Brewers return home for a quick three-game homestand against the Reds. Here are the weekend's matchups:

Friday: Homer Bailey vs. Matt Garza - 7:10 pm
Saturday: Tony Cingrani vs. Yovani Gallardo - 6:15 pm
Sunday: Mike Leake vs. Marco Estrada - 1:10 pm

Ladies and gentlemen of Twins Territory: your new backup catcher.

All signs point to the Twins recalling Eric Fryer today to be the team's second catcher. Fryer, 28, has 50 Major League plate appearances under his belt - 16 of which came for the Twins last September.

Drafted by the Brewers in the tenth round of the 2007 draft, the scouting reports were cautiously positive. From Baseball America:

Eric Fryer is one of the most athletic catchers in college baseball, a 6-foot-2, 215-pounder with average speed and arm strength to go with solid gap power. He also has the leadership skills teams want in a catcher. The biggest question with Fryer is his bat. He has a short swing, but he also employs a toe tap and needs a better trigger for his load. A club that believes he can make the necessary adjustments could pop him as early as the fifth round.

Reports, in general, stated that Fryer had a lot of the tools necessary to eventually turn into a big league catcher. He was athletic, had a quickness in his response times as a catcher, and was often called "heady" which, for a catcher, is a compliment. The question was always about his bat. There was okay power and good bat speed, but production had been an issue leading into the draft. But, if he could develop as a hitter, he'd be a steal.

As Fryer rose through the Brewer and eventually Yankee farm systems, he was often blocked. In 2007, Milwauke also drafted Jonathan Lucroy. By the time Fryer got his first callup to the bigs in 2011, Lucroy was already the starting catcher for the Brew Crew. Fryer had been blocked every step of the way: in 2007 in the rookie leagues; in low-A ball in '08; he was also blocked by Jesus Montero and Austin Romine when he was traded to New York after the 2008 season.

Pittsburgh acquired Fryer in 2009. The Pirates drafted catcher Tony Sanchez in the first round that season, and he, too, took time away from Fryer. Fryer and Sanchez would be promoted together over the next couple of seasons, but by 2011 Sanchez was getting the focus for development behind the plate. Pittsburgh's Double-A affiliate kept him in the lineup by playing him in the corner outfield on occasion. It was necessary, because Fryer was raking. He hit .345/.427/.549 in Double-A in '11.

With Ryan Doumit out for Pittsburgh, the next guy in line was at Triple-A, and that gave the Pirates the impetus they needed to bring Fryer to Triple-A. By this point it was clear that Fryer was never going to be a starter, but at 25 and virtually Major League ready many thought he could be a decent backup.

At the time of his first promotion in late June 2011, Fryer had a .376 career on-base percentage in the minor leagues, and a .438 career slugging percentage. But he never did hit in the majors, and a poor season at Triple-A in 2012 (.204/.257/.247) led to his eventual free agency. The Twins signed him to a minor league deal on November 10, 2012.

For the Red Wings, Fryer posted a .704 OPS in 2013 and has so far this season actually been worse, hitting .252/.323/.333 in 36 games. He'll get his second opportunity with the Twins, starting this weekend.

Fryer's strengths continue to reside in his defensive abilities. While it did seem for a while that he could serve as a passable offensive option in a short-term scenario for a Major League team, that ceiling is no longer likely. The likelihood is that Kurt Suzuki will catch a majority of the Twins' games in the foreseeable future with an occasional start from Fryer, who will either be returned to Triple-A when Josmil Pinto proves he's ready to catch consistently or when Chris Herrmann proves through some game time that he's over his injury and ready to go.

Then again, considering the incredible hot streaks from any number of Twins this season, you never know. Maybe Fryer is just the latest in a long line of hot hands, and for a couple of weeks he gives the offense an unexpected boost. Let's hope it goes that way.

The Brewers got wrecked the first time they faced the Reds losing 3 out of 4. Will it be any different this time?

The Reds offense sucks. Let me quick check to see if they're still batting Billy Hamilton lead-off. Yep. They sure are. Let's all point and laugh.

Friday June 13th 7:10 pm CT: Matt Garza vs Homer Bailey

Poor Homer Bailey. I really thought he was turning into a solid 2 pitcher after 2013. This year has seen him take a pretty big step back. His K%-BB%, while respectable, has gone back to career norms. His batting average against and WHIP have shot up. He's also getting beat over the head with home runs (1.29 HR/9). The velocity is still good and I do think he's a better pitcher than this.

Saturday June 14th 6:10 pm CT: Yovani Gallardo vs Mat Latos

Mat Latos is making his first start of the year after being sidelined with an elbow issue. This makes me sad for two reasons. Tony Cingrani was originally slated to start this game, which I'll be in attendance for, and that meant my favorite lineup would be in play with Rickie Weeks at second. I'm also sad because Mat Latos a much better pitcher. He might be more of a 3 than a 1/2 but he's good. He's got everything you want in a starter: Good velocity (92-93 mph), good K% (though it's slowly been slipping for a few years), good BB%, home runs not an issue. Brewers have their work cut out for them. Latos did have some hiccups in his recent rehab starts. His second to last rehab start was cut short due to calf strain. Then his last start was cut short due to rain. It's possible the Reds will want to be careful with his pitch count.

Sunday June 15th 1:10 pm CT: Marco Estrada vs TBD (But probably Mike Leake)

The Reds haven't officially said who's coming out of the rotation, but it's totally Tony Cingrani which should make us sad. Mike Leake was originally going to start Sunday's game so I very much doubt they keep Cingrani in the rotation and push Leake's start back a day.

Leake is having a pretty solid year. He's a pitch to contact guy, so strikeouts aren't huge, but his K% this year is better than it has been in years. His BB% is elite right now. He's also getting a ton of groundballs (56.9%). I feel like the Brewers always have a tough time against ground ball heavy pitchers. I have a bad feeling about this game...

Of note for the Brewers: I still love Marco Estrada, but he hurts me so...

Conclusion

Brewers are lucky to miss Johnny Cueto but they aren't exactly catching a break with the pitchers they are going to face. Add to that the Brewers are rolling with their two starters that have struggled the most. It seems like a recipe for disaster. The Reds offense sucks though. I mean, really really sucks. They're second to last in runs scored with 3.46 R/G. I don't have any good guesses as to the outcome. My heart says 2 out of 3 but my think meat is telling me 1 out of 3.

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• What we learned: June 13, 2014
• Minor League Notes, 2014-06-13
• Brewers 5, Mets 1 in 13 innings: Lucroy bomb breaks it open
• Brewers vs. Mets: Milwaukee using hot, sexy lineup in series finale
• It's time for Jimmy Nelson

Statistics courtesy of Fangraphs

Gorzelanny has been on the DL all season as he recovered from offseason shoulder surgery.

Prior to today's game against the Reds, Andrew Gruman of FOX Sports Wisconsin reported that the Brewers plan to activate Tom Gorzelanny from the 15-day DL following today's game. Gorzelanny has been out all season while recovering from shoulder surgery, and just completed a 30-day rehab assignment between High-A Brevard County and Triple-A Nashville.

Last season, Gorzelanny appeared in 43 games for the Brewers, 10 times as a starter and 33 times in relief. He logged 85 IP between those roles, posting a 3.90 ERA and 3.94 FIP, with an 8.8 K/9 rate and a 3.3 BB/9 rate. However, he didn't pitch over the last month of the season, as he was shut down after coming out of a game on September 2. At the time, he was diagnosed with rotator cuff inflammation and hoped to return before the end of the season, but didn't pitch again in 2013, and then underwent shoulder surgery in December. The surgery was classified as a "cleanup of the joint", though the recovery took longer than expected.

With Gorzelanny's return, the Brewers will have to clear a spot for him on the 25-man roster following the game. The easiest roster move would be to option either Rob Wooten or Mike Fiers back to Nashville. However, that would also leave the bullpen with four left-handed relievers, which isn't an ideal situation but may be the best one. The Brewers are committed to their other left-handed relievers, as Will Smith and Zach Duke have both put together great seasons, and the Brewers want to hold on to Wei-Chung Wang. Going with a eight-man bullpen wouldn't work either, since the current construction of the bench would mean at least one position would not have a backup available if a player was removed.  Four left-handed pitchers in a seven man bullpen isn't ideal, but it could be the Brewers best option at this point.

Meanwhile, the Brewers have a game to play first. Here is today's starting lineup:

Irving Falu gets the start at shortstop today, and Scooter Gennett is back at second base. Otherwise, it's the same lineup as the Brewers have played over the last few days to back up Matt Garza. The Brewers batters have had success in their career against Homer Bailey, posting a line of .317/.374/.482 against him. However, one of the hottest hitters against him isn't in the lineup, as Rickie Weeks has posted a .516/.606/.815 in 27 plate appearances against him. Gennett hasn't been bad against Bailey himself, posting a .400/.438/.533 line in 16 PA.

Game time is at 7:10 pm. Come join us on the gamethread tonight, but make sure to go predict for Prognostikeggers first.

Sigh...YAHOO! Aw... That succinctly sums up this game.

Winning Pitcher: Ramon Santiago

Losing Pitcher: Francisco Rodriguez

SV: Aroldis Chapman

HR: Khris Davis (11)

Boxscore

Win Expectancy Chart

Me for most of the game

Well, it was a strange start of the night for Matt Garza. He had two outs with a runner at first when he stepped off the mound. He caught the runner off the base and it should have been an easy pick off to end the inning. Instead he bounced the throw second base and the runner advanced all the way to third. Brandon Phillips drove him in with ease for the first run of the game giving the Reds an early 1-0 lead.

The Brewers had a chance in the first inning. Scooter Gennett led off with a single and then Ryan Braun was hit by a pitch. Jonathan Lucroy lined into an out and Gennett was caught off second and was thrown out. The inning ended a batter later.

Their next chance came in the fourth inning and this time they cashed in. Carlos Gomez drew a two-out walk. Aramis Ramirez stepped to the plate and drove a deep fly to left center field, scoring Gomez easily. Ramirez ended up a second. Khris Davis and Mark Reynolds both drew walks to load the bases for Irving Falu. I probably don't need to tell you how that ended. At least the Brewers tied the game 1 apiece.

The top of the fifth inning was a circus act. Irving Falu's second error of the game allowed Zack Cosart to reach base safely. Then Matt Garza fielded a bunt from Homer Bailey and expertly threw it into the freaking standings by a mile. Billy Hamilton flew out and then Ron Roenicke forced the infielders to play in and unsurprisingly a grounder that would have otherwise been an out found a hole and the Reds retook the lead. Joey Votto increased that lead to 3-1 with an RBI single. Phillips would put them up 4-1 on a sac fly. Carlos Gomez and Khris Davis misplayed a fly ball in left center. It was going to drop for a hit, but their mis-communication gave the Reds yet another run. The next batter popped up but the Reds still walked away with the 5-1 lead.

Garza made two throwing errors tonight that cost the Brewers, but he really didn't pitch that poorly. I know a lot of people are steaming about his season, but I don't think there's a lot pointing to him being bad. He's been insanely unlucky more than anything. He ended the night with 7 innings pitched, only 1 strikeout but only 1 walk. The Reds really didn't make a whole lot of good contact off him. Maybe two of the balls put into play were hit hard. Of the 5 runs only 1 was earned (though the two throwing errors probably should make it 3 earned runs but whatever).

What's this you see? A long wordy paragraph about the Brewers half of an inning? Good things might await you. Khris Davis led off the seventh inning the a bomb to right to bring the Brewers within 3 runs. Reynolds followed up with a cute little single. Falu flew out for the first out of the inning. Logan Schafer pinch hit for Garza and he drove Homer Bailey from the game with a base hit. Things were starting to look up. Sam LeCure game in and Scooter Gennett lined a base hit to right scoring Mark Reynolds and bringing the Brewers within 2 runs. With a scuffling Ryan Braun at the plate, Scooter Gennett attempted to and successfully stole second base eliminating the double play opportunity. Unfortunately Braun's issues continued and he struck out. Jonathan Lucroy hit a dribbler to third base. The throw came to first base but it was too late. Luc beat it out and the Brewers reduced the Reds lead to 1. Carlos Gomez went up to the plate planning to swing. His at lasted 3 pitches and he swung at each of them. He made contact with each of them. The first two went foul. Carlos then had a heated exchange with his bat. It did not look like a friendly conversation, but it seemed to work. The third one did not go foul and in fact tied the game! Ramirez would ground out to end the inning, TIE BALL GAME!

Now comes the sadness. Francisco Rodriguez gave up a base hit to Zack Cosart who was then bunted over to second base. Then Billy Hamilton of all people drove in the go ahead run. The Brewers caught him off base and got him in a rundown but because this game couldn't be normal, he was able to get back to second base safely. He didn't stay there long, easily stealing third base. Ultimately it wouldn't matter as another run would not score that inning.

However the 1 run that did score was enough. The Brewers were no match for Aroldis Chapman in the 9th and the Reds won 6-5. They're back at it tomorrow as Mat Latos makes his first start of the year. Yovani Gallardo will toe the rubber for the Brewers. Start time is 6:05 pm CT.

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