Kodi Medeiros makes his pro debut; Jim Henderson pitches for Huntsville

Nashville Sounds (AAA) 50-46
Won 7-3 vs Round Rock Express (TEX) (box / pbp)

Huntsville Stars (AA) 56-36
Won 11-3 at Chattanooga Lookouts (LAD) (box / pbp)

Brevard County Manatees (High A) 47-37
Lost 6-2 vs Charlotte Stone Crabs (TBR) (box / pbp)

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Low A) 46-44
Lost 10-5 vs Quad Cities River Bandits (HOU) (box / pbp)

Helena Brewers (Rookie) 10-15
Won Game 1 3-2 at Orem Owlz (LAA) (box / pbp)
Lost Game 2 10-4 (7 inn.) (box / pbp)

AZL Brewers (Rookie) 10-8
Won 6-4 vs AZL White Sox (box / pbp)

Player/Pitcher Points of Interest

After an awesome comeback victory last night, the Cardinals kept the momentum going to route the Brewers 10-2.

There once was a team with no dingers

And their best hitter tore up his fingers

But the bats gathered spark

In the great Miller Park

In first place the Cardinals will linger!

The Game

After a truly great win last night, fueled by a super-momenty-clutchy Matt Holliday home run, the Cardinals came out of the gate swinging this afternoon.  The team scored three runs in the first inning and two more in the second to jump out to an early 5-0 lead that - let's be honest - the Brewers had pretty much no chance to overcome against Adam Wainwright.  Waino wasn't as sharp as he has been this season, but he still pitched very well, allowing only two runs on five hits.  He struck out four, and walked a big fat NOBODY.  His ERA is 1.83.  I like to say that out loud sometimes.

Basically everybody got on base tonight, and four Cardinals had multi-hit games: Jay, Cruz, Carpenter, and Peralta.  I don't think that has happened in awhile.  Kolten Wong had only one hit, but it was yet another home run.  Dude is on FI-YAH.

The Cardinals scored in the first, second, third, fifth, sixth, and seventh innings.  The team had a total of 12 hits, including doubles from Peralta and Cruz and the aforementioned Wong dinger.  The WPA graph is so awesome:

via www.fangraphs.com

Things were...less good for the Brewers.  Jimmy Nelson took the mound in place of Marco Estrada, who the Brew Crew demoted to the bullpen during their recent (and still ongoing!) skid.  Nelson was listed as the #96 prospect in baseball by Baseball America during the preseason.  He has pitched very well in AAA-Nashville: 10-2 on the season, with a 1.46 ERA.  He struck out 114 in 111 IP and allowed only three home runs.  But none of that really mattered tonight, because he got lit the eff up by a Cardinals team that suddenly remembered how to hit baseballs.  His final line: 4.1 IP, 6 R, 8 H, 5 SO, 2 BB.

Notes

1. Kolten Wong's sixth home run of the season was also his fifth home run in seven games.  This ties him with Matt Holliday, who has just over twice as many ABs.  None of us pegged Wong as a power hitter.  The most home runs he hit in a single season was 10 - in AAA last year.  Is this a fluke?  Is he getting lucky and seeing a lot of particularly bad pitches?  Or, is this a guy who has the batting profile to hit 15-17 home runs a year, given the proper playing time and health?  The answers to all these questions and more in the comments section.

2. In the eighth inning, with the good guys up 10-2, Matheny took Holliday and Adams out of the game.  Given the upcoming All Star Game break, it's probably not that important that they rested this afternoon.  BUT, because I think Matheny should get some credit where it's due (even though I also think he is the worst), I will say this was a good move on his part.  He also let Kottaras pinch-hit, which I thought was cool.  I've never been much of a fan of saving the backup catcher for a scenario that almost never happens.  I'm curious what your view is on this, VEB - especially considering that Kottaras looks to be a great addition to the bench.  I would like to see him in late and close games, where a dinger could give us a win.  How about you?  Also - can Kottaras play first base or something?  Can we keep him when Yadi comes back?  Our bench is pretty pitiful.

3. Ryan Braun is still really good.  And I still really don't like him.

4. Jhonny Peralta hit his 25th double tonight - good for 8th in the NL.

The Cards go for the sweep tomorrow at 1:10 CT.  How freaking sweet would it be to end the first "half" with a sweep of our division rivals?  El Gallo goes against Wily Peralta.  It should be a good matchup, so ignore the kickyfoot whatevers and tune in!

Just like that, the division is tied.

WP: Adam Wainwright (12-4)
LP: Jimmy Nelson (1-1)

HR: Kolten Wong (6)

MVP: Ryan Braun (+.014)
LVP: Jimmy Nelson (-.361)

Box Score

Win Expectancy Graph

No relief from the losing streak came in this game.

We all knew that Jimmy Nelson wouldn't dominate right away with the Brewers, but we were hoping for something better than what we got. The Cardinals stormed out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning, and built that lead to 6-0 by the third inning. Nelson got hit hard, only pitching 4 1/3 innings, allowing a total of 8 runs (6 earned).

Meanwhile, the Brewers offense was still missing, and it didn't help that they were up against Adam Wainwright. They only managed two baserunners in the first four innings (one of those came when Carlos Gomez was hit by a pitch). Lyle Overbay and Jeff Bianchi hit back-to-back doubles to put the Brewers on the board, but by then, the Cardinals already had an 8-1 lead. They got another run thanks to Ryan Braun&Khris Davis, but that was all they could get in the game.

The Brewers can at least enter the All-Star break with a win on Sunday. Carlos Martinez and Wily Peralta match up in the final game of the series. First pitch is at 1:10 pm.

a special all-prospects edition

Nashville Sounds (AAA) 51-46
Won 5-3 vs Round Rock Express (TEX) (box / pbp)

Huntsville Stars (AA) 57-36
Won 5-4 at Chattanooga Lookouts (LAD) (box / pbp)

Brevard County Manatees (High A) 48-37
Won 2-1 vs Charlotte Stone Crabs (TBR) (box / pbp)

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Low A) 47-44
Won 9-8 vs Quad Cities River Bandits (HOU) (box / pbp)

Helena Brewers (Rookie) 10-16
Lost 13-2 at Grand Junction Rockies (COL) (box / pbp)

AZL Brewers (Rookie) 10-9
Lost 5-3 at AZL D-Backs (box / pbp)

Player/Pitcher Points of Interest

Watching Adam Wainwright pitch is fun. Watching Carlos Gomez strikeout is also fun. Put the two together, add in a priceless post-strikeout reaction from Gomez, and you have one of the top highlights of the 2014 season.

In the fifth inning of 95th game of the 2014 season, Adam Wainwright made Carlos Gomez, one of the National League's best players, look extremely foolish. Wainwright made Gomez look relatively silly by inducing three swings and misses on three curve balls out of the strike zone, but Gomez took it to another level with his actions that immediately followed the strikeout. Gomez's actions are what will be remembered for a very long time (thanks to numerous .gifs, including one below), but in this post, my main focus will be on the five purposeful pitches thrown by Wainwright on an overcast afternoon in July.

Before we get into the at bat's pitch sequence, let's take a look at three relevant points regarding the All-Star center fielder of the Milwaukee Brewers. According to BrooksBaseball, Gomez has feasted on curve balls this season, to the tune of a .229 isolated power, so it is not surprising that he was taking hacks at Wainwright's curve. Piggybacking off that, Gomez is classified as having a "very good eye" on breaking pitches (48% swing rate on pitches out of the zone versus 82% swing rate on pitches in the zone), but notably, when he does swing, he misses quite often (25%). Obviously, anything can happen in any given at bat, but I still believe that these points were worth noting.

To fully dissect what went down, let's start with the strike zone plot, courtesy of BrooksBaseball:

As you can see, Wainwright successfully struck out Gomez on five pitches without throwing a single pitch clearly in the strike zone (there is a good chance that pitch #3, a curve ball, would have likely been called a strike had Gomez not swung the bat). Well, if Gomez is considered to have a "very good eye on breaking pitches," why did he swing and miss on three breaking balls low and out of the zone?

The most obvious reason is that a Wainwright curve ball is considerably better than the average curve ball, and outside of Clayton Kershaw, it is likely the best in the game. The three curve balls he threw to Gomez were no different than what we have grown accustomed to—averaging 8.7 inches of horizontal movement and 8.5 inches of drop (roughly identical to his career averages).

The second reason is the exact point I was trying to get across in my "set-up pitch" post published on the 4th of July. Wainwright's "set-up" pitch was up, away, and out of the strike zone for a ball, but knowing Waino, this was very clearly a pitch with a purpose. Knowing he had two strikes with room in the count to throw a ball or two, he successfully changed Gomez's eye level, making him vulnerable to a third curve ball low and out of the zone. Gomez likely had a feeling that the curve was coming, but unfortunately for him, he really had no chance at hitting it due to perfect execution from Wainwright.

Considering there are at least two parts to every pitch, let's also take a look at the velocities used by Wainwright in the at bat:

Slow (75.43 MPH), fast (87.66 MPH), slow (76.53 MPH), fast (94.10 MPH), slow (77.91 MPH). A velocity sequence such as this one is almost unfair, even to the league's best hitters. Hitting, in very simple terms, has two main components: location and timing. As I pointed out earlier, Wainwright already messed with the location part by altering Gomez's eye level with his set-up pitch being up and out of the zone. As you can see, Wainwright upset the timing component as well. The set-up pitch was a 94.10 MPH fastball (his fastest pitch of the game, by far) and the put-away pitch was 16 MPH slower, in the dirt. That is textbook pitching right there.

Let's take a look at what went down one last time:

Special thanks to @ZProphet_MMA (of Fansided) for creating this .gif

Despite missing a start earlier in the season, Wainwright has thrown the second most innings in the National League with 138.0. His 1.83 ERA is the second best in baseball behind Kershaw (1.78). He has tallied 115 strikeouts, and I could make a case that this one to Gomez was his best one. With Mike Matheny at the helm, will Wainwright start the All-Star Game? I don't know, and to be honest, I really don't care because his ability to maintain his 2014 success after the break is all that matters at this point.

Finally, if you haven't already, I highly recommend checking out Grantland's article on Wainwright, titled "PitchCraft: Adam Wainwright, the Elite Bridesmaid."

PS, if you ever have the chance to go to Miller Park, do it. I made my second visit to the stadium for this game, and I am convinced that it really is one of my favorite parks. Then again, it has a very modern, industrial architecture, so I am sure some people would absolutely hate it.

New York's southern rivals get a lot of attention this week.

The first half of the MLB season winded down last week, but that didn't mean that the league's teams stopped showing off some interesting uniform combinations. Things got especially interesting in the midwest, where the Brewers once again made us long for the days of royal blue and glove-shaped logos, while the Cubs held another fun throwback day at Wrigley Field.

Braves vs. Mets

Photo credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

The Braves wore these "alternate" road jerseys in all four of their games in Queens last week. I can't really blame them, since I've enjoyed the navy duds every since Atlanta debuted them a few years ago. They go really well with the Braves' all-blue road caps, and the bright coloring on the tomahawk contrasts strongly with the rest of the jersey to make it stand out.

This look is so strong for the Braves, that I now think the team looks awkward when it wears its gray road uniforms. The red "Atlanta" text on that jersey doesn't go all that well with the blue hat. The powers that be should really consider using the red-brimmed home hat with the road grays as well. Just save the blue hat for the blue jerseys.

Cardinals vs. Brewers

Photo credit: Mike McGinnis

Perhaps the only bad thing about these jerseys is that they are spring training jerseys. You can tell by the piping on the sides and and stripes on the collar. Without all of that, we might have something here. The Brewers have got to get more of the "mb" glove logo in our lives, so why not feature a jersey with it on the chest? Well, for one thing, the rest of this shirt is too blank for a colored jersey. I could see the chest logo working with a pinstriped shirt, but that might look like the Brewers are ripping off the Yankees. It's worth looking into, though.

Either way, the bordered font on the back is a keeper.

Braves vs. Cubs

Photo credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

Yes, there is a lot of Braves coverage in this week's column, but say what you will about the team, it usually dresses well. This weekend in Chicago was no exception, where Atlanta showed off its 1969 uniforms to honor the 100th anniversary of Wrigley Field. Like a lot of the throwbacks we've seen at Wrigley this year, these Braves jerseys are rather bland, but it's cool to see the "home" script on the road jersey.

It didn't hurt that these uniforms perfectly match what the team is currently doing with its headgear. In fact, the blue jersey font matches Atlanta's blue hat a lot better than the red font on their current gray jerseys does.

Photo credit: Jonathan Daniel

It was surprising to see the "screaming Indian" logo on Atlanta's throwbacks because the symbol has been controversial for a while now. In fact, the team was supposed to wear it on batting practice hats last year, but it ended up switching to a more politically correct lowercase "a" that Atlanta wore in the 1970s. Is the logo okay now because it's featured on a throwback jersey and is used to create authenticity? If you're going to scrap something, you should probably scrap it for good.

Photo credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

Of course, the Cubs wore their own 1969 uniforms on Sunday, and as usual, they looked pretty good. These jerseys are a lot like what the Cubbies wear today. The blue pinstripes are there, as well as the logo on the chest. The only real differences are the lack of names on the back and a thinner blue circle around "Cubs" symbol. What I really like, though, are the MLB logo on one sleeve (almost as cool as the National League logo on Chicago's blue alternate road jerseys) and the old cub face logo on the other sleeve.

All-Star Game

Here is a picture of all the hats that will be worn during the All-Star Game tomorrow in Minnesota. Yes, front panels are in vogue, but what we haven't seen a lot of so far is front panels in a color other than white. Some of these hats are bland (Angels, Yankees, Tigers), but others are really adventurous with the colors. Just look at the Mets' hat! Never have we seen that much orange above the brim on a Mets hat. I also dig what the Royals and Rays did with the light blue and royal blue/red combo of Philly and Texas.

Tonight, players will be wearing special Home Run Derby caps that are basically just your team's regular hat in Twins colors. I'm not sure what the mainstream appeal of these is supposed to be. The "N" and "A" hats in years past were much more interesting.

Johnny Davis, Devin Williams and more

Huntsville Stars (AA) 58-37
Won 7-1 (7 inn.) at Chattanooga Lookouts (LAD) (box / pbp)

Brevard County Manatees (High A) 49-37
Cancelled vs Charlotte Stone Crabs (TBR)

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Low A) 49-44
Won 8-4 vs Quad Cities River Bandits (HOU) (box / pbp)

Helena Brewers (Rookie) 11-17
Lost 13-5 at Grand Junction Rockies (COL) (box / pbp)

Player/Pitcher Points of Interest

Smashmouth Tuesdays at DRaysBay!

All that glitters is gold, only shooting stars break the mo-o-o-o-o-old. 15 years later and I still know every word. Valuable information, let me tell ya.

ICYMI, Yoenis Cespedes and his perfectly manicured eyebrows won the Home Run Derby last night, making him the first consecutive winner since Ken Griffey Jr. in 1998 and 1999.

The best part of the (excessively-long-and-drawn-out) night wasn't due to Cespedes though (sorry), as it was courtesy of Andrew McCutchen's reaction to a Giancarlo Stanton bomb:

...and the adorable children running around.

***

In Rays news, the David Price rumors continued onward despite the All-Star Break, with yesterday's mill conjuring up talks of a Rays-Indians trade that would include catcher-third baseman Carlos Santana, right handed pitcher Danny Salazar and shortstop Francisco Lindor.

Who will be the lucky landing potential landing spot today?!

Price joked that his ideal team would be the Nashville Sounds, the Brewers Triple-A team in his hometown, and Scott Boras decided to chime in with his opinion on the matter, claiming that "If the team was in Montreal he wouldn't get traded."

Oh, okay Boras, right. Thanks for the input.

Links:

- Marc Topkin had a nice little catch up with Scott Kazmir in Minneapolis, discussing about his refound success, and both Price and James Shields relayed their happiness for Kaz, and the hard work and determination that got him back on an All-Star Roster.

- You've seen this commercial already, but I'm gonna put it here anyways because it made my desk all dusty despite the fact that it's Derek Jeter and therefore the Yankees:

- "Hit my player with a pitch and I'll hit you." - The new motto of minor league baseball fans everywhere...or one drunk dude in Corpus Christi.

- Madison Bumgarner and Buster Posey both hit grand slams in their game against the Diamondbacks on Sunday, which was all kinds of awesome.

- Jonah Keri focused on the AL East in his The 30 this week, as the standings have proved to be exactly what no one expected by the All-Star Break going into the season. Yay baseball!

- Grantland also provided a list of suggestions for how to "fix" the All-Star Game. Any input?

With the All-Star Break in progress, it's a very light day of Brewers news today.

Yesterday's Results

The Brewers are off as the All-Star Break is in progress. Last night, Yoenis Cespedes won the Home Run Derby, beating Todd Frazier in the finals to win the event in back-to-back years.

The Brewers remain in trade rumors for Jake Peavy.

As the trade deadline gets closer, one rumor that won't go away is the Brewers interest in Jake Peavy. Yesterday, Derek found another report that the Brewers are one of three teams still in on Peavy. He used this opportunity to discuss how realistic it would be for the Brewers to trade for Peavy, as well as if he would be an upgrade in the rotation. The conclusion Derek came to is that the upgrade wouldn't be worth it and the cost, regardless of how minor it would be, would still be too high. Sticking with what the Brewers have for now is probably the best option. They have seven good rotation candidates right now: the five currently in the rotation, plus Marco Estrada in the bullpen and Mike Fiers in Nashville. Peavy just wouldn't provide enough to be worth the trade.

Cram Session

• With the season at the midway point, Alec revised his top Brewers prospect list and presented his new top 25 prospect list as of the midway point of the season.
• It may be a coincidence that Carlos Gomez's first two All-Star appearances are hosted by the previous two teams he played for (Mets & Twins), but it's one Gomez plans to take advantage of. Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel looks at how Gomez, as well as the other Brewers all-stars, are approaching this event.
• Francisco Rodriguez went from stepping on a cactus in spring training to being in the All-Star game in July. Adam McCalvy looks at the journey that Rodriguez has taken this year.
• Over on FanGraphs, Jeff Sullivan analyzes the remaining strength-of-schedule for all of the MLB teams, noting the Cardinals favorable schedule and the Brewers less favorable schedule.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• Victor Roache of Brevard County was named the Florida State League player of the week.
• Clint Coulter hit a grand slam in last night's game against Quad Cities, and Kevin Kimmes of Cream Cities Cables notes that Coulter has a chance to break a few records.

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

Today's Action

The All-Star Game will take place in Minneapolis tonight. Carlos Gomez, Aramis Ramirez, and Jonathan Lucroy will start for the National League, and Francisco Rodriguez may pitch in relief.

In Minnesota, a lot of Top Prospects Gathered to Play a Baseball Game

I was convinced at the last minute on Friday to make the trek across Wisconsin to Minneapolis for the Futures Game.  I will start by saying it is well worth the experience, and if you can physically get to the game, getting in can be relatively cheap as people who have bought tickets for the entire set of All-Star festivities are selling their tickets for the Futures Game fairly cheap on the secondary ticket market.  This year Minnesota put on a great event and Target Field is a beautiful ballpark.

Dan already talked about the rather uneventful day of the Phillies prospects at the game so I will touch on them briefly.

Maikel Franco: World batting practice was before the gates opened to the public so I didn't get a chance to see Franco hit.  In infield drills he looked sluggish at third base compared to the other world third basemen (Renato Nunez and Rosell Herrera), but he displayed an arm behind only Gallo's in strength.  It was not the best defense I have seen from Franco, but given his body type and the lack of range he showed charging grounders, it is hard not to see a future first baseman at some point.

In the game Franco hit two fly ball outs.  The first was off Diamondbacks prospect Braden Shipley, he appeared fooled on a changeup, but got enough bat on it to get it to the outfield.  In his second at bat he timed up a 96 mph fastball from Mets prospect Noah Syndergaard, but he didn't get all of it and it died in centerfield.  Overall Franco didn't embarrass himself, but he was clearly well behind Kris Bryant and Joey Gallo as a prospect.  There are still plenty of questions about his swing still remaining.

J.P. Crawford: I did arrive in time for Crawford's batting practice: for the most part he was spraying line drives around the field.  However, during his last few turns through the cage Crawford hit some gorgeous home runs to RF.  They were more line drives than bombs, but they hinted at larger power potential.  Overall, his batting practice was particularly impressive as he was the least experienced hitter in the game (only HS draftee from 2013 draft).  Here is video by Baseball America of one of his trips through the cage.

In infield drills, Crawford looked really smooth; he wasn't Lindor -- who is just special -- but everything seemed to work well.  The throws in practice lacked the zip his throw in the game had, but they were accurate.

Crawford's hit in the game was a lot of luck, and he should have been out on his stolen base (mostly because of a good throw).  His second at bat is what impressed me: he worked an 8 pitch at bat against Brewers prospect Jorge Lopez.  He ultimately grounded out to second and almost beat the throw with a 4.17 time down the line (somewhere in the 50/55 range on speed).

Other Highlights:

Joey Gallo (TEX) put on a show both in batting practice and in the game, his power is to 80 power what Billy Hamilton's speed is to 80 speed.  They are the outlier beyond the scale.  I was however more impressed with Kris Bryant (Cubs) who didn't put up the moon shots of Gallo, instead he sprayed the ball around the park taking a bunch out to center field and the opposite way.  To me the amount of control over the contact was really impressive.  A step behind Gallo and Bryant was D.J. Peterson (SEA), who hit for mostly pull contact in BP, but hit balls loud and really far.  A step back on the power was Jesse Winker (CIN), but he showed a really good feel for hard contact around the field.  In the game, Javier Baez (CHC) launched one of the most impressive home runs I have ever seen.

In fielding drills, Francisco Lindor (CLE) is just a joy to watch: he has a quiet confidence while making hard plays look boring.  Catcher Justin O'Conner (TBR) popped a 1.78 throw to second base from behind the plate.  I was hoping to see more from Alfaro, but he was gearing up on his throws, leaving slow pop times but absolute lasers to second base.  In the game Kenny Vargas (MIN) hit a ball to the wall in RF and Hunter Renfroe (SD) unleashed a bullet that beat him to the second base bag, but Corey Seager (LAD) couldn't hang on.

On the pitching side Robert Stephenson (CIN), Alex Meyer (MIN), and Noah Syndergaard (NYM) showed off power arms with ready-now stuff, with Stephenson up to 98, Meyer at 98, and Syndergaard at 97.  Both Hunter Harvey (BAL) and Lucas Giolito (WAS) showed elite stuff, but they also showed their inexperience as they couldn't execute their pitches to get more advanced hitters out.  The least impressive guy stuff wise was Henry Owens (BOS), who I had 89-91 with the fastball, with a nasty changeup. At best he looks like a lesser version of Cole Hamels, but I didn't see a top of the rotation arm.  In contrast, the World starting pitcher Jose Berrios (MIN) was very impressive, with a FB up to 95.

The two most impressive pitchers for me were on the world team.  The first is 17 year old Julio Urias (LAD), whose fastball was up 95 and who showed a good three pitch mix to compliment the fastball.  When people say he could pitch in the majors at 18 or 19, they aren't exaggerating.  The other guy was Domingo German (MIA), who struck out Gallo and Bryant back to back in the 2nd inning.  His fastball was 94-95 and was sinking and all over the zone.  I don't know enough about the arsenal to say whether he is a starter or reliever, but for a guy in low-A it was incredibly impressive.

Overall, having watched the game, Crawford is definitely in the second tier of top prospects, but you can see the potential for him to be in that top group a year or so from now.  Franco is still a good prospect and there is a lot to like, but aggressive rankings like Baseball America having him as their #17 prospect this offseason might have portrayed him a bit higher than he is when he is stacked up against his peers.

You can read more of my notes on the Futures Game as well as my thoughts on the Phillies minor league system at Phillies Minor Thoughts.

Everyone was talking about the Yankee Captain, naturally.

Derek Jeter went 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored in his final All-Star Game. The two hits were only a pair of the more minor moments in an event that will be forever etched in the minds of everyone who watched or otherwise participated.

Jeter started off the evening with an incredible speech to his American League teammates just before the players took the field for pregame introductions:

Once Jeter took the field and did what he's always done, several major leaguers, including a couple of All-Stars, took to Twitter to show their appreciation for the Yankee Captain.

Jeet as usual.....standing out when it counts!!! #RE2PECT

— Jimmy Rollins (@JimmyRollins11) July 16, 2014

Jeter is the man...that's all.

— Brett Anderson (@BAnderson_30) July 16, 2014

Good guys up 3-0 early!! Jeter knock to right (weird), trout triple (odd) and then miggy lalalalalalaBOMBAAA!!! #theseguysaregooooood#ASG

— David Price (@DAVIDprice14) July 16, 2014

Back-to-back, my first two All-Star Games. Mariano retires, now Jeter. So happy to be part of both. #ASG

— Salvador Perez (@SalvadorPerez15) July 16, 2014

The Brewers, who had a couple of their own players come up big in the game, displayed some class as well:

*Tips cap. #RE2PECT#ASG

— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) July 16, 2014

What good is anything without some humor? CBS News unintentionally gave us that with this erroneous tweet (that has since been deleted), and the Dodgers were kind enough to make everyone aware of its ramifications:

CBS Congratulates...Michael Jeter for Final All-Star Appearance http://t.co/d9BVPTReDRpic.twitter.com/ytsVuoW2LV

— Boston.com (@BostonDotCom) July 16, 2014

No. 1 trend WORLDWIDE is Michael Jeter!

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 16, 2014

A few innings after Jeter was removed from the game, Angels outfielder Mike Trout followed, but not before Trout added a double and drove in his second run of the game. Jeter gave the young star a good ribbing:

Jeter to Trout as the #Angels' star left the game. "You're done? 22 years old and you're done?"

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 16, 2014

Just one week after his son passed away, the Brewers' shortstop appears ready to play baseball once again.

Note: What We Learned is taking the day off today. It will make it's return tomorrow!

Just six days after learning his nine-month-old son had unexpectedly passed away, Brewers' shortstop Jean Segurahas rejoined the team.

Different people handle tragedies in different ways, of course, and Segura seemingly would prefer to jump back into his normal routine of playing baseball to help ease the pain he is assuredly feeling. He'll be taking part in a voluntary workout on Thursday and appears likely to be activated for the Brewers' series against the Nationals starting Friday.

Ron Roenicke had said the team was willing to grant Segura as much time away as he needed, and it appears he will continue to give as much support to Segura as possible. According to Adam McCalvy, Roenicke said he would likely ease the 24-year-old back into the lineup and would play him only so long as Segura felt comfortable:

"He's back in town. He got back last night and I talked to him, and he's ready to go," Roenicke told 620-AM WTMJ's Greg Matzek on Thursday. "He needs to do this, he feels, to keep his mind off of some things. So he'll be back with us. I don't know that he'll be playing every day at the beginning. It's kind of up to him and how he feels. But he wants to do this, so he'll meet us there tomorrow."

Segura's teammates will, certainly, do all they can to support Segura and make him feel as comfortable as possible. Catcher Jonathan Lucroy spoke for the rest of the team: "We're just trying to support him as best we can ... There's nothing, really, you can do about it, just when he comes back take him in and support him as best we can. There's nothing you can do or say that will fix it. Nothing."

When Segura first left to fly back to the Dominican Republic, there was a chance that he would end up being gone a significant amount of time, perhaps the rest of the season. The Brewers had been prepared to accommodate him as needed, of course, but they will also likely gratefully appreciate the former All Star returning to the lineup. Though Segura has not had the greatest year at the plate, he has been a plus defensively and is still certainly a better option than Jeff Bianchi or Elian Herrera would be long-term.

In all likelihood, it will be Herrera who is sent back to Triple-A when Segura is officially activated.

More from Brew Crew Ball

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• Jonathan Lucroy's All Star Game performance among best in Brewers history
• All Star Game Recap: Brewers players fare well
• Milwaukee Brewers Midseason Top 25 Prospects
• Jake Peavy Trade Rumor Persists
• Minor League Notes, 2014-07-15

The Brewers claimed Irving Falu. Yeah, really.

The Brewers designated Irving Falu back in late June after he saw limited playing time and hit literally nothing (0 hits in 12 plate appearances). The Padres claimed him and he spent three weeks with them. Despite managing 3 whole hits in 20 plate appearances the Padres also designated Irving Falu leading to one of the more humorous events in recent memory. The Brewers have re-claimed Irving Falu. To make room for him on the 40-man roster they have designated Kevin Shackelford.

We probably don't need to go over Irving Falu much. We know he's a mediocre to poor utility player who can man second and third bases and fake shortstop in a pinch. He isn't going to hit well so he really is only insurance against an injury. Jeff Bianchi's shoulder was hurting before the All-Star break so perhaps he'll be heading to the DL soon? That's just a complete guess, I haven't heard that. There's also a solid chance Irving Falu plays the rest of the year out at Nashville and maybe gets a September call-up. In fact the Brewers immediately optioned him to AAA so far now at least we know Bianchi will stick around.

Kevin Shackelford was just added to the 40-man roster this year. Drafted in 2010, Shackelford has had a decent minor league career out of the bullpen. His best season was last year when he split the season between A+ and AA (combined 3.08 ERA) and then finished the year in the AFL (3.09 ERA). This year has been his worst season. He began in AA and got hit pretty hard. A stint where he pitched excellently in A+ may have straightened him out as he was promoted back to AA in July. There's a chance a team puts a claim on him. He's pretty far down on the Brewers bullpen depth chart so if does go to another team, it's not going to matter.

More from Brew Crew Ball

Follow @BrewCrewBallFollow @SBNationMLB

• Jean Segura has rejoined the Brewers
• Jonathan Lucroy's All Star Game performance among best in Brewers history
• What we learned: July 16, 2014
• All Star Game Recap: Brewers players fare well
• 2014 MLB All-Star Game Thread

One of my favorite players is Cleveland Indians outfielder Michael Brantley, who can now add an All-Star nomination to his resume. I like him for numerous reasons: he's fast, has developed power this year, gets on base, fields his position. He's having what looks like a classic Age 27 peak season: .322/.382/.519, 15 homers (already a career high), 10 steals in 10 attempts, 154 OPS+, 154 wRC+, 3.7 WAR.

Most of all, Brantley was a sleeper prospect who made good and I love guys like that.

He first appeared in my 2006 book after being drafted in 2005. I'd noticed him in high school due to his bloodlines and the fact that I liked his father as a player, too.

Milwaukee drafted Michael Brantley in the seventh round last June, out of high school in Port St.Lucie, Florida. The son of former major league outfielder Mickey Brantley, Michael looks like a real sleeper to me. He already has good speed and knows how to use it. His strike zone judgment is EXCELLENT, and he had no problems with pro pitching in his debut. He is a good defensive outfielder, well-schooled in the game. His main weakness right now is lack of power. He is still growing into his body, and at this point is content to just make contact rather than deliberately drive the ball for distance. Michael’s dad had some pop in his bat, and it will be interesting to see how much Michael himself develops. He’ll need some time to mature physically, but I’m impressed with what he has done so far. Grade C+.

Brantley hit .300/.402/.339 with 24 steals and zero homers in Low-A in '06, prompting this review entering '07:

Normally I am not a huge advocate of these pure speed guys, but for some reason I really like Michael Brantley. Drafted in the seventh round in 2005 out of high school in Florida, he is a contact hitter with good speed and excellent strike zone judgment. He comes from a baseball family (his dad played in the majors), is a good athlete, and has a fair measure of polish. The one thing he lacks is power, with just 17 extra-base hits in 567 career at-bats, and it is unclear if he’ll be able to develop much of it. Even additional gap power would give him potential as a regular leadoff man, but if that doesn’t happen, he’s destined for bench work. Grade C+, since he is young enough to develop more punch eventually, and I like his other skills a lot.

He split '07 between West Virginia (.335/.414/.440) and Double-A Huntsville (.251/.353/.294), which was a huge jump. But he was still a favorite:

Brantley is one of my favorite speed players. He lacks power, but his combination of speed and patience makes him a valuable table setter. I haven’t given up on the idea that he could add some power, at least additional doubles/triples, to his game. He was having a strong season at West Virginia, but the Brewers needed an outfielder in Double-A and bumped him up at mid-season, skipping the advanced-A level. He was overmatched at times, but was one of the youngest players at the level, and the fact that he maintained his strike zone judgment is a good marker. I think he profiles as a reserve outfielder, though a good one. Grade C+, an aggressive grade for this type of player, but my intuition likes him.

He returned to Huntsville for '08 and was much more effective, hitting .319/.395/.398 with 28 steals, 50 walks, and just 27 strikeouts in 420 at-bats. He was traded to the Indians before the '09 book went to press:

Brantley was the last piece of the C.C. Sabathia trade, going to Cleveland as the player-to-be-named later at the end of the minor league season. He’s got very good speed, and his command of the strike zone is exceptional: he’ll take a walk, and hardly ever strikes out. The speed/walks combination makes him valuable as a leadoff guy. On the other hand, he lacks power, and while he is physically strong, his swing may never generate a lot of pop. Despite his speed, he is rated as just an average defensive outfielder by scouts, since he has some problems reading fly balls. The Brewers used him at first base much of last year, but obviously he doesn’t hit enough for the position. I think Brantley would be a very good fourth outfielder, especially if he can improve his outfield glovework. Grade C+.

He split '09 between Triple-A Columbus (.267/.350/.361 with 46 steals and the Indians, where he hit .312/.358/.348 in 28 games. And thus his final book comment entering 2010:

I have been pushing Michael Brantley as a sleeper for four years, so I’m glad to see him performing well in the majors. He’s very fast, uses his speed well on the bases, draws walks, doesn’t strike out, and has proven he can make contact against all sorts of pitching. Although he’s never going to be a huge home run guy, I think he’ll develop enough pop that the pitchers will have to respect him; he won’t get the bat knocked out of his hands. He’s a very dangerous baserunner, and that attribute combined with his contact hitting and on-base abilities make him an ideal leadoff type. Brantley was previously criticized by scouts for his defensive work, but those complaints mysteriously vanished last year, and he’s now regarded as a fine outfielder. His defensive stats have always been pretty solid, so I don’t know if his abilities really changed or if scouting opinion just caught up with reality. In any event, he’s fine in center or left field, but lacks the arm for right. Brantley would be an excellent fourth outfielder, but if he develops a bit more pop he could be a regular left or center fielder for a lot of teams. Grade B.

And here he is on an All-Star team, moving past fourth outfielder work and into a regular job.

Brantley is an example of a couple of my pet themes:

***Defensive reputation sometimes takes time to catch up with actual performance. The numbers said that Brantley was a good fielder before the scouts did, and eventually the scouting reports changed to match the numbers.

***Informal studies I've conducted over the years indicate that players who can make contact but don't drive the ball  early in their careers can still develop decent power in their late 20s. As I've said, those studies have been informal and aren't something I'm ready to publish, but it is a theme I keep in mind when studying a player and trying to project what he could do later. In Brantley's case, that worked out. It doesn't always happen of course.

Today the Padres announced that the Brewers claimed infielder Irving Falu off waivers. You might recall that San Diego acquired Falu exactly three weeks ago off of waivers by, yes, the Brewers. Full circle, just like the album between About Time and Straight Ahead.

In Falu's brief time with the Padres he collected three singles in 20 at-bats for a batting average of .150, which is exactly 150 points better than he did in 10 at-bats with Milwaukee earlier in the year. Falu, who wore number 1 in his 11 games for San Diego, also stole a base and took three of his eight career walks.

The Padres stated in their short release that they'll wait until tomorrow to make a formal roster move to fill the spot left by Falu's departure. Jesse Hahn is not the guy who will get a call, as his spot in the rotation doesn't come up until next Wednesday at Wrigley Field, and the only reason he's in the minors in the first place was to free up a roster spot in the All-Star-break-aided long stretch between his starts.

Action and drama and 4-hit games

Nashville Sounds (AAA) 51-47
Postponed at Oklahoma City RedHawks (HOU)

Huntsville Stars (AA) 59-38
Lost 4-1 vs Tennessee Smokies (CHC) (box / pbp)

Brevard County Manatees (High A) 50-38
Won Game 1 6-1 (7 inn.) at St. Lucie Mets (NYM) (box / pbp)
Lost Game 2 3-2 (7 inn.) (box / pbp)

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Low A) 50-45
Lost 8-2 vs Bowling Green Hot Rods (TBR) (box / pbp)

Helena Brewers (Rookie) 12-18
Won 15-7 vs Orem Owlz (LAA) (box / pbp)

AZL Brewers (Rookie) 12-10
Won 6-4 vs AZL Indians (box / pbp)

Player/Pitcher Points of Interest

Today's lessons include first half reviews and second half previews, as well as Brewers roster moves.

Roster moves dominated the day yesterday.

With the Brewers preparing to return to action yesterday, a few roster moves came up in preparation of that. The first move is technically just a return for now, as Jean Segura is expected to meet the team in Washington today. It is not certain whether or not Segura will be activated today, and how much he will play right away. However, the Brewers did make space for him on the roster by sending Jeff Bianchi to the disabled list. Bianchi had been dealing with an elbow sprain before the All-Star Break, and it has not healed enough yet for him to return. This will also allow the Brewers to keep Elian Herrera up for now to see if he can build off of his five-hit game.

The final move was the return of Irving Falu, who the Brewers claimed back off of waivers from the Padres. Falu had made a few appearances with the team earlier this season, but was sent back to Nashville and then removed from the 40-man roster, which put him on waivers where the Padres claimed him. For now, Falu will report to Nashville, but he could make another appearance with the Brewers soon.

Cram Session

More from BCB

• Jonathan Lucroy's performance in Tuesday night's All-Star Game was one of the best in Brewers history. Noah looked at where the performance ranked among other notable performances in the game.

First Half Notes

• Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has five things that went right and five that went wrong in the first half of the season, as well as an overall recap of the first half of the season.
• Keeping things positive, Ryan Topp of Disciples of Uecker looked at what is right with the Brewers at the break.
• Continuing the theme of best/worsts of the first half, Miller Park Drunk has his list of the best and worst things of the first half of the season.
• Is the sky falling right now? Jay D of Reviewing the Brew takes a look at the first half of the season from the perspective of a fan.

Second Half Previews

• With the second half about to start, Adam McCalvy of Brewers.com looks ahead to the second half of the season.
• Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel also has five things to watch in the second half of the season.
• Here's another person that believes the Brewers will continue to plummet. John Perrotto of The Sports Xchange on Yahoo sees the Cardinals winning the division and the Brewers not getting a wild-card spot.

Other Notes

• Last night, MLB Network aired a special on Bob Uecker called "Mr. Baseball, Bob Uecker." Don't worry if you missed it, it will air again on MLB Network Saturday at 11 am.
• As the trade deadline approaches, Doug Melvin is listening, but not urgently looking at making a trade.
• Steven Jewell of Reviewing the Brew has a profile of Mark Reynolds.
• On this trip to Washington, the Brewers are bringing a couple of Wounded Warriors with them as guests of the team. They will be in uniform for all three games, in case you see them in the dugout.
• Nine years ago, Chorizo made its debut in the Sausage Race. Cait of John & Cait looks back at the introduction of the sausage.
• Remember Ralph Sasson, the guy who filed a defamation suit against Ryan Braun? He's not done quite yet, as he posted his recorded deposition on YouTube. Badgernoonan of Ron Roenicke Stole My Baseball watched it and has some highlights from it.
• Mississippi Matt Smith of NotGraphs has proof that Adam Wainwright grooved one for Derek Jeter.
• I just found out that Tim Dillard has a blog a few days ago. His most recent post is on the many different superstitions players have, some normal and some strange.

Minor League Update

News & Notes

• The DSL All-Star Game will take place this weekend, and Joantgel Segovia and Yeraldy Martinez of the DSL Brewers will participate in the game.
• The Brewers affiliates may have some strange nicknames, but Greg Pearson of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel notes why they make sense. He also looks at the wacky nicknames of other teams around the minor leagues.

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

Division Update

This Weekend's Division Games

• Dodgers @ Cardinals
  Friday: Dan Haren vs. Lance Lynn - 7:15 pm
  Saturday: Zack Greinke vs. Joe Kelly - 3:05 pm
  Sunday: Clayton Kershaw vs. Carlos Martinez - 7:05 pm
• Reds @ Yankees
  Friday: Mike Leake vs. David Phelps - 6:05 pm
  Saturday: Alfredo Simon vs. Brandon McCarthy - 12:05 pm
  Sunday: Johnny Cueto vs. Hiroki Kuroda -  12:05 pm
• Rockies @ Pirates
  Friday: Jorge de la Rosa vs. Francisco Liriano - 6:05 pm
  Saturday: Brett Anderson vs. Charlie Morton - 6:05 pm
  Sunday: Tyler Matzek vs. Jeff Locke - 12:35 pm
• Diamondbacks @ Cubs
  Friday: Edwin Jackson vs. Trevor Cahill - 8:40 pm
  Saturday: Travis Wood vs. Wade Miley - 7:10 pm
  Sunday: Jake Arrieta vs. Josh Collmenter - 3:10 pm

This Weekend's Action

The Brewers return to action this weekend in Washington D.C. for a three-game series against the Nationals. Here are the weekend's pitching matchups:

Friday: Kyle Lohse vs. Stephen Strasburg - 6:05 pm
Saturday: Matt Garza vs. Gio Gonzalez - 6:05 pm
Sunday: Yovani Gallardo vs. Doug Fister - 12:35 pm

Washington Nationals' right-hander Stephen Strasburg gave up seven runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 IP last time out against the Milwaukee Brewers. Tonight, the Nats' 25-year-old starter gets another shot at the Brewers.

The Nationals were looking for a strong outing from Stephen Strasburg during the finale of the last series they played with the Milwaukee Brewers during Washington's trip to Miller Park in late June. The previous night's sixteen-inning marathon of a game left the Nats' bullpen depleted, but they'd outlasted the Brewers and set themselves up with an opportunity for a three-game sweep of the NL Central's first-place team.

Strasburg was in the midst of a rough stretch of starts, however, in which he gave up seven earned runs (4.97 ERA) in 12 ⅔ innings on the mound in back-to-back outings against the Cardinals and Braves in which he allowed opposing hitters to put up a .302/.315/.509 line against him.

It didn't go much better against the Brewers.

The Nationals' 25-year-old right-hander gave up eight hits, three walks and seven runs in just 4 ⅔ IP before manager Matt Williams turned to his beleaguered bullpen.

"I don't know if it was fastball command so much today," Williams told reporters after the loss. "But his changeup wasn't as good today so he couldn't go to it. He was missing with that and he got behind in the count, they took advantage. This team swings at fastballs and they hit them. And if you get behind, you can get in trouble."

Strasburg told reporters that his mechanics were off and though he wasn't sure what the issue was, something was "not right" as he explained it.

"The key for Stephen is going to be to continue to have fastball command early," Williams said, "be able to throw his breaking balls for strikes and use the changeup off of that and today it was a little backwards and he got one up in the zone and they hit it."

The next time out, Strasburg bounced back with a strong start against the Colorado Rockies in which he threw 7 ⅔ scoreless before giving up a solo home run. After throwing 90 pitches in 4 ⅔ in Milwaukee, he got through seven-plus innings on 111 pitches.

"I think strike one is probably the biggest difference," Matt Williams told reporters after the Nationals' 7-1 win in the nation's capital.

"Got ahead of a lot of hitters tonight. His curveball was effective, his changeup was effective, went deep in the game. He threw a lot of pitches, but he was in command. I think that's the biggest difference. He didn't fall behind guys. And for him, that's important. It's important for everybody, but especially for him."

The start against the Rockies was the first of three strong outings that ended the first half of the season for Strasburg, in which he put up a 2.21 ERA in 20 ⅓ IP, holding opposing hitters to a .213/.244/.320 line.

He held the Orioles to four hits and two earned runs in seven innings in Nationals Park the next time out, then held the Phillies to seven hits and two earned runs in 5 ⅔ IP Citizens Bank Park in his final start before the All-Star Break.

He received no decision in either of those outings though, so the first half of the 2009 no.1 overall pick's fifth MLB season ended with Strasburg (7-6) with a 3.46 ERA, 2.72 FIP, 26 walks (1.87 BB/9) and 149 Ks (10.73 K/9) in 20 starts and 125 IP.

"We're happy with where we're at." - Matt Williams

Photo © Brian Garfinkel/Getty Images

The first start of the so-called second-half tonight gives Strasburg another shot at the Brewers, who come into the series in Washington, D.C. having dropped 11 of their last 13 games.

Before the last head-to-head matchup, Milwaukee was on a run, having won six of seven on a road trip that led into the meeting of the NL East and Central's division leaders. While the Brewers are just 25-24 at home this season, they're 28-19 outside of Miller Park.

They're facing Strasburg in the nation's capital, however, where he's 6-1 with a 2.38 ERA and a .239/278/.336 line against, as opposed to his 1-5 record, 4.92 ERA and .290/.335/.459 line against away from home in the first half.

Will Strasburg have his revenge on the Brewers tonight?

@masnNationals guest blogger Patrick Reddington of @federalbaseball on Strasburg facing the Brewers. http://t.co/keU0S29rA1

— Nationals on MASN (@masnNationals) July 18, 2014

The Brewers return from the All-Star break for a short 3 game road series to finish out the season series against the Nationals. Will the Brewers come out on top this time?

The first half of 2014 will go down as one of the most memorable in Brewers history. They got off to a franchise best start through 81 games by going 20-8 in April (including March 31st). That month was highlighted by a 9 game winning streak which saw the Brewers sweep reigning World Series champions the Boston Red Sox and division rivals the Pittsburgh Pirates.

We got to witness the career revival of Zach Duke and the scoreless streak by Will Smith. Wily Peralta dazzled for much of the first half giving us a glimpse of what he can be once he finally puts it all together. Yovani Gallardo bounced back (mostly). Matt Garza stumbled but recovered his top of the rotation form to become the best starter in the rotation for the last month+ of the first half.

Jonathan Lucroy is on pace to set a Brewers record for doubles in a season. Khris Davis came on strong after scuffling out of the gate. Carlos Gomez showed 2013 was no fluke. The Brewers had 4 All-Stars (3 of which started the game). And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the surprise gold glove caliber defense of Mark Reynolds.

Also Hank the Dog!

It wasn't all good though. Who could forget the dust up between the Pirates and the Brewers when the little child pitcher of theirs threw a temper tantrum and then somehow half the baseball world blamed Carlos Gomez? Here is where I should probably also note the successful failure that was/is the Wei-Chung Wang experiment. Also sadly I have to mention the almost unfortunately historic season of poor Marco Estrada the home run king.

May was okay and June was great again. Then came July and the slide. What was once a 6 game division lead over the Cardinals became a tie with 1 game left before the All Star break. Realistically, the season wouldn't have changed substantially if the Brewers lost that last game. Fortunately we won't ever know as they took out a lot of frustration out on the Cardinals with an 11-2 rout leaving the Brewers alone again atop the NL Central. Emotionally (perhaps more so for us than the team) it was a much needed victory and morale booster.

Now the Brewers continue the second half of the season. First up are the Washington Nationals. The last time these two teams met the Nats took 2 out of 3. Things won't be any easier this time as their pitching staff is lined up so that the Brewers face their best 3. Offensively they're also in a better position as this time Bryce Harper isn't on the disabled list.

Of course, the Brewers will be featuring the top of their rotation as well. Hopefully the four days off will help Khris Davis and Ryan Braun who were dealing with some nagging bumps and bruises. The two games the Nationals won weren't blow outs and if the Brewers offense can click this time, look out. Remember, this is a team that is scoring the second most runs in the National League and one that put up 9 runs in a game started by none other than Stephen Strasburg.

Friday July 18th, 6:05 pm CT: Kyle Lohse vs Stephen Strasburg

Stephen Strasburg is an excellent pitcher who sometimes has poor outings. He's still really young and I fully expect him to put it all together and dominate for years. He's not quite there yet and as I mentioned above, one of those poor outings this year came against the Brewers. They knocked him around for 7 runs in 4.1 innings. Brewers hit 2 home runs that game, one of which was a grand slam by little Scooter Gennett. I'm not counting the Brewers out, but it's going to be asking quite a lot to replicate that performance.

Strasburg has maintained the 4th highest strikeout rate (28.5%) this year among all NL starters and the highest among qualified NL starters. His walk rate (5%) is also among league leaders giving him the best K%-BB% in the National League. His .258 BAA is marginally above league average (.250) though. Over his career he's really dominated righties while doing so less, but still well, against lefties. However, this year lefties seem to be having a harder time with his stuff. After the grandslam I'm certain Scooter Gennett will get the start, but it's anyone's guess who plays first.

Of note for the Brewers: I don't really have anything interesting to say about the Brewers starters right now so instead I'm just going to link this song to get you into the fighting spirit. Concentrate, focus power, remember balance. Make good fight.

Saturday July 19th, 6:05 pm CT: Matt Garza vs Gio Gonzalez

There are a lot of really good 1-2 punches in baseball and you can make a strong argument that Strasburg-Gonzalez is at or near the top. Gonzalez has the 10th best (no IP limit) strikeout rate (24.8%) but he walks (9.6%) a good deal more than Strasburg. He makes up for that by giving up a good deal fewer hits (.221 BAA). There's no reason to believe he can't keep up those peripherals. He's a tough cookie.

Of note for the Brewers: I actually like the match-up here. Matt Garza has been lights out recently with a 2.61 ERA in his last 5 starts. If that's not enough to fire you up, try this.

Sunday July 20th, 12:35 pm CT: Yovani Gallardo vs Doug Fister

I actually totally forgot Doug Fister was part of the Nationals' rotation. It's probably because he started the season on the DL. He made his first start on May 9th and in 12 starts has been okay (good?). He has a 2.90 ERA and while I don't want to say it's completely luck, I think luck does deserve partial credit.

His low strikeout rate (14.3) has been largely bailed out by his absurdly low walk rate (2.6%). His .248 BAA is about league average but his 1.07 WHIP is well below, again due to his low walk rate. Fister is a solid pitcher but at some point that ERA has to jump up or his peripherals do. The Brewers are more than capable of helping him normalize that ERA.

Of note for the Brewers: Yovani Gallardo was lights out in April and was good in June. May wasn't kind to him and neither has July so far. The Brewers need him to step it up. They need him to be a hero.

Conclusion

Doug Fister is actually not one of the Nationals better pitchers and we should be thankful they're not facing Jordan Zimmermann again. While I think Stephen Strasburg is brilliant, the Brewers have had success against him before. Matt Garza gives the Brewers another good shot at winning.

While this is absolutely going to be a tough series I'm feeling really good going in. I don't know why, maybe it's because I'm picturing them working out their issues in an 80's montage over the break. Regardless, I think there's a real chance they win this series.

In his first game back from bereavement leave, Brewers second baseman Jean Segura received a kind gesture from the fans at Nationals Park.

Brewers infielder Jean Segura returned to the team Friday for his first game since mourning the sudden death of his nine-month old son Janniel. In a show of support and appreciation for the 24-year-old, the fans at Nationals Park gave him a standing ovation before his first at-bat.