Is he ready to return to closer form?

Where They Are Coming From

Long gone are the days of 37 and half games out of the division lead (2004). In spring training, Peter Gammons stated that the Milwaukee Brewers was his surprise breakout team for the 2007 season. Well, not only is he a respected sports analyst throughout the league, he was also right. The 2007 Brewers made a big splash in the baseball, finishing only two games behind division leaders, Chicago Cubs.

This team of young players came into their own this year with breakout years from third baseman Ryan Braun, first baseman Prince Fielder, outfielder Corey Hart, and shortstop J.J. Hardy. They also had strong showings from their newly departed closer Francisco Cordero and their nine game winner, Yovani Gallardo.

The team posted an 83-79 record despite having their number one and two pitchers, Ben Sheets and Chris Capuano, spending significant time on the designated list for a variety of injuries.

Players Added

The Brewers wasted no time in the offseason, making several key pickups to try to strengthen its bullpen as well as add some depth and consistency to the batting line-up.

Knowing they were likely to lose the services of their closer, Francisco Cordero, as well as prized relief pitcher Scott Linebrink, the team traded journeyman catcher Johnny Estrada to the New York Mets for RP Guillermo Mota on 11/20/07. Mota has lifetime ERA of 3.92 and this right-hander can throw some serious heat, which he has demonstrated over his eight-year career.

After Cordero (Reds) and Linebrink (White Sox) both signed four year deals with other teams, the Brewers continued their search for bullpen help, acting fast to get anything of value. Heading into December, the team invested much of their energy revitalizing their bullpen.

On December 5, they signed hard-throwing, right hand reliever David Riske (KC) to a three-year contract. On December 7, the Brewers traded relief pitchers Marino Salas and Kevin Roberts to the Pirates for an experienced closer, Salomon Torres. Then on December 10, the team signed ex-Ranger and Red Sox, Éric Gagné to a one-year, incentive-laden contract.  The team did not stop there, grabbing reliever Greg Aquino (BAL) off waivers, signing 32-year-old reliever Randy Choate to a one-year contract.

The team also added strength and consistency to their line-up by signing catcher Jason Kendall and his lifetime batting average of .297 to a one-year, $4.25M contract.

With the loss of Geoff Jenkins (PHI) in the outfield, the team turned to center fielder Mike Cameron, previously with the San Diego Padres. With his name popping up on the “Mitchell Report”, you have to consider that you may lose him for a period of time; however, signing a player who can hit 20+ home runs in PETCO Park to a one-year, $7 million deal an absolute steal.

Players Lost

The Brewers needed to sign as many players as they did as early in the off-season as they did because they were not the only one’s that took notice of the team’s play last season or the players who played a part in their success.
Just as quickly as they signed new players, eight players by December14, the team saw five of their biggest impact free agents sign with other organizations.

On November 28, the team saw their closer, Francisco Cordero sign a four-year deal with the Cincinnati Reds. On the same day, the Chicago White Sox and reliever Scott Linebrink agreed to their own four-year deal. Two days later, on the 30, veteran Ray King signed worked out a spring training invitation to the Washington Nationals. In December, both Geoff Jenkins agreed to a two-year deal with the Phillies and relief pitcher Matt Wise agreed to a one-year deal with the Mets.

Several players remain on the free agent list, including utility infielder Tony Graffanino, aging third baseman Corey Koskie, outfielder Kevin Mench, reliever Chris Spurling, and veteran catcher Damian Miller.

Moves Still To Come

From the looks of their roster and the quality of the remaining free agents, it appears that there will be no further contracts offered outside of potential minor leaguers getting the spring training invitation to try and take away a utility position or two.

The moves yet to come will be whether or not players make the starting rotation, the bullpen, or relegated to the minor league system for injury support. Additionally, the positional players appear to be all locked up with little to no movement available to even the best of the minor league prospects.

What to Watch in Spring Training

The biggest stories will come from the pitching positions, with upwards of five starters vying for two slots in the starting rotation. That being said, with injury prone Ben Sheets listed as the ace, the team will likely hold on to at least one extra starter for double-headers and to fill in when, not if, but when Ben Sheets goes on the designated list.

Carlos Villanueva (8-5, 3.94 ERA), Dave Bush (12-10, 5.12 ERA), Chris Capuano (5-12, 5.10 ERA), Claudio Vargas (11-6, 5.09 ERA), and one of their top minor league prospects, Manny Parra (3-1, 1.73 ERA in Triple-A) will all come into spring training, attempting to secure themselves as the No. 4 and No. 5 starters.

It is likely that Villanueva will be relegated to the bullpen and Parra will be sent back to Triple-A to further improve on his pitch control and further develop his plus pitches.

In the bullpen, the question is which Gagne did the Brewers sign, the comeback pitcher of the year or the self-destructive setup man that pitched for the Boston Red Sox.

Either way, they have Riske, Mota, and Torres who have all had some form of setup and/or closer experience, making this team strong from the seventh inning on. Let us not forget the consistent pitching of Derrick Turnbow, the increased production out of Brian Shouse, and the additions of Randy Choate and Mitch Stetter. Overall, once they get the kinks worked out, this should be a solid bullpen.

The team hopes to that Rickie Weeks stays healthy and returns to his 2006 form and that the first half J.J Hardy arrives at spring training and not the shortstop with limited power that played after the All-Star break.

There are high expectations for this Brewers’ team, especially the power and average of both Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder. If this team is to be as successful or better, it is going to rely on their two corner infielders and an injury free season from Ben Sheets.