RISP: The Scariest Acronym For A Brewer Fan

As a fan, you hate to see things keep happening every year.  For Marquette, it is that they never have a big man who can make an impact on the game.  For the Green Bay Packers, they have played down to their opponent way too many times, take the 7-3 loss to Detroit for an example.  For the Milwaukee Brewers, it's scoring with runners in scoring position. 

The Brewers went 2 for 23 over the last two games in the split against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and right now, they are hitting .21l with RISP on the road.  That is a sign that this team is nowhere near being a team who can challenge for the National League Central.  The Brewers have had this problem for what seems like my entire life. I cannot tell you how many times I can remember the Crew leaving the bases loaded with less than one out. Their other specialty is having one or two in scoring position with two out, Ryan Braun on deck, and they strikeout to end of the inning. 

I cannot decide what's more frustrating in baseball... having a team whose bullpen blows every game (see Houston Astros) or having a team who cannot deliver the big hit. I think that's asking if I would rather drink gasoline or antifreeze, both suck. The other thing with the lack of clutch hitting is it doesn't seem to just randomly appear so I think the RISP will be the root of most problems for the Brewers this season on the road because it sure as hell isn't pitching. Randy Wolf had one bad inning where he made a mistake with Matt Kemp, and was able to maintain his composure through five. 

Hopefully, the bats come out in Petco Park but that place is a house of horrors for the Crew. I believe the Crew gets going around nine tonight.  

-Charlie. 

Time To Solve The Road Woes

The Milwaukee Brewers had a successful home stand going 5-1, putting their record at home at 13-6. The Crew has been nearly untouched when they tap the keg at Miller Park. But when they leave the friendly confines of Miller Park, they struggle like a Double A Baseball team with a record of 6-15.  I am one not to worry about things too early, but I really think the Brewers need to start showing some promise on the road in the upcoming four games on the West Coast. To me, it would be a sign that this team isn't average and inconsistent at best.

I know the Crew does not play well on the west coast, I really cannot explain it either. I don't know if the players get caught up in nice weather, the strippers, or the Sunset Strip, but they cannot seem to lock down on the West Coast. With their record currently at 18-21, winning the last five of six, the last thing the Brewers could afford to do is lose 3 of 4 and then be back where they started at the beginning of May. The NL West right now is garbage, and the Brewers take advantage of it this week.

They did last week against the San Diego Padres who they play again for two later this week. I mean excuse the Wednesday afternoon implosion, they played pretty solid against the Spanish Fathers. The Brewers send out Shaun Marcum tonight who is the Brewers best pitcher right now, and Randy Wolf goes the following night who has been a mixed bag all year. But Wolf has always seem to pitch well in his home state of Californina.  I also know these two guys need to have solid starts to try to preserve this bullpen. The rate we are going, I think Kameron Loe's arm will fall off the mound in a horrifying scene at some ballpark in the middle of June.

My dad and I talk all the time about how the Brewers are a team of mental giants.  They overthink everything, and I do believe they think they cannot hit the ball outside of Miller Park. Both of these stadiums are tough to get the balls into the bleachers so it will take a string of singles for the Brewers to get victories this week before heading back to Miller Park for another large home stand. If the Brewers could say get three out of four, the Brewers could be looking at a great month of May. 

-Charlie.

No Excitement For Ethier

In my opinion, Joe Dimaggio's 56 game hitting streak is one of the hardest records to break in all professional sports. It's not impossible for someone to do, yet it is really hard to see someone stay that consistent over an extended time period.  So I pose the question, when is okay to start monitor a hitting streak?  When I say that I mean, a baseball fan whether from Arizona, Iowa, or Wisconsin refreshing their gamecast to see if the player  got a hit that night.

The Los Angeles Dodgers' Andre Ethier has now hit safely in 29 straight games, and the buzz around him is starting to build. Now, it could be that he plays for a team in Los Angeles and he is a pretty notable player, but still, the national media has their focus on Ethier.  It personally does not excite me if you look at the numbers.



If Ethier hits safely in his next game, he will be the twentieth player in Major League Baseball history to have hit in 30 straight games. In addition, it's only ranks 35th on consecutive hitting streaks according to the Baseball Almanac.  While exciting for the hometown fans, it should not draw attention from the national media. By the way, the media is spinning this story as the Dodgers could use a positive story for the 2011 season with their ownership problems and fan violence. Anytime a player gets a significant hitting streak, everyone think this is the one to beat Joltin' Joe. Ethier has the ability to take down the Yankee Clipper, but let's not ask those questions yet.  Let's start building the buzz about Ethier when he gets to 35 because we know America loves round numbers, so if I were to tell you he has a top 20 hitting streak at game 33, I would get looked at like I am a leper.

Ethier heads out to the city that never sleeps for a three games against the New York Mets, then it's off to Pittsburgh. Both pitching staffs are not stellar, and Ethier might get some good pitches to extend that hitting streak. Definitely keep an eye out for this story in coming weeks, but do not get too riled up about it... yet.

-Charlie.

The Abrupt End of 'Manny Being Manny'

As all of you Eau Claire folk enjoy your beautiful 65 degree weather today, some big baseball news has come about. Tampa Bay Rays' DH Manny Ramirez has officially left the game after 19 seasons in Major League Baseball after again testing positive for performance enhancing drugs.

The good ol' days.

Manny is the first person ever to test positive twice for PEDs and rather than face the 100 game suspension for two offenses, he decided to retire. He never really was the same player after coming back from that first suspension.

He was somewhat known for his quirky antics, like cutting off a throw from Johnny Damon in the middle of left field out of nowhere or taking a piss in the Green Monster during the middle of an inning, or for his care-free attitude. But mainly, the 12 time All-Star was known as one of the most feared hitters in the MLB. He was a lifetime .312 hitter and hit 555 homers in his career, mostly with the Cleveland Indians and the Boston Red Sox.

Will that be enough for Manny to get into the Hall? Some would argue that it is but I think with him testing positive twice, it will be a long shot. Mark McGwire won't get in. Roger Clemens won't get in. Why would Manny?

It's a shame that such a great career has fizzled out the way it has and especially with it ending this way. We're gonna miss you Manny.