Archive for July 2012
Milwaukee Brewers Fire Bullpen Coach Stan Kyles
Folks, the bad news keeps on coming for the Milwaukee Brewers pitching staff; today, due to a series of several horrible games for many members of the bullpen (including John Axford and Francisco Rodriguez), the Brewers fired bullpen coach Stan Kyles.
I do not approve of this, even though I understand that someone was going to have to take the blame for how poorly the bullpen, as a whole, has done this season. The Brewers bullpen’s record is 15-26 with a 4.80 ERA, which is the worst in the major leagues. The Brewers have also blown the most saves in the major leagues — 20 — with 13 of them being blown by closers Rodriguez and Axford alone. But it’s ridiculous that Kyles, who doesn’t work on mechanics with these pitchers (pitching coach Rick Kranitz does that), and also doesn’t choose which pitcher to bring in (Kranitz and manager Ron Roenicke do that) was thrown to the wolves, mid-season, in a similar manner to how long-time bullpen coach/short-time pitching coach Bill Castro was fired mid-season in 2009.
Look. There’s another thing in play here that most commentators are completely overlooking. The fact that Jeff Adcock, who worked as a Brewers groundskeeper for many years and was one of the major bullpen “helpers” — a guy everyone in the bullpen knew, and knew well — died at Miller Park earlier this year certainly has a great deal to do with why the bullpen is underperforming. This poor man died in front of some of the relievers, and as far as I know, nothing has been done to help any of these men deal with their loss.
Now, maybe the Brewers organization has sent these men to sports psychologists, grief counselors, or have done what they feel needed to be done and it’s still not helped. But if the Brewers organization hasn’t done this, it should be done now, as it’s possible that if these guys are able to discuss their grief and sadness over this poor man dying without them being able to do anything to affect the outcome that it will help the Brewers on-the-field performance.
My belief is that there’s something that’s gone wrong inside these men’s heads, and that it has nothing to do with their actual ability. The fact that Axford pitched several innings of sparkling relief when he wasn’t a closer, only to screw up once inserted back into the closing role, makes me think that there’s something else wrong there — and not with his pitching arm. The fact that K-Rod was good as a set-up man before he was put back into the closer’s role, too, adds credence to my belief. And finally, as if I needed any further reason for believing the way I do, the strangely inconsistent performance of Kameron Loe (who, if I remember right, was one of those relievers who knew Adcock the best, and may have been in the bullpen when Adcock had his fatal heart attack) since Adcock died makes me believe that he, in particular, needs to discuss his feelings with a priest, counselor, or sports psychologist. (Or maybe all three.)
What I’m doing my best to remember is that every single one of the Brewers is a human being first, baseball player second. They’ve all worked very hard to get to the major leagues. None of them want to screw up, much less screw up royally; all of them want to do well every day, even though they know that’s impossible, and it seems to me that not one of them has any idea why the bullpen has melted down.
Anyway, the Brewers have now made their desperation move by firing their bullpen coach. But they’d do much better if they got Axford, Rodriguez, Loe, and the other long-term members of the bullpen to psychologists, counselors, or maybe even priests — because I’m convinced that much of what’s gone wrong has little to do with their arms, and everything to do with their heads.
Just Reviewed Linnea Sinclair’s “An Accidental Goddess” at SBR
Folks, after this past week — especially after hearing about the death of my late husband’s good friend, military science fiction writer Ric Locke — I needed to read a fun, fast, and romantic book that could hold my interest.
Luckily for me, I had a book like that in reserve; it’s Linnea Sinclair’s excellent military science fiction/romance with paranormal elements, AN ACCIDENTAL GODDESS, which is why I’ve reviewed it at Shiny Book Review this evening. I’ve called it one of my favorite “comfort books” in the past, as it’s a book I’ve read over and over again because of how enjoyable it is, how quickly the plot moves along despite how many plot elements Sinclair deftly juggles during the course of the book, and because this is a military SF plot with essential paranormal elements.
Now, this last point is the one you need to keep in mind, especially if you’ve read any of Sharon Lee and Steve Miller’s books (particularly any of their stories in their trademarked Liaden Universe), or if you’ve read any of the military SF/romance of Debra Doyle and James D. MacDonald. Both of those pairs of authors write convincing military SF with paranormal elements; aside from those two pairs, and Linnea Sinclair herself, there just isn’t that much of this type of book on the market.
And I find that puzzling, because the fact is that the more interest you have in a book, the better. And if someone — or in the case of Lee/Miller and Doyle/MacDonald, a pair of writers — can write a novel that has convincing science fiction and convincing fantasy elements at the same time, readers tend to jump all over it and remember these books. (And recommend them to their friends, too, for that matter.)
At any rate, if you haven’t picked up AN ACCIDENTAL GODDESS yet and you love romantic SF or especially love romantic SF with paranormal elements, you owe it to yourself to get yourself a copy of this book. Then, block out two or three hours, and dig in. I promise you, this is a book you’ll enjoy — and remember — for years to come.
July 2012 Writing Update
It’s been a while, so it’s time for a periodic writing update (July 2012 edition). I decided to write this after being asked by more than a few people, “Hey, Barb! Isn’t this blog supposed to be just as much about your writing as it is about baseball updates?”
Well, yes, it is. But I haven’t had much to report lately. I’ve been submitting stories and none of them have been accepted — such is the writer’s lot — and while one of my poems was held until the very last minute at one rather good poetry market (I won’t say which), it ended up getting bounced out, too.
Other than that, I’ve been working hard on getting a story together for the UNIDENTIFIED FUNNY OBJECTS anthology as my main strength is writing funny urban fantasy. (If you’ve been following this blog for any length of time and have paid attention to any of these writing updates, you probably know this already.) But the story’s not ready to go; all I can say is that it’s in process, and that if you wish to submit a story to this anthology, follow the directions at the above link — you have until August 31, 2012, to get a story in of your own.
I have hesitated to even discuss my attempt to get a story into this anthology, because I’ve been somewhat afraid to jinx any chance my story might have down the line. Nevertheless, there’s still room in this anthology and I’m going to take my shot. Those of you who can write funny stories, or at least wish to give it a shot, should do the same.
Aside from that, I’m not giving up on any of my novels nor any of Michael’s novels. But none of them are going like gangbusters at this time, either — they’re just . . . there, like nagging guests that won’t quite tell me whatever important news it is that they have because they’d rather I guess. (And I don’t know about any other writers, but I hate guessing.)
The only thought I have regarding my recalcitrant novels is this: it’s been very hot and humid in Wisconsin, which has sapped my energy and strength. I haven’t been able to review anything since last week (though I hope to review at least one book over the weekend); I haven’t been sleeping well, either; I haven’t wanted to eat. And all of that can’t help but get in the way of my creativity as, last I checked, I’m still a human being. (I point this out mostly because some people seem to believe, perhaps with an excess of credulity, that science fiction and fantasy writers might not be precisely human.)
So that’s about it: I’m surviving the heat, continuing to write and edit, and I’m also thinking about what sort of story it is that might get through at the UFO anthology (listed above). And as always, if something changes/improves, I’ll be glad to keep you posted.
Brewers News: George Kottaras Designated for Assignment; Greinke Trade Rumors
Folks, the Milwaukee Brewers have made four roster moves so far today, but the two moves that concern me right now are these: they’ve reinstated catcher Jonathan Lucroy from the disabled list, and designated for assignment catcher George Kottaras (.209 BA, 3 HR and 12 RBI) to make room for him. (The other two moves? The Brewers sent shortstop Jeff Bianchi, who hadn’t yet managed to get a hit in his major league tryout, back to AAA ball, and have brought up pitcher Jim Henderson from AAA, where he’d been having an outstanding year — 4-3 record, 15 saves, a 1.69 ERA in 35 outings (48 innings) with 56 strikeouts.)
Aside from that, everything else is all rumors — but the hottest rumor right now is that pitcher Zack Greinke may be going to the Texas Rangers for shortstop Elvis Andrus via the Brewer Nation blog. Neither player would be traded alone; supposedly, a relief pitcher and a position player would go with Greinke (anyone but Corey Hart, please!), while a pitching prospect or two would come from Texas along with Andrus. While other rumors insist that the Chicago White Sox and Atlanta Braves are still very interested in Greinke and will do anything to cut the rest of MLB out of the mix . . . as always, I’ll keep you posted.
Brewers Lose Three of Three to Phillies; K-Rod Implodes Again
The 2012 Milwaukee Brewers are having a dreadful year. Early on, injuries derailed the team; now, it’s the bullpen, the starting pitching, the lack of hitting, or again, the bullpen that tends to make the Brewers lose games. So what’s the culprit with regards to these latest three losses to the Philadelphia Phillies? I’ll give you one word: pitching.
You know your season is going bad when your team can’t even win one game out of three against a team with a losing record. This is where the Brewers are right now; they lost all three against the Phillies by the score of 7-6 (today’s loss being in ten innings; the other two were regulation nine inning games). These three losses show that the 2012 Brewers do not have what it takes to be a contending ball club.
And that’s sad, because as I said earlier this week, there are still some very good players on this team. Corey Hart. Ryan Braun. Yovani Gallardo. John Axford. Jonathan Lucroy, once he comes back from his rehab stint in the minors. And Aramis Ramirez, after a horrible start, has been playing much better lately.
After that, we start getting into good players (all pitchers) who won’t be with the team through 2013 — Zack Greinke, soon to be traded to a team near you. Shaun Marcum’s contract is up at the end of the year. Randy Wolf’s been treated so shabbily by the Brewers bullpen that there’s probably no amount of money that could possibly induce him to come back to the Brewers.
And then, we start to get to players who, while good at something, are bad at something else. For example, Norichika Aoki hits well, but his defense is suspect, and he makes way too many mental errors. Carlos Gomez is electric on the basepaths, has a bit of power, and plays good defense when his head’s in the game, but has a poor OBP and his average is never going to be above .240 unless he starts learning how to take a walk. Nyjer Morgan, while he can still be a sparkplug and plays good defense, just hasn’t hit very well this season.
And then, of course, there’s Rickie Weeks’s lost season, which is in a class all by itself. Weeks has tons of potential and should have a much higher batting average than .190 (his average at the start of Wednesday afternoon’s game). Weeks has been a liability at the plate, striking out way too much, and giving Hart almost no help as Weeks, in general, bats right behind Hart.
And what on Earth can be said about Francisco Rodriguez (K-Rod), who blew yet another save today — his sixth blown save in nine chances — snuffing out the Brewers chance to salvage one game from the Phillies by giving up two runs in the bottom of the tenth inning? (While I’m sure K-Rod isn’t trying to blow saves, he just doesn’t seem to have it right now.)
But it’s not just K-Rod who’s fallen apart lately. In each of the last three games, someone — or many someones — in the Brewers bullpen didn’t have it. This happens sometimes to every team, but it’s been more prominent with the 2012 Brewers because the bullpen was expected to be a source of strength, not a weakness.
And what’s sad today is the fact that three relief pitchers did have it after starter Marco Estrada had a forgettable day (giving up 5 runs, all earned, in four innings of work) — John Axford pitched two scoreless innings. Livan Hernandez, the “forgotten man” in the bullpen, pitched two scoreless also. And rookie Tyler Thornburg did his job, pitching one inning of scoreless relief. Those three pitchers did their jobs, which allowed the Brewers to come back from a 5-1 early deficit and take the lead in the top of the tenth, 6-5.
But then came K-Rod. And there went the Brewers chances.
Look. While I’m frustrated with most of the Brewers relievers right now (excepting Axford, Hernandez, and Thornburg), I think part of their problem is that they’re tired. I am also starting to wonder as to why Brewers manager Ron Roenicke would bring in Manny Parra twice in two games (games 1 and 2 against the Phillies), when in both games Parra managed to load the bases due to walks; I wonder why Roenicke insisted on bringing in K-Rod again, when Axford’s been great in the set-up role since he was put into it about a week ago and K-Rod’s been terrible as a closer; I wonder if a few of these guys just need a different pitching coach, and/or a change of scenery, in order to get things straightened back out again.
So, what would I do differently with these players than Roenicke and his staff?
First, I’d try to see if any of the pitchers — the relief pitchers in particular — need to go to grief counseling due to the death of their friend (the long-time bullpen assistant). Perhaps going and talking about this would be beneficial — and if it’s not been done already out of humanitarian and compassionate reasons, it should be done for a performance-based one.
Second, I’d give guys like Parra and Loe a physical. Parra has had many back issues in the past, and if he’s having even minor back trouble now, that might be just enough to cause him major trouble throwing the ball, which would explain why he can’t seem to throw strikes. And Loe was so good in both 2009 and 2010 that I find it hard to believe that he’d have as much trouble as he’s had lately getting his sinker to work without some sort of nagging injury.
Mind you, if injuries were found, no matter how minor, I’d have the player (or players) in question go on the disabled list for 15 days in order to get some rest.
And for that matter, I’d bring in someone to look at everyone’s pitching mechanics, but most especially to look at K-Rod’s. While he had 18 holds in the set-up role, by far the most among the Brewers pitchers, K-Rod hasn’t looked quite right all year long. This might have something to do with why he’s not been effective — or even acceptable — as a closer despite his past success.
Bringing in a specialist isn’t a bad thing, because even the best pitching coach can miss things over time, especially if there have been gradual changes. And if nothing’s found, great! (But I’m betting there’s something there to be found — if not with K-Rod, perhaps with Loe, Parra, or one of the others.)
Third, I’d definitely bring in the best possible medical specialists to figure out why Marcum is not improving. He wasn’t supposed to be on the DL this long, so what’s going on there?
Fourth, I’d have a heart-to-heart with Randy Wolf. I’d tell Wolf that I know he’s done a good job for the Brewers — really, he has, as he should have at least seven and as many as eleven wins right now had the bullpen just done its job (his ERA is misleading, as I’ve said before). And I’d thank him for bearing up under an extremely tough set of circumstances; Wolf’s a very good pitcher who’s done his best, and has deserved a whole lot better than what he’s had thus far in 2012.
Fifth, I’d sit down with Rickie Weeks and ask him if he thinks anyone or anything could help him right now. (Granted, he did get four hits today. But Weeks’s defense also hasn’t been up to par; surely there’s someone out there who could give Weeks some pointers?) Weeks has the lowest batting average of any everyday player in the major leagues, yet he has tons of talent. I’d get to the bottom of whatever is going on with him, whether it’s with a sports psychologist, needing a new mentor (Willie Randolph helped Weeks greatly when he was here a few years ago), or whatever it is, in order to help him succeed again at the major league level.
Finally, I’d sit down with Hart, Braun, Lucroy, Gallardo, Ramirez, and Axford. I’d tell these men that I greatly appreciate what they’ve done. That while they’ve all had ups and downs — Braun’s had nagging injuries, Ramirez’s first month-and-a-half was Godawful, Hart’s had to re-learn how to play first base at the major league level after a several-year absence, Lucroy’s been on the DL, Gallardo’s been good but not lights-out, and of course Axford getting removed from the closer’s role only to shine as a set-up man — they are still valuable members of the Brewers. And that the Brewers will do whatever it takes to build a team around them; assure them that they aren’t going anywhere, and that owner Mark Attanasio is committed to putting a winning team on the field in 2013.
But since I don’t have that power and am not a member of the Brewers coaching staff, all I can do boils down to two things: hope for the best. And wait until next year.
———–
Note: Last evening, I was so frustrated with Parra walking the bases loaded twice in two days that I actually said I thought he should be designated for assignment (DFA’d) if he wasn’t injured in some way. I still think Parra would be better off with another team, where expectations might not be so high — he pitched a perfect game in the minors for the Brewers organization, which is why the expectations have been up there — but after a day to think about it, I’d rather have someone from outside the team give him a physical (if he’ll stand for it) and then have him visit a specialist in pitching mechanics to see if there’s anything that can be done.
Parra, overall, hasn’t been the problem this year. But walking the bases loaded two days straight was symptomatic of how snakebit the Brewers pitching staff seems to be this year. That’s why I’d do everything in my power, were I somehow transported to become a member of the Brewers coaching staff for even one day, to see if Parra’s back and knees were OK (I trust Parra to know if his arm’s OK, or if something major is wrong, but a very small problem might not be noticeable), and to check his mechanics.
I like Parra very much as a pitcher. But my hunch is that he’ll find himself successful in a different team’s uniform, much in the same way former Brewer pitcher Jorge de la Rosa found success in Colorado.
Milwaukee Brewers Lose in 9th to Phillies After K-Rod Implodes; 2012 Season Hopes in Jeopardy
The Milwaukee Brewers lost a very tough game Monday night to the Philadelphia Phillies; the final score was 7-6. The Brewers should not have lost this game, not after starting pitcher Randy Wolf pitched six strong innings, leaving the game with a 6-2 lead; that the bullpen (mostly reliever John Axford) was able to do well until the ninth, before closer Francisco Rodriguez came in and stunk up the joint, just makes this loss all the more heartbreaking.
Pity poor Randy Wolf. Wolf’s season stats look terrible — a 3-6 record, a 5.60 ERA starting Monday’s game — but they are misleading in the extreme. Wolf’s left eight other games when the Brewers have been ahead aside from his three wins — count ’em, eight. Yet he’s won only three times.
Why is this? Because the Brewers bullpen has been abysmal, blowing saves eight different times in games Wolf’s started and left with a lead. This is completely unacceptable.
Tonight, unfortunately, was no different, results-wise, than most of the rest of the season. But perhaps looking at what specifically happened can shed some light on this particularly painful loss.
In the bottom of the seventh, Manny Parra came on in relief of Wolf. Parra threw 27 pitches, but couldn’t get three outs; he walked three, struck out two, and while he didn’t give up any hits, did surrender one run.
With the game at 6-3, Brewers manager Ron Roenicke brought on former closer John Axford, who fortunately shut the Phillies right down again. Axford also pitched a scoreless eighth, recording his first official hold for the season.
Then it’s the bottom of the ninth. The Brewers were still ahead, 6-3. They knew that the Philadelphia Phillies, coming into Monday’s game, were a woeful 0-42 when behind after eight innings, so the Brewers had to feel fairly confident.
Yet the Brewers ended up losing again because Rodriguez (nicknamed K-Rod) didn’t have it. K-Rod was only able to get one out before getting into major trouble, but Roenicke didn’t have another reliever warming up in the bullpen. While Rodriguez eventually got the second out by inducing a fly ball, the Phillies ended up scoring the winning run off that fly ball. (A Pyrrhic victory at best.) This was Rodriguez’s fifth blown save out of eight chances; his record is 2-5.
The Brewers are now seven games under .500. They are in fourth place, eleven and a half games behind the front-running Cincinnati Reds, and have shown absolutely no signs of the major run they’d need in order to get to postseason play. Which makes me think, as a Brewers fan, that any hopes that remain for the 2012 season are just that — hopes.
And what’s sad about this is that there’s some real offensive talent on this team. Ryan Braun is having a great year, batting .309 at the start of Monday’s game, with 65 RBI and 26 HRs. Corey Hart, who’s played a good deal of first base this year (a position he’s not played much since the low minors), was hitting .258 at the start of Monday’s game, with 45 RBI and 17 HRs. Aramis Ramirez, who had a terrible first month and a half, was hitting .277 at the start of Monday’s game, with 55 RBI and 10 HRs. And normally light-hitting catcher Martin Maldonado, who was hitting under .200 at AAA ball, has been doing so well at the major league level (.280 BA, 18 RBI and 5 HRs, again as of the start of Monday’s game) that he might be considered legitimate “trade-bait.”
As for the pitchers — Yovani Gallardo has been up and down, but has been acceptable, going 8-7 with a 3.72 ERA in 121 innings pitched. Wolf has had a hard-luck year, no question about it. (The Brewers defense has been atrocious, but you’d never know it due to the fact that the Brewers have the kindest official scorer in the majors. But even if our official scorer were kinder to the pitcher by calling more errors on the Brewers defense (as he should), the fact is that the bullpen has not done its job, most particularly in Wolf’s games.) Zack Greinke, who’s likely to be traded as soon as tomorrow evening, has pitched reasonably well — his record’s 9-3, he has a 3.57 ERA in 116 innings pitched — but I’d be astonished if he were with the team much longer. Then, of course, the other two starting pitchers at the beginning of the year were Chris Narveson — out for the year — and Shaun Marcum, who’s been on the DL since June 15.
So what’s been the bright spot, if there is one, with regards to the Brewers rotation? A guy by the name of Michael Fiers. Fiers wasn’t expected to do anything this year for the big-league club, yet he’s pitched extremely well. While his record is a deceptive 3-4, his ERA is a terrific 1.96 in 59 2/3 innings pitched. Fiers is a guy who reminds me of Ben Sheets (currently on the comeback trail with the Atlanta Braves); he’s a tough-minded competitor, and he gives the Brewers an excellent chance to win every time he picks up the ball.
The main reason the Brewers’ season hasn’t gone well is because of the many injuries they’ve suffered (to Alex Gonzales, Mat Gamel, Narveson, Marcum, Travis Ishikawa, Cesar Izturis, and catcher Jonathan Lucroy). I accept that, as injuries are a fact of life.
However, the players who are still there must produce. Some of them aren’t, most particularly Rickie Weeks, who as of the start of Monday’s game was hitting a dreadful .195, with 33 RBI and 9 HRs, and while Nyjer Morgan continues to have value due to his stellar defense and good baserunning skills, he’s not doing that well hitting-wise either, batting only .229 at the start of Monday’s game with 5 RBI and 2 HR in 80 games.
While it’s not General Manager Doug Melvin’s fault that so many players came up injured this season (or just aren’t as good as they should be — witness Weeks), it is his fault for trading away two good, solid shortstops — Alcides Escobar and J.J. Hardy — in previous years. It is his fault for giving Roenicke an extension, when last year’s National League Championship Series showed how dogmatic Roenicke could be when it came to pulling — or not pulling — pitchers. (I will never understand why Marcum, who had absolutely nothing left in the tank, got two starts in the NLCS.) It is Melvin’s fault for not trading for a few more relievers, as most of ours are played out — and it is Melvin’s fault for believing that this team, without Prince Fielder, and with three starting pitchers all having contracts expiring at the same time (Wolf, Greinke, and Marcum), would be a contender this year.
I’m sorry to say it, folks, but unless Melvin can pull a rabbit out of his hat, the Brewers look like they’re right where they should be this year. In fourth place. Way out of playoff contention.
And that’s sad.
