VFBC Podcast Episode 22

Breakdown of The Show:

5-6 on 11 Game Road Trip :00-17:10
Break
Baserunning, Brewers Being Too Aggressive? 18:42-28:03
Break
Trade Deadline Preview 29:23-41:02
Break
Preview/Around NL Central/ Chalet Award Winner 42:18-54:23

Riske To DL, RJ Swindle To Milwaukee

This move did not shock me one bit. You could tell in spring and in the one game Riske pitched in the regular season that he still is not right. We all remember watching Riske get lit up last year and then he went the DL as it was revealed he has a bone spur in his elbow. Well seeing him pitch in 2009 and this trip to the DL proves he probably never recovered. It's a shame we have only seen the good Riske (you know the one we gave that nice contract to) for that little bit at the beginning of 2008. If he was 100% healthy he would be a great help to our bullpen. I don't know if we will see that in 2009.

Taking Riske's spot will be left handed reliever RJ Swindle. Swindle is a side-winder similar to Brian Shouse. Never hurts to have two left handed pitchers to bring out of the pen, now the Brewers have that with Swindle and Stetter. Brewers start a 9 game, three city, east coast road trip tomorrow in New York at the new Mets stadium Citi Field, which from the looks of it on TV is an awesome ballpark. I like the fact the Brewers have Bush and Gallardo going in the first two games, but then have Suppan finishing out the series on Sunday.

Lets Not And Say We Did....

As it concerns to talking about the Cubs series. The Brewers just flat out did not do anything well. Hit, pitch, play defense, run bases they just didn't do anything well and that is why we got swept. End of story, lets move on.

Now that we have moved on from that small (but awful) skid mark on this season more positive things have occurred! Yay! The Brewers just finished up a 6 game road trip with a 4-2 record, that is awesome. How this team has suddenly turned the corner and is able to actually win games on the road is mind boggling, unexplainable and awesome all at once. Sure they were wins over Atlanta and Cincinnati but he wins on the road are wins on the road I don't care who you play.

I'm trying to figure out why the hell Ned Yost continues to play Craig Counsell at 3B over Russell Branyan when righties are on the mound. Don't get me wrong, I like Counsell he is a nice bench who should get spot starts now and again at SS for Hardy, pinch hit and be a defensive replacement late in games at 3B for Hall or Branyan. But for Yost to be starting him as much as he has at 3B and batting 6th while Branyan and his big stick rot on the bench just doesn't make a lot of sense. Yost needs to get his head out of his ass and quit the man love for Counsell and go back to the strict righty/lefty platoon of Branyan and Hall at 3B. It's simple Hall mashes lefties and Branyan mashes righties. Look at the splits, they prove it.

After 0-2 Start, Brewers Finish Homestand 6-3

After winning 2 straight to finish off a series win over the Baltimore Orioles the Brewers finished off this 9 game homestand 6-3. Not the 8-1 we had hoped for like their last 9 game stand but after losing the first two games to Minnesota To win 6 out of the next 7 was very impressive. The Brewers for the first time all season are 7 games over .500 with their record now 41-34. And on this homestand the HR ball came back in a big way as they now have 99 as a team. Here are their leaders in long balls:

Ryan Braun: 20
Prince Fielder: 16
Corey Hart: 12
Mike Cameron: 11
Russell Branyan: 10
Bill Hall: 10

Some of the other highlights on this homestand would have to be Dave Bush's no-hit bid he took into the 8th inning against the Blue Jays on Thursday, two more strong starts and wins from Seth McClung, Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder each with 2-HR games and Salomon Torres continuing to rack up saves now with 12 on the season.

The Crew now heads out on a 10 game road trip going to Atlanta, Minnesota and Arizona. That is a tough 10 games on the road one of which is a AL park meaning we have to use a DH. Of course unlike last time we were in an AL park (Boston) we don't have to worry about Ned using someone like Tony Gwynn as the DH (probably weakest hitting DH of all time, in the history of baseball). I would be thrilled if they are just able to go 5-5 on the trip. Anything less then that would be awful and anything more would be a pleasant surprise. Go Brewers! Catch those Cubs and/or Cardinals!