Milwaukee Brewers News ClipsSunday, February 22, 2015

Brewers have no room for error with just 5

starters

By Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel

Feb. 21, 2015

Phoenix — Outwardly, the Milwaukee Brewers'

decision-makers express little concern about the lack of

depth in the starting rotation entering spring training.

But logic tells you they have to be nervous.

You'll spot more unicorns than see teams making it

through 162 games with only five starting pitchers. In

fact, it's not unusual for clubs to have difficulty making it

through exhibition season without at least one starter

having an issue.

Yet, as the Brewers' pitchers and catchers prepared for

their first official workout Sunday at Maryvale Baseball

Park, the team depth chart listed only five starters with

major-league experience in that role. That included a

total of 13 starts by No. 5 pitcher Jimmy Nelson, whose

2014 rotation debut was a rocky one (2-8, 4.76 ERA in

12 starts).

Nelson moved into the top five when veteran Yovani

Gallardo was traded to the Texas Rangers in January.

The Brewers' opening day starter the past five seasons,

Gallardo had been Mr. Reliable in the rotation, pitching

at least 180 innings for six consecutive years.

You get a better understanding of the thinness in starting

pitching when you look at the team's depth chart. Listed

at No. 6 is right-hander Taylor Jungmann, who made it

to the Class AAA level for the first time in 2014.

Seventh on the depth chart is right-hander Michael

Blazek, who has 18 relief appearances in the majors but

no starts.

There is little wonder that general manager Doug Melvin

seems resigned to looking for starting help before camp

comes to an end.

"There's always guys available at the end of the spring,"

said Melvin. "There are other people that you may find

that aren't here yet. Those things take care of themselves.

"There will be guys out there who signed minor-league

contracts and may be available. You have to have

flexibility with that sixth spot. You've got to have

somebody who can go up and down (in the minors

without requiring waivers). You can't have a guy locked

into a major-league contract.

"Probably our eyes are open a little bit more (this spring)

than last year because we knew we had Fiers and Nelson

down there (at the Class AAA level). You just hope you

don't have injuries at the first part of the year."

Manager Ron Roenicke, who had seven pitchers make

starts in 2014, said he will leave it to Melvin to find help

if injuries do occur.

"That's something that he's looking at and wants to make

sure we'll be OK there," said Roenicke. "You're always

concerned about depth. The difference in a team that

financially can go get what you want is you know if the

depth isn't there, you just go out and buy somebody. We

have to be smart in what we do.

"There will be some players there at the end of camp if

something happens where we need more depth."

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The good news is the first three starters in the all-righty

rotation — Kyle Lohse, Matt Garza and Wily Peralta —

can be counted on for many quality outings, all things

being equal. Melvin would like Garza to shake free of his

recent injury history and pitch 200 innings for the first

time since 2010. Garza was limited to 27 starts and

1631/3 innings last year by an oblique strain.

Mike Fiers, who resurrected his career with a brilliant

showing (2.13 ERA) over the final two months of last

season, is slated to be the No. 4 starter, followed by

Nelson. Melvin noted that many teams are going with

inexperienced starters at the back of their rotation.

"When you look at the No. 4 and 5 starters, most clubs

are going with younger guys," he said. "After that, it's the

depth of your minor-league system. Jungmann had a

good second half in Triple-A. We'll try to get him some

innings here."

Lohse, who has compiled a 24-19 record and 3.45 ERA

over 63 starts in his first two seasons with the Brewers,

will be counted on again to provide stability on and off

the field. Asked how he thought the rotation would fare

without Gallardo, Lohse offered a diplomatic answer.

"We have five guys," said Lohse. "That's not something I

really want to get into. We've got what we've got here

and I feel good about what we've got.

"It's not my job, who puts on these uniforms. I'm here to

take care of my part and try to help my teammates. If we

can stay healthy, I like our chances."

Peralta, 25, made a quantum leap from his rookie year to

his sophomore season in 2014, jumping from an 11-15

record and 4.37 ERA to 17-11, 3.53. The way Lohse sees

it, Peralta doesn't have to worry about being better than

that.

"I don't think he needs to," said Lohse. "That's the main

thing for him, to not say, 'I need to do better than last

year.' That's something I'm going to try to impress on

him. There's going to be a lot of pressure put on him to

do better than last year. He was pretty darn good last

year."

Nelson might have fallen into that trap in 2014, trying to

live up to his top-prospect ranking and ultra-success at

Class AAA Nashville (10-2, 1.46 ERA in 17 games). He

pressed at times and had trouble locating his signature

pitches — a fastball and slider.

"He's got to go out there and figure out how to be

consistent, how to consistently throw pitches that are

quality," said Lohse. "You saw that with Wily two years

ago. He'd get excited and things would get away from

him. Then he made that step last year, being able to

control what he's doing out there.

"That's something that Jimmy can learn. He's got great

stuff. He's just got to figure out how to put it into a big-

league game without letting it get away."

Indeed, Peralta can relate to Nelson's first-year struggles.

In fact, all Peralta has to do is remind Nelson how much

he improved the second time around to give

encouragement to the former second-round draft pick.

"I knew I was better than I showed my rookie season,"

said Peralta. "I learned what it takes to be more

consistent. You get more comfortable and do the things

you can do. Don't try to do too much. Just go out there

and pitch. I tried to overthrow at times my first year.

"You don't have to be perfect. Just go out and try to have

fun and pitch your game. He's got enough talent. His

stuff is unbelievable. He just has to calm down and not

try to do too much. Just throw one pitch at a time. Don't

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worry about expectations. I've been there. I know what

it's like."

BY THE NUMBERS

3.69 ERA for the starting rotation in 2014, ninth in the

NL.

76 Strikeouts in 71 2/3 innings by Mike Fiers last season.

2.04 Walks per nine innings for Kyle Lohse in 2014.

143 Hits allowed last season in 163 1/3 innings by Matt

Garza.

278 Walks by the 2014 starting rotation, fifth-fewest in

the NL.

Brewers will hold off naming bullpen closerBy Todd Rosiak of the Journal Sentinel

Feb. 21, 2015

Phoenix – While the Milwaukee Brewers have one

obvious choice already on their roster in Jonathan

Broxton and another candidate with previous experience

in camp in Chris Perez, general manager Doug Melvin

said the plan right now is to hold off on officially naming

a closer.

"Broxton’s closed before, but we’re not going to anoint a

closer at this point," Melvin said on Saturday morning.

"We’ll wait and see. Let guys throw, get in shape and

maybe mid-spring we’ll talk about it."

Broxton, 30, was acquired by the Brewers last Aug. 31 to

serve as a setup man for Francisco Rodriguez but with

118 career saves, a $9 million salary and a right arm

that's still powerful enough to pitch the ninth inning, he

remains the in-house favorite to win the job.

He hasn't served as a primary closer since 2012,

however, when he was with the Kansas City Royals. He

saved 11 games in just over 2 1/2 seasons after being

traded to the Cincinnati Reds, serving mostly as the setup

man for Aroldis Chapman over that span.

"He has the ability to do it," said Melvin. "Lot of

emphasis put on that part of the game. Closers are

somewhat hot and cold, unless they're somewhat

established.

"(Philadelphia's Jonathan) Papelbon was very good last

year and they didn't win. (Atlanta's) Craig Kimbrel was a

lights-out closer and they didn't win. So I try to not put

so much emphasis on it, because there's so many other

ways to lose ballgames to focus on one inning of every

game.

"There's no doubt you need to have a good bullpen,

though."

Perez, 29, signed a minor-league contract with the

Brewers on Feb. 4. He has 133 career saves to his credit

after serving as Cleveland's closer from 2010-'13, and

fits perfectly Melvin's strategy of adding a second

reliever with experience in the role to provide depth.

But there remains the possibility that the Brewers could

add another arm to the mix for that spot. Rodriguez

remains on the market as a free agent despite saving 44

games for the Brewers last season, and the door still

doesn't appear to be fully closed on a trade for Papelbon.

Melvin wouldn't comment on the state of possible talks

with the Phillies, but acknowledged the lines of

communication have remained open with "K-Rod."

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"I don’t know if it’s active, but we still have

conversations," Melvin said. "Mark deals more with that.

(Agent) Scott (Boras) keeps calling Mark."

Braun won't be restricted as camp begins

Henderson, Thornburg also coming along well in

recovery from injuriesBy Adam

McCalvy / MLB.com | @AdamMcCalvy | February 21,

2015 

PHOENIX -- While Brewers players underwent their

annual physical exams Saturday, Brewers officials

expressed continued optimism for three important

players returning from injury-plagued seasons: right

fielder Ryan Braun and relievers Jim

Henderson and Tyler Thornburg.

Braun underwent a surgical procedure in October to

relieve an inflamed nerve in his right hand. Former

closer Henderson (shoulder) and April star Thornburg

(elbow) rehabbed without surgery. All three should be

close to full participants when formal workouts get

underway next week.

Of Braun, assistant GM Gord Ash said: "The only

instruction from the medical staff was just to eliminate

any extra hitting. There's no restriction on the regular

routine. Just minimize extra hitting."

"I talked to [agent] Nez [Balelo] the other day and he

was saying how Ryan was feeling great," Brewers GM

Doug Melvin said.

The Brewers have planned all along for Braun to be the

Opening Day right fielder, but Henderson and

Thornburg's status has been murkier. All winter, the

Brewers planned as if neither reliever would be ready for

Opening Day.

Now that it appears either or both could be bullpen

options from the start, "it makes a much better picture,"

Ash said.

"I wouldn't use the word 'restricted.' I would [say] we'll

be protective," Ash said when asked about the two

pitchers. "They're not going to necessarily march out

there on what would be a regular basis. They might get

an extra day off here and there. All the reports have been

very good so far."

Ash added some words of caution: "It's early. They

haven't faced hitters. Their bullpens have been good."

Some other notes from Saturday media sessions with

Melvin, Ash and manager Ron Roenicke:

• The Brewers don't expect any late arrivals in camp this

year, in part because Spring Training itself is so late.

That allowed players from out of the country more time

to get their paperwork in order.

• Pitching prospect Johnny Hellweg, who underwent

Tommy John surgery last April, should be game-ready

by the end of camp, but the Brewers are plotting a

cautious approach. Hellweg could remain in extended

spring training before an assignment to warm-weather

Class A Advanced Brevard County.

• The Brewers signed infielder Donnie Murphy to a

Minor League contract Friday to provide some depth at

Triple-A Colorado Springs.

"He's a guy that our analytics people have been high on,"

Ash said. "You want to add as many weapons there in

Colorado, offensively, as you can, so he fits into that

category."

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Brewers in no hurry to anoint closer

Broxton, Smith, Jeffress, Henderson among

internal optionsBy Adam

McCalvy / MLB.com | @AdamMcCalvy | February 21,

2015 

PHOENIX -- Instead of simply naming their most

experienced incumbent reliever to the role, the Brewers

plan to wait to publicly announce a closer.

With Francisco Rodriguez gone to free agency (though

he's still available and on Milwaukee's radar), the

Brewers' current candidates are led by Jonathan

Broxton, the former Dodgers and Royals closer acquired

last August in a trade. But the Brewers are high on left-

hander Will Smith, believe right-handerJeremy

Jeffress has a bright future and have Jim

Henderson coming back from a shoulder injury. They

also have been linked recently to both Rodriguez and

Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon.

"Broxton has closed before, but we haven't decided who

will," general manager Doug Melvin said. "We're not

going to anoint a closer at this point. We'll just wait and

see. Let guys throw and get in shape. Probably mid-

spring we'll talk about it."

Broxton is 18th among active players with 118 career

saves and, according to Melvin's figures, has converted

84 percent of his true save opportunities. The Brewers

threw out his blown saves as a setup man, believing they

skew the numbers because a pitcher can't earn a save in

those opportunities.

Since 2008, Brewers closers have converted the same

percentage of saves: 84 percent.

"So he has the ability to do it," Melvin said.

Said manager Ron Roenicke: "Broxton, he's a guy that

we're going to lean on and hopefully it works out. But we

also know he can't pitch like Frankie [Rodriguez] can

pitch, where he could go five, six days in a row. Not

many guys can."

So far, the Brewers have balked at agent Scott Boras'

asking price for Rodriguez and the Phillies' asking price

for Papelbon. Melvin would not discuss the status of

trade talks with Philadelphia, but did acknowledge that

Brewers owner Mark Attanasio continues to hear from

Boras.

"[Having a premier closer] doesn't guarantee anything,"

Melvin said. "Papelbon was very good last year and [the

Phillies] didn't win. Craig Kimbrel was a lights-out

closer and [the Braves] didn't win. I try to not put as

much emphasis on it, because there's so many other ways

to lose ballgames. There's no doubt you need to have a

good bullpen, though."

Melvin defends Brewers' offseason moves

General manager still seeking to bolster starting

pitching depthBy Adam

McCalvy / MLB.com | @AdamMcCalvy | February 21,

2015 

PHOENIX -- Doug Melvin's Spring Training office is

dominated by a bank of windows overlooking Maryvale

Baseball Park, but it's not the room's most interesting

feature. The west wall holds a huge dry-erase board with

the Brewers' internal depth chart, a work in progress sure

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to see some changes in the six weeks before Opening

Day.

Pointing at the names on that board Saturday morning,

the veteran general manager forcefully rebutted the

notion that the Brewers should have done more over the

winter to address last season's collapse.

"You guys have been writing we didn't do much to turn

the club over or whatever," Melvin said. "I don't know

how you see that. Almost a third of the club is not here

that was here last year. You guys keep writing that we

didn't do anything, but you don't have Rickie

Weeks here, [Marco] Estrada's not here, [Yovani]

Gallardo's not here, Zach Duke's not here, [Mark]

Reynolds is not here, [Lyle] Overbay's not here."

When it was suggested that most of those players were in

secondary roles, Melvin said, "I don't know why we

would turn over the regulars. Why would you turn over

[Ryan] Braun, [Carlos] Gomez, [Jonathan] Lucroy,

[Jean] Segura?

"If you look at our club from Spring Training at this time

last year and now, it's a huge turnover. A lot of new

faces. We didn't go trade Lucroy or Braun like Oakland

traded Josh Donaldson. That's the thing. We didn't do

like the Braves and trade [Justin] Upton. They're sort of

transitioning. We believe there's good enough talent to

compete.

"We won 82 ballgames. We're frustrated that we didn't

play well down the stretch, but we won 82 and there's

such a fine line from 80 wins to 90 wins. That can be

overcome by better play. Sometimes the best way to

improve your club is the individuals on the club."

In his case for improvement over this time last season,

Melvin counts the Brewers' 2014 in-season additions,

including outfielder Gerardo Parra and

relievers Jonathan Broxton and Jeremy Jeffress. In

October, the Brewers addressed first base by

acquiring Adam Lind. In January, they traded Gallardo

to Texas and opened a spot in the starting rotation for

former top prospectJimmy Nelson, adding two young

players in the process (reliever Corey Knebel and

infielder Luis Sardinas) who could crack the Opening

Day roster this year.

Melvin did acknowledge the Brewers are not deep in the

starting rotation, which has only five established pitchers

for as many spots. The initial backup is right-handed

prospect Taylor Jungmann, who has never pitched in

the Major Leagues. The Brewers also will "stretch out"

right-hander Michael Blazek as a starting pitcher this

spring, and he's currently next after Jungmann on the

depth chart.

"There's going to be some guys that are out there,"

Melvin said, referring to the potential for an addition this

spring. "You have to have flexibility with that sixth spot,

someone who can go up and down."

Will Melvin more actively seek pitching during this

Spring Training compared to years past?

"Probably your eyes are open a little bit more, because

we knew we had [Mike] Fiers and Nelson down there

last year," he said. "You just hope you don't have injuries

the first part of the year."

AG opinions say Biloxi can't sell naming rights

to ballfield Attorney general's opinion means

city has to look elsewhere for revenue sourcesBY MARY PEREZ

meperez@sunherald.com Twitter:

MaryPerezSHFebruary 21, 2015 

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BILOXI -- The agreement between Biloxi and the

Shuckers minor league baseball team calls for the city to

earn an extra $50,000 a year to help repay the

construction bond for the stadium by selling the naming

rights for MGM Park's playing field.

But opinions from the state attorney general say that isn't

legal in Mississippi.

When the organizers of the Dixie National Livestock

Show and Rodeo wanted to include a sponsor in the

name of the event, the AG opinion said, in part, "… a

state agency may not change the name of a state

sponsored event to include the name of a private

commercial venture."

That opinion was reiterated when the DeSoto County

Convention and Visitors Bureau wanted to lease the

naming rights to its coliseum complex.

To help the city cover the revenue it would have gotten

from the sale of the playing field's naming rights, Tim

Bennett, owner of Overtime Sports and part owner of the

Shuckers, has offered an alternative.

"It's a fairly simple fix," he said. "It's legal for me to pay

the city from revenues generated off the video board."

Under the contract between the city and the team, Biloxi

is required to supply a video board at the stadium.

But when the bid came in at more than $1 million,

Bennett -- who put together the deal to get the stadium

built and the team to Biloxi -- told the City Council that

the team would buy two video boards if the city pays to

install them.

That cost is estimated to be about $500,000 -- half the

amount the city would have to pay for a scoreboard,

although the exact cost won't be known until the city

goes to bid on the installation.

The large board in right center field will be one of the

largest in the league, he said, and the smaller video board

in left field will display advertising.

Under Bennett's proposal, the city would receive

$100,000 in ad revenue each year from the smaller board

in exchange for paying for the installation. That totals $2

million over 20 years.

In December, the City Council voted unanimously to pay

the cost to install two video boards at MGM Park but

hasn't yet gone to bid. The stadium is expected to open in

a few months.

Bennett said he will keep working to help Biloxi pay the

debt on the stadium.

"It continues to be a cooperative effort between me and

the city," he said.

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