Calling For The End Of Marc "Oh-No" Estrada

There is growing unrest in the Brew City about the struggles of Marco Estrada after tonight's 6-2 loss to the Mets. Tonight's start was a disaster in New York in which Estrada gave up two longballs (a 2-run shot and a grand slam) to add to his major league leading tally of 20 homers given up on the season, which is even worse when the second most is almost a third less at 14. Marco's season has been somewhat Braden Looper-esque when in 2009 it seemed as though every fly ball left the yard. After starting off the season well, Estrada has only managed one quality start in his last five games. Even though he has pitched well at times he has been unable to put it all together in any starts not having a single outing in which he hasn't allowed a run, largely in part to the fact he has allowed at least one homerun in all but one start. Marco hasn't been abysmal by any stretch but when you compare it to what the other starters have done, and what the potential to replace him is, it's easy to question whether or not he should retain his rotation spot. 

The Brewer's starters as a unit have put together the 8th best rotation ERA in the bigs even with a down year from Matt Garza (4.42) and Marco's 4.55 after tonight which is the highest in the rotation. Combine that with the success Brewers pitchers have had in AAA-Nashville you wonder why they would even accept an average start every fifth day from their starter. The clear cut fan favorite (and my personal choice) to replace Marco Estrada would be Jimmy Nelson. The Brewers had said they didn't want to bring Nelson up yet but when he pitched in place of Yovani Gallardo and wasn't scored on it's hard to agree. Nelson is almost to the point of diminishing returns in AAA as he is just blowing away the competition. He is 7-1 with a 1.51 ERA in 11 starts. Even more impressive is that opponents are only batting .167 against him and he has a sub-one WHIP (.88). I believe Estrada is out of options so the Brewers would have to either attempt to trade him or just move him to the bullpen, but either way the Brewers do not have to settle for bad pitching anymore with a combination of free agent pickups and their farm system. It's time to sit Marco and let him figure his stuff out and bring up a guy that can get the job done every fifth day for the second best team in the NL.

Jonathan Lucroy Deserves To Be An ASG Starter

When we (all-star voters) think of upper-echelon catchers in the National League we tend to think of the Molinas, Martins, Poseys, Ruiz(es) or what have you. Lost in the shuffle is one of, if not THE, most underrated players in all of baseball: Jonathan Lucroy. It's weird when you think Lucroy, a guy who not only does everything, but does it above average, might not be in the All-Star Game.

Lucroy has started off what looks to be a career-year. He is striking out less than he ever has and walking more. Lucroy hasn't hit the most homeruns but he has his the most doubles (9 more than Molina who is second). And is on pace to set the Brewers single season record for two-baggers. Not to mention leading all catchers not only in the NL but in all of baseball in average, on-base percentage, and OPS. Yet somehow in the first released ASG votes Lucroy is 4th in the NL behind Molina, Posey and Gattis. You know Molina and Posey will get their votes just for their names but Evan Gattis? Evan Gattis? This must be some kind of joke. Guy bats .248 and his only upside is that when he does hit it it's probably a homerun. Here's a look at all the stats:

Fansided

If those players were voted on by just numbers and not names I can say with confidence that Lucroy would not be 4th on that list. I hope that the voters don't squander the chance to see the best catcher in the National League start the All-Start Game. Hopefully it leads to Lucroy getting some of the attention he deserves, although he'll probably tell you he doesn't need it.

Brewers - Orioles Series Recap

Game 1: (Orioles 7-Brewers 6)The Orioles got to the usually sure-handed Milwaukee bullpen in the late innings to steal the game in the 10th. After forcing K-Rod's second blown save they strung together hits in the 10th off Rob Wooten to take a lead they wouldn't give back. The day was headlined by Khris Davis going 4-4 with a homerun, Lyle Overbay also added his own dinger. Kyle Lohse pitched decent (6.2 innings 4er) in one of his few non-quality starts this season. The headline of this day was the Brewers inability to capitalize in key spots, they were 3-15 with RISP and left 9 men on base: not the way a winning team plays.

Game 2: (Brewers 7-Orioles 6) This time the Brewers got their 7-6 victory after surrendering an early five run lead thanks to the longball. Gomez, Reynolds and Davis all went yard to jump out to a quick 5-0 lead. The Orioles then scored six unanswered before Lucroy tied it in the 9th on a chopper to third base. The highlight of the night of course was Yovani Gallardo's pinch hit walkoff double in the 10th inning as the Brewers were out of position players. Garza pitched well, (6.2 innings, 3er) of course the stats somewhat lie because of a big unearned (Segura error) 3-run homer in the 7th that gave the Orioles the lead. Garza had a good start for the second straight time out he just needed some defense behind him. The bullpen returned back to form with 3.1 solid innings of work.

Game 3: (Brewers 8-Orioles 3) The Brewers got a lead in the first on a Carlos Gomez single and never let it go. Fresh off his walkoff, Yovani Gallardo pitched his 8th quality start in 10 outings. After Gallardo went 6.2 innings and giving up 3 runs, Will 'slider of death' Smith slammed the door in the 7th punching out Chris Davis then struck out the side in the 8th. The wheels fell off for the Orioles after the Brewers opened the bottom half of the 8th with four hits to extend the lead to 8-3. (Gomez double, Reynolds single, Weeks PH single, Davis 3-run homer). They were led offensively by the greater Khris Davis who added two hits and 3rbis tonight.

Recap: The Brewers win their second straight series behind offensive outbursts. They have recorded 8 games in a row with ten or more hits. Khris Davis has been on an absolute terror: he has a 7 game hitting streak in which he has recorded 12 hits including 4hr and 7rbis. Another huge move has been Gomez batting in the 4th spot in the order. In that spot he has batted .500 (12-24) with a homer and 7rbis of his own. Gomez also stole second in the 8th and became only the second player in the majors with 10hr and 10 stolen bases this season. Will Smith also remained lights out stranding two more inherited runners tonight and has done so with 14 of the 17 he has been given this season. Opponents are batting .200 against him and his ERA has dropped to .36 a third of the way through the season. Smith is making a strong case at his first all-star appearance.

Strange but true: Khris Davis had 3 homers and 5rbis in the series while the O's Chris Davis didn't even record a hit in the series. I think the nickname Khrush Davis will stay in Milwaukee. The Brewers open up a weekend series vs the Cubs Friday. They carry the division lead a third of the way through the season.

Pitchers Who Rake: Yovani Gallardo

Morry Gash/AP

Yovani Gallardo walks-off the Brewers in the 10th inning with a 2-out gap shot to score Mark Reynolds from first. The next day's starter hitting a walkoff: I have literally seen it all now. In a game where the Brewers (Segura) managed to throw away (literally) a 5 run lead the Brewers stole it back in extras. Carlos Gomez got the offense started with a 3-run homerun (11) in the first inning followed by solo shots from Reynolds (12) and Davis (8) in the second and fourth innings. Matt Garza was strong through 6 innings before the wheels fell off in the 7th giving up a three-run pinch hit homer to Steve Pearce. He should have been out of the inning before the Segura error, but Roenicke left him in too long regardless. After Manny Machado robbed Mark Reynolds of a go-ahead double in the 8th, Lucroy's 9th inning infield chopper tied the game. The bullpen was able to shut down the Orioles for 3.1 innings after Smith relieved Garza in the 7th with the help of Tyler Thornburg and Francisco Rodriguez. How bold of Buck Showalter to walk Mark Reynolds to get to the former Silver Slugger Yovani Gallardo. Side Notes:

Khris Davis homered for the fourth time in his last ten games tonight. He is batting .308 with those four homeruns and eight rbis in those games. He has also shown better patience at the plate drawing three walks the last ten contests. He might be finally settling in at the major league level.

Carlos Gomez registered his eleventh homerun and 29th rbis of the season on that first inning homerun. He continues to hit well in the re-designed lineup that has him batting 4th. I'll be interested too see where he moves when Ramirez comes back as Segura has flourished in the leadoff role.

I'm not positive but Yovani Gallardo could be the first next-day starter to ever have a walkoff hit. He takes the mound in the rubber match tomorrow looking for his third victory of the season. Gallardo missed his last start because of his sprained ankle but it looked good as he rounded first and reached second in the 10th. Strange but true: According to Elias Sports the last major league pitcher with a walkoff hit in extra innings was also a Brewer: Glendon Rusch did it in 2003 vs the Astros in the 14th inning.

Jimmy Nelson Makes 2014 Debut

I've been busy lately but Jimmy Nelson's strong start in his 2014 debut was not lost on me. Called up from AAA-Nashville to make one start in place of the injured Yovani Gallardo, Nelson lived up to expectations. He has been absolutely dominating in the minors this year going 5-1 with a 1.71 ERA. The way Nelson handled himself in his start did more than justify him being the Brewers top minor league prospect. He was given more run support than Matt Garza has seemingly gotten all season as the Brewers laid out a 7-run and 14-hit onslaught of former, sometimes abysmal Brewers starting pitcher Randy Wolf. That was plenty more than Nelson needed as he gave up just one run and rung up six Marlins in 5.2 innings. Nelson seemingly jumped Mike Fiers as the rotation replacement if one was needed but it's hard to say how the Brewers will approach the situation. More than likely he won't be back to the majors until he has a spot in the rotation, not to be a bullpen hand like former starter Tyler Thornburg. Seeing the Brewers get healthy young arms to be productive in the majors is exciting to watch and gives a lot to look forward to.

In Defense of Matt Garza

I for one am thankful that Matt Garza missed his chance to sign with the Angels when he didn't answer their phone call because he was on vacation with his wife in the offseason. Although he has been without a doubt the weak spot in the Brewers rotation this season, let's not get ahead of ourselves writing off the hard-nosed Garza. Since the Brewers made a splash in free agency and actually signed a bonafide pitcher, Matt Garza has the most losses in the rotation and the highest ERA and to be honest there's no close second. The Brewers rotation has been phenomenal this season so it's easy to point fingers at Matt Garza when you look at him relative to the other pitchers. Let's not forget Garza is exactly the kind of guy you want on your locker room and don't want to face on the field. The kind of competitor who wants to "kick [his opponents] teeth in" (to use his words) and the kind of fun-loving guy who pranks teammates and coaches during interviews. Plus he hates the Cubs so that's always a plus too.

If you compare his numbers to his career they are a little on the low side. Garza has allowed more walks and has had less punchouts per nine innings than the last few years. One of the contributions to the strikeout slump might be the loss of velocity on his fastball. Garza's fastball is almost down an entire mile per hour as last year. He has also had a tough time getting out of the first inning as over a third of his earned runs on the season have come in that inning. If you take away all of Garza's first innings his ERA drops over one run to 3.80. If you just look at the bare numbers they do not tell the whole story. A 4.83 ERA and 2-4 record barely scrape the surface of Garza's body of work. Garza has tossed five quality starts and has as many losses in those games and he does wins. As seen today getting shutout against the Cubs Garza hasn't been the beneficiary of a whole lot of run support. Beyond all that, an interesting stat is that Garza has the second-lowest FIP (3.74) in the starting rotation. FIP is "fielding independent pitching" which calculates ERA based on average fielding and average timing. Based on this you could almost make the case that Garza has been pitching the second best on average.

The Brewers have managed to win Garza's three no-decisions so they are actually 5-4 in his starts on the season. He has battled through some tough outings and shaky defense behind him at times and has labored in times Roenicke needed him to. He is the kind of guy who can be an absolute buzzsaw to any lineup and the Brewers have managed the best record in the majors with him out of form, so when he puts it all together look out.

Pitching Goes Deep Into The Farm System

The Brewer's pitching at the major league level has been nothing short of a revelation this year. It's not like the production is coming straight out of left field because they have some big names in the rotation but if you had watched them pitch last year you'd think they were in rebuilding mode. Early in the season the Brewers have the third best team ERA, which is six spots up from last years body of work. It's even more amazing if you take out Wei-Chung Wang's 7 innings and 10 earned runs the ERA drops below three which is unbelievable. The pitching success extends down to the minor leagues as well. The Nashville Sounds (AAA) have the second lowest team ERA in the Pacific Coast league and are currently leading their division. The Brewers have a plethora of young arms in the system and at the major league level that are very versatile.

Tyler Thornburg: Much was made about the Lincecum-like delivery of Tyler Thornburg when he first came up for the Brewers in 2013. Thornburg started seven games last year but also worked in the bullpen and had a respectable 2.03 ERA. This year the 25 year old has blossomed into a bonafide big league reliever often bridging the gap between the starters and the back end of the bullpen.

Will Smith: Smith was acquired in the trade with the Royals for Norichika Aoki and it couldn't have worked out better for the Brewers. Smith is only 24 years old yet he pitches like a seasoned vet. Teams have only scratched across one earned run this season on Smith and he has yielded only a .183 batting average against him. That average drops to .074 against lefties in large part because of his devastating slider. Smith was originally a starting pitcher with the stuff of a closer so the sky is the limit for the young southpaw.

Mike Fiers: Mike Fiers has done a great job at the major league level the past two years but he has been in AAA this season so far. Any other team he probably makes the starting rotation but thats arguably the Brewers strongest part of the team. Fiers has been dealing to say the least. In seven starts Fiers has six wins, posting a 1.59 ERA and is averaging 12.7k/9innings and leading the league in punchouts. If the Brewers need another arm or someone to make a spot start Fiers is more than capable.

Jimmy Nelson: Nelson was the Brewers top prospect coming into the season and it is easy to see why. Posting quality starts more often than not (couldn't find the exact number I think 6) with a 4-1 record and 1.76 ERA in 8 starts. He has a sub-one WHIP and scouts say the hard throwing righty will be ready whenever the Brewers make the call.