Salary? No worry.
Contract? Forget about it!
Free agent-to-be? Buh-bye!
But you don't have to be a junior GM to know that the Brewers did something inexcusable with the trade of Carlos Lee and Nelson Cruz.
They traded Cruz...too!
Doug Melvin and Ned Yost both reiterated that, without Cruz in the deal, the Brewers don't get Kevin Mench.
Excuse me?
Imagine trading Lyle Overbay to Toronto, and throwing in Fielder, just to ensure that you got Eric Hinske back in the package.
Was Kevin Mench, dubbed Mr. Average in the latest Sports Illustrated, the lynchpin in this deal? Take him out of the equation, and the Brewers get three players for Lee. You help the bullpen, you send the other two to the minors -- case closed. And then you plug in one of several in-house candidates to replace Lee.
Corey Hart? Gabe Gross? Anthony Gwynn?
Hey, here’s an idea -- NELSON CRUZ!
None of them are Lee, but you'd like to think the Brewers tabbed Cruz their minor league player of the year for a reason. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, enjoy your yawn of an outfield -- Kevin Mench, Brady Clark and Geoff Jenkins.
Look at the numbers on Mench, and you'll see the right handed version of Jenkins. And when your organization has a glut of outfield prospects champing at the bit looking for playing time, why on earth do you insist on getting another body out there to clog the pipeline?
Baseball fans in Milwaukee have adopted the "lets see what the kids can do" philosophy, and seem to be patient with the blue-chippers making their steady trek to the majors. Cruz could have been the next anointed prospect. Maybe Hart is the next "big deal."
I would have enjoyed the battle in spring training next season. Now, we'll have to keep an eye on the Rangers to see if Cruz takes Lee’s spot next season in Arlington. That'll hurt, won't it?
It’s all a perception. More bodies makes it look like a bigger blockbuster
than it really is. It also conveys the "we're not giving up this season" slogan. Be honest, Brew Crew faithful: Wouldn't you like to see what Cruz and/or Hart could do for the next two months, then turning one of them loose as the starter in 2007?
The recent additions won't keep the ship from sinking. It’s like patching the holes with bubble gum -- it'll keep you afloat for awhile, but sooner or later, the vessel takes on water.
Bob currently does play-by-play at Time Warner Cable Sports 32, calling Wisconsin Timber Rattlers games in Appleton as well as the area high school football and basketball scene. During an earlier association with FS Wisconsin, his list of teams and duties have included the Packers, Bucks, Brewers and the WIAA State Championships.
During his life before cable, Bob spent seven seasons as a reporter and producer of "Preps Plus: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel High School Sports Show."
And the joke is, Bob has a golf shirt from all four Milwaukee television stations. Sad, but true: Bob has had sports and news anchor/reporter/producer stints at WTMJ, WISN, WDJT and WITI.
His first duty out of college (UW-Oshkosh) was radio and TV work in Eau Claire. Bob spent nearly a decade at WEAU-TV as a sports director and reporter.
You may have heard Bob's pipes around town as well. He has done play-by-play for the Milwaukee Mustangs, Milwaukee Iron, and UW-Milwaukee men's and women's basketball. Bob was the public address announcer for five seasons for both the Marquette men and women's basketball squads. This season, you can catch the starting lineups of the UW-Milwaukee Panther men's games with Bob behind the mic.
A Brookfield Central graduate, Bob's love and passion for sports began at an early age, when paper football leagues, and Wiffle Ball All Star Games were all the rage in the neighborhood.
