Jimmy Nelson has been the breakout star of the pitching staff this season. After seeming to take a step forward in 2015 and posting a 4.20 DRA in 177 1/3 innings, he struggled last year, to the tune of a 5.83 DRA and -1.0 WARP. In 2017, though, he has reversed the trend and has […]
Author: Seth Victor
What Arcia Tells Us About Best-Case Scenarios
By Baseball Prospectus’ WARP, Orlando Arcia has been the Brewers’ second-best position player, which is certainly an accomplishment given that he is the youngest player on the team. He has contributed both offensively and defensively, as his .261 TAv is right at the league average of .260, and his 7.1 FRAA is third among shortstops […]
How Good is Eric Thames?
Eric Thames was the story of the season for the first month or so. He posted a 1.276 OPS in April, and he looked like a true breakout candidate whose improvements in Korea would carry over in his return to MLB. As he is no longer hitting like peak Barry Bonds, however, he has fallen […]
Making the Case for Standing Pat at the Trade Deadline
This article begins with a massive caveat: I cannot and will not know what trade offers David Stearns will get between now and July 31. Even though I will go on to explain why I think the Brewers would be justified in not making a big move, if they are presented with a chance to […]
Brewers Baserunning and Sprint Speed
Last season, the Brewers led all of baseball in stolen bases by a considerable amount. They were not, however, a particularly good baserunning team, at least according to BP’s BRR statistic, which calculates overall value contributed by baserunning rather than just being limited to stolen base percentage. In 2016, according to BRR, the Brewers were […]
Keon Broxton: Exit Velocity King?
Last year, Keon Broxton’s average exit velocity was 91.7 mph, which was a top-20 mark in all of baseball. By this measure, he was comparable to such luminaries as Yoenis Cespedes, Jose Bautista, and Khris Davis, and his breakout potential was well-covered in certain corners of the online baseball community. The idea that he was […]
What Should the Brewers do with Matt Garza?
Coming into this season, I had low expectations for Matt Garza. He began the year on the disabled list so we already knew that he wasn’t completely healthy, and he was coming off of two horrendous seasons. In 2015, Garza threw 148.7 and posted a DRA of 6.18, which was good enough for a whopping […]
Jonathan Villar’s 2017 Profile
Last year, Jonathan Villar was one of the Brewers’ best players and one of baseball’s best stories. He hit .285/.369/.457 and was roughly an average defender at shortstop, which translated into 4.7 WARP. He also led all of baseball with 62 stolen bases. Part of the Brewers’ offseason strategy centered around keeping him in the […]
What is Going on with Zach Davies’s Release Point?
In 2016, Zach Davies was a pleasant surprise for the Brewers. He threw over 160 innings and posted a 4.24 DRA, which was good for 2.1 WARP. Because he was only 23 years old for all of last season, the Brewers and their fans were rightfully optimistic. Davies was a young pitcher with some upside, […]
On Eric Thames, Hot Starts, and Baseball Fandom
Being a fan of a sports team is weird. We watch people with whom we have no other emotional investment go out and play a game, and we want only those wearing our favorite team’s jersey to succeed. We impute positive characteristics on to people who wear our city’s name on their work clothes, and […]