When the Brewers embarked on their rebuilding campaign, first under President Doug Melvin during 2015 and then under GM David Stearns, the common fan and analyst rebuilding model was the scorched-earth, tear-it-to-the-ground, “tank” rebuild. This rebuilding model was ostensibly perfected by the Houston Astros and also practiced by the Chicago Cubs, where the assumption is […]
Tag: Rebuilding
Opposing Rebuilding Economics
If you’re a resident of the Five County area, and you buy into the extended version of the Brewers’ rebuild, you’ve won the privilege to pay approximately $140 million in debt service while the Brewers “aim for the future.” (That paces the club for “truly” contending around 2020). A recent article supporting Miller Park as […]
Maldonado’s Future with the Brewers
Martin Maldonado made his debut in Milwaukee in 2011 and has been the Brewers’ backup catcher since broke into the big leagues. He hasn’t started more than 66 games in a season; however, since Jonathan Lucroy blossomed into one of the game’s best catchers during his tenure, it’s understandable that Maldonado has had a difficult time earning playing […]
Processes and Gamesmanship
This weekend, I went on Baseball Prospectus’ Effectively Wild podcast and took part in their Brewers preview episode. I came to some pretty pessimistic conclusions about the Brewers future. I don’t see them contending in the next three years, and I don’t see a clear path to that point. It’s obvious what the Brewers need to […]
Sean Nolin and the Brewers’ 2016 Post-Hype Philosophy
On Monday, the Brewers claimed Sean Nolin off waivers from Oakland. Nolin was one of the pieces that the A’s acquired in the shocking Josh Donaldson deal from last offseason, and despite the fact that he was supposed to be a high-floor and low-risk addition, his 2015 season was mildly disappointing. He made six big-league […]
Of Course Teams Are Going To Copy The Royals
Jerry Crasnick posted an article at ESPN on Friday suggesting that teams won’t be copying the Royals‘ free-swinging, contact-oriented team constructed around solid defense and a strong bullpen, rather than around middle-of-the-order sluggers and ace-level starting pitchers. There’s a perfectly good reason for that: most teams don’t play in cavernous parks like Kauffman Stadium that encourage contact […]
Who Does Free Agent Compensation Help?
Ever since free agency reared its head in 1975, baseball’s owners (particularly the cheap ones) have demanded compensation for their departing talent. The 1981 strike was, in part, driven by player resistance to a system of free-agent compensation in which the owners would “receive a player of similar value,” which would effectively kill the free-agent […]
The BP Way-Back Machine: “Rebuilding a Right Way”
(At BP Milwaukee, we’re continuing to look back at relevant articles that have appeared at Baseball Prospectus in previous years. The archives at BP remain free for everyone, and they’re worth exploring in depth. So much knowledge is available to anyone who takes the time to peruse the site. In relation to the Milwaukee Brewers, though, this […]
Pulling Apart the Segura Trade
Last week, the Milwaukee Brewers traded shortstop Jean Segura and right-hander Tyler Wagner to the Arizona Diamondbacks in return for right-hander Chase Anderson, infielder Aaron Hill and infield prospect Isan Diaz. The trade has largely been painted as a significant win for the Brewers. Some have considered the deal a pure salary dump, as the […]
Finding Joy in a Losing Season
In most sports losing sucks. It’s a dreadful experience for a fan. But it is never worse, never more disheartening than in baseball. In football, even when you’re the 2008 Detroit Lions and your team loses all of its games, that event only happens once a week. In hockey or basketball, the incident only occurs […]