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Around SBN: Notre Dame's Turnaround: How Have The Irish Done It?

Brewers Q&A

I answered some questions for my labelmates at Brew Crew Ball, and you can find the link here. Jeff was kind enough to respond by answering five of my questions. If I could do it again, I would have asked "So, any tips on how to keep sane through a decade of sub-.500 baseball?" They're on the other side of the cycle, the lucky stiffs.

My questions:

The Giants have the #5 pick in the 2008 draft, and they're in dire need of position player help. However, their best prospect was recently moved to first, and the best two or three college hitters in the draft are first baseman. How is Matt LaPorta working out so far? Do you agree with the decision to draft him? I'd love to see the Giants do something that practical in the draft.

For the Brewers, I think it was a smart move. LaPorta proved in Single-A and in the AFL that his bat will play in pro ball. From day one it was clearly as much a win-now pick as you can make in the draft: It's possible LaPorta will be ready by September, and some folks even wanted to give him a shot to make the team this spring. I'm not sure it's the type of pick the Giants should be making right now, though, unless you're better set up to contend in 2010-2012 than I think you are.

I bet you miss Wayne Franklin, though I haven't seen any mentions of him on your site. Even though you'll never be able to replace Wayne Franklin, you got a pretty good consolation prize in Carlos Villanueva. Do you see him as a back-of-the-rotation stopgap, or can he be more?

I have fond memories of Wayne Franklin. In 2002, he made four starts with an ERA of 2.63, which made him great in a Strat-O-Matic league with the playing time rules turned off. Not enough to make the '02 Brewers competitive, but enough to make it more fun. I can't say I wish he was on this year's team though. As for Villanueva, I (and a lot of other Brewers fans) really like him. He showed all kinds of versatility last year, and appears to have a higher ceiling than people were expecting when he was in the minors. He's never going to be more than a #3 or #4 starter, but this is the year he's likely to establish himself as just that...pretty good return for Wayne Franklin, I think.

How is the Ryan Braun outfield experiment going? Is there any other player in the game you would trade him for?

He hasn't looked great in left, but Bill Hall has looked pretty good at third, and that's the bigger concern. If I had the option of swapping Braun for Tulowitzki or Sizemore, I'd have to consider it, but it's a very short list that you could even talk about in that vein.

 What is J.J. Hardy's ceiling? He cooled off substantially after his fast '07 start. Is he a stopgap, or is he a part of the contending future? Can we borrow him for a couple of seasons? He'd be our cleanup hitter.

His start last year was probably something of a fluke, but a solid defensive shortstop with above-average offense for the position could certainly be part of a championship team. There is one shortstop prospect in the organization named Alcides Escobar--he's an extremely talented defender, but his bat hasn't yet come along for the ride. It's possible, I suppose, that Escobar could push Hardy to third, or Hardy could end up in a trade, but I would guess he'll be playing short for the Brewers at least through his arbitration years.

How is your bullpen situation? Are there enough promising arms to prevent another Linebrink-type trade?

Doug Melvin's #1 priority this offseason was to put together a bullpen that would not, under any circumstances, need Linebrink-like reinforcements. Aside from Eric Gagne's three-batter disaster on opening day, the pen has looked great. David Riske, in particular, appears to be the guy that Melvin thought he was acquiring when he traded for Linebrink. For the last couple of years, Derrick Turnbow has kept falling on the depth chart, and as long as nothing happens to force his way back up the list, we'll be in good shape.

Bonus question: Whatever happened to Greg Bruso?

At this point, I suspect he's selling insurance somewhere. I hope he makes a Jim Morris-style comeback, though: I have his autograph on a couple of 2003 Bowman cards. Maybe he can play first base.

I think I'd try Glenn Woolard at first before Bruso, but you can make an argument for either over Rich Aurilia. Thanks for taking the time to do this.

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First!

So Grant,
The dude implied that you're not smart enough or good looking enough to be a GM? Damn if we're going to let him treat our Grant like that! Only we can treat our Grant like that.

2008 Giants: A steaming pile of scrap!

by Goofus on Apr 4, 2008 3:20 PM PDT reply actions  

actually

the joke I was trying to make is that Grant is doubtless smarter and better looking than Sabean.

More of a reflection on Sabes than Grant, though.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Apr 5, 2008 1:47 PM PDT up reply actions  

"I been waitin' a long time for this! I been waitin' since the f**kin' amateurs!" --WILL "THE THRILL" CLARK

by Josh from Hollywood on Apr 6, 2008 2:37 AM PDT up reply actions  

GREG BRUSO! I saw him start a AA game for the then Norwich Navigators before he was traded for Eric Young. He would've been a good pitcher if he could've thrown faster than a three-year old. Had great control.

by jcb9 on Apr 4, 2008 3:23 PM PDT reply actions  

Could someone post the Q&A here? For some weird reason my filter is blocking their site because of "adult content"

Looks like I picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue...

by UnleashTheGore on Apr 4, 2008 3:24 PM PDT reply actions  

Grant's answers to their questions, I mean.

Looks like I picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue...

by UnleashTheGore on Apr 4, 2008 3:25 PM PDT up reply actions  

That's odd, I didn't see one Bocock or Merkin reference.

2008 Giants: A steaming pile of scrap!

by Goofus on Apr 4, 2008 3:46 PM PDT up reply actions  

Don't worry..

Baron and I got them on the bandwagon.

The Basil Fawlty Moderating Strategy:
"We could run a nice blog here if we didn't have all these members getting in the way."

by WalrusMan on Apr 4, 2008 8:38 PM PDT up reply actions  

I have no idea why BCB is blocked

but it's blocked on a couple filters I've seen in coffee shops, too.

There was one rather racy reference to Brokeback Mountain a couple of years ago, but that's all I can think of. Maybe I said f*** 1,378 too many times when the Cubs came back last September.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Apr 5, 2008 10:19 AM PDT up reply actions  

Gotta say I enjoy the ability to jump between team blog sites with SB Nation.

Other than seeing that Xeifrank bum pop up in the comments, good exchange.

by sfgiantsflgators on Apr 4, 2008 3:34 PM PDT reply actions  

God

I just saw that, too. WTH?

He is Vengeance. He is the Knight. He is Dave Righetti. PRAY TO HIM!

by howtheyscored on Apr 5, 2008 11:29 PM PDT up reply actions  

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