Friday afternoon blood boilers

Below is some stuff from all over that made my blood boil upon reading. Could this become a new segment on CH...??? As Kent Brockman would say, "Only time...will tell."

Bus Cook's continuing saga of Billupsdom:

We've reached a point in sports stories where there is almost too much information. Do we really have to know what Bus was quoted as saying about not being able to reach Jay Cutler?
"I didn't reach Jay directly -- I don't know what he was doing -- but I left a message. Then Brian called at the end of the day and asked me if I had heard from him. I hadn't. I heard from Jay when he called to tell me he just saw on TV he was being traded. They can spin it the way they want to spin it."

Like...OMG! At first he like...wouldn't call me back...so I was like, "dude, answer me" in a text. Who cares? I repeat: WHO EFFING CARES!?!

Prince Fielder is nothing but a fat DH who hits home runs, defense is more important.
Just an absolutely lovely sentence from Tom H's recent mailbag:
Q: Dawg13 - With Mat Gamil and Brad Nelson ready to step in at 1st base, will the Brewers consider trading Fielder as SI suggests? We need pitching and Fielder is a defensive liability. It seems to me were a lot stronger at the upper levels of the minor leagues in position players than pitchers. What we lose in HR's we may pick up in defensive saves. Fielder looks more and more like a DH.

Yeah Dawg! Defensive saves! That's what we need! Home runs are for greedy players!

The most moronic man on the face of the planet writes for the "Journal Times" apparently:
We've got several from this one...hat tip to Goldy for emailing it out this afternoon:

Barring some unforeseen trade, I fully expect the Brewers to take a free fall in the standings, one where they’ll end up in fourth place in the National League Central behind the Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and Houston Astros.

Ohhhhh!!!!! Hey now! He "fully" expects? Well then...lock it in! Mr. Infallible! The Brewers are going to free fall! Seriously chump, the Houston Astros? Is this supposed to be an elaborate hoax? Let me double-check to see if he wrote this on April Fool's Day (checking...nope...he's just an idiot). Dude, let me inform you of something. The Astros suck. EVERYBODY has them FREE FALLING this year. They are a bunch of old guys who overachieved last year. Any team that needs any sort of a contribution from Darin Erstad is in serious trouble to contend.
If you thought Brett Favre was a prima donna, look out for Aaron Rodgers.

While Rodgers hasn’t done anything remotely close to what Favre accomplished, it’s amply apparent he craves the limelight. At the Super Bowl, which most quarterbacks won’t go near because of all the hassles, Rodgers hung out at media row. Then, at a recent Bucks’ game at the Bradley Center, Rodgers, instead of inconspicuously sitting in a luxury suite, sat courtside near center court.

The NERVE of Aaron Rodgers! How dare he! How dare he sit courtside! Everybody knows the key to long-term success in the NFL is by attending NBA games inconspicuously!

There's more in that article...but I'll stop there. I'll end on a more funny note from Tom H.'s chat again.
# Q: sam , green bay - what is up with jeffery jefferson? where is he starting the season ans was he hurt or some other reason i did not see him this spring?
# A: Tom Haudricourt - Perhaps you are referring to Jeremy Jeffress?

Nice work Sam. Way to double-check...I don't know...the dude's freaking name you are trying to get information about before firing off a drunken email to the state newspaper.

Anyway, what's the bottom line here? I don't know. The winter's been too long and thank God the regular season is about to start.

4th of July double dose of the Brewer Mailbag!

God bless America! The place where people like writing in stupid questions to newspapers about baseball and clowns like me make fun of them in my low-trafficked Brewer blog!

Kick back, open up some Robinade...and lets get going. Today's questions come from the Monday and Wednesday editions of the JSOnline mailbag.

Q: larry of avondale,AZ. - do you really think alot of home run hitters in the line up will produce a penant.

MY REACT: No...it's not a good thing that the Brewers are hitting a lot of home runs. Scoring runs is a bad thing and doesn't lead to pennants.

Q: Mark of Oshkosh - Even though the brewers are putting together a winning season right now, the fans are frustrated by the way things are headed and know that they are not going to win the pennant. How long will it take before Ned Yost realizes that Weeks and Hall are not going to improve? Will it take him getting fired for him to change? There are other issues but these two in particular are brutal. On any given game we have 1/3 of the batting order (includes the pitcher) that are just about an automatic out. You just can't keep trotting this lineup out there...

MY REACT: What fans are frustrated? Has the news not yet reached Oshkosh that Bill Hall stopped being an every day player a month ago? While I don't think they are going to win the pennant, the wild card is a very realistic option that all Brewer fans should be excited about as the summer continues. Why can people never enjoy a winning season with potential for October? Why Mark? WHY?

Q: Craig Danula of Emerado, North Dakota - I might be the only one who thinks the Brewers should trade Prince Fielder. Considering their track record (or I should say lack of) for developing pitching, a trade of the Prince would be wise. I'd move him to an American League team in the off season. First on my list of teams to call would be the Anaheim Angels. They could definitely use a power bat in their lineup and their minor league system is loaded with prospects. In the coming years, Prince's contract will get real big...not worth the risk as his gut will get bigger as well. Your thoughts?

MY REACT: Re-read what Craig from Emerado just wrote. He just wrote that the Brewers should trade Prince Fielder because he might get fatter...completely ignoring Prince's actual results. Sigh...

Q: Michael of Delafield - I don't feel the Brewers; should trade any of their top minor league prospects for a "rental" player. If anything, they should trade Sheets and Fielder for young prospects. This Brewer team is not quite ready to win; either the division or wildcard. They should get something for Sheets while they can; and I do not see Fielder's agent and Brewer management working out a deal. Your thoughts?

My REACT: This is the dumbest question/comment in the mailbag. It's completely effing stupid. Apparently "Michael" from Delafield doesn't think the Brewers are "ready" to win.
Hey Michael, CLICK ON THIS.
For somebody just to write this in on a whim when a team is 8 games over and 2 back of the wild card just shows a level of asinine that can't be adequately described.
As far as the trading goes, here's my response. There are times when an organization needs to trade for the future. THIS YEAR is not one of those years. Eventually teams realize they are in a position that they can make the playoffs, and they need to take advantage of that. That means NOT trading Ben Sheets (your best pitcher) and NOT trading Prince Fielder (2nd best overall hitter). That means you DO make a trade potentially to bolster a problem area for the stretch run. That is up for debate. Unless the Brewers completely nose dive in July (like go 6-23 or something) the Ben Sheets (especially) and Prince Fielder trade talk needs to stop. Like NOW.

I'm just going to stop there and end with this basic comment. Why...why...after everything we've seen so far this year (The Gagne disaster, the benching of Bill Hall due to the fact he sucks, signing Freddy Krueger and then releasing him like 2 weeks later) can people not enjoy the success that the team is currently having?

The Brewers have the 3rd best record in the National League. They've currently got 5 guys in the starting rotation that you could label as (relatively speaking) effective. They've replaced their gas can $10 Million dollar closer with a journyman reliever who has converted 14 for 14 saves in his place. They stopped playing Bill Hall because they finally realized he is an overpaid piece of dirt. Unless you're Brad or AP, how can you not root for this team?

Witrado Mailbag - Shorty...

You can zip through this one is like 7 minutes....there's actually some decent questions in there...go ahead.

But there are a few head shakers...mainly morons complaining about various topics related to Prince Fielder...so without further adieu:

Q: Jake of Atlanta, GA Via Burlington, WI - I have been struggling to get anyone to give me legitimate answer about the Brewers approach coming into the season. My first question is why would they risk upsetting Prince over a couple hundred thousand when he is the clubhouse leader, backbone of the lineup and CLEARLY the current face of the franchise. Not only does he have a difficult agent to work with but he also seems to have a lot of influence on the personality of a young team.

MY REACT: This question went on longer...and Witrado answered it very well. Go ahead and read the whole thing. Jake of Atlanta just can't understand the big picture. First of all, I wouldn't say he is CLEARLY the current face of the franchise. I would have to say reigning ROTY & 45 Million dollar man Ryan Braun might have something to say about that. The whole "risk of upsetting" Prince thing is idiotic. This type of shit happens ALL THE TIME. The Brewers (and all other teams) have some sort of formula which they renew their players year by year with. Going off of that formula and dumping a "couple hundred thousand" extra to Prince would be unfair to other players in the same situation. As a matter of fact, it would make said formula worthless. Jake mentions that he has a difficult agent. Well...that's Prince's fault. If you don't think the Brewers have offered a respectable long term deal to Fielder through his agent you're stupid. There is nothing the Brewers can do at this time regarding Prince. They are going to take him year by year because that is what his agent wants to do.

Q: Eric of Albany Wi. - Its obvious Fielder isnt happy in Milwaukee under his current contract.Whats the chance of us trading Fielder in the near future? So at least we can get something substantial for him.

A: Anthony Witrado - Not much of a chance. The team still has him for a while with some arbitration years.

MY REACT: For christ's sake...he signed the damn contract. He doesn't want a long term one. He and his agent are taking it year by year. THAT is what is obvious Eric. Look what happened with Braun. His agent didn't want him to sign long term, but he did it to lock in the money. He made a choice. Prince could have locked in too...but he CHOSE to go year by year. Stop with this nonsense about him not being happy.

Q: Jason of West Allis - I was at the game on Tuesday and my girlfriend asked, "How do they clean up the stand?" So now I ask you, How do they clean up after all us filthy fans? I think sweeping would be too inefficient. We settled on high pressure hoses.

A: Anthony Witrado - If this is the kind of conversations happening during games, this team must really be bad.

MY REACT: Jason of West Allis is Billups of the week, of this mailbag, and is a pussy.

Q: Jake of Milwaukee - Is there any chance that the Brewers would be willing to look into Jeff Cirillo curing their third base ills?

A: Anthony Witrado - Nope.

MY REACT: Not So Anonymous Jake...is this you?

They're Getting Better!

I can' t believe it...a decent JSOnline mailbag?

Ehhh...go for it. Spend an entire 10 minutes. There are some good questions and some slightly witty commentary from Witrado. There is some indirect Yost bashing in his responses along with some youthful references (Brad will probably be confused). There's also a "Major League" mention...awesome.

So with no Billups material, I'll post a few interesting questions that should draw up debate.

Q: Jalky of Dodgeville MI - Without Sheets the Brewers would be in serious trouble...how does this situation play out with regard to next season? Do they let him walk for nothing (a terrible option)? Trade him before the deadline if they are out of it? Make him an offer now/later? With Suppan simply being a .500 inning-eater, Gallardo with potential (acl?), Bush awful, and Parra youthfully inconsistant the team does not seem to have a lot of alternatives. How should/will the team address the situation?

A: Anthony Witrado - This was a totally different situation at the start of the season, but being that no starter except Sheets has gotten a win since Parra in the first home series of the season, Sheets might not be expendable.

Q: Paul of Cudahy - Does Gallardo's injury virtually guarantee that Ben Sheets wil not be dealt at the trading deadline, since that would leave the team "aceless" for the stretch? Also, what's your measuring stick for "out of contention" at the trading deadline? 6 games? 8? Double digits? Thanks.

A: Anthony Witrado - If the team is out of it, they may make a trade instead of losing Sheets for nothing later. And I'd say it would have to be double digits.

Q: Thomas V of Park Falls - Do you see any possible situation where outfielder Matt LaPorta, who has been tearing up AA at a Braun like clip, joins the big club this year?

A: Anthony Witrado - A few weeks ago, the answer would have been no. But with the offense still not clicking, that possibility is becoming more real. Especially if the team is out of the race by mid-summer.

My Overall REACT: 2 points here...
If the Brewers trade Ben Sheets, the season is over. That day. A complete meltdown would have to happen over the next 3 months for that to happen. I hope we don't even have to have that discussion come July. Hopefully we're 7 games over .500.

LaPorta? This year? Uhhh...where is he going to play?

Mailbag with Witrado!

This one is definitely worth 8 minutes of your time.

This is a long post. Sorry.

Unreal stuff. Just utterly asinine on both the question and answer end. This is going to be a Monday/Wednesday staple on Chuckie Hacks now. Feel free to comment and cast your vote for that week's "Billups of the Mailbag" award. Witrado actually answered my own question today!

Without further adieu:
Q: stadush_7901 of Milwaukee - If the clutch hitting doesn't improve soon (say maybe a month), what would happen, if anything, to the leadership of this team?

A: Anthony Witrado - There is good leadership on this team. Guys like Kendall and Cameron are solid clubhouse characters and I doubt they'd allow a slide to carry on off the field. And it's not just clutch hitting, which the team has been good at with the exception of recently, but it's hitting overall.

My REACT: Everybody re-read that question right now. WTF does that even mean? Seriously? What leadership is he speaking of? Ownership? Coaching? Players? How are you supposed to answer that? They are going to cry. They are going to send Prince Fielder to AAA. Moron.

Q: Peter of San Mateo, CA - Can you comment on the quality of Rickie Weeks' at bats? From Yost's comments, it sounds like he has solid at bat and is making good contact, but just has had bad luck. I haven't been able to find his BABIP (batting avg for balls in play) online, but Yost's comments would indicate that it's low. The relatively high differential between his OBP and BA are a positive, as is the high number of runs scored. Can you comment on what you've seen visually about his at-bats? Does it corroborate the quality at-bat, low BABIP thesis, or is he just not doing well? I am in California and have not been able to watch most games to observe myself.

A: Anthony Witrado - Weeks has been striking the ball hard, but as happened again last night, he's hitting balls right at guys. It's weird that it keeps happening to the same guy, but it does. Baseball is one of those sports that eventually evens itself out, so as long as Weeks keeps hitting the ball hard, they'll end up falling for hits. But the strikout thing is still a little bothersome for me. At least he is taking pitches, though.

My REACT: Peter my friend...when Witrado saw that question his pits starting sweating. Do you actually think he has any idea when BABIP is? Puhhhhlease. He totally evaded your question with a bunch of cliche answers that he gives to everybody whenever there is a Week's question. Guess what Witrado? Week's BABIP is around .215. That means he is getting unlucky. Read a baseball book.

Q: John of Milwaukee - Where can one find statistics re how likely a runner is to score from 1st with no outs vs on 2nd with one out, etc.

A: Anthony Witrado - Baseball prospectus or maybe find some Bill James books.

My REACT: Allright...at least he pointed them to Baseball Prospectus...but how about a little effort here! How about a basic run-expectancy matrix table Witrado? Go ahead...type it into Google...see what happens! Overall...bunting sucks!

       OUTS
RUNNERS       0       1       2
---  0.5165  0.2796  0.1075
1--  0.8968  0.5487  0.2370
-2-  1.1385  0.6911  0.3502
12-  1.4693  0.9143  0.4433
--3  1.5120  0.9795  0.3718
1-3  1.8228  1.1830  0.4931
-23  2.0363  1.4144  0.6073
123  2.3109  1.5279  0.7485

Q: Dan of Onalaska - I'm very keen on watching batters in the box and it seems Ricky Weeks should bat left-handed instead of right. My senses say he would bat .375 the next 2 years if he switched. What do you guys think?

A: Anthony Witrado - Wow. How about he's right-handed, so no. The majors isn't a place to learn how to hit from the unnatural side of the plate.

My REACT: Well done Dan of Onalaska...well done. You are very keen indeed. With great senses.

Q: Adam of Milwaukee - Hey Anthony, There was a showdown on Costas' HBO show last night between the Deadspin creator and a national writer talking about blogs and the media. Where do you and Tom stand on that argument? There are so many great blogs about the Brewers (Brew Crew Ball, Chuckie Hacks) that in my mind serve as mainly a way for people to get excited about this Brewers' season. I don't see anything wrong with that! Do you?

A: Anthony Witrado - Not so much, but those people are also not in the clubhouse gathering inside info like Tom and I. Blogs are all good as long as you know which ones are informed and which ones are just fans. I also hope people don't mistake the people who write the fan blogs for actual journalists. But to better answer you, no, I don't see anything wrong with it.

My REACT: That was my question (notice the shameless Hacks plug). Ahhhhh...the classic "inside info" argument. I bet he could tell me when Prince shaves his pubic hair or when JJ switches to a new color jockstrap. That makes you much more knowledgeable on how the Brewers are actually playing (sarcasm alert) and gives you justification in your analysis.

I just blasted Witrado pretty bad here...so I got to give him my Billups vote. Overall...I think he's a pretty solid beat writer. No denying that. And I am definitely not a journalist. From the sound of his answers though he's got a lot to learn about the actual game itself.