Prospect Watch: Mat Gamel

Mat Gamel, the top prospect in the Brewers' farm system was just promoted to Triple-A Nashville from Double-A Huntsville. Gamel, 23, hit .329 with 19 home runs and 96 RBI's for Huntsville. He had an excellent .395 on base percentage, and a .933 OPS.

2008 has been a breakout season for Gamel. The third basemen has been named the Southern League's Player of the Week numerous times, and was selected to the MLB Future's Game. He will continue to play third base for Nashville.

Gamel's promotion comes a week before Major League rosters expand to 40 players. Nashville's season in Triple-A ends August 31, so the Brewers so will decide then whether or not they will call up Gamel for the September roster expansion.

Poll: Who Should get the Majority of the Starts at 2B?

The votes are in, and you want Ray Durham at second base. 64% of you voted for Durham, while 36% want Rickie Weeks to see most of the playing time.

The Brewers acquired Durham before the trading deadline to bolster second base. Despite the trade, Rickie Weeks has still seen the majority of the playing time even though he's performed sub par this season. Here are their current numbers.

Rickie Weeks - .229 BA, 10 HR, 36 RBI, .335 OBP, 16 SB

Ray Durham - .285, 4 HR, 38 RBI, .375 OBP, 7 SB

Durham has had the much better year overall, and his on base percentage sure looks nice at the lead off position. Not only that, but Durham is also a major upgrade defensively. He doesn't have the best range but has only made three errors all season. Weeks has nine errors, and has made several errant throws on double play opportunities.

Weeks has come on strong though after the All-Star break, which he's been known to do over his career. Since the break Weeks is hitting .273 with a .369 on base percentage. Durham has not been as successful since the break as he's only hitting .229 with a .302 on base percentage. I wouldn't factor Durham's post All-Star numbers in too much though since he has had limited opportunities. Weeks has always been inconsistent, and the Brewers could use consistency down the stretch, which is why Ray Durham should see the majority of the playing time at second base.

Prospect Watch: Jeremy Jeffress

Jeremy Jeffress, 20, is the Brewers' top pitching prospect. He was recently promoted to Double-A Huntsville after a fairly successful stint at High-A Brevard County. Jeffress is the youngest player on the Huntsville roster. At Brevard County, he went 4-6 with a 4.08 ERA and had 102 strike outs in 79.1 innings pitched.

Jeffress made his debut for Huntsville on August 13th, and it didn't go as well as he hoped. The young right-hander only went 2 1/3 innings, allowing two hits, two runs, and three walks, while striking out two.

The news that Jeffress was being promoted to Double-A was somewhat surprising. He wasn't extremely consistent at Brevard County, although he was a little more consistent towards the end of his stint there. The main reason for his promotion is the Brewers will most likely send him to the Arizona Fall League, where a player needs to be on at least a Double-A roster to be eligible.

Yost's Fixation with Counsell

Ned Yost has always taken a liking to Craig Counsell, but this month he's taken his fixation with him to another level. Counsell has basically become the Brewers' every day third basemen. Why is he starting every day? That's a very good question.

The Bill Hall/Russell Branyan platoon has combined for 26 home runs and 66 RBI this season. Craig Counsell has one home run and 12 RBI. Hall and Branyan don't carry the greatest looking batting average, but neither does Counsell. Hall and Branyan together is almost like having another Prince Fielder in the lineup. With Branyan now out due to injury, that leaves the Brewers with just Counsell and Hall battling for time at the hot corner.

The reason Yost seems to like Counsell so much is because of his defense. He has a sure handed glove pretty much anywhere in the infield, but is that enough reason to start him every day? The difference he makes defensively is not a big enough reason to start him over Hall as their offensive production isn't even close.

The only reason I can think of why Yost continues to send Counsell out there is because he has a decent on base percentage compared to how putrid his batting average is. Counsell is hitting .229 but has an OBP of .333. What is so puzzling to me is the timing of this. July was Bill Hall's best month of the season while Counsell had one of his worst months in July. In July, Hall hit .288 with a .350 on base percentage, four home runs, and 16 RBI. July wasn't as kind to Counsell as he only hit .174 with a .286 on base percentage, and 1 RBI.

I have no problem with Craig Counsell as a role player. His fine defense makes him a solid option off the bench, and a defensive option with the lead in a late inning game. He is just not an every day player. It makes no sense that Yost stopped giving Hall playing time when he was tearing the cover off the ball and Counsell hasn't been hitting all year.

Where Are They Now?

Every year players come and go. Here is look at some of last years Brewers who have moved on.

Kevin Mench - Shrek currently is playing for the Blue Jays in a reserve role. Mench is hitting .233 with zero home runs and eight RBI in 86 at bats. Wasn't he supposed to be a power hitter?

Geoff Jenkins - Jenks has had a rough year in his first season out of Milwaukee. The former Brewers first round pick is batting just .243 with nine home runs and 28 RBI. He also has the lowest fielding percentage of his career at .965. It's tough to see how far he has fallen.

Johnny "I don't speak spanish" Estrada - First the Brewers trade him to the Mets for Guillermo Mota, and then the Mets release him. Ouch. Then he was signed by the lowly Nationals and has only registered 53 at bats on the season. He hit .170 and drew one walk, which gave him a staggering .200 on base percentage.

Tony Graffanino - Graffy is currently playing for the Indians Triple-A team, the Buffalo Bisons. He's hitting .321 with a .379 on base percentage in 53 at bats. Perhaps he'll see some action in the show soon with the Indians?

Damian Miller - Miller is now retired. He received some interest from teams in the off-season, but the only team he was interested in playing for was the Brewers.

Claudio Vargas - Vargas is playing for the Mets Triple-A team, the New Orleans Zephyrs. He's posted a 5-2 record, with a 4.36 ERA. He did receive some time with the big league team, posting a 4.62 ERA in 37 innings pitched.

Scott Linebrink - Linebrink has reestablished himself as one of the premier setup men in the game this year. In 39 innings of work for the White Sox Linebrink has a 2.30 ERA and outstanding WHIP of 0.92. Too bad the Brewers didn't get this kind of performance out of him last year.

Matt Wise - The change up specialist signed with the Mets this off-season and has not the had the year he was hoping for. Wise has only pitched 7 innings for New York and had a 6.43 ERA in them. He's spent most of the year on the disabled list with a shoulder injury.

Brewers Top 10 Catchers of the 2000's

Last year some of you might remember a post on here listing the Brewers' top catchers of the 2000's. Well there was a flaw with last years list, Johnny Estrada was on it. Here's a new updated list of catchers that have had Bill Schroeder drooling for years.

1. Damian Miller - The real life Jake Taylor has been the most stable catcher for the Brewers this century. He provided the Brewers with two serviceable years as the starter, and one as the backup. He also did a great job handling the staff while he was here.

2. Jason Kendall - Kendall's low average kind of sticks out at you, but his on base percentage isn't that bad for a catcher. He has played great defense for the Brewers and the pitchers have raved about how he calls a game.

3. Mike Rivera - Being ranked third isn't bad for someone who's never been the starter is it? Rivera has provided the Brewers with two quality years as the teams backup backstop.

4. Eddie Perez - While on the Brewers, Perez posted a .271 batting average. Eddie Perez = domination

5. Keith Osik - Osik knows how to draw walks. He posted a .342 OBP with the crew. How was this guy the backup? Oh yeah, EDDIE PEREZ.

6. Henry Blanco - Blanco may not have been the greatest hitter with the crew but his defense always got Bill Schroeder going.

7. Raul Casanova - Three years of catching with the Brewers in the 2000's. How many guys can say that?

8. Gary Bennett - Bennett provided solid defense for the crew to compliment his .224 batting average. He also won a World Series ring with the Cardinals in 06. Gary Bennett = winner.

9. Chad Moeller - Chad Moeller hit for the cycle. What other Brewers have done that lately? Oh yeah, none. Moeller > ALL

10. Robert Machado - Posted a .310 OBP in his one year with the Brewers. Johnny Estrada's OBP last year, .296.

Honorable Mention - Paul Bako - This gritty battler has played for TEN different teams in his legendary MLB career. TEN. Now that's an accomplishment.

Prospect Watch: Brett Lawrie

Brett Lawrie, 18, was the Brewers' first round pick in this past June's draft. The Brewers selected the high catcher 16th overall. He just signed this past week for what is believed to be a signing bonus of around $1.7 million.

Lawrie is currently playing for Team Canada in the Olympics, where he will face advanced minor league pitching, and players with major league experience. He is the youngest player on Canada's roster. The right-handed hitting Lawrie will most likely begin next season at the Brewers' Low-A affiliate, wherever that ends up being.

Lawrie is known for his strong hands and quick bat speed. He has good power and a plus arm. There is some question as to whether he will stick as a catcher, but that is where the Brewers will leave him for now.

Poll: Should Jeff Suppan Stay in the Starting Rotation?

In our latest poll we asked if Jeff Suppan should remain in the Brewers' starting rotation. The majority of you believe he should not. 72% said he should be removed from the rotation, while just 28% wanted him as a starter.

This season has been a very up and down year for Suppan. He has put together some really good starts, but he's also put together some really awful starts too. As of now Suppan currently has a 7-7 record with a 4.70 ERA. Here's a month by month breakdown of his performance.

April - 5.19 ERA
May - 2.56 ERA
June - 4.33 ERA
July - 9.43 ERA
August - 1.93 ERA (Two Starts)

Suppan has been all over the place this season, and has been very erratic. His career numbers do show that he tends to come on strong towards the end of the season though. Last year Suppan posted a 3.90 ERA in August and a 3.86 ERA in September. In 2006 with the Cardinals, Suppan had a 3.44 ERA in August, a 2.15 ERA in September, and ended up as the MVP of the NLCS.

I think for now it's best to keep Suppan in the rotation. He catches a lot of flack due to his high paying salary, but I don't expect him to pitch like he did in July for the rest of the year. In the last three years Suppan has a 3.09 ERA after the All-Star break. The Brewers don't really have a better option than him, and based on his history he should finish strong.

The Dugout Incident

During Monday night's game the FSN broadcast showed Manny Parra and Prince Fielder walking to the end of the dugout exchanging words, and then Fielder snapping on Parra. Fielder shoved Parra with full force back into the wall. Several Brewers then restrained Fielder from mauling Parra.

This is absolutely unacceptable behavior from Fielder regardless of what was said. Teammates fighting is not what this team needs right now, especially from Fielder, who is supposed to be a leader. Parra could have easily been hurt, and that's one of the last things this team needs down the stretch. If you have a problem you don't use physical force on a teammate to solve it.

Prince has been known for his temper in his time with the Brewers. This isn't the first time he's shown a lot of emotion. Showing emotion, or trying to motivate someone is no excuse for attacking them though. I wouldn't mind seeing Prince out of the lineup for a game to teach him a lesson.

Prospect Watch: Luis Pena

Luis Pena, a 25-year old relief pitcher was originally signed by the Brewers in 1999 as a non-drafted free agent. Pena is currently playing in Triple-A for the Nashville Sounds.

Pena did well for himself in the first half earning a spot on the PCL All-Star team. There were rumblings about him being called up to the show to help the Brewers' bullpen, but since then he has faltered. Pena had a horrendous month of July with a 13.50 ERA.

Currently Pena's ERA stands at 5.89. Pena has a good fastball and was thought of as a potential closer by some, but he has struggled lately. He had been a shoe in for a September callup, but that may no longer be the case. It will be interesting to see how he responds down the stretch.