Offseason Report #1

Hello again! It's been quite a long hiatus (this time, a few months) and much has been going on during the interim. Hopefully, this will mark the official return of regular posting as my work schedule (that's right, a new career folks) is now on a regular rotation and other things are - well, I'll just get to the updates.

First, and most importantly, we have news out of the Milwaukee Brewers camp. Last week Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy was dealt to the Minnesota Twins for centerfielder Carlos Gomez. As some of you know, Hardy had a terrible season at the plate for the Crew, and was sent down to AAA Nashville - quite a demotion for a guy who was an All-Star in 2007. Hardy spent a short time in Nashville, but the perfect amount in the eyes of Milwaukee brass. The club was able to push off free agency for Hardy until 2011 by doing this, making him a much more attractive trade. Hardy would spend the remainder of the season mostly on the bench, with the promotion of phenom SS Alcides Escobar to the big league club.

With CF Mike Cameron looking to land quite a large salary for next year, the Brewers needed to free up some cash to aid them in their search of MUCH NEEDED starting pitching (worst ERA in the NL for the 2009 campaign). Gomez was a perfect match. A young kid with lots of speed, and as Brewers GM Doug Melvin describes, an "underachieving bat". That can be said of a lot of guys who don't hit too well. With regular starts in 2010 (something he didn't see in Minnesota with the success found by Denard Span), Gomez should do quite well in CF for the Brewers in 2010. If nothing else, he'll add some much-needed speed.

Hardy was a fan favorite in Milwaukee, and will surely be missed. Baseball is a business, though, and a small market club like the Brewers can't afford to be sentimental when it comes to chasing a pennant.

Milwaukee is also in the running for starting pitcher John Lackey, who most analysts dub as the best free-agent starter for the offseason. We'll see how serious the club is about being a contender next year. Hopefully the will be putting their money where their mouth is.

My few readers and "online friends" may remember that in May I was honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy. My wife and I moved back to her hometown of Charleston, SC, and the job search began. I was able to land a great job with Nucor Steel, the #1 steel producer in the world, and a company that hires a lot of former Navy Nuclear technicians. The job has proven to be a great fit. I received my first promotion last month, and have found myself truly blessed with a great company.

Last month, my wife and I closed on our first house - and have settled in nicely. Being a homeowner is such a welcome, fresh change to life. We are glad to be in our own place - and not paying month-to-month rent, fighting over parking spots, or banging on walls to get the neighbors to "keep it down".

After a lot of painting, furniture buying, and yard work, our home is really coming together. We are almost ready for Thanksgiving, when we'll be hosting the family party (about 30 people) and watching the Packers on TV in inches upon inches of beautiful HD.

As far as my card collecting goes, things are quite slow. With the new house, budgeting for cards hasn't been allocated quite yet. We're just about done with home upgrades and such, and I'm sure it'll just be a little bit of time before I'm back into the card "swing of things". I would like to pass along a HUGE "thank you" to the gals at Dinged Corners for sending me the Star Trek collector glass I won in a contest hosted on their site. I would also like to thank Mark from "Stats on the Back" for the box of Brewers cards he sent this summer. I will get around to a thank you packages when time permits.

Great to be back, and I look forward to getting back in touch with a lot of you in the cardosphere!

Back in Chucktown

Greetings once again! It's been a long hiatus - a few weeks, from my estimation, and just a little update from the South. My wife and I have arrived at our destination in Charleston, SC and are settling in nicely. Job interviews are going on, one quite promising, as I have been notified that they want me back for a second interview. I'll post any updates on that front as soon as I find out more.

We left Seattle on the 19th of May, and stayed in Wisconsin to visit my family for about a week. While there, I was able to get together all the cards I'd collected as a youngster, and now have a couple more containers full of cards ready to be sorted. I even found my treasured "binder" - you know the one. Full of all the "best" cards from packs and trades as a kid. Those will be posting sometime in the future, from time to time, as time allows. There sure is a lot to go through.

We arrived here in Charleston last Thursday, and tonight we finally have the opportunity to go to a Charleston Riverdogs game. They are a minor league affiliate of the Yankees (booooo) but have the southern charm and sort of "Bull Durham"-esque air about them. From the stadium, to the fans, to the players, it's definitely a club that has very little to do with their Bronx parents.

Tonight's game is against the Rome Braves, and it should be a blast. When I was stationed down here from 2003-2007 I attended quite a few games, and am looking forward to continuing that wonderful tradition.

Farewell, Sweet Prince - ALL TRIBE style

Nope, no reference to anyone dieing. No reference to Fatty McFatterson, who happens to play first base for my FIRST PLACE Milwaukee Brewers. I am bidding my farewell to the world of card blogging. For now, of course.

Today is my final day in the Navy. Tonight we are loading up the truck. Tomorrow my wife and I will depart on our 3,036 mile road trip to our new home in Charleston, SC. We will be spending a week in Wisconsin over Memorial Day weekend, spending the weekend cheering on the Brewers as they take on the Twins in interleague play.


I received a package last week from Jack over at All Tribe Baseball that included not only the wonderful CD of baseball-related tunes (including the original "Who's on First" from Abbot & Costello which confused the crap outta the wife) but also had a number of Brewers cards tossed in as well. A nice smattering of years and clubs. Thanks so much, Jack, for the great cards and the CD that will be getting some spin time in the truck this week.

On that note, in no particular order, here are the cards from the "Baseball Dad".

2003 Donruss Estrellas (#47 Ben Sheets, #48 Richie Sexson)

These cards are in spanish. SPANISH!! I've never seen baseball cards in Spanish. French, yes. Gotta love our friends north of the border who enjoy their OPC cards. But Spanish? Awesome. Donruss Estrellas. That's Not-English for "stars". Sheets is a "Lanzador", which is a very formal way of saying "not pitching for anyone this year". Funny, neither is Richie. Bummer, man.

2003 Fleer Ultra Gold Medallion (#139 Ben Sheets, #125 Jose Hernandez)

These cards are your standard cardboard. See that little cutout on the top and bottom? Genius. You wanted it, and Skybox delivered. Get those kids back on the wagon, we need more non-standard cards. Well, not really but they are pretty neat. Sheets still isn't pitching for anyone this year. You know, the Brewers never did announce whether or not they have had to pick up the tab on his surgery. It'd be interesting to find out.

1992 Topps Gold Teddy Higuera, 1999 Skybox Premium Jim Abbott

Teddy Higuera, arguably the greatest pitcher to don the Brewers uniform. Jim Abbott, arguably the greatest pitcher to have ONE HAND. One hand!!! As a child this always amazed me. The guy only had one hand and he managed to do everything better than me. He'd throw, pull the glove off his...handless arm, put the glove on his hand, field the ball, and throw the whole damn thing, glove and ball together, over to the first baseman. That's some Pitcher's Fielding Practice that's tough to teach, folks. That guy was a true hero to all para-athletes out there to be sure. And he played for the Crew, awesome.

2006 Fleer Ultra Rickie Weeks, 1991 Upper Deck Julio Machado


Rickie is leading the Brewers in HRs this year. That's right, the guy who hit just over the Mendoza line last year and has plagued the infield with errors for years, has perhaps finally found his swing and his glove, the same items that made him the ranchise prospect and future all these years. Then came Ryan Braun. But before that, Weeks was going to be the next Robin Yount for the Brew Crew. Well, to nobody's surprise, he's in a contract year and thriving. Isn't that odd when that happens? As I always say, you can't spell Rickie Weeks without 3 E's and 2 K's. Chew on that, kids.

Machado is a badass. Look at him.


Here's a neat scratchoff game from '94 that was included. I'd never seen this before. It features the Brewers "Notre Dame" logo that I never was a huge fan of, but that's alright too. Here's the back...

I think I'll leave this until the Brewers make it to the World Series. It may be a while, but man, it'll be worth it. I'll do this scratchoff and it'll predict the winner of game 1 - Milwaukee.


Well, that's it for a while folks. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we travel. We'll take some photos and I'll share those when we arrive in Charleston. Go Brewers!!

Shame on you, Mr. Manuel

Tonight Mets manager Jerry Manuel kept pitcher Mike Pelfrey in the game through six innings...after he had given up 3 balks.

Whatever the reason for Pelfrey's frustration, be it the obvious scouting by the Giants' staff, the unfortunate strike zone called by the home plate umpire, or the poor framing by Mets catcher Omir Santos, Pelfrey has been in a world of hurt tonight. Three balks in six innings.


THANKS for the visit to the mound, Jerry. Thanks for leaving poor Mike in their to commit three balks. The guy needs to hit the clubhouse, clear his head. You left him in there, to protect your struggling bullpen.

You are a horrible manager.

Cards from GCRL...Round 2

Back in March I got a package from Jim over at GCRL, and the contents were overwhelming - hundreds and hundreds of Brewers cards, old, not-so-old, and friggin new. Lots of em. Too many for one post. I set aside another posts' worth of cards at that time for a second post - one that would come after I said thanks to a few others for gifts they sent.

We are in the middle of packing up our apartment as we prepare to move 3,000 miles away to sunny Charleston, SC a week from now. Underneath some books and papers was a small stack of cards...the very cards I set aside for the "Thanks GCRL 2 of 2" post. Here they are, folks! And once again, Jim, thanks for the cards.

I have two baseballs from major league baseball games. The first was the one that Paul Molitor threw to me and my father during warmups before a Brewers vs. Twins game in Minneapolis back in '87. I've told the story before as my entry for the Fifth Blog Bat Around...you can read it here. The second one was hit right to me during batting practice, at the same Metrodome in Minneapolis, once again before a Brewers vs. Twins game. Except this time, it came from a slightly more portly player on the Brewers team, Mr. Ron Belliard. I don't know if I still have that one.

I will never complain about an oddball card. There can be nothing wrong with them, because there is no "bar" set. They cannot disappoint. This one is no exception. And the Vuckovich card is from another generation. It's a bit harder to find a leg kick like this anymore...or a mustache like this. I still can't see a picture of him without thinking of nemesis of Rick Vaughn, Yankees slugger "Haywood". On a brief sidenote, it was revealed during the fifth inning of a Brewers/Astros game a few weeks ago that my wife had never seen "Major League". MLB Extra Innings was carrying the Astros broadcast of the game that night, and they had a guest in the booth...Mr. Bob Uecker. I went nuts. He was nothing short of genius, and I was laughing the whole time. I commented on how funny he was in "Major League". I was met by a blank stare on my wife's face. After the game, we watched the movie.

The Jenkins/Burnitz high five was a common site for a few years in Brew Town. This cards scores a couple runs because it's taken from a distance, which gives us two ballplayers frozen in time, with a sea of faceless fans behind them. I love it.

No matter what happened to Matt Childers, he could always brag to his children and grandchildren that he had two of the coolest baseball cards ever. I love these cards. Maybe it's the patriot in me, maybe I just like bright, shiny objects, but they work for me. Matt only made 11 major league appearances earlier in the decade. Last year he pitched for the Phillies AAA club, and this year he's pitching in Japan. Glad he's still in the game.


Add to the list of guys who become sluggers with the Brewers, leave, and then disappear. Maybe it's just him on this list, but for some reason I want to throw in Geoff Jenkins and Carlos Lee - although both of their situations are entirely different. Last season I went to about a dozen Mariners games here in Seattle. It didn't take the fans too long to start booing him last year.

One question, though. Future World Series Hero? What a crappy set. Did they mean that he would soon leave the Brewers for a larger market and hopefully more successful ballclub, or did they mean the Brewers would soon make it to the World Series? Either way, they lost. Dumb, dumb Upper Deck.

Finally, a minor league card. I know nothing about Leon Glenn, Jr, but I do know that he played for the one time A-affiliate Beloit Brewers. By the time I came into my "baseball adulthood", they were already the Beloit Snappers (easier to put a turtle suit on some guy than try to sell the whole "beer" thing to youngsters). The Milwaukee Brewers still own the rights to this logo, though, and as I've said before, I sure hope it'll find it's way onto the Brewers uniforms, at least as a sleeve patch. It shows Wisconsin pride. I like that.

News...and Notes

First of all, the important stuff. I was notified by the Navy that my day of separation will be in two weeks - so, I have essentially 2 weeks to find a job in Charleston, SC (which is over 3,000 miles away) tie up all my loose ends with the Navy, work with my wife to sell whatever furniture we can on Craigslist, pack up the place, and done. The sofa I am sitting on right now will be gone tomorrow - so it's two weeks of sitting on dining room chairs in the living room. I love it.

We've decided to move to Charleston, SC instead of my hometown in Wisconsin for a couple of reasons, mostly relating to the job market and the economy. This will once again put me far away from the land of Cheese and Beer, but just for now. I still have MLB Extra Innings to fill me with my daily need for Brewers baseball.

Which brings me to last night's game...and Ryan Braun. The Crew is facing the MUCH hated Baby Bears from Chicago. I don't care what Cubbies fans say, this is a huge freakin rivalry and we hate them. This weekend is a 3-game series against Chicago, and the series opened with a bang last night. In the bottom half of the 8th last night, trailing the Cubs 2-1, Ryan Braun took a pitch to the bleachers in right center field, plating two runs and giving the Brewers the lead to cement a game 1 victory over the Cubs. 10 minutes later, "Hells Bells" rang true once again in Milwaukee, as closer Trevor Hoffman came in once again and earned his fifth save of the year.

The guys on Sportscenter this morning (actually, I think it was Neal Everett) made the same comment I made last night when he hit the homer. It was something to the effect of "last week he was on the bench with a sore back, and this week he's tearing it up". Actually, my story of last night's game is a bit better than that.

As I said, we're selling a lot of furniture and home furnishing stuff on Craigslist right now, and from about 1pm-8:30 last night I had people coming by to look at items and pick items up. This was during the Brewers/Cubs game last night, but I didn't let it stop me. A woman, her friend, and her child were standing in my living room inspecting the antique dresser they'd come to pick up (turns out, she was a Brewers fan and originally from West Allis, Wisconsin...small world) and I didn't let them stop me from watching the game. I answered questions while staring at the screen. As soon as Brauny hit the 2-run jack in the 8th inning, I channelled Howard Dean and started yelling something fierce...to which the woman turned, smiled, and decided she'd take the dresser and it'd be a good time to leave. At least she bought the damn thing, and for helping load it/secure it in her truck, she through in an extra $10 on top of the price.

Thanks Brauny!

By the way, this is the 2009 Topps World Baseball Classic Ryan Braun card. This card is summer baseball. The sun, the smile, the sky, and the glisten in the eye that smacks of another summer filled with homers like the one we saw last night.

Cinco de Mayo!

Sunday, May 3rd: After being scratched from the lineup for two games, Ryan Braun stays in Milwaukee while the Brewers hit the road for a quick four game road trip in Pittsburgh and Cincy.

Monday, May 4th: MRI on Braun's back turns out negative, Braun boards a plane to join the Crew for their first game in Pittsburgh. At the 7:05pm game time, Braun is still flying en route to Pittsburgh, Bill Hall starts the game in Left Field.

Ryan Braun arrives in the dugout for the 2nd inning.

In the 8th inning with the bases load, Ryan Braun is brought into the game as a pinch hitter.

Braun swings at a 0-2 fastball, and hits a seeing-eye DOUBLE to right field to tie the game at 3-3.

Later, Rickie Weeks would homer to ensure the Brewers' 16th straight victory over the Pirates.

Tuesday, Cinco de Mayo: Tonight, Brauny is starting in left field. Happy Cinco de Mayo, ya'll!