Before the series started I guessed the following:

"Cubs 2 - Brewers 1: The most likely scenario.  Let's face it, the home team has an advantage, especially when they are playing the Brewers.  It would drop the Crew to 2.5 games back and may allow the Cardinals to pass them in the process. This can not happen, even though it probably will."

Well, that is exactly what happened after the Brewers were beat by the Cubs in the series finale last night.  It is unfortunate that the Brewers could not pull it off, but I do not feel the way I thought I would.  Before the series I expected I would be completely deflated by this result, but I am actually still comfortable with our chances to win the division despite being a game under .500.  How sad is that?

Well, I checked the upcoming schedule and found that, first the first time in a long time, the Brewers and Cubs will not flip flop opponents for the next two series.  Both teams will play the Astros (3 games each), with the Cubs playing them over the weekend and the Brewers playing them next week, but the Brewers will play the Pirates (3 games) over the weekend and the Cubs will get the Dodgers (4 games).  I would say the Brewers have the advantage over the Cubs as far as "weakest schedule" over the next week.  I would like to think that the Brewers are capable of going 4-2 against the Bucs and Stros.  The Cubs could conceivably go 3-4 against the Stros and the Dodgers.  If this happens, The Brewers could find themselves back within a game of first place one week from now.  It's all a ****-shoot at this point, because we never know what team is going to take the field, but I will still keep hope alive until they are officially eliminated.

Tomorrow, Amy, her mom, Cindy, her dad, Tom, and I will head down to Madison for the home opener of the Wisconsin Badgers football team.  The Badgers start the season against the Washington State Cougars.  With Bucky starting the season ranked #7, expectations are very high.  I will eventually do a post about the Badgers and what I expect from them this season, but have a lot to do today, so it may be after the weekend.  I am just hoping the Badgers do not look past any of the non conference games, especially the first one because Washington State is a PAC-10 team that will not be a slouch.  It should be a really fun season! 

After this series against the Cubs, the Brewers will either be right in the thick of things, or their season will be as good as over.  I know that there is still a month left, but we saw how long it took for the Cubs to take over the Brewers for first place.  If the Brewers drop back much further, it just means that they will have to play "out of this world" baseball the rest of the way to have a chance at the division, because we all know we are not going to have a chance at the wild card.

There are four ways the series can go:

• Brewers 3 - Cubs 0:  All Brewers fans hope they can sweep the series, but it seems unlikely.  A sweep would put the Brewers 1.5 games up and give them momentum for the rest of the season.
• Brewers 2 - Cubs 1:  A more likely scenario.  This would help pull the Brewers back within a 1/2 game of first place and push them back to a game over .500.  It would help with momentum for the rest of the season, too.
• Cubs 2 - Brewers 1: The most likely scenario.  Let's face it, the home team has an advantage, especially when they are playing the Brewers.  It would drop the Crew to 2.5 games back and may allow the Cardinals to pass them in the process. This can not happen, even though it probably will.
• Cubs 3 - Brewers 0: Catastrophe is the best word to explain this scenario.  Not only would the Brewers fall to 4.5 games out, but I would also imagine their season would be as good as over, barring a Brewer tear and a Cubs collapse.

Lately NFL has stood for No Fun Losing.  I still watch and listen to the games when I can, but it is more painful than it has ever been.  Just when they get you thinking that they are back on track... they get swept by the Giants. Ugly!

A good series against the Cubs could not only get the Brewers into a better position in the standings, but would also be huge for the upcoming homestand's attendance.  With pro and college football seasons both getting underway over the next week and a half, fan attention will sway away from baseball very quickly if the Brewers fall any further back than they already are.  The diehards will remain, but the fairweathers already have a foot out the baseball door.

If they do get swept, maybe we the Brewers should "Bring back Scrap Iron: Let Garner take Yost's seat"? I thought that last night and evidently Andy Tarnoff over at www.OnMilwaukee.com did too.

I tuned into the game a little late last night and found the Brewers winning 3-0.  I said something like, "Now that's what I am talking about!" to my wife.  Well, that lasted about 8 minutes.  Run after run after run helped put the Brewers down 6-3 after one inning.  They came back to tie it up, but that did not last long and the final ended up being 11-6.

• How do pitchers implode so quickly after looking so good to start the season?  From Vargas to Capuano to Wise to Villanueva, they have all experienced epic collapses.  If even one of these guys would have continued the way they started, the Brewers would be sitting in much better shape than they are now.  I realize that Vargas may not belong with the other three based on his record, but last night is fresh in my mind, so he made the list.
• Prince Fielder started to serve his suspension last night after it was reduced from three to two games.  The Crew will have to go without him tonight, too, but will have him back in time for Tim Lincecom tomorrow and the Cubs the rest of the week.  I commented on the new JSonline Brewers Blog that the suspension started at the perfect time since it was coming against the Giants, but it appears as though they have picked up right where they left off in Milwaukee a month ago.
• Today, Amy and I are heading up to Kimberly, WI to attend her sister and her sister's boyfriend's housewarming party.  Her sister's boyfriend is a Cubs fan (who also cheers for the Brewers, which is something that is very common in this neck of the woods. This is very confusing to me, but that's for another day).  The amount of time we spend at the party is directly proportional to how quickly I get ribbed for the Cubs having a game and a half lead over the Brewers.  If It happens within the first 5 minutes, the stay will be about an hour, 10 minutes = 2 hours, 15 minutes = 3 hours, etc.  You are probably thing, "Gee Steve, you are sure cutting a lot of slack here."  Yes I am, but it is only because I do not believe I have a choice.  If I did, I would follow this to a "T".  I like him a lot, but I would not and have not rubbed it in when the Brewers are/were in the lead.... but then again, I can't because he goes both ways.
• For those of you wondering what I will write about in the offseason, well obviously the going's on with the Brewers, but I am also a big NFL and NCAA fan (both football and basketball), so I will likely write a lot about that, too.  You will find out that I am a definite homer and will discuss the Badgers and Packers the most. I will probably post a bunch of pictures from my visits to Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, WI because I am a Wisconsin Badgers football season ticket holder. I am not sure what the rules and regulations are here at MLB.com, but I am hoping I am able to write without incident!

Did any of you out there really think that the Brewers would sweep the series in Arizona?  How about taking two of the games? One? None?  Well, I fully expected to win one of the three games.  After the Brewers won the second game of the series, the outcome of last night's game really did not matter to me because they had already exceeded my expectations.  If they won... "Outstanding!!!!" If they lost... "Hey, we won the series.  Besides, we were going against Brandon Webb."  I would have preferred the first response, but the second one is OK, too.  Again, I am not cheering against the Brewers, I am just satisfied with the series.

The Brewers did have a few moral victories last night:

1. They broke Brandon Webb's scoreless inning streak in the first inning.
2. Jeff Suppan pitched a really good game, despite the loss.
3. Gabe Gross continued to smack the ball around the yard and scored both runs.
4. They played error free baseball.
5. Brewers fans were out in full force again (Note: Check out Drew Olson's article "Home away from home?" on OnMilwaukee.com)
6. The Brewers did not get beat 30-3.

Today, the Crew has the day off and then heads to San Francisco to play the Giants over the weekend.  The Cubs play the Giants today before heading to Arizona to take on the D-Backs.  Then, both teams head to Chicago for, what may be, the biggest series of the season.  I will discuss it more on Monday, when both teams have off.  Ideally, the Brewers will sweep the Giants and the Cubs will get swept by the Diamondbacks after losing today to the Giants.  If that were to happen, the Brewers would head to Wrigley with a 2.5 game lead with an opportunity to stretch it to 5.5 games. The odds of that happening seem pretty slim, but I can dream, can't I?

Last night, I waited and waited for the Brewers game to start.  I thought the game would begin at 8:00pm, so when I tuned in and found that it would not actually start until 8:30pm, I decided to play a few games of Wii Bowling.  Well, a few games turned into a lot of games and all of a sudden it was 9:30pm and I finally decided to shut'er down and flip on the game.  I missed the first few innings, not because I was boycotting the Brewers, but because I am addicted to the Wii.  There, I admitted it. (By the way, I bowled a high score of 235 and was named a pro... maybe I have a future in Wii bowling?)

When I flipped it on, I was pleased to see that Yovanni Gallardo was still in the game.  As a matter of fact, he was pitching a one hitter at the time and had just gotten his second hit of the day, with the first being his first career home run.  I almost wanted to turn the game off, fearing I may be bad luck for them or something, but decided to keep the game on and watched as they added three more runs on a Prince Fielder, bases loaded double. 

After six innings, Ned decided that Yovanni had had enough and decided to bring in Carlos Villanueva.  I have to admit that I thought this was a big mistake.  Why remove Yovanni and use the bullpen when he was cruising right along.  I understand that the bullpen needs to regain it's confidence, but they also need a little rest.  What happens when they are needed for six innings tonight? Now they are one man short when they could have been at full strength and well rested. Instead, Villanueva pitched three innings and actually recorded a save.  He looked like the Carlos of old, but that was in a "low pressure" game, in which the lead was nine when he came in.  I will take it, but I would love to see more outings like that when the Brewers are only up two runs. (Update from brewers.com: The Brewers made a surprising announcement after the game that Villanueva, who had been struggling of late, was being optioned to Triple-A Nashville to make two starts in an effort to "polish up" for a September callup. The team recalled right-hander Seth McClung, a former Tampa Bay reliever.)

I wish I could be a little more positive after a 9-0 win, but I have learned not to get too excited too fast.  I am still the same huge Brewers fan I was when the season started and throughout the rest of my life, but a few more wins on the road are needed before I believe they are back.  I will say, though, that beating the D-Backs in the first game of their series in Phoenix was a good start.  Now they can win one of two remaining games before heading to San Francisco to take on a Giants team they inexcusably looked terrible against when the teams met in Milwaukee in July.  With San Francisco being as bad of a team as they are, the Crew should take two of three against them before heading to Chicago, for what may be the biggest series of the season.

In other news, Chris Capuano was demoted to the bullpen by Ned Yost.  This move was expected after Sunday.  Fortunately, it comes at a time when the Brewers only need four starters, with a couple days off scheduled for Thursday and Monday.  There is a chance that Cappy could return to the starting rotation if he looks good in the pen, and there may never need to be a replacement for him. The Brewers may also be getting Ben Sheets back in time for the weekend.  The two moves may help to bolster both the rotation and bullpen all at the same time. 

Couple those things with the upcoming expansion of the roster and things are looking up for the Brewers.  This season, the expansion of the Brewers roster supersedes any postseason aspirations for the Nashville Sounds.  The Sounds will clinch a playoff birth within the next couple days, and I am sure the organization would love a championship but, with the Brewers in the thick of it, guys like Gwynn, Rottino, Rivera, Aquino, Spurling, Jackson, Nix, Nelson, Anderson, Barnwell, and Villanueva (to name a few) will be on the bench in Milwaukee instead of on the field in Nashville.

I summarized my weekend in the last post, but that was before Sunday had really begun.  I sounded pretty positive yesterday, and amazingly, I think this post will sound pretty positive, too.  Unfortunately, the Brewers have little to do with my positive attitude. I'll discuss everything in bullet point format to separate my thought below... enjoy!

• One of my latest projects is to really organize my digital music collection.  I have ripped every CD I own, deleted the songs I do not like, made sure I had just one copy of each song in case they appeared on multiple CD's, edited artist, song, and album names, album artwork, along with everything else required to organize a music collection.  The reason I bring this up is that this was what I think of when I think of my Friday night even though I watched the entire Brewers-Reds game.  I sat in the sun-room at my wife's parents house in Mayville, WI while she and her mom watched the new movie, High School Musical 2.  I finished a great dinner of General Tso's Chicken, crab rangoon, a brandy old fashioned sweet with fruit, and was settled in for a night of Brewers and music.  The comedy of errors (literally) made me pay much closer attention to the music than the game.  That "double error" play was indicative of what the team has looked like for the past month or so.  I was hoping that play would be a final release of everything that was bad with the Brewers, but it was not, and their losing streak continued.  You all saw the game or have read about it, so there is no need to rehash.  By the way, I got through the "I's" in my music organizing effort.
• I woke up Saturday knowing it was a new day and trying to think positive about the game later in the day.  I knew that the last two Saturday's have been exciting, so why couldn't today be the same?  I am not a "they are X-X on Saturday nights, when the roof is closed, and they are wearing their blue jerseys, against a left handed starter, whose birthday falls on the same day as a former president, has hazel eyes, and grew up east of the Mississippi" kind of guy, but on Saturday I was because I had to have something that help me believe that we had a chance!
• While at my parent's house in Muskego, WI, my family and I, along with my friend, Jeff Sullivan and his wife, Beth played my new Nintendo Wii for a few hours.  I bought it a couple weeks ago and have really enjoyed it.  This was the first time my parents were able to try it out and they had a really good time with it.  We played Wii Sports the most, but I also purchased Tiger Woods '07, and that got a lot of play time, too.  I highly recommend purchasing a Wii.  It is much more entertaining than any other game system I have played before and is easily played by people of all skill levels because it is unlike any other gaming console so everyone starts on an equal ground.  I plan on purchasing the newest installment of John Madden football, a baseball game, and maybe some sort of family related "party game" in the future, but the ones I have will do for now.
• My parents fed us with a great "pre-game" meal.  After dinner, Jeff and I jumped in the car and headed to the park.  We sat in the upper deck, down the right field line.  The seats, like most in Miller Park, were really pretty good.  We were treated to a group of drunkards who ended up getting kicked out of the game.  The Brewers also provided some entertainment and finally played a game like they should.  They provided adequate pitching, fielding, hitting, running, and even managing en route to a nice win.  My wife, Amy, was at a Bachelorette Party in the right field bleachers and may provide a post describing her evening, so keep an eye out for that over the upcoming days.  It was really great to go to a game with Jeff.  We used to go to a ton of games together in high school, so it felt like old times.  We talked baseball, life, and anything else that came up.  I look forward to many other games like this... both with Jeff, and the Brewers winning.
• After the game, I had the pleasure of hearing both South Side Rob and Big Rygg from The Brewer Nation (http://brewernation.mlblogs.com) on the WSSP post game show.  It was the first time I heard these guys on the radio and they made most of the other callers sound clueless.  Great job guys! Way to represent the intelligent Brewers fans out there.
• On that same post game show, they played a clip of Ned Yost before the game.  I dislike this guy more and more every day. In this particular clip, Tom Hardricourt, aka "The Prince of Darkness", pressed Ned until it sounded like he was going to break.  Gotta love when the media actually stands up to him rather than just accepting the same answers every night, most lacking substance.  If I remember correctly, Hardricourt asked why the Brewers kept get annihilated.  Well, Ned was not a big fan of that.  Ned... I guess "YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!!"
• Sunday was really a great day.  Amy and I headed to the stadium early and watched most of batting practice, something I have not done in probably 10 years.  It was great to get to the stadium and just relax.  We had really good seats down the first base line.  The game started great, with the Brewers taking a 5-0 lead, but we all know how it ended.  Ugly!  We left early because I had to drive to Appleton for my fantasy football draft, so we missed the two run double to beat the Crew.  I really like the "less drunk" crowd on Sunday.  It made for a much more enjoyable experience.
• One problem I had with Sunday, besides the loss, was the fans.  I've said it before and I will say it again, Milwaukee fans lack baseball IQ, and that is putting it nicely.  I am SOOOOOO sick of the booing.  The team is reeling, we all know that and can be frustrated by it, but let's knock off the booing or at least decide how you are going to cheer.  All game, Capuano got booed. A 3-0 count... BOOOOOO!!!! A single..... BOOOOO!!!! A walk..... BOOOOOO!!!! Then, Ned decides to take him out of the game and he gets a standing ovation. WHAT!?!?! You boo the guy all game and then when he is removed from the game you give him a standing ovation?  Tell me how that makes sense.  They boo Braun and Fielder when they strike out (despite all else they do), they complain when the count goes to 2-0 but then Cappy gets the guy to ground out, they boo after a home run by the opposing team, the boo whenever something happens that they do not like and have ZERO tolerance for anything considered a failure.  The last time I checked, this team is still within reach of a division title, which is something they have not had in 25 years.  How about showing a little support, even when the times are rough??  My guess is that, if I showed up at their jobs and booed every time they were not perfect, I would be booing all day long. (Note: I can feel my blood pressure going up as I write this!!)  It is this reason that I will probably just watch games on TV the rest of the way.... at least until the "fans" (notice the quotes) stop acting like a bunch of pompous idiots that won't accept anything less than perfection when they are far from it themselves.  How embarrassing would it be if the Brewers reached the World Series and got booed every time they did something wrong?  I'm sure the national media would have a field day with that and it would make it seem as though Brewers fans have no clue... which is truer than many want to believe.  Read Brian Anderson's latest post for a nicer way of saying what I just did (http://babrewer.mlblogs.com).
• Well, that leaves only one thing to conclude my weekend... my fantasy football draft.  I picked the following team: QB - Drew Brees and Matt Schaub, RB - Maurice Jones-Drew, Cadillac Williams, Ladell Betts, Michael Turner, Reuben Droughns, and Priest Holmes (my last pick and possible mega-sleeper), WR - Donald Driver, Joey Galloway, Chris Chambers, Vincent Jackson, and Devery Henderson. TE - Antonio Gates and Randy McMichael, K - Olindo Mare, D - Jacksonville.  It is a keeper league and since my team last year fell apart, I was left with Brees and Gates.  Every great running back was gone, so all I could do is choose Jones-Drew and Cadillac with my first two picks.  I was happy with my roster, overall, but realize I need to perform some miracles on the waiver wire to be competitive this season.  Finishing last last season means that I can only go up from here!

Wow, that was a lot!  Do you have any thoughts/comments?

It has been a very hectic few days for this Brewers fan...

- Friday at work was crazy from start to finish, and over lunch.  Then we hit the road for Mayville, WI right after and spent the evening there.

- Saturday, I drove down to Muskego, WI to spend the day with my family and friend, Jeff and his wife, Beth.  My wife, Amy, stayed up in the Mayville area for a Bridal Shower and Bachelorette Party.  Jeff and I went to the game last night and so did Amy and her friend Lacey's Bachelorette Party.  We met up after the game and spent the night in Muskego again.

- Today, we are heading down to the stadium again at 10:30.  We will enjoy the game from the first level, first base side.  As soon as the game ends, and maybe sooner, we will hit the road for Oshkosh, where I will drop off Amy and continue on to Appleton for my big Fantasy Football Draft, which will likely go until 9:30 or so.

So, you can see why it has been difficult to write anything lately!  That's why, Monday, you can look forward to a catchup day.  Plus, my wife, Amy, may "Guest Blog" about the Bachelorette Party at Miller Park!  Now you have a reason to wake up Monday! 

Well, the chat happened yesterday and I would say that it was a pretty big success. I was asked questions about both blogging and the Brewers and my feelings about them.  I thought the questions were really good and I hope the answers were the same!  Because the chat is expected to be moved over the next couple days, I will just give you a link to the Oshkosh Northwestern's site; www.thenorthwestern.com. When you get to their page, click on the "Community Forums" link and it will take you to a list of all of the Forums offered by the paper.  For the next day or two, mine will be on top, but after that you may want to use the search button on the top and use my name, Steve Dempsey, as your search criteria. Or you could just click on the picture provided below and read most of the chat, as it was printed in today's paper copy of the Oshkosh Northwestern!  Again, this was a great honor and is something that I hope will lead to other opportunities to discuss Brewers baseball in the local, state, and even national media.... the Brewers need to improve their play a bit in order for those opportunities to present themselves to me!  I hope you enjoy the chat transcript and would love to hear what you have to say about what I said.  Please feel free to make comments here and introduce yourself if you happened to find my blog through this chat.

Click on the picture to see the chat in a somewhat readable size or just download it (Download NorthwesternChat.JPG) because even after clicking on it, it is still pretty small:

Today, I will be the featured guest for the Oshkosh Northwestern's 'Thursday @ 3' LIVE chat session.  Please stop by and see what I have to say about the Brewers.  I will be asked questions submitted over the last few days by readers and will do my best to give honest and complete answers to each.  The chat can be accessed HERE.  I sure wish the Brewers would have played a little better leading into this... it would make the session a little bit more enjoyable and probably lead to a little more interest!  Either way, it will be fun.  Again, this is a tremendous honor for me.

With the chat taking place this afternoon, I decided not to throw anything new out on the site as I am anticipating that much of what will be discussed will revolve around the current state of the Brewers.  I will post the entire chat after it has been printed in the paper tomorrow, for those of you that do not get a chance to attend it live.  Hopefully the Brewers will be in the middle of snapping out of it against the Cardinals when the chat starts... there is already a little chatter in the room about how the Oshkosh Giants (a local semi-pro team) could easily handle the Brewers in their current state.  I'd be lying if I did not partially agree with that claim!

I also wanted to apologize for not posting my thoughts on the 1982 reunion like I had planned on doing late yesterday.  I got a little busier than I thought I would and did not have time to do it.  I will eventually offer my thoughts but want to make sure I have enough time to adequately express my feelings on that team and the ceremony.

Talk to you all HERE at 3:00!

Prince Fielder's temper tantrum on Sunday will cost him 3 games.  The league ruled today that his actions were 'inappropriate and aggressive', and I have a hard time disagreeing with them.  Prince was out of control.  He ignored the fact that something like this could happen and, in turn, severely damaged the Brewers' lineup during his upcoming absence because he has been one of the only players doing anything lately at the plate.  The suspension is supposed to start tonight, but I am guessing he will do what most other players and managers do and appeal the suspension.  I do not believe it will be reduced.  I guess I looked at three examples of suspensions this season, involving the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates, to determine whether the length of the suspension is warranted:

1. Derrick Lee throws a haymaker at Chris Young - 5 Games
2. Lou Pinella goes crazy on an umpire - 4 Games
3. Matt Capps drills Prince Fielder - 4 Games (reduced to 3 Games after appeal)

If you compare to the ones mentioned above, it is hard to argue that his suspension is not justified.  I am not happy with it, but I do not believe there is anyone else to blame than Prince Fielder.  I just hope this does not end up being one of the reasons they miss the playoffs.... but the way they are playing, it can't help!

By B.P. I do not mean batting practice, I mean Brewers pitching, but nowadays they are pretty much the same thing.  As a matter of fact, I have watched batting practices in which the opposing batters actually seemed to hit worse than the Cardinals did in live game action against the Brewers pitching staff.  It is like clockwork, the starter gets off to an average start, the bullpen comes in to keep the game within reach and instead allows it to get out of reach.  I do not know what happened, but opponents used to struggle to get runs, and now the Brewers struggle to get outs.  I am to the point, now, that I have no confidence in any pitcher on the staff.... none.  They are all susceptible to the the "big inning" and are more likely than not to experience it in almost every one of their outings.  When Ned goes to the bullpen, I might as well turn off the game and go to bed, because whether they are winning or losing, we all know the likely outcome of the game.... at least lately.  Maybe Mike Maddux will find a magic pill to fix all that ails his staff, but he better look fast because the Cards appear to have found it.

What a shame to put on such a terrible display in front of the 1982 team.  I refuse to discuss how great that pregame ceremony was in this post because it deserves better... so check back later today for that.

Prince, Ryan, and Geoff all did their part, but no team in baseball (unless they have an unbelievable offensive night, too) can win a game when their pitching gives up 12 runs.  In the month of July, the pitching staff has allowed an average of 8.0 runs a game.  The New York Yankees, who have been tearing the cover off of the ball this month, have only been averaging 7.38 runs a game.  What that means is that even the "white hot" Yankees would not be able to win if their pitching was as bad as the Brewers.  Only the Devil Rays and the struggling Tigers have a worse team ERA over the last 30 days, and no team is worse over the last 7 days.

With all of that being said, I would like to offer my services to the Brewers.  I will start training as soon as I receive a response from the club.  My fastball tops out at 75, or at least it did 10 years ago, but I am bigger and stronger now.  I believe my knuckle ball would be a real asset, too.  The thought here is that National League hitters would not be able to "dial it down", and would look foolish against me.  And if I get shelled, it would be no different than having one of the current pitchers in the game.  I would only like a modest salary and an invite to spring training next season for a chance at making the team on my own.  Just think of the publicity from a move like this!  The Brewers would be the feel good story of 2007.  They could sell movie rights and could have Clint Howard play the role of me.  If anyone from the Brewers reads this and wants to give me a chance, I can be reached at mybrewers@gmail.com.  I will patiently wait for the invite and appreciate your consideration!

Yesterday, I was extremely honored to be asked by Alex Hummel, Conversation Editor for the Oshkosh Northwestern, to be the featured guest of the newspaper's 'Thursday @ 3' LIVE chat this week.  The chat is held on their Community Message Board.  You can access the chat thread by clicking HERE.  The Northwestern has a link to the chat on it's main page, www.thenorthwestern.com and also mentioned it on both the front page of both the main section of the paper and sports.  I am assuming the promotion of the chat will continue over the next couple days leading up to Thursday.  Then, in Friday's paper, either the majority of or the entire chat will be printed.  This is really a great honor for me.  I am humbled to follow in the footsteps of the following dignitaries from Oshkosh:

• Chancellor of UW Oshkosh, Richard Wells
• Mayor of Oshkosh, Frank Tower
• Apple Blossom Books owner, Candy Pearson
• Oshkosh Public Library Director, Jeff Gilderson-Duwe
• Wittman Regional Airport Director, Peter Moll
• UW Oshkosh Political Science Professor, David Siemers
• New Chief of Police in Oshkosh, Scott Greuel
• Executive Director of the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation, Eileen Connolly-Keesler

After that list I sort of feel like that segment from Sesame Street.... "Can you guess which one of these things doesn't belong?" 

Please feel free to join the chat and ask questions if you would like.  It will be a really great experience!

Before this last road trip to Houston and Colorado I predicted the Brewers would go 2-4.  I do not think I said it on the blog, but I know I mentioned to friends that I thought the Cubs would go 5-2 or 4-3.  Fortunately, I was wrong on the Cubs and they went 2-5; unfortunately, I was wrong with the Brewers and they went 2-4.  If there is a silver lining, because of the trip, the Brewers actually gained a half game to increase their lead to 1.5 games again.  If you told me two weeks ago that the Brewers would have a lead and it would be 1.5 games, I would have said you were nuts because the Cubs were rolling and we were reeling.  Thank God the Cubs came back down to earth!

This week's "Suds Series" against the Cardinals is pivotal for both teams.  The Cards find themselves only 5.5 games out.  If the Brewers sweep the series, St Louis will drop to 8.5 games out, which would virtually eliminate them from division title hopes.  If the Cards sweep the series, they will improve to 2.5 games out and be right in the thick of a three horse race.  The way the Brewers play at home, odds are they will not get swept, but again, you can never say never with this team.

Unfortunately, the Brewers may be without Prince Fielder after he was ejected for arguing a strike call with home plate umpire, Wally Bell.  It started off as a pretty tame argument, but Fielder just went off and nearly took off Bell's head.  I can not imagine Prince getting that worked up unless Bell said something he should not have.  Sometimes umpires get a little bold when there is an argument.  they want to become the center of attention and have quick triggers when they decide to eject a player.  Yesterday may have been one of those situations.  I am by no means clearing Prince of any blame because there certainly is plenty to be placed on him, but Bell seemed to antagonize Fielder.  I don't know if he used a racial slur or called him "fatty" or something like that, but whatever Bell said sent Prince into a rage.  It appeared as though Prince came pretty close to bumping Bell in that rage, and with a bump would come a suspension.  A suspension is the last thing the Brewers need.  I praised Prince for keeping his cool when he was hit by Matt Capps earlier in the season, but this time I have to say that he really screwed up.  I do not care what Bell said, you can not react the way he did, especially with the Cardinals coming to town.  I am sure that, if a suspension is handed down, Fielder will appeal it, but usually appeals get denied so it would only be a matter of time before he is sat down.

Just a heads up, I will be at the games on Saturday and Sunday against the Reds.  It will be an exciting weekend and I will post about each game.  Hopefully I will bring luck to the Crew and they will win both games as they continue their quest for the division title!  I will be with my buddy Jeff Sullivan for the Saturday game and with my wife, Amy, on Saturday.

...and I do not want to get off of it. As frustrating as the lows have been, the highs have been unbelievable. Take last Saturday and last night as examples of those highs and the entire Colorado series as examples of the lows. In these games, the Brewers have looked like both the most exciting and the most miserable team in Major League Baseball, all while maintaining the lead or a tie for the lead in the National League Central Division. While there have been times that I have been frustrated beyond belief, I still try to keep my composure because I know just how talented the team is. Despite their recent "collapse", I refuse to get too upset and will continue to be that way until the Brewers drop to 5 games out of a playoff spot or fall below the .500 mark.  Because I am an optimist, I do not think either will happen this season, but if they do, I may switch over to the NFL faster than I planned to.

Speaking of the NFL, with the season just around the corner, I started to think about how different it feels this season than any previous season.  This August, it seems as though the Brewers are receiving as much, or more publicity than the Green Bay Packers.  Around here (Oshkosh, WI, which is just 45 minutes south of Green Bay), the Packers are king all year and I understand why.  The Brewers have been the talk of the summer on the radio, TV, and in the newspaper, and if they can get back on track and continue their playoff push, they may be able to maintain this grip on the media and the fans into the fall.  Unfortunately, I still envision the "average" Packers getting front page coverage while the playoff contending Brewers get the second.  Imagine the Brewers winning Game 4 of the World Series and still playing second fiddle to the Packers because they will be playing the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football that week?  I hope it is not that way, but would not be shocked if it was. By the way... which game would get a higher rating in Wisconsin... that Packers Monday Night Football game or Game 5 of the World Series? (Note: I am a big Packer fan, but am a bigger Brewers fan and have been that way since birth.)

I was very excited to see that, today, MLB.com posted my DVD review of "Baseball's Most Unbreakable Feats".  You can read it by following this link - CLICK HERE.  The DVD was really good, and I am not just saying that because it was a Major League Baseball Productions DVD.  I want to thank Mark Newman for this unbelievable opportunity.  I am hoping to do more things like this for MLB.com down the road, but if this is the only item I ever write for them (other than this blog), it was a great experience.  There is really not much more to say about the review than what I already have, so head on over to check it out and come back to My Brewers to let me know what you think in the comments to this post!

... but we did not win either.  I guess that is what we get from a day off.  The only real news after yesterday's annihilation courtesy the Colorado Rockies, was that the Brewers lost more than just the game.  We found out that Tony Graffanino tore his ACL and will be out for the year.  Although he is only a reserve, Graffy has been playing pretty well over the last couple months and was a veteran the Brewers could count on until Rickie Weeks was ready to return.  Well, ready or not, here Weeks comes.  After a torrid week in Nashville, Weeks will return to the Brewers on Friday.  I would like to think that his .455 average would come with him but, for as awkward as he looked before going down, I tend to believe he will return to form.  If he continues to smack the ball, it may be exactly what the Brewers need to get back on track.  I sure hope that is the case!

Now that B*rry B*nds has broken Hank Aaron's record, there is only one thing that needs to happen.... Hank needs to come out of retirement, a la Bernie Mac in "Mr. 3000", to reclaim the record!  I know of a team that could use his help right now, and he finished his career with them 30+ years ago.  He could take over for the Jenkins/Mench platoon in left, or he could be placed in right and the Brewers could move Hart to left.  Either way, it would be a great thing to see and is something that needs to get done for the good of the Brewers and the game as a whole.  If Hank could only pitch in the bullpen... now that would be helpful!

In all seriousness, I am very mixed on this record being broken.  Since he has not been caught, you have to acknowledge the feat, especially since he probably could have done it, or come close, without the help of whatever he was using.  The skill required to hit a baseball takes more than steroids.  That is why it would be such a shame if it comes out that the record is as tainted as people think it is.  He was a first ballot Hall of Famer without the juice... no doubt.  I also have a hard time blaming him for doing it if he did because it was not against the rules and others were doing it, so he might have felt he needed to just to keep up.

The thing that has always bothered me about him has been his attitude.  He has always been so arrogant, and that is something I hate... especially when the previous record holder did not have an ounce of arrogance in his body.  I want to make it very clear that I respect B*rry B*nds for what he just did, but wish he would have done it the right way.  However, because it appears he has not, the record has gone from someone full of class to someone who is a complete class (minus the cl)! 

As a baseball fan, I think I speak for many people when I say "Hurry up Alex!"  We will be cheering extra hard for you to take the record (even though you are a Yankee for now) ... unless you are juiced up too!  Let's hope not, because this game needs a hero to retake the it's most hallowed record. (Note: I reserve the right to change my mind if he signs with the Chicago Cubs after he opts out of his contract in New York)

• Posted on August 7, 2007 at 9:46 PM
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