Category: Milwaukee Brewers
Stanton’s The Focus, But Fiers Is Recovering Too
When someone is hurt, the sports world instantly shifts its focus to the injured player.
People always want to know the extent of the injury, the timetable for recovery and the impact the injury may have on the rest of the players’ career.
More often than not, we forget about the other players involved in the accident.
There is nothing wrong with expressing concern toward an injured player and hoping for a speedy recovery – in fact it’s what sports fans should do, but the injured player is not always the only one worthy of thoughts and prayers.
When Giancarlo Stanton was hit in the face with a Mike Fiers pitch in the fifth inning of Thursday night’s game, the baseball world was stunned.
Everyone was focused on Stanton, but what about Fiers?
Granted the Brewers right-hander didn’t take a fastball to the face and is physically ok, but when something like that happens you have to wonder about the player’s emotions.
There is no way Fiers was intentionally throwing at Stanton and Fiers was visibly shaken after the incident.
After the game he took to Twitter to express his remorse.
“I am deeply sorry about what happened tonight,” Fiers tweeted at Stanton. “I can’t imagine what you and your family are going through. My thoughts and prayers are with you at this time. I feel horrible and hope for a speedy recovery.”
In his post-game meeting with reporters Fiers was shaken and holding back tears.
After Stanton was carted off the field and the game resumed he missed his intended location – down and away – and instead threw a fastball up and in that hit Reed Johnson in the hand.
Understandably the Marlins were upset. First their star player was hit in the face, then the next man up nearly suffered the same fate.
Again, I am confident none of this was intentional and that the second high and tight fastball was the result of Fiers mental state.
After throwing a pitch off a players face and watching him leave the field in an ambulance it has the be immensely difficult to get back on the mound, focus on baseball and throw strikes.
I’d imagine that not only was Fiers not 100 percent focused on the next pitch, but that a situation like that may weigh heavily in the back of his mind the next few times he takes the mound.
While most of the attention has been centered on Stanton’s recovery – on Friday morning he tweeted “the amount of support I have received from you guys has been tremendous and heartfelt. I’m much better today and deeply appreciate your prayers!” – the baseball community should also take some time to think about Fiers.
Physical injuries are the only ones that land players on the Disabled List, but mental ones can have lasting impacts as well.
Thought You Could Predict Baseball? Guess Again
Just when something appears certain, baseball proves why it is such a beautiful and yet extremely frustrating game.
Remember six weeks ago when the A’s were seemingly on cruise control and there were talks of how this could finally be Billy Beane’s season?
Remember when the Brewers got off to such a fast start and looked poised to take the NL Central?
There was a time when most people could have penciled the A’s and Brewers – although it was still a mystery if they’d win their division or simply clinch a Wild Card spot – into the playoffs and barely would have had to think twice about it.
However, fast forward a bit and baseball has reminded us all that there was a reason we penciled those teams in the playoffs and didn’t use pen.
Nothing is certain in baseball – except maybe Clayton Kershaw winning the NL Cy Young award this season – and that has been proven once again.
The Oakland Athletics – who once had a MLB-best 72-44 record – are 8-19 in their last 27 games and just 2-8 in their last 10.
On August 15th, the A’s were in first place in the AL West. On the 18th, they fell a half game back and it has been downhill for them ever since.
This morning, the A’s woke up seven games behind the Angels in the AL West and barely clinging on to the top spot in the AL Wild Card.
While the meltdown in Oakland has been highly publicized, the collapse in Milwaukee has been shocking as well.
The Brewers demise had been more gradual than the A’s. Milwaukee started the season 20-7 and has played sub-.500 baseball ever since. However, the Brewers have really gone into a tailspin lately as they’ve lost 12 of their last 13 games.
On August 31st the Brewers were tied for the NL Central lead – a position they had held sole possession of for most of the season – and on September 9th the Brewers find themselves six games back.
Changes in the standings happen all the time, especially over the course of a 162 game season and there are plenty of reasons for the way these two teams have played recently.
Some say the Brewers age and health is catching up to them.
Some say the A’s haven’t been the same since Yoenis Cespedes was traded and although numbers certainly say they haven’t been the same team, it’s foolish to think that’s the sole reason they’re struggling.
Maybe it’s just the law of averages over-correcting teams that had spent the bulk of the season playing over their heads.
Whatever the reason may be, the collapses in Milwaukee and Oakland have been just as fascinating as some of the story lines surrounding teams and players making late season charges.
Will the A’s and Brewers put it together with enough time left to salvage the season and get back on track? That remains to be seen.
However, the one thing I know for certain is that baseball is impossible to predict and although speculating is fun, the best bet is simply letting the season play itself out.
Magic Numbers, World Series Favorites, MVP Odds And More
From your basic statistics such as batting average and ERA to more advanced sabermetrics like UZR and BABIP, baseball is a sport littered with numbers.
Baseball fans typically like numbers, so here are some numbers to keep your eyes on for the remainder of the season:
Playoff Clinch Scenarios:
*The Angels can clinch a playoff berth September 10th, the earliest of any team in the Majors.
*The Orioles and Nationals could clinch their divisions (AL and NL East) on September 12th, the earliest of any team.
Magic Numbers To Win Division:
*Orioles magic number is 19
*Royals magic number is 26 (25 to clinch playoff berth)
*Angels magic number is 22 (17 to clinch playoff berth)
*Nationals magic number is 19
*Cardinals magic number is 25 (23 to clinch playoff berth)
*Dodgers magic number is 23 (20 to clinch playoff berth)
Wild Cards:
*A’s magic number to clinch a playoff berth is 21 (22 for the first Wild Card spot)
*Tigers magic number is 25 to clinch a playoff berth
*Giants magic number is 22 to clinch a playoff berth and 24 to host the Wild Card game.
*The Brewers magic number is 24.
Pennant Odds: According to Bovada Sportsbook (http://sports.bovada.lv/)
AL
*Angels – 5/2
*A’s – 7/2
*Orioles and Tigers – 4/1
*Royals – 7/1
*Mariners – 12/1
NL
*Dodgers – 2/1
*Nationals – 5/2
*Cardinals – 5/1
*Brewers and Giants – 7/1
*Braves – 14/1
World Series Odds:
*Angels – 5/1
*Dodgers – 11/2
*Nationals – 6/1
*Orioles and A’s – 7/1
*Tigers – 8/1
AL Cy Young:
*Felix Hernandez -300
*Chris Sale +300
*Max Scherzer +500
AL MVP:
*Mike Trout -200
*Robinson Cano +500
*Jose Abreu +550
NL MVP:
*Clayton Kershaw -150
*Giancarlo Stanton +120
*Andrew McCutchen +1000
There are no odds listed for the NL Cy Young award which is one way of saying congratulations to Clayton Kershaw.
Five National League Storylines To Watch
Believe it or not August is halfway over and the baseball season is racing to a finish. There are plenty of players, story lines and themes expected to develop over the final six weeks of the season as teams make their final pushes toward playoff berths.
This is by no means a comprehensive list, but here are five things – in no particular order – worth watching in the National League as the season winds down.
The Cubs:
The Cubs aren’t making the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth a look. When the Cubs called up prized prospect Javier Baez they instantly made themselves an entertaining team to watch.
With Baez, Starlin Casto, Anthony Rizzo, Arismendy Alcantara, Jake Arrieta and Kyle Hendricks the Cubs are full of young talent.
What makes the Cubs intriguing the rest of the way is the fact that expanded rosters are coming and the Cubs have even more talent in their farm system.
Depending on who the Cubs bring up in September, baseball fans – specifically Chicago fans – will get a glimpse of the future and see what those within the Cubs organization are so excited for the next few years.
The Brewers Pitching Staff:
The Brewers have a two game lead in the NL Central and an 85.2 percent chance of making the playoffs according to Baseball Prospectus, but losing a key member of the starting rotation is never easy.
Pitching is always important, but it seems this time of year the value of a strong staff is amplified. With Matt Garza on the DL (left rib cage strain) there has been a bit of extra pressure on the Brewers pitching staff to fill the void.
In the 11 games since Garza has been out, the Brewers have a team ERA of 2.78 so they are doing a good job of holding it together, but how long can that last?
The Brewers have been in first place for 143 days this season, but are only two games up on the Cardinals.
Cardinals Injuries (Molina, Wacha, Motte):
The Cardinals are two games back in the NL Central and have a game and a half lead in the NL Wild Card race, but how long can they keep it up?
St. Louis has been hit hard with injuries to key players this season and it makes some wonder how they’ve managed to stay afloat.
Michael Wacha has been on the DL since late June with a stress reaction in his right shoulder, Yadier Molina has been on the DL since early July after having thumb surgery and Jason Motte was recently sidelined with a lower back sprain.
While the injury news has been grim for the Cardinals this season, the good news is it looks like they are getting healthier.
Molina caught a bullpen session earlier this week and hopes to start swinging a bat next week while Wacha threw off flat ground this week and has a follow-up MRI set for Monday.
If all goes well, the Cardinals could get Wacha and Molina back in September which would obviously be a huge lift to the organization.
In the meantime, the team needs to continue to find ways to win games and hope there aren’t any setbacks.
The Giants:
The Giants are only a half game out of the Wild Card, but they’re lost six of their last seven games, are just 11-15 since the All-Star break and are falling fast.
San Francisco got off to a hot start this season, but but was sub-.500 in both June and July and are on track to do so again in August.
The Giants have won the World Series in two of the past four seasons so it would be foolish to count out a team with that sort of late-season experience, but lately they are not playing like a team poised for a deep October run.
Clayton Kershaw:
The Dodgers look to be on their way to a second straight NL West crown and if that turns out to be the case, it will be in large part thanks to Clayton Kershaw.
The Cy Young Award frontrunner is 14-2 with a 1.78 ERA this season and has won 11 straight decisions.
Kershaw is widely regarded as the best pitcher in baseball and although everyone knows how good he is, he’s on the list for one plain and simple reason.
Whenever he pitches, you should watch.
Regardless of how you feel about the Dodgers, watching Kershaw pitch is a great experience for any baseball fan.
Kershaw is truly one of those very special players that only comes around every so often and as the season winds down, it will be fun to watch him pitch on meaningful October nights.
Boor on Baseball 