Milwaukee Brewers offseason moves and outlook

The Brewers continued their slide in the standings in 2013.  After winning the division in 2011, they fell to 3rd in 2012 before finishing 4th in 2011.  The only thing keeping them out of the NL Central basement was the woeful Cubs.

Here's a look at what they did this offseason to try to prevent further slippage:

Key Losses

Norichika Aoki, Corey Hart

Key Acquisitions

Matt Garza, Will Smith, Mark Reynolds, Zach Duke

The Brewers recent addition of Matt Garza helps improve a starting rotation that finished 11th among NL starters.  Holdovers Yovani Gallardo, Kyle Lohse, Marco Estrada and Wily Peralta will round out the rotation.  The keys for the Brewers are the health of Garza and Estrada and improvement from Gallardo and Peralta.

In the pen, journeyman Jim Henderson returns as closer with Brandon Kintzler as the likely setup man.  Beyond that, its anybody's guess who will round out the pen, which is in a state of flux after the departures of former closer John Axford and middle reliever Burke Badenhop.

On the offensive side, the team will get a boost from the return of Ryan Braun from his PED suspension.  However, they will need more than that to bolster an offense that finished 8th in the NL in runs scored.

The biggest hole from last season was first base, where the Brewers finished last in the NL in OPS (.629).  Mark Reynolds was brought aboard on a minor league deal to battle Juan Francisco for the starting job, but neither one is a long-term answer.

Also unsettled is the second base job, which has been held by Rickie Weeks for the last 9 years (when healthy).  However, after a disappointing 2013 season, in which he posted the lowest average (.209) and OPS (.663) of his career, he will be pushed by youngster Scooter Gennett, who hit a robust .324/.356/.479 in 2013 (in 213 at bats).

In the outfield, Kris Davis will take over for the departed Norchika Aoki and provides a more typical power profile befitting of a corner outfielder.  The rest of the lineup is set with Jonathan Lucroy catching, Jean Segura at short, Aramis Ramirez at third and Carlos Gomes in center.

Overall, the hitting should improve and the pitching will likely improve as well, but I don't think its enough to push the Brewers into the upper division.  They should be a .500 team and could push the Reds for third place, but are unlikely to battle for the division crown.

CFCL Bold Predictions: NL Central

Continuing the United Cardinals Bloggers March project, today I'll take a look at the NL Central or the only division that matters.  All of my fellow Cardinals bloggers will be making their predictions as well and you can follow them at the UCB website.

Now, without further ado, here are my projected standings for the NL Central:

1. St. Louis Cardinals
2. Cincinnati Reds
3. Pittsburgh Pirates
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Chicago Cubs

First off, I'm a Cardinals fan so I have to pick the Cards to finish first.  However, its not just my heart saying that, I think the talent is definitely there to claim the Central crown, they just need to stay healthy.  A full year from Allen Craig should help bolster the offense and with Adam Wainwright one more year removed from Tommy John surgery, he should be capable of resuming his role of staff ace.  Predicted Record:  95-67

The Reds will be the closest competition for the Cards.  They traded for Shin-Soo Choo in the offseason to give them a legitimate center fielder and Todd Frazier should be able to replace the retired (?) Scott Rolen.  However, the key to their offense will be keeping Joey Votto healthy.  Their pitching should be strong again, with Johnny Cueto and Mat Latos headlining the rotation and Aroldis Chapman throwing heat out of the pen.  Predicted Record:  93-69 (Wild Card)


Pittsburgh keeps tantalizing their fans with the hope of a .500 season and 2013 might finally be their year to get over the hump.  Starling Marte is a budding star and will join superstar Andrew McCutchen in the outfield.  Their current pitching staff is pretty pedestrian, but when you consider that veterans Francisco Liriano and Jeff Karstens are probably just vying their time until top prospects Gerrit Cole and Jameson Taillon are ready, the pitching staff could end up being their strength by the end of the year.  Predicted Record:  87-75

The Brewers traded away their best pitcher, Zach Greinke, last year and lost Shawn Marcum to free agency.  Recent signing Kyle Lohse should help lessen those losses and Yovanni Gallardo remains, but there are questions beyond that.  Marco Estrada and Michael Fiers caught the league by surprise last year and it remains to be seen if they can repeat  that performance now that the league has the "book" on them.  The offense will continue to be good, with Ryan Braun leading the way, but it may not be enough to overcome the lack of quality pitching.  Predicted Record:  85-77

The Cubs continue to rebuild.  They added some much needed arms to the pitching staff in Edwin Jackson, Scott Baker, Scott Feldman, Carlos Villanueva and Japanese import Kyuji Fujikawa, to go along with Matt Garza and budding ace Jeff Samardzija.  However, their anemic offense will hold them back.  They have some building blocks in Anthony Rizzo and Starlin Castro, but not much else.  Predicted Record: 67-95

Up next will be the NL West.