This one's for you, Bud

Below is the entirety (absent my address) of my letter to Bud Selig regarding the decision not allow the Mets to wear first responder caps on September 11th.

The Office of the Commissioner of Baseball

Allan H. (Bud) Selig, Commissioner

245 Park Avenue, 31st Floor

New York, NY 10167

Dear Mr. Selig,

I consider myself to be a tremendous fan of baseball.  I love the history, the records, the intelligence of the game.  It is my favorite sport.  But, I was sorely disappointed to learn of the decision made to prohibit the New York Mets from wearing caps honoring the Fire Department of New York, the New York Police Department and the Port Authority Police Department during the game on Sunday, September 11, 2011, the 10th anniversary of the worst terror attacks on American soil.  I was further disappointed to learn of your own reaction to your decision being publicly disseminated.

The Mets intended to continue wearing these caps after the pre-game ceremony, but Major League Baseball adamantly prohibited this and according to a Mets player, physically confiscated the caps.  This decision is unbelievably hard-hearted and oblivious and it speaks to tone-deaf corporatism.  Joe Torre, Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations, released a statement that essentially attributed the decision to a desire to maintain consistency amongst teams and minimize the need to choose sides.

I lost no family or friend in the 9/11 attacks, nor do I even know someone who lost someone.  But I do know I am an American and every American lost something that day.  A decision based on the idea that allowing the Mets to wear these caps would be “choosing sides” is offensive.  And frankly, MLB’s desire for consistency is hypocritical.  On April 13, 2009, the Pittsburgh Pirates replaced the normal team caps with those displaying “Pittsburgh Police” to honor 3 police officers killed in the line of duty shortly prior to the game.  And that was the home opener!  They wore them the entire game.  The Mets wore first responder caps when baseball resumed approximately one week after the 9/11 attacks. 

Then, today, I learned that you called the Mets and personally rebuked the Mets for “leaking” the decision.  Mr. Selig, I have to say, that is utterly preposterous.  Frankly, you are in charge of running a very public sports league.  Every decision you make is subject to public scrutiny.  To not have wanted this decision to be released means you wanted no one to know it was made.  If you take anything away from this, it should be that if you make a decision and don’t want anyone to know of it, it’s most certainly the wrong decision.

And that’s the final point here.  You may claim Mr. Torre made the decision.  You may claim it was made by several people after careful consideration.  But, you are the Commissioner.  Every decision made in MLB is ultimately your own.  You could have easily overturned this decision.  You did not.  I hold you and only you responsible for this crass and impossibly silly decision.  I’ve lost a great deal of respect I’ve always held for you in the past.  You can regain this respect by apologizing.  No “We’re sorry for any offense some may have had” apology.  A real “I was completely and utterly wrong. Period.” apology.

A decision to wear the caps would have cost MLB nothing in terms of money or brand equity.  It absolutely would set no precedent.  (Who would ask for permission to wear “Save the Whales” caps based on a precedent of “You did it on 9/11!”?  No one).  I urge you to consider the effect your decisions have on people more carefully and recognize that MLB lost a great opportunity to cement its place--one in which people saw baseball as such an important part of recovery after 9/11.

I welcome any contact you may want to make to discuss my concerns or your position.  I can be reached by phone at xxx-xxx-xxxx by email at corey.a.heim@hotmail.com or on Twitter at @brewfangrb.

Sincerely yours,

Corey Heim

What was MLB thinking? Were they?

Tonight's game at Citi Field between the Mets and Cubs featured a very well done pre-game ceremony honoring the members of the FDNY, NYPD, PAPD and NYC's EMS.  It also included many of Tuesday's Children (children of victims of 9/11), who entered the field with Mets players.

During the pre-game ceremony, the players and coaches wore FDNY, NYPD and PAPD caps...and planned to wear them during the game.  MLB entered the picture and forbade them from doing so, under threat of a "very heavy fine" to the team.  Now, clearly MLB threatened the team with a fine, because if they threatened to or actually did fine a player for wearing the highly offensive cap, the MLBPA would have wiped the floor with MLB.

Then, we received word of the utterly preposterous statement from Joe Torre, in which he claimed he made the decision to not allow the caps, under the pretense of not wanting to "pick sides" (uhh, there's a big competition between NYPD and LAPD at a Mets home game? What did I miss here?) and a desire for things to be "consistent".  Uhh, what about in the first game after play resumed after 9/11, in which this EXACT thing happened?  As Keith Olbermann indicated in a tweet, the Mets had to fight for that, but MLB ultimately allowed it.

I still fully intend to write a letter to MLB condemning such a foolish stance and if I do, I'll share it here.  I'm not so enraged over this decision over mere jingoism or "you do this, the terrorists win" silliness.  I am anti-stupidity.  There was no reason, at all, for this decision.  It was an utterly stupid decision to make in the first place and a stupid situation where none of the adults at MLB reversed it.

If Joe Torre really did make this decision all on his own, he should be removed from his position and put out to pasture.  If you really can't take a situation like "Oh, 10th anniversary of 9/11, you want to wear caps honoring the firefighters and police?" and come up with anything other than "OK", then you can't be trusted to make truly important decisions like expanding replay and evaluating other truly meaningful on-field issues.  If this was a group decision and Torre was the patsy, I'm not sure that's better--so more than 1 person all agreed this was right?

What a pitiful way to draw attention from a day/night where there should have only been ONE THING in focus.  I'll always remember the sacrifices made 10 years ago...and trust me, Joe Torre and Bud Selig, I'll never forget the decision you made today.  No check that--you're not worth the use of that heartfelt phrase--to never forget.  Instead, I think I'd rather just forget men like you are in charge of the game I love.

Wow, what a day!

Today's game featured some of the most remarkable defensive play I've seen generally and easily the best defensive performance of the season for the Brewers.  Much of that good defense was certainly assisted by somewhat bizarre (and in some cases, downright inept) baserunning by the Dodgers.  But great teams take advantage of mistakes by opponents and importantly, don't let them recover.  The triple play really was something to behold--it wasn't one of those that you say "Hey, it might be...it could be..." because at least on TV, you didn't see Kemp trying to score until Prince threw home.  He really, really struggled with that throw in the first few months of season, but has done much better in his last 3 or 4 attempts.

And Pittsburgh has a very old population with few babies, so the Cardinals suffered a 6-2 loss.  That gives the Brewers a 6 game lead over St Louis and they are 20 games over .500.  Their magic # is 35!  Much of the good things about the Brewers have been beat to death, so looking at St Louis for the moment, they still must be viewed as dangerous.  40 games is still a lot and as injuries the team's already suffered have shown, anything bad could happen between now and the end of the season.  First, I hope that doesn't happen to begin with, but it occurs to me that the team is so deep, it can make it through anything short of complete catastrophe.  (I won't say it "aloud" even though I'm not superstitious and just let you define "complete catastrophe).  I find myself rushing to the mailbox everyday to see if my invoice for playoff tickets has arrived.  (Then, I just gotta hope I can make the money work--I'll be utterly crushed if I can't).

Signing off with a note of relief that both Taylor Jungmann and Jed Bradley for what I believe to be perfectly reasonable money.  (Forget the slot #'s, they're utter nonsense without a rule requiring they be followed).  It'd be nice to see Jungmann in September next year for his cup of coffee and bullpen help.  It does make me dream of signing Greinke to an extension and these guys coming up to support him in the starting rotation.

Last note:  Am I the only one who keeps forgetting Greinke is only 28??  Wow...

Who would have thought?

The Brewers' performance of late is some of the best proof you could ask for that PITCHING MATTERS.  In the last 2 games, the offense scored 3 runs, but won both games.  The defense today again let the pitching down and against any other effective offense, the Brewers easily would have lost today.  But, Saito did a great job (again) and Axford was Ax.  Bigger to me, though:  Marcum with a very trying and difficult 1st inning that required 22 (?) pitches...but he pitched like a man, got through 7 innings (check that: 7.2!) with no other runs.  That's just---well, I can't even really describe it.  How about this:  The Brewers have the best ERA in the NL since the All-Star Break.

I think what I am taking away over the last 2 weeks is cliche, but still true:  They do just what they need do to win and that players that CARE make a difference.  You can get a summary anywhere, so I'll keep that out here...but I have a question:   In the 8th inning, can anyone really explain why Hairston pinch ran for Lucroy anyway?  I mean, Kottaras did come in at catcher in the top of the 9th, but he didn't have to--Lucroy could have caught and George could have still pinch hit when Wilson's spot came up in the 10th.  I must be missing something here because there's no way Hairston is THAT much faster that Lucroy.  In the succinct words of @mykenk: #whatever.

And the 10th is just another chapter in the Nyjer Morgan goofy saga.  Personally, I think the best part was the Al-like stare down of a routine fly ball.  (Nevermind that it drove in the game-winning run).

Let me just wrap with Counsell.  He really has no place on the team.  He actually is probably the best defensive infielder not on the DL, but honestly, every starting pitcher is probably a better hitter than he is at this point.  The Brewers are either just that good that it doesn't matter or they've been lucky that their best play of the year has come with Weeks out and Counsell's ineffectiveness is hidden.  Either way, it's obvious he's not going anywhere--especially with roster expansion only 2 weeks away, it makes little difference.  But, RRR MUST, MUST, MUST stop starting him.  It's going to come back and bite the team in the ass eventually.  I'll stop here--but I've got high praise for Yuni in a later post.  Hopefully with the playoff push coming, I'll be able to post a little more often.  I promise: Unless it's huge or breaking, nothing Packers until at least the day after the first regular season game (and even then, just probably a commentary on the game).

Is it Possible?

We can all talk about how the last six games are games the Brewers "should have won anyway", like they are unimportant or don't matter.  But even the worst team DOES win games occasionally and wins are wins when it comes down to the final record.  So this streak is very important.

The pitching--starters, middle relief, end of game--have been truly remarkable.  It's provided a quality start (pretty meaningless stat, but it does show the consistency over time) in nearly every game for 2 weeks.  This isn't totally unexpected or fluky.

The real question is, with the trading deadline having passed with the Brewers acquiring ok depth for the infield, but no difference makers, can the Brewers survive with Casey McGehee playing regularly at 3B and Yuni at SS?

The answer, like most answers tend be, is "it depends".  IF (a big IF) Yuni can remain reasonably productive offensively with the occasional "What you are DOING??" moment defensively, I'm now actually ok with him there.  Even a month ago, Casey was the bigger concern and honestly, that remains true today.  He's hit SOMEWHAT better over the last month, but is still short of what is needed and he's woefully inadequate defensively.  The real issue is a player could turn it around offensively far more easily than they can become good defensive players.  (Especially with Casey because he's slow and has limited range).

With the pickup of Hairston and Lopez, Roenicke MUST start giving consistent playing time to Hairston (putting him and Lopez at whatever position they perform best--they are both versatile to play either 2B/3B consistently and while not ideal, either can play SS).  The defense must be put out there to help the pitching, but NEVER again this season should that desire for defense trump utter offensive ineptitude like that of Craig Counsell.

That means Counsell has to be released.  It will be painful and a slap to his pride and the "hometown guy".  But if there are players that provide the defense RR wants and provide better offense, then Counsell is not useful as either a defensive replacement or a late-inning pinch hitter.

The Brewers are in control of the division and their playoff future.  I hope every decision (of both action and inaction) the team makes is one that helps keep that control.

Does Prince need to sit?

Nah, I'm not saying for days and days or anything...but just a day or 2.

To my eye, he's pressing.  His at-bat in the 9th inning exemplified that more than any other at-bat I've seen from ANY batter this year.  Of course, I'm not saying he's hit the wall or is terrible.  With Yuni, incessant pop ups and weak grounders are expected.  But in that 9th inning, Prince just waved at 3 straight pitches that were close-ish, but easily off the plate and not particularly nasty.

He's lost much of the plate discipline and patience we saw earlier this year and much of last year that basically forced the pitcher to walk him because he just wasn't going to switch at a pitch he couldn't hit.  Additionally, with Rickie behind Prince for the last 6 games (right, 6?), the pitcher at least has had to pause and just not just give Prince the unintentional, intentional walk.

I know Prince wants to play everyday and I absolutely HATE taking a legitimate bat out of the lineup, but I think it's for the greater good to just give him a day or 2.

I've been absent for a bit, so I want to do a quick hit, but hopefully, I can put together a more complete post on options for the left side of the infield.  (Hint: See the title of the blog).

What does the trade for K-Rod do for the Brewers?

The news of the trade of 2 players to be named later for Francisco Rodriguez broke minutes after the All-Star Game ended last night.  The very first tweet I got on the issue was from Jon Heyman and I was literally typing a reply to him along the lines of "Huh?  Is this a butt tweet?  A tweet intended to be a direct message?  A tweet sent before it was finished?"  But more and more news came out on it and I realized it was real.

My first reaction was "meh", "uggh" and "But wait, we still have huge problems at SS and 3B?"  As debate went on over whether the move was smart, whether it helped the Brewers, what it cost them, etc I came around to realize that it PROBABLY helps the team.

The players on the list from which the 2 TBNL will be chosen are likely to mid-level (at least relative to the players in the organization) but nothing major or game-changing.  This is a pure salary dump by the Mets and even then, not really a salary "dump", but rather a desperation move to avoid the vesting of the option on K-Rod's contract for 2012.  (It requires 100 games finished in 2010-2011 AND 55 games finished in 2011).  He had 46 games finished in 2010 and has 34 already this year.  20 would get him to the 100, but he needs 21 to get to the 55.  Much like most of the internet realized, there is no way he finishes 21 games this year.  Even if John Axford is catastrophically injured or implodes, a) there aren't likely to be a HUGE number of save opportunities anyway and b) K-Rod could still finish 20 games and avoid the vesting option...and the Brewers can use other options to fill the need (Saito/Hawkins/Loe).  It's a non-issue.

If he can keep his focus and not make an issue of not being "the closer", K-Rod definitely gives the Brewers a much more stable option in the 8th.  His WHIP is a little sketchy (certainly not truly dominant like he was in years past), but his K/9 is still nice at 9.7 and can put movement on a fastball in the low 90's.  I believe the real benefit is this lets RRR truly go on matchups rather than roles.  I think for a long time, he was locked into Loe as 8th inning guy because Saito was injured, and maybe he didn't trust Hawkins.  But with K-Rod easily being able to go 2 or 3 days in a row, Loe can be used against RHB where he has a huge advantage and K-Rod can still be used occasionally to spell Axford to close.  (That makes the Brewers bullpen very dangerous if RRR can push Ax 3 games in a row and not have to really worry about the next day knowing he can use K-Rod to close there if he has to).

Taking on financial costs in this trade, rather than giving up much in the way of talent still leaves Melvin with a few (a very few) pieces to try to execute a trade for SS help.  But, honestly, I am still very committed to the idea now that they might as well stick with Yuni and IF McGehee just continues to struggle, they must call up Taylor Green at least to TRY to see if he can succeed in the majors at 3B.  I do not want Furcal--who is an improvement, but too much of an injury risk---and the rest of the possible trade options just don't offer enough improvement over Yuni (how sad is THAT?).