Title: Milwaukee- Princes of the Central Division
LillyRocks - August 21, 2007 08:27 PM (GMT)
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| Early on in the 2007 baseball season, the Milwaukee Brewers have seemed to emerge as an elite force in the big leagues. One could compare the Brewers to a team of princes in a division of paupers, but what needs to be realized is they will be potentially facing kings. Struggling as of late, the Brewers are finding themselves in a three team pennant chase consisting of St. Louis, Chicago and their team. The Brewers have found themselves relying on young talent with several veterans to win games, and that formula has meant immediate sucsess through most stretches of the season. Let's just check the Brewers stacked infielders for example. Matching them up with the rest of the NL Central infields, you'd think it would be tight, but the stats prove otherwise. A slumping Cardinals infield and a seemingly powerless Cubs infield has left the Brewers outstanding infielders a time of glory. For now. Prince Fielder might just be the future of baseball, as he is hammering his way to National League Most Valuable Player. Ryan Braun has also demonstrated amazing power, looking forward to taking the Rookie of the Year honors. J.J. Hardy has also emerged as a young talent from the shortstop position, hitting homeruns that are beyond consistent given his position. They also have Rickie Weeks playing second base who has been used mostly for fielding purposes. Could this possibly be the future infield that gives the Major Leagues a show to look forward to? I certainly think so. There isn't an infield in the game that can match their power and potential.  Prince Fielder is the greatness behind the Brewers sucsess. The outfield has been an exceptional key for the Brewers, the point of their team in which they fused together veterans and youngsters. Geoff Jenkins and Kevin Mench are the anchors of the outstanding outfield, alongside future greats such as Bill Hall, Corey Hart and Gabe Gross. As this outfield may not seem as stacked as the infield, it certainly is a major improvement. Taking away Carlos Lee subtracts the power, but leaves the younger players in the ballgames to gather experience and blossom into all stars. The pitching rotation has been a stellar mix of young players with veterans. Ben Sheets has been a major improvement given the new run support the Brewer have obtained, and seems to be unstoppable when the time is right. Aside from injuries to the Brewers ace, Sheets has made the best of his time in the first spot. Chris Capuano hasn't done the best of his ability, though, struggling as of late. David Bush is third in the rotation, and has been average. Definately a good player coming from the number three slot. Claudio Vargas pitches fourth and has the potential to be the number two pitcher. He has had an outstanding season and has given the Brewers victories at the bottom of the rotation. Jeff Suppan may be on of the best pitchers from the fifth spot in the National League Central division. He hasn't been perfect, but he has posted numbers above average for someone from the fifth spot. The rotation has been a key factor of Milwaukee's sucsess, anchoring them when they needed to win down the stretches. The bullpen is a big part of the team, even though it has struggled at times. If you have Derek Turnbow in the 8th to set-up the save for Francisco Cordero, your going to win a lot of close games. Francisco Cordero has 31 saves on the year, which is a pretty good number for a closer in the majors. Some relief assistance from Scott Linebrink, Carlos Villaneuva and Chris Spurling have accelerated these Brewers.  Can the ace play his cards right and aid the Brewers playoff push? Ned Yost has been touted as an offensive mastermind this year. Brewers faithful and bandwagoners alike will agree on the fact that Yost has definately turned this baseball team around and got them on the winning track. They posted astounding numbers to begin the season, and look forward to closing it out the same way. It's all a luck of the draw for the Milwaukee Brewers this year. Can the young talent combine to get a playoff run? Probably. The way this Brewer team comes together is amazing and impressive at the same time. The chemistery behind this team makes you want to attend games. It what makes fans who they are and what makes them love the game. The Milwaukee Brewers are your aces of the NL Central. |