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August 19, 2009

On the Beat

Midweek Update

by John Perrotto

Ken Macha has a unique term to describe the Brewers’ schedule for the final month and change of the season: "It’s a full cheeseburger." Indeed, the Brewers’ late-season slate is like more like a triple cheeseburger from Wendy’s with every topping imaginable piled on than, say, a cheeseburger in paradise. The Brewers play 32 games over the final 34 days, and all but six will be against teams currently in contention for a playoff spot. They will play the National League Central-leading Cardinals nine times, the Cubs seven times, the Phillies four times, and the Giants and Rockies three times each.

However, chewing through that tough schedule represents the Brewers’ only hope of getting back into the postseason a year after making their first playoff appearance since 1982 last October. They have a lot of ground to make up in both the NL Central and wild-card races, but they do play most of the teams in front of them. The Brewers are in third place in the division with a 58-61 record, nine games behind the Cardinals, and three in back of the Cubs. The Brewers are sixth in the wild-card standings, and eight games behind the leading Rockies.

"We control our own destiny and that’s always a good thing, but we’re obviously going to need a great finish," Macha said. "We’re going to have to play our best baseball of the year from here on out. Really, though, it’s pointless to look too far ahead. We just need to take care of business now."

The Brewers can make their monumental task seem a little less daunting if they can beat up on the some of the NL’s weaker teams here at the end of August. They finish a three-game series against the Pirates in Pittsburgh tonight, then stay on the road for four games with the Nationals beginning Friday night before returning home next week for three-game series with first the Reds and then the Pirates again.

If there is at least a ray of hope for the Brewers, it is that they are close to getting two of their injured starting pitchers back from the disabled list. Dave Bush is tentatively scheduled to pitch the final game of the series against the National next Monday, and Jeff Suppan is expected to start the next night against the Reds. Bush (0.8 WXRL) and Suppan (0.6) have barely been above replacement this season. In terms of SNWP, Bush and Suppan have been terrible (.445 and .419, respectively), but they will certainly be improvements on what the Brewers are running out there in a season following the departures of CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets as free agents. Beyond emerging ace Yovani Gallardo (4.4 SNLVAR), Braden Looper (1.0) is the only other starter even a full victory above replacement level, but his .429 SNWP suggest he's another part of the problem in a weak unit. The bullpen has been a little bit better as closer Trevor Hoffman has 2.145 WXRL and has been set up ably by Todd Coffey (2.095) and left-hander Mitch Stetter (1.298). Still, the Brewers are 15^th in the NL in runs allowed with an average of 5.1 a game, ahead of only the Nationals.