Rounding the First Quarter Pole...

Hey, Super General Managers!!! What's Up?!?!?

Alright, we're ROUGHLY a quarter of the way through the season.

Brewers fans are already having all sharp objects removed, and are being placed in straight jackets.... I was gonna say "More on that later", but let's just jump in. Last night the Twins Bashed the Brewers Brains in... Dave Bush records 1 out, ONE, gives up seven runs, and has to be lifted... Also nearly got in a brawl with the Home Plate umpire, and had to be restrained by Prince Fielder.

That pretty much sums up our starting pitching. And our bullpen is so gassed, it's not even funny.

If I'm Ken Macha, and the season is going the way it's going, I seriously would leave him out there. Leave him. I'd send Rick Peterson out there and tell him "Skipper says you're finishing the inning, even if we're still here tomorrow morning."

Yeah, Brewers are coming off a 9 game losing streak, we won one, now we're starting another losing streak. Kathy, The Doctor of the Dugout, is so thrilled.

She wanted the Twins. I got the Twins. Twins are leading their division. Nice.

I also have the Houston Astros. Thank God for the Astros. Thank You, Astros. Thank you.

Why am I thanking the Astros?? Because WITHOUT them, the Brewers would be the WORST team in the National League. Their pitching ace Roy Oswalt wants out, and is willing to waive his no-trade clause. Yikes.

Anyway, let's flip back thru the draft, see if anyone is doing anything:

Erv, the Super General Manager:

Yankees: Why did the bring Javier Vasquez back?? Didn't he prove he couldn't pitch in New York?? That's okay. At 26-16, if it wasn't for those pesky Tampa Bay Rays, The Yankees would have the best Record in the AL.

San Francisco Giants: They are above .500. Promising young staff. They are losing to my Oakland A's as we speak.

Texas Rangers: Rangers are leading the AL West, not too shabby.

Cincinnatti Reds: Reds are a half game back in the NL Central, right behind the Cardinals. They're 7-3 in their last ten. We can safely say they are a surprise.

Toronto Blue Jays: Sadly, the Blue Jays are in the AL East. They are 25-19, and would be tied (in the win column) for the lead in either of the other two AL Divisions.

Cadillac Pat:

The LA Angels are doing nothing for me. sub 500. And now all I read is that this is the year they fall apart.

The Dodgers are on a 9-1 tear of late, and are tied for the lead in the NL West with the Padres.

Could someone have mentioned to me before the draft that the owner is getting a messy divorce, and is not spending any money??? Could someone wake up Manny and give him his pills??

The Twins are leading their division.

The Rays are shocking me. Full credit to Tripp, he said he liked that pick. I'm starting to see why. Wow. Beating the Yanks. Crushing the Red Sox. Hmmm.

The Atlanta Braves are on a 4 game inning streak, but have a ways to go...

The Oakland A's aren't doing much, besides hanging around .500. Longtime A's superstar Eric Chavez has 2 bulging disks in his neck, and his career may be over. Ben Sheets has thrown 3 quality starts in his last 3 games... Only won 2, the third was a 2-1 loss given up by his bullpen...

(Erv is sticking another pin in his Ben Sheets voodoo doll right now...)

Kathy, "The Doctor of the Dugout":

Well, the Phillies are cruising. Best Record in the NL. What can you say?? The couple times I've seen them, they look great.

The Detroit Tigers are 1 game back of the Twinkies.

The Mets, with their staggering payroll, and looming expectations, are imploding. 2-8 in their last ten tries. Charlie Manuel, don't bother sending in that house payment, you're leaving soon.

Padres are tied for the lead in the West, as we discussed.

The upstart Washington Nationals are counting the days until Steven Strasburg is called up, and dominates in the Majors. They're around .500 now... They bring up Strasburg, he's everything he's supposed to be, who knows. Stay tuned.

And Tripp, the Triple Threat:

Red Sox: Is it too soon for Sox fans to push the panic button?? NO. Go ahead and panic. This team feels like a .500 team. Now, David Ortiz has started to hit again. The roids are kicking in. So, that's a good sign, but for a team that is built on getting on base and playing defense, they're defense isn't good, and they are missing that "timely hitting" ingredient....

Cardinals: I wanted the Cardinals, but Tripp got them. They are leading the central, and besides the Reds, no one is close. Nor will they be. Pujols is having a slightly down year, his OPS is "only" about 1.0... He's hitting .316. Ryan Ludwick is on an 8 game hitting streak. They'll be fine.

Mariners, ouch. Is it bad if players are asleep during games??? Or, if you have Milton Bradley, and he goes psycho?? Yeah, that's bad.

Cubs. Well, bad for Tripp, but good for Brewer fans: Cubs are melting down. Lou Piniella is unravelling before our eyes. Zambrano to the pen, and now back into the rotation. Brewer fans are drinking this in, and loving it...

Marlins, .500.

Indians, ugh!! I feel sick, where's the wastebasket...

Royals, Orioles... Excuse me....

Okay, I'm back. That was rough. Whew.

So, what have we learned???

Well, we've learned that this pool is wide open.

If you're Erv, and you have the Yankees, you love it.

If you're Patrick, and you have the Rays, you love it. (And, you're soo crazy lucky, your first 3 draft picks stink, but your 4th round Rays are tearing it up. I admit it.)

If you're Kathy, you're loving those Phillies.

If you're Tripp, you have the fundamentally sound Cardinals, and you love it.

Really, if the playoffs started right this second, it's Rays-Yanks to represent the AL, and Phillies-Cards to represent the NL. The pool is wide open.

Until next time!