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The O' BlogBut do the Brewers want to sign him? FOX Sports is reporting that Washburn has interest in pitching for either the Crew or the Minnesota Twins, thereby allowing him to finish his career close to home.
Minnesota and Milwaukee would both like to add veteran pitching. For Washburn, they hold the additional appeal of being located relatively close to his offseason home in Webster, Wis.
"The Twins and Brewers are both on the radar for me," Washburn said. "The thought of playing close to home has always appealed to me, and I think both of those teams would be good fits for me.
"I don't know yet if either of those teams have mutual interest, but we will see."
In other Brewers news, the Journal Sentinel's Tom Haudricourt tweets that it would be a "huge upset if Mark Mulder doesn't try his comeback attempt in the Brewers' spring camp." Could these be the two starting pitchers that GM Doug Melvin was talking about in his season-ending press conference? Would the Brewers really forego more expensive (and probably talented) options like John Lackey or Randy Wolf for one pitcher coming off knee surgery and another who hasn't thrown in two years?
We'll discuss on Brewers Weekly at 8:00 tonight. From my weekly column at SportsBubbler.com:
One of the worst-kept secrets in Major League Baseball (other than steroids) is that the Milwaukee Brewers need starting pitching...desperately. With a 5.37 ERA that ranked last in the National League in 2009, the rotation is in dire need of an upgrade or Milwaukee risks another generation of missed postseasons and second-guessing.
The first priority will be replacing Braden Looper, whose $6.5 million option was declined last week. His 5.22 ERA and team-record 39 home runs surrendered won't be missed, but his 194.2 innings pitched and team-high 14 wins surely will.
But how will the Brewers replace him? With a potential 20-game winner or a serviceable starter who will come at a much more affordable price? Milwaukee stands at the unenviable crossroads of high-priced quality and low-cost quantity, and the road they travel could shape the direction of the franchise for years to come.
That road will probably lead them to one (or maybe two) of these five pitchers:
Seriously, Melvin Costa? Seriously?
As if the Nazi eagle and swastika on his chest weren't bad enough, the MMA fighter's stomach appears to inform opponents that he is, um, somewhat deficient. Take a closer look:
Yes, that does say what you think it says. And no, I would never make fun of it to Costa's face, either.
It was sloppy. It was painfully dull. It was scoreless until two seconds before halftime. Ultimately, though, it was a Packers win when they most desperately needed it, and that is all that matters.
The Packers are once again blissfully average.
If they can capitalize and string some wins together, they may end up re-drawing the playoff picture, but now the focus must be on running the fundamentally sound, nearly mistake-free defense that destroyed Dallas. There were no missed coverage assignments, no massive second-level holes that all but guarantee 10-yard runs, no non-existent pass rush. Only brilliance.
So how exactly did Dom Capers and Company right the ship against the hottest team in football a week after being humbled by the hapless Buccaneers? They kept it simple. Instead of complicated stunts and zone blitzes, the defense relied on its athleticism to keep the pressure on. Instead of looking lost and skittish in the 3-4, the players for the first time in a long time looked comfortable and collected and absolutely nothing like the unit that blew and 11-point lead in Tampa.
The offense, meanwhile, stalled often in the first half, but Rodgers came through with two big scores when it mattered, and Ryan Grant was able to establish the run late and milk enough clock to render the Cowboys' last three drives essentially meaningless. The line held up as well as could be expected, yet it remains clear that for the rest of the season Green Bay will win in spite of it, not because of it.
The Packers are still far from perfect--and probably far from able to consistently play as well as they did this Sunday--but they did score a season-saving win, and for that fans should be relieved.
At least until the next loss has them calling for McCarthy's and Thompson's heads again.... Here are the two press releases I just received from the Brewers:
MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee Brewers today declined the 2010 mutual option on RHP Braden Looper. The announcement was made by Executive Vice President and General Manager Doug Melvin.Looper, 35, went 14-7 with a 5.22 ERA in 34 starts for the Brewers in 2009. He signed with Milwaukee as a free agent on February 12. He made at least 30 starts for the third straight season and established a career-high with 14 wins. He also set a franchise record with 39 home runs allowed, which led the Major Leagues, while also leading the league in runs allowed (123) and earned runs allowed (113).
INF Craig Counsell and RHP David Weathers have elected free agency. The 40-man roster now stands at 35.
Very, very interesting that they didn't pick up Looper's option. This makes me think that the Crew already has his replacement in mind, and will in all likelihood announce a signing early next week. Could it be John Lackey? Unlikely, but not beyond the realm of possibility. Will it be Jarrod Washburn or Doug Davis? Or maybe new Brewers pitching coach Rick Peterson will try to revive the careers of Mark Mulder or Ben Sheets
In other Brewers news, I spoke with third baseman Casey McGehee on Brewers Weekly last night and he talked about his knee surgery, being a candidate for National League Rookie of the Year, and how the Crew can improve in 2010.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW
MLB.com's Adam McCalvy is reporting that Brewers GM Doug Melvin met with free agent ace John Lackey's agent Steve Hilliard at the general managers' meetings this week.
He also reportedly met in Chicago with the representatives for free-agent veterans Randy Wolf and Doug Davis, and reached out earlier this offseason to the agent for left-hander Mark Mulder, who missed all of 2009 following shoulder surgery.
Lackey, 31, has pitched all eight of his Major League seasons for the Angels and is 102-71 with a 3.81 ERA. He missed the start of each of the past two seasons with arm injuries, but nonetheless has made at least 24 starts in all seven of his full Major League seasons.
Lackey and Wolf are both Type A free agents, so the Brewers would have to surrender a pick in next year's Draft for either player. Since the Brewers own the 14th selection, their first-round pick is protected and they would have to give up a second-rounder to the Angels (for Lackey) or the Dodgers (for Wolf).
I'm still not sure if the Brewers have the financial resources to sign Lackey--especially since he reportedly wants more than the $82 million the Yankees gave A.J. Burnett last offseason--but it appears clear that Melvin was serious when he said that he wants to add two quality starting pitchers.
We'll discuss the possibility of signing the class of the free agent starters tonight at 8:00 on Brewers Weekly, and also check in with third baseman Casey McGehee.
From my weekly column at SportsBubbler.com:
Embarrassing. Demoralizing. Possibly season-ending. The Packers' 38-28 loss to the previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers was all of those and more, since it forced even the most diehard of cheeseheads to question the direction of their beloved franchise.
Just two months removed from being everyone's darkhorse Super Bowl contender, the Packers find themselves .500 at the year's midway mark and wobbling under the weight of hefty preseason predictions.
This isn't a Super Bowl team. Heck, it probably isn't a playoff team.
So who is to blame for the debacle that is 2009? General Manager Ted Thompson failed to pick an offensive lineman in the first three rounds of any of his drafts, and now Aaron Rodgers spends more time on the grass than The Grateful Dead. Head Coach Mike McCarthy looks more lost on the sidelines than his defense does trying to grasp the 3-4. But does either deserve to pay with his job?
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST AT SPORTSBUBBLER.COM
No, but he IS attempting to "rejuvenate" his skin...something I personally never thought I'd see a former professional athlete attempt (okay, okay--maybe Chad Ochocinco would).
This picture--from last week's Latin Grammy Awards--has caused quite a buzz, but someone who speaks regularly with Sosa says a lot of its effect is from the lighting and that Sammy really isn't that, well, bleached. Still, it's a tad off-putting! If the Packers' loss to Brett Favre and the Vikings last week was demoralizing, Sunday's defeat at the hands of the previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers was absolutely devastating. Despite dominating the time of possession battle, running for 170 yards, and taking a 28-17 lead into the last 13 minutes against a rookie quarterback making his first career start, Green Bay once again fell victim to its own ineptitude.
Long before Tanard Jackson's game-winning pick-six, the Packers' offensive line made every Buccaneer look like Warren Sapp; surrendering an astonishing six sacks to a defense that had a total of 11 in its first seven games. To put that into proper perspective, against Green Bay's much maligned line, the fifth worst defense in football was able to more than double its season sack total. Add to that three interceptions (nearly doubling Tampa's season total of eight), and one can reach only one sad, obvious conclusion.
The Green Bay Packers are not a very good football team.
It's tempting to overreact to a loss--no matter how embarrassing--but the manner in which the Pack lost should make even the most optimistic of observers to think twice about their blind faith in Coach McCarthy and Co. The special teams was predicatbly abysmal and, once again, the defense failed to make the sort of big, game-changing plays needed when an offense simply can't provide them. Sure, Rodgers' 74 yard strike to James Jones early in the first quarter was nice, but it didn't break the Bucs' back. In fact, none of Green Bay's four scores did.
This inability to drop "the dagger" with a late, clinching touchdown is a critical failure of an offensive line that simply can't keep Rodgers upright enough to sustain key drives. Chad Clifton and Mark Tauscher clearly weren't the answer, so who, or what, will be? Can this line and, with it, this season be saved?
Right now, it looks painfully doubtful. |
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