Since the Brewers 7 game win streak in mid May the home town team is just 12 and 18. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that the Crew’s pitching has been just short of awful. With the starting rotation averaging just over 5 innings a start, we’ve talked about this time and again; the end result is an overworked bull pen and a staff that’s fatigued to the point that every outing, every inning, every pitch carries the utmost importance.

The fact that the Brewers are a game and a half behind the Cardinals is merely happenstance or good luck, take your pick, but it’s not because they’re forging a path of success right now.

Doug Melvin has to start wondering, at what point does he pick up the phone and start testing the preverbal trade waters. Penny, Peavy (even though he’s on the DL right now)  or someone else, they’re becoming a necessity with each passing day. I understand Melvin would like to get to the All Star break and see how his staff returns from a much needed rest but the way Milwaukee’s limping right now, the wait will depend on the foes of the Central Division’s performance.

If either St. Louis or Chicago gets hot and begins to separate themselves from the pack, the Brewers, namely Doug Melvin and Mark Attanasio, will have to determine if they’re buyers, and this season is another “post-season or bust” endeavor, or if they’re merely gaining another ring of “age” foreshadowing some tweaking next year. The two questions you ask yourself if you’re a GM is, “Are we one player away?” and “am I giving up too much for the chance at immediate success?” Melvin doesn’t have a lot of options out there; after all, CC’s not on the open market. In fact, the market isn’t loaded with quality talent that’s up for relocation. The one thing that’s keeping the trade market seemingly dry is the amount of teams that are still within a small win streak of the top spot in their division, much to the delight of the commish.

Last year was needed for this group of Brewers to taste the fandemonium nectar of October but this season might just be the year that is received as the bitter pill which enhances the craving for success from this young but maturing bunch. We the fans know and understand what sustained years of losing are like but this group, overall, has known winning and building on the successes of prior years, they haven’t really faced a regression such as the one they’re about to face if the pitching staff, namely the starting rotation, doesn’t return to the form of April thru mid-May.

Don’t be too disappointed if Melvin and Attanasio don’t pull the trigger on a deal that will allow you to sleep easy at night knowing that the Brewers now have the Central firmly in hand, they just aren’t out there. In all probability, with the slight tweaking of someone in the minors making his major league debut, what you see is what you get.