Spring training begins for our favorite teams. The two teams that we follow at Mr. Dilettante are the Brewers and the Twins. As the season beckons, it's time to do a little talking about the teams.
The Brewers made the playoffs last year but ended up losing to the eventual world champion Phillies in four games. Two key pitchers in last year's run, CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets, are gone. Sheets is out for the year and Sabathia is now a very rich man thanks to the profligate Steinbrenner family. That's a tough tandem to lose, but there is reason to believe that the Brewers will still be a contender this season.
The everyday lineup should remain very good. Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun, J.J. Hardy, Corey Hart and Mike Cameron are a very good nucleus. There is thunder up and down the Brewer lineup, more than at any time since the sainted World Series squad of 1982. Offense should not be a problem.
The question is pitching. While it's awfully tough to lose your top two starters, especially a superstar like Sabathia, the Brew Crew should be able to piece together a halfway decent rotation out of youngsters Yovani Gallardo and Manny Parra, along with the serviceable Jeff Suppan and newcomer Braden Looper. And there's always Dave Bush, the guy you'd like to replace. The new closer is a very old closer, Trevor Hoffman, who has decamped from San Diego after about 47 seasons in the 619 area code. It's not clear if Hoffman has anything left in the tank, but after the Eric Gagne disaster of last season he's worth a shot. There are any number of guys in between the starters and Hoffman, all of varying effectiveness.
The problem for the Brew Crew is that they live in a rough neighborhood. The Cubs are loaded again and the Cardinals should again be a formidable foe. Still, you don't get the sense that there is really a dominant team in the National League. The Phillies won it all but they don't scare you that much. It is easy to imagine the Brewers finding a way back to the postseason this year. It's also easy to imagine them finishing 3rd or even 4th in their division. We'll look at the Twins tomorrow.
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