Trading Up

First off, to Francisco Cordero, Tony Graffanino, Kevin Mench and David Bell, welcome to Milwaukee!! Secondly, to all those naysayers out there who blasted the Carlos Lee trade, it looks like Doug Melvin knows what he's doing after all. The four new players acquired over the last week have made their presence known, in a most positive way, and I, for one, am thrilled to see management putting their money where their mouth is.

Francisco Cordero, criticized by some as being overrated and useless, has been spot on in all three appearances for the Crew. Not to say that he's infallible, but it was a blessed relief to have someone to come in and bail out Turnbow yesterday when it was obvious he hadn't worked out whatever is ailing him. I don't know that Turnbow couldn't have finished out the inning, but the way he's been pitching, I was glad to see someone else come in and get the job done.

It would be hard for Kevin Mench to be more productive that he's been since first buttoning up his Brewers uniform. One for four with an RBI on Saturday, and three for four with all four RBIs yesterday. Granted, he doesn't have the offensive numbers that Carlos did, but I'm seeing a lot more hustle in left field, and Mench is a player who hits for contact, which is something much needed in the Brewer lineup.

As is David Bell. This was a player I'd actually heard of, and seen play, so I knew what he was capable of. Again, he's another guy who's going to hit for contact. He's a veteran who knows how to play and is accustomed to playing everyday, unlike Old Man 'Rillo. Bell went one for three on Saturday, and scored two runs. He was 0 for four on Sunday, but his defense made up for his lack of offense.

My point is that these guys came in and were effective immediately. The fact that Doug Melvin traded for major leaguers versus prospects proves that management is still in it to win it, and more importatly, shows that Mark Attanasio is willing to do what it takes to field a winning team.

I know, some of you are going to say that he would have given Carlos more money if he was serious about turning this team around, but honestly, I wouldn't have given Carlos five years either. Carlos was determined to test the free agent market. He turned down about $50 million for four years. He didn't even bother to counter because the two sides were so far apart. I really think he would have rejected any offer the Brewers made. He wants to see how much he can get. I'm sorry, I liked Carlos and his offensive production, but he's simply not worth the kind of money he's looking to get, not in the NL. If he gets the kind of money he wants, it's going to be AL. I just can't imagine that any NL team will give him $75 mil for five years. But I could be wrong. It's been known to happen.

I also like the fact that Doug Melvin made a move now, instead of keeping Carlos for the season, then losing him in return for draft picks. He went out and found players we can use now, who will make an impact now. And I'd be willing to bet that we'll be able to keep at least a couple of them. We have an option on Cordero for next season, Mench has a couple of years of arbitration eligibility, which can be bought out, and I don't think Bell would even be offered a long-term big money contract at his age. Granted, 33 isn't old in reality, but it's ancient if you're looking for a long-term deal in the NL.

So to get back to my original point (rambling induced by too many margaritas at lunch!), I think Doug Melvin did a bang up job in getting the team some quality players to fill the voids left by Weeks, Hardy, Koskie, and Lee (and Turnbow if you consider his lack of dependability lately).

So with the help of the new Brewers, we took two of three from Cincy, and are now five games back in the wild card race. Thanks to a four game sweep by the Cubs of St. Louis, we're 8 1/2 back from first place. The Crew takes on the Colorado Rockies tonight, who sit a half game above them in the wild card standings.

We have one of our most dependable pitchers on the mound, leftie Chris Capuano, even though he's struggled since the All Star break. Chris goes up against Aaron Cook tonight, who is 6-9, with an ERA of 3.88. For July, however, Cook is 0-2, with an ERA of 5.23 in five starts. Here's hoping Cappy can get back to his usual form and beat the crap out of the Rockies tonight with help from his new teammates. Until next time, go Brewers!