Milwaukee Brewers 2009 Forecast: As far as the Longball will take us

After playing their first meaningful October baseball games in a quarter century the Milwaukee Brewers have a tough road a head of them. They will dearly miss all 6 feet 7 inches of CC Sabathia, as well as injury plagued Ben Sheets. The 2009 Brewers will rely on young talent in their pitching staff, which is generally not a recipe for success. Maybe they should give the Rays a call.

 It appears that the pitching rotation will be head lined by young star Yovanni Gallardo, who missed the majority of last season with a torn ACL. He was sharp in the beginning and the Brewers had enough faith in him last year to start him in their first playoff game. Lefty Manny Parra was solid in the beginning of the year, but as with many young pitchers faded towards the end of the season. Jeff Suppan will hopefully be a solid veteran pitcher towards the end of the rotation. Offseason acquisition Braden Looper will also have a spot in the rotation. The fifth spot is open to Dave Bush and Seth McClung and anyone else that might be able to produce. With this weak inexperienced rotation the Brewers will have to produce more runs than they did last year to have a result anywhere close to their 2008 finish. Rotation Grade: 77  C+

Offensively the Brewers lose nothing. They maintain superstar Ryan Braun, who needs to have a MVP type season in order for the Brewers to have a respectable season. Mike Cameron and Corey Hart round out the outfield and Hart will need another great year. Tony Gwynn Jr. will likely be the fourth outfielder on the club and may get more playing time as he has been playing well in spring training. Third Base is a bit of a question mark and will likely become a platoon position between Bill Hall, Craig Counsell, and young prospect Casey Mcghee (likely towards the end of the season). Rickie Weeks and JJ Hardy will patrol the middle infield, but look for prospect Alicides Escobar to steal time from Weeks if he puts up disappointing numbers once again. The Brewers still have the prototype first baseman in Prince Fielder and he will need to continue to be a gargantuan run producer in the middle of the lineup. Catcher is an offensive weakness with Jason Kendall, the Brewers have prospects behind the plate (Angel Salome) but it is doubtful to see any of them before september. Defensive Grade: 88  B+       Offensive Grade:   92   A-

Now, we get to the bullpen, which has lost Salomon Torres, Eric Gagne (not really a loss) and Brian Shouse. They picked up Trevor Hoffman, which they possibly over payed for, but it was a desperation move. Hoffman will likely produce very average closing numbers probably around 25-30 saves with a couple blown saves. Youngster Carlos Villanueva was steady in the pen last season and the Brewers will need him to step up more this year. In the off season they acquired Jorge Julio and will expect him to produce out of the pen as well. Mitch Stetter will also come out the pen. Prospect RJ Swindle may also be in the majors before too long if they struggle. Bullpen Grade: 74    C

As an avid Brewers fan I hope for them to win the World Series. As a knowledgable baseball writer I expect them to finish second in their division at best and possibly as low as fourth. This team will likely need a couple of years to return to the playoffs, but they do have the right pieces in place. The NL Central will be tough, however, with the Cubs, who will be a strong team for years to come and do not discount the young and dangerous Cincinatti Reds. Also the Cardinals are always solid and will have a healthy Chris Carpenter returning to their line up. Overall Grade:  81    B-