It's obvious that Braun has a serious bat. But I can't quibble too much with the Brewers decision in that breaking into the majors is a tough thing to do. Should Braun start the season in the majors by kicking baseballs all over the place then it is likely his ENTIRE game would go south. That and the pitching staff needs to know its guys can catch and throw. I strongly suspect that Rickie still has to earn their trust. Tossing Braun into the mix just complicates things.

Let him get his sea legs and when he is hitting .365 with ten homers call him up in mid-May.

Honest question: How do you teach a minor-league third baseman to throw with accuracy?

Honest question: How do you teach a minor-league third baseman to throw with accuracy?

Smart Ass Answer: Shift him to first base

Braun has never played even 60 games in the same league. And he knows it will be his bat that will get him to the majors. Given a bit of focus and some sense of stability I am sure the throwing problems will decrease significantly.

Like Rickie, he will never be a "special" defensive player. But he can be solid.

Maybe they need a bigger target over at first? Send your recipes Cecil!

Honest question: How do you teach a minor-league third baseman to throw with accuracy?

Practice?

Honest question: How do you teach a minor-league third baseman to throw with accuracy?

Trade him to San Diego?

Trade him to San Diego?
Ricky Bones could not be reached for comment...

Question for the Brewer faithful: what are the chances of Yovani Gallardo being the 2007 version of Verlander? How committed are they to Claudio Vargas as the 5th starter? PECOTA loves him and has him almost a full run below Vargas. Could we see both Gallardo and Braun come late-May/early-June?

How committed are they to Claudio Vargas as the 5th starter?

Probably not very, but Carlos Villanueva*, at least, is ahead of Gallardo in the pecking order.

* acquired from SF a few years back for Wayne Franklin, hehe

I thought "Steve Braun?" which makes me the oldest person ever.

I thought "Steve Braun?" which makes me the oldest person ever.

Steve is one of the most experienced coaches in the Mercer County, New Jersey area and wants to train you!

Don't sell yourself short, Steve...

I seem to remember Baseball America and others praising Braun's defense and questioning his bat after he was drafted. Interesting how things change.

Sorry, but I'd suggest that you remember incorrectly, lincarnate.

BA praised some of Braun's defensive tools (arm in particular), but noted that he was error-prone and that teams doubted his infield actions and footwork. Conversely, they liked his bat (noted that he had a hitch in his swing and an "unconventional finish", but that his hands were quick enough to make it work).

Question for the Brewer faithful: what are the chances of Yovani Gallardo being the 2007 version of Verlander?

Not good.

"How do you teach a minor-league third baseman to throw with accuracy?"

Work on footwork, if he's got a strong enough arm, you can have him slot his arm angle down a bit. I haven't seen the guy play at all, but those are two things I had to work on in college when I shifted to 3rd.

In yesterday's televised game it looked like he made a great pick but was never able to plant his feet before the throw. Is this representative of his defensive game, or is he just all-around awful?

If the Brewers organization has stuck with Braun at 3rd base, can you imagine how much worse Corey Hart must have been?

bk and NTN are absolutely correct and possibly even understating the focus Milwaukee management has on keeping Gallardo at Triple A.

--Gallardo's success last year was something of a surprise and Melvin and Co. are from Missouri. Basically, they want the lad to replicate the performance to some degree before promoting him to the big leagues.

--Doug Melvin was EXTREMELY disappointed in how the young pitchers performed last season. While Gallardo is not Ben Hendrickson the fact remains that Melvin is human and just can't disassociate last season's debacle from assessing the promise of this season.

--Gallardo acted his age in Spring Training that just cemented the front office's convictions that Gallardo needs to spend a year at Triple A. Not that he was holding massive keggers with teammates but that he was wild, grooved pitches when he got behind in the count, and didn't show a lot of poise.

Carlos will get the first shot should somebody falter. If not Carlos then Jackson. And so on. The Milwaukee pitching staff will have to experienced a collective Chernobyl style meltdown coupled with a few cases of plague before YG gets the call.

"How do you teach a minor-league third baseman to throw with accuracy?"


Put videos of David Wright manning the hot corner in his ipod and suggest this is what not to do.