If you’re not one of those baseball nerds who follows every single thing going on in the Milwaukee Brewers Organization, don’t worry, because The Sports Bank’s Nick Grays has you covered with what happened in the past week and what’s going on in the future.
And if you are one of those nerds, feel free to join in on some good old analysis of America’s pastime in the Brew City.
This week we discuss the National League MVP award, playoff scenarios and all the usual Brewers stuff!
Standings:
Milwaukee Brewers (90-63) (25-18-3 in series)
– FIRST in the NL Central
– Lead the St. Louis Cardinals by 6.5 games
– Magic number at 4 with nine games left
– Run differential at +74 (up 16 from last week)
Last Week’s Headlines:
Ryan Braun Making a Strong Case for NL-MVP
I know that Braun and Prince Fielder are both having MVP-caliber years behind the plate, but to me, one of them is definitely standing out from the other. Not only is Braun in contention for the National League batting title at a .336 clip (.005 points ahead of the Mets Jose Reyes), he also leads the league in runs (103), slugging percentage (.597), OPS (.997) and total bases (318). On top of all that, Braun has done all of this in 12 less games than Fielder. Plus, Braun’s 31 stolen bases are a pretty nifty kicker as well.
Another likely candidate for the MVP award is the LA Dodgers’ Matt Kemp who is having a great offensive year on a mediocre team. Personally, I’m not a fan of the MVP award going to a player from a team who doesn’t make it to the playoffs, thus why I think it’s really Braun or Fielder’s award to win.
Just In Case You Missed It:
(9/15/11) I was featured in the most recent article of SI when I wrote a response to Lee Jenkins’ SI Article on the Brewers. It can be found by clicking here!
Looking Ahead:
Almost Playoff Time
We could look at the Brewers upcoming series with the Chicago Cubs (67-86) and Florida Marlins (69-84), but those two teams aren’t very good and it really is time to start talking about playoff match-ups.
The Brewers currently sit two games ahead of the Arizona Diamondbacks (88-65) in the win column and would play the wild-card leading Atlanta Braves (87-66) if the playoffs were to start today. Milwaukee must stay ahead of Arizona because it’s their only shot at receiving home-field advantage in the opening series of the playoffs. If the Diamondbacks were able to surge past the Brewers, Philadelphia would become the opening venue for the Brew Crew, a daunting place to play these days.
Monday, September 19th 7:05 PM (@ Chicago Cubs)
Probable Pitchers: LHP Chris Narveson (10-7) vs. RHP Casey Coleman (2-8)
Tuesday, September 20th 7:05 PM (@ Chicago Cubs)
Probable Pitchers: RHP Shaun Marcum (12-7) vs. RHP Randy Wells (7-4)
Wednesday, September 21st 1:20 PM (@ Chicago Cubs)
Probable Pitchers: LHP Randy Wolf (13-9) vs. RHP Matt Garza (8-10)
Thursday, September 22nd (OFF)
Friday, September 23rd 7:10 PM (vs. Florida)
Probable Pitchers: RHP Yovani Gallardo (17-10) vs. RHP Chris Volstad (5-12)
Saturday, September 24th 6:10 PM (vs. Florida)
Probable Pitchers: RHP Zack Greinke (15-6) vs. LHP Brad Hand (1-7)
Sunday, September 25th 1:10 PM (vs. Florida)
Probable Pitchers: LHP Chris Narveson (10-7) vs. RHP Ricky Nolasco (10-11)
Are the Brewers charged and ready for the playoffs? Let me know by commenting below!
Nick Grays is a senior writer at the Sports Bank where he covers the Wisconsin Badgers, Green Bay Packers, and Milwaukee Brewers. He also enjoys to share Fantasy Advice from time-to-time. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here or visit his blog Nick Knows Best.
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