BOX SCORES:

Sorry about taking so long to come out with another review. My five-games-until-a-review method fell apart thanks to a midterm last week, so I had to omit the last review. Anyway, on to the past ten games…

The Crew has played .500 ball this summer, which is a bit disappointing because of the 5-0 start. However, things are starting to come together in the right way.

In the past two reviews I mentioned how the third-base battle was not going well. Since that last review, Russell the Muscle Branyan has absolutely destroyed the ball, highlighted by a 7-7 with 5 extra-base hits stretch from the 12^th-14^th. I got to see his first home run of the spring in the Colorado game, and it was a bomb. In that same game, Helms hit two home runs. Since then, Helms really hasn’t done anything else, while Branyan has continued to dominate the plate to the tune of a .743 SLUG. Fortunately, Cirillo has done even less than Helms. Unless something ridiculous happens, Helms will be backing up Branyan at third, and Cirillo will be trying to find a job coaching in the low minors.

All of the offensive positions appear to be settled now. Although J.J. Hardy is having real trouble at the plate, it does not appear that Melvin & Yost & Co. are going to move anyone else to SS. I am beginning to really doubt whether Hardy will be okay at SS for the whole year. I am excited to see a player with potential, but I can’t help but think he could use some more seasoning. But if the alternative to Hardy is Bill Hall, then it’s Hardy I want to see play. Hall has had a decent spring, but not enough as of yet to really raise a question about who will start at SS. Don’t rule out Melvin finding a castaway SS in the next couple weeks.

The outfield is very much settled, and it appears that Chris Magruder will indeed be the backup OF. Again though, don’t count out a move where we land a better backup. Lord knows we need a better hitter coming in off the bench. Carlos Lee hasn’t played at all since the last review thanks to dickhead Jamey Wright hitting him in the hand with a pitch. Despite rumors to the contrary, Lee is healthy and will be back this week. My favorite comment after the injury came from Jim Powell who said, “I can’t imagine anyone doing more to hurt this organization than Jamey Wright.” Brady Clark, despite cooling off, has secured the CF job. Dave Krynzel just cannot keep up at the major league level yet, and the organization wants him to play every day. AAA Nashville is going to have a high-profile outfield.

On another positive note, Dick Weeks has played immensely better in the past 10 games. Spivey hasn’t played much due to aggravating his surgically-repaired shoulder. It’ll be interesting to see if Weeks can hold his own when Spivey goes on the DL with shoulder and hamstring problems on April 13^th. On a side note, have any of you seen his swing? Ridiculous!

The only area where there has been a lot happening is in the pitching staff. A lot of pitchers have been sent down already or pitched themselves out of consideration. There is just too much to mention, so you guys will have to look up the pitcher stats on your own. As I always remind everyone, try to only look at the K/BB/HR/IN. When you look at this, you won’t be too worried about Sheets’ inflated ERA, and you’ll see who will likely have the lower ERA at the end of spring training and win the jobs. I’ll point out a few pitchers:

Chris Capuano has been one of the most impressive pitchers this spring and will be the team’s fourth starter until he goes down to injury. Victor Santos might be the team’s third starter again this year, though he is being challenged mightily by Gary Glover and Wes Obermueller. Obermueller and Glover have the lower ERAs, but I wouldn’t expect that to continue throughout spring training considering how many balls get put into play against them. We all know Obermueller’s history, but Glover’s isn’t all that much better. Obermueller can hit the shit out of the ball, so that evens out any differences. All in all, Santos, Obermueller, and Glover appear to be fighting for 1.5 starting spots. All are pretty even in the battle right now, and I don’t really have a preference as to who makes it. The 1.5 losers will probably be kept in long relief, but if one pitcher falls apart, he will be released/sent down.

Hendrickson and Helling have been just awful and Capellan too shaky to remain in the majors, let alone start. We must get rid of Helling. De la Rosa might make a nice fifth starter, but I expect the Crew to ease him into the majors with low-pressure, long-relief work. His presence as a long reliever, which is guaranteed to those just tuning in because he is out of options, might make it impossible to carry the remainder of Glover, Obermueller, and Santos on the team. I’d still like to see Matt Wise get a chance to start, but at least he seems to have a secure bullpen spot.

Looking at my favorite pitching categories once again, you’ll notice that Julio Santana might be headed to the roster. His 10/1 K/BB and 10/6.1 K/IN ratio have been quite impressive. Melvin found Santana after something like a 25/0 K/BB ratio in winter ball. This may have been a good find. He is going to have to keep it up and hope his ERA adjusts like it should in the next couple weeks if he is going to see Milwaukee.

We’re going to have to see who actually makes this bullpen, but as for now, it is still quite uncertain. Assuming Capellan and Hendrickson are sent down, there are 16 real pitching candidates fighting for 12 spots. We know Sheets, Davis, Capuano, Adams, Bottalico, and de la Rosa will make the team. That leaves 6 spots open to Santana, Santos, Glover, Obermueller, Kieschnick, Turnbow, Wise, Lehr, Bennett, and Phelps. It would appear easy to eliminate Santana and Phelps due to their high ERAs, but they have two of the best K/BB ratios in camp. Plus, Phelps is left-handed. There is an obvious issue where there are too many long-relief guys in there. If I had my way, we’d see Kieschnick, Turnbow, Wise, Santos, Lehr, and Santana with Wise and de la Rosa filling in as an occasional fifth starter.

I’ll be back at you in a few more days. Don’t forget to check if the game is on WGN, as the Crew will be playing the Chubs and White Sox a lot in the next couple weeks.