Kyle Lobner

Evan Phillips' B-Ref player photo looks like someone just reminded him that the 2022 Dodgers won 111 games and lost in the NLDS. www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/ph...

MLB Trade Deadline Creates Strength of Schedule Winners and Losers Roster changes may affect postseason

The Twins team that took two of three from the Brewers in May is hardly the same franchise as the one other contenders will face in August and September. My latest for Shepherd Express looks at the trade deadline and Strength of Schedule imbalance:

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There was a point today where Carlos Correa had both the day's longest home run and the hardest hit ball, but they weren't the same pitch and the harder hit ball was an out.

For as much as we know and can quantify about this game, it's still extremely random.

Nominative Determinism: There have been seven players in MLB history named Armstrong. There have not been any named Armweak.

I wonder how many times someone has told the guy with the "I'd rather be at Wrigley" shirt that they also would prefer he were there.

Your favorite team is "looking to get better" this week, but also "exploring all options" and "looking to solidify" present and future positions.

A quick trade deadline preview:

- Your favorite team is "listening to offers" about everyone.
- Your favorite team has "had internal discussions" about everyone (maybe even you!).

In 2001, his MLB debut season, Ben Sheets threw 100 innings before the All Star break. That seems like a lot, but that season he was one of 75 pitchers to do it.

Times really have changed.

Brewers On Pace for Significant Numbers The view from midseason

It never fails: As soon as I got done writing about Christian Yelich, Jackson Chourio and Freddy Peralta's approach of significant milestones, they all got a step closer on Monday night. Come see the numbers and what they mean at Shepherd Express: shepherdexpress.com/sports/brewe...

Co-sign. Once bought an upright freezer from them and the door literally would not stay closed.

After months of runaround my dad and I finally just screwed a latch into the door.

I love when a show I don't like advertises they'll be "emanating" from somewhere. It makes it easier for me to envision that show as some kind of inescapable odor.

I hadn't played in months, but you got me to look. I only got that set by eliminating the others.

At least once a year I look at big jumps in postseason odds in April/May and think "that can't be right." And every time I try to take a sampling to prove them wrong they turn out to be within the margin of error.

While looking for something else I noticed that the Brewers' playoff odds bottomed out at 9.3% on May 17. Here are some others with similar shots at similar points:

2024 Tigers and Mets (reached postseason)
2024 Cardinals, Red Sox, Reds, Pirates, 2023 Guardians, Cubs, Pirates, White Sox (did not)

T-Rat Talk: Ryan Birchard Timber Rattlers pitcher and 2023 fifth round pick Ryan Birchard has had the opportunity to do a lot of things in his brief professional career, but until now settling into one place hasn’t really been...

One of the downsides of pitching in the Brewers organization is that you can have a high K rate, a funky delivery, a history of succeeding against older and more experienced batters and, somehow, still be under the radar. Meet Ryan Birchard in this week's T-Rat Talk: www.milb.com/wisconsin/ne...

Brewers Get Big Results from Recovered Pitchers Key Crew hurlers are on the rebound.

No one wants a pitcher to get hurt, but recent evidence suggests the Brewers are having success by knowing when they're ready to come back. My latest for Shepherd Express examines the trend: shepherdexpress.com/sports/brewe...

Eldred is a big part of the reason guys don't do that anymore.

Jackson Chourio is the 49th Brewer ever to lead off the first inning with a home run. The last one to do it was William Contreras last April.

T-Rat Talk: Eduardo Garcia It's been nearly three years since then Timber Rattlers infielder, now Timber Rattlers infielder/outfielder Eduardo Garcia came to Appleton for the first time, and he's had plenty of time to build up ...

It's easy to overlook Wisconsin infielder and now outfielder Eduardo Garcia, who is back in the Midwest League for a fourth season in 2025. This week's T-Rat Talk, however, outlines the reasons why you do so at your own peril: www.milb.com/wisconsin/ne...

Brewers Cool Off Baseball's Hottest Team A look at historic streaks.

The Brewers ended Minnesota's 13-game winning streak on Sunday, but can you remember the other times they factored into some of the longest winning streaks in MLB history? We've got the list at Shepherd Express: shepherdexpress.com/sports/brewe...

Steinbrenner Field Wasn't the Brewers’ Most Unlikely Road Trip Brewers’ history visiting opponents’ temporary homes.

The Brewers made a relatively rare trip to a temporary MLB stadium this week, reminding me of an unlikely story. Come remember the Seattle Pilots' trip to the future at Shepherd Express: shepherdexpress.com/sports/brewe...

T-Rat Talk: Tyson Hardin On a typical weekend day at this time last year pitcher Tyson Hardin would be settling in to wait his turn in the Mississippi State bullpen. This year, however, he’s playing a much more prominent role...

A year ago he was a reliever with a two-seam fastball in college, but now Tyson Hardin throws a four-seamer and is one of the most successful starting pitchers in minor league baseball. Come read about the Brewers' latest late round fast riser in this week's T-Rat Talk: www.milb.com/wisconsin/ne...

Kudos to the Brewers TV broadcast for this nugget: Jackson Chourio, who is playing in his 187th game today, is still the youngest player in the majors.

Some of Brewers' Best Bullpens Didn't Go As Planned A look at where past bullpens started the season.

The bad news: We're closing in on the quarter pole of the MLB season and the Brewers bullpen is still a work in progress.

The good news: Some of the best bullpens in franchise history also started this way.

My latest for Shepherd Express looks at the precedent. shepherdexpress.com/sports/brewe...

This is the Brewers' third win this season with one extra base hit or less. They had 16 of them last year.

Brewers Continue to Find Successful Pitching Team’s ability to track down pitching help has already faced major tests this season.

Not everything has gone right this April, but the Brewers' ability to pull pitching out of thin air appears to have carried over into a new year. My latest for Shepherd Express looks at the precedent for Jose Quintana, Quinn Priester and Chad Patrick's success: shepherdexpress.com/sports/brewe...

50 years ago today Henry Aaron hit the 734th home run of his AL/NL career, but the first one as a Brewer.

The knowledge that only a Sith deals in absolutes completely changed my perspective on "Everybody clap your hands!"

Fastball Freddy Mixes It Up Pitcher’s arsenal is evolving.

It's been another highly successful week for Freddy Peralta, who has only allowed three hits to right handed batters all season. We looked at what's different in my latest for Shepherd Express: shepherdexpress.com/sports/brewe...

This is Elvin's best day since that time he got a hula hoop for Christmas.