30 Teams in 30 Days 2018 18 Milwaukee Brewers

A surprise contender in 2017, the Brewers made some splashy moves this offseason to improve an outfield mix that was already very strong, but then refused to pursue any meaningful additions to bolster their starting pitching staff that was generally considered a weakness. We'll see if these maneuverings were sufficient to help Milwaukee keep pace with the powerhouse Cubs, the always-sneaky Cardinals, and the surprising Pirates in the NL Central this year.

All-Acquired Factor

Going into the offseason, Milwaukee's projected outfield featured Ryan Braun and Domingo Santana in the corners (with first baseman Eric Thames able to fill in), and power/speed threat Keon Broxton in center, with prospects Lewis Brinson and Brett Phillips waiting in the wings. Then on January 25th, the Brewers swung a blockbuster trade with the Marlins to obtain center field capable star outfielder Christian Yelich (costing them Brinson in the process). That's a great move, most of us thought, as it makes the team better overall and Broxton was a trade candidate anyway. Then the head-scratching began the very next day, when GM David Stearns signed Lorenzo Cain, another star center fielder, to a five-year free agent deal. Ryan Braun was asked to play first base, much to his chagrin (this is where he appears on SI's baseball preview, pushing Thames (ranked 544 by MLB.com) to the bench). Manager Craig Counsell tried to use New Math to explain how he planned to rotate five players among four spots. And still no one else was traded from the roster. However, all this depth has come in handy early, as Yelich has been down since last Sunday with an oblique strain, and both Braun and Thames are dealing with nagging day-to-day type injuries themselves.

Injuries

I talked a lot about injuries when I profiled the Mariners yesterday, but their situation seems downright rosy compared to the Brewers. In addition to the above-mentioned first base/outfield contingent, Milwaukee will be without emergent ace Jimmy Nelson (ranked 229, despite his injury) for roughly half the season thanks to shoulder surgery. Breakout closer Corey Knebel joined newly-acquired lefty Boone Logan on the DL with both projected to need six weeks to recover from their hamstring and triceps injuries, respectively. Non-Roster Invitee Wade Miley pitched well enough in Spring Training to compete for the Fifth Starter spot, until he went down with a groin muscle tear, causing his ranking to drop all the way to 680. And starting catcher Manny Pina just joined backup Stephen Vogt (down to 450) on the DL just yesterday (retroactive to last Friday).

Fifth Starter

During the 2017 season, I remember reading an article on MLB Trade Rumors laying out why the Twins and Brewers were uniquely suited to make some notable pitching acquisitions in the immediate future. While Minnesota followed through on this idea, Milwaukee largely stood pat, with the only MLB deal given to a starter being the two-year deal to Jhoulys Chacin. He's slated to be the third starter for now, with the only two games where the Brewers needed a fifth starter going to long reliever Brandon Woodruff (down to 425 with his move to the bullpen) and former late bloomer breakout Junior Guerra (a barely-relevant 705).

Fantasy Astrology Relevance

Lorenzo Cain will continue his role from last year as a starter for Aries, although the same is not necessarily true for Travis Shaw, despite a 2017 season with more than 2,000 fantasy points. Domingo Santana and Orlando Arcia should represent Leo, in the outfield and at shortstop, respectively. That's pretty much it for projected contenders, as the healthy versions of Knebel and Yelich will join Chase Anderson in headlining a largely irrelevant Sagittarius team, while Braun, Thames, and Vogt play for Scorpio.

Song

What's Made Milwaukee Famous (Has Made a Loser Out of Me) - Jerry Lee Lewis

I had to do some research to find this one, but how can you do better than a song about beer to represent a team called the Brewers. Of course, there is a bit of a conflict of interest here: the Brew Crew plays in Miller park, while Schlitz is the beer company whose slogan inspired the title of this song, but it's the same basic ingredients, you know?