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Are the Brewers sunk?
In a word, no.
But they'd better start playing some good baseball, because the rest of the division might not wait around for them to improve.
I'm not sure the three season-ending (or almost season-ending injuries) are as big of a deal as paranoid fans – myself occasionally included – think they are. Losing a fifth starter isn't like losing an ace. As for Mat Gamel, no one was especially sure that he'd prove to be the prospect he was touted as. And losing Alex Gonzalez is a blow, for sure, but the Brewers almost made it to the World Series last year with Yuniesky Betancourt at short. I don't need to elaborate on that, do I?
Really, it's not so much about filling the holes of the injured players – although at some point Doug Melvin will need to go outside the organization to do that – but the healthy Brewers must start playing up to their ability.
Players like Aramis Ramirez can't keep batting .218. Nyjer Morgan must step up from .169 in Carlos Gomez' absence. It's early still, but Ryan Braun isn't a .280 hitter, either. On the mound, I'm still waiting for guys like Yovani Gallardo to start pitching like we've come to expect.
Still, I like that owner Mark Attanasio is far from throwing in the towel, because remember, the season is still brand new.
"Everything" is on the table, Attanasio told MLB.com. "We're only (28) games in. It's going to depend where we're at, at that point in time. Look at where we were when we added CC. We were over .500, but we were several games back."
The mere fact that Attanasio is mentioning the greatest mid-season trade in the history of the franchise should give fans hope that if the Brewers snap out of their funk, he'll go to the mat to keep this team competitive. And remember, yes, he's spent a lot of money on this team, but none of us know his upper ceiling of what he's willing to spend to make it better.
The Brewers haven't looked very good at all this season, and they're only four games under .500 right now. Things could be much worse. It's not time to panic, but is time to show concern. Let's see where the team is in two weeks.
The reality of the unfolding season will begin to be clear by the time the Crew starts opening the Miller Park roof.
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