Mark Loretta has only recently started to hit like he can, but give him his share of credit for the Brewers making the recent transition in the infield smoothly.
Loretta could have moped, or went to the media with complaints, about his loss of the every day starting shortstop position while he was on the disabled list.
He could have become a cancer in the clubhouse, but he hasn't, instead going about his work professionally at third and second. He'll do the same when he is asked to play shortstop and anywhere else manager Davey Lopes asks him to play.
"I talked to Davey about it before I came off the DL, and he said he felt he had to do what's best for the team," Loretta said this week. "Sure, you'd like to have one set position, but I understand Davey's reasoning.
"It's not like I haven't done this before. I played 100 games at first base one season. The fundamentals are basically the same wherever you play. There are subtle differences at each position, but the fundamentals are the same."
Loretta's willingness to play third and elsewhere allows Lopes to play Jose Hernandez at shortstop as long as he stays hot. Loretta also can spell the streaky Ron Belliard at second, and played most of his games this week at third, because Tyler Houston was nursing a tender left hamstring.
Where the Brewers need Loretta the most is in the second spot of the batting order. They are a bunch of free swingers, but Loretta can give them some consistency. "That's my job, to get on for the big hitters, to move runners, maybe hit and run and bunt at times," Loretta said.
Loretta has demonstrated he is the consummate professional. Baseball needs more of them.
Location, Location
Any realtor will tell you "location, location" is a key to any investment in that area. It's also a key for Brewers' righthander Jimmy Haynes.
"He's been getting the ball over the plate, both sides of the plate," Lopes said. "In the past, he had a tendency to press and try to get too fine. Dac (pitching coach Bob Apodaca) and Billy (bullpen coach Billy Castro) have worked with him on it."
Haynes also had the reputation as being a six-inning pitcher. Watch out in the 7th when he's on the mound?
"When a guy hears that all the time, it can affect him," Lopes said. "It's not always only the physical part of this game that affects how successful a player can be. It's the mental part too. This is how a lot of people always thought he could pitch. He's always had great stuff. He needed to work on the other things."
Haynes brought a 17-inning scoreless streak into the weekend. He pitches Sunday.
Over-reactions
Lopes and St. Louis manager Tony LaRussa called the hit-by-pitch warnings from umpires in all three games of the series in Milwaukee "over-reactions." Only one of the incidents led to anything, as Ron Belliard exchanged words with Cardinals' catcher Mike Matheny after he was hit Thursday.
Milwaukee reliever Mike DeJean was tossed later by plate ump Derryl Cousins when he came inside to Matheny, a former Brewer. It will be interesting to see if the hit-by-pitches continue next week in St. Louis.
By the way, later in the same inning in which DeJean was tossed, the Cardinals' Jim Edmonds was ejected for throwing his bat after he struck out on a called strike.
Players of the Week
Haynes, who pitched shutout ball and then handed it over to the bullpen for a 5-0 win on Tuesday night. His 17-inning scoreless streak is a career best. Richie Sexson, who hit two homers Thursday.
Play of the Week
With the bases loaded in the seventh inning, and the Brewers hanging on to a slim 4-3 lead Wednesday, Jose Hernandez doubled over the third base bag to score three runs and give his team a 7-3 lead. Hernandez had not turned on the ball for a couple weeks.
"I noticed that (Hernandez hitting primarily to right field)," said LaRussa. "That was a well-placed ball."
Goat of the Week
Whichever media guy started the rumors that Ivan Rodriguez and David Wells were coming to Milwaukee. It led to several calls to the Brewers' PR office on Wednesday night, and all of us in the "legitimate" media tracking down the rumors with general manager Dean Taylor.
"These rumors must be started by a bartender in New York," Taylor said, denying the reports. Actually, they too often start with the internet. Some fans hit the message boards, and the administrator of the site runs a story on the rumors without committing an act of journalism and actually asking somebody questions.
Come on guys. Anybody who knows the Brewers can tell you they are not going to pick up the salaries of Pudge or Wells, or give up the likes of Ben Sheets, Nick Neugebauer and other young talent for them.
Check things out. You give us journalists who are trying to add credibility to web sites much harder jobs.
The Week In Review
Haynes started the week out Tuesday by shutting out the Cardinals, 5-0, on Tuesday night. Raul Casanova and Hernandez had big hits.
Jeromy Burnitz hit a huge homer Wednesday night to get the Brewers right back into a game that started with the Cardinals scoring two runs in the first. Hernandez's three-run double, which was picked the Play of the Week, broke it open with that hit in the seventh.
Ben Sheets didn't have it Thursday, giving up five runs in less than five innings of a 7-4 loss. Sexson brought the Brewers back with homers in the second and fourth innings, but he couldn't do it alone.
The Weekend Preview
The Brewers go to Chicago for a three-game series with the Cubs at Wrigley. Then, it's right back against the Cardinals again, but this time for four games in St. Louis.
Because of Memorial Day on Monday, the next The Brew Crew Review column will appear Tuesday and recap the series in Chicago.
Gregg Hoffmann publishes The Brew Crew Review columns twice a week on OMC and maintains a special Message Board. He also is writing special playoff columns while the Bucks remain in post-season play.
