It's gotten ugly at Miller Park.
No, the new ballpark is still a magnificent structure. Fans are jamming the stands at a record pace.
What has gotten ugly is the Brewers' play on the field. If they don't reverse things soon, they could slip to the same depths as last season. I'm talking about the final record of 16-games under .500, not the two games above that mark after the acquisition of Richie Sexson at mid-season.
Certainly injuries have played a big part in this slump. The pitching rotation is down to only three regulars, two of which have been relatively effective.
Tyler Houston joined the disabled list, which also has included Geoff Jenkins, Jeffrey Hammonds, Mark Loretta and other key players at times this season.
But, injuries can't be used as excuses for players who are not injured. Jeromy Burnitz has had a tender elbow at times, but his horrendous three-week slump can't be blamed entirely on it.
During the swoon, Burnitz has killed the Brewers, repeatedly failing to move runners or drive them in during key situations. This is the player the Brewers made the highest paid in their history over the off-season. He has to produce more, and would be the first to admit it.
Burnitz has not been alone. The Brewers as a lineup have not hit in the clutch. About 60 percent of their home runs are solo shots. Over the weekend, Jenkins, Loretta, Sexson, Devon White, Jose Hernandez and others all failed to move runners in key situations. They also failed by striking out too often.
Fans are starting to come up with desperate suggestions. Make a big trade. But, players who are struggling often are not very valuable on the market.
Some blame hitting coach Rod Carew. Certainly, the Brewers' approach at the plate is poor. But it's not the approach taught by Carew. In fact, it's almost the antithesis of his approach. He can't hit for the players.
{INSERT_RELATED}Manager Davey Lopes does deserve some of the blame. He was hired to replace Phil Garner because Scrap Iron turned out to be too nice of a guy to move the Brewers to the next level of performance.
Lopes was supposed to light a fire in the belly of the players. That seemed to be happening earlier in the season, but you'd have to look hard to find a flicker for the last few weeks.
We in the media see the tough side of Lopes more often than his players do. Last week, he finally lost it a little and chewed out pitcher Jimmy Haynes and catcher Raul Casanova right in front of a big crowd. More of that might work.
If the swoon continues, we also will have to start examining the job being done by GM Dean Taylor. Are players like Haynes, Jamey Wright and others really going to blossom? Or were they already established as mediocre players before Taylor acquired them?
It still is a little premature to seriously start questioning Lopes, Taylor and the overall management. Hammonds is on a rehab assignment and could be back soon. Jenkins, Sexson and Burnitz are bound to heat up again.
At this point, the focus should be on the players who are healthy. The pressure should be on them to turn it around. If they do, and the Brewers can finish around .500, we can feel like true progress is being made in the Lopes-Taylor era.
But, another season of 10 or more games under .500, and everybody in the baseball operations should fall under scrutiny.
Suzuki Start
A new face, Mac Suzuki, will start on the mound for the Brewers Monday night. Suzuki was acquired from Colorado last week. His ERA was over 15.00, but the Brewers like some things about Suzuki so decided to put him on the major league roster and give him a start.
Another player, Mike Coolbaugh, was called up to take Houston's spot on the roster. I saw Coolbaugh in spring training and thought he was a good looking hitter. He likely will play a limited role, but if the Brewers continue to struggle at the plate give him some at-bats.
Review and Preview
The weekend was ugly. After beating the Twins Friday night, the Brewers played a sloppy game Saturday night and dropped the rubber game of the series to Minnesota.
On Sunday, they lost to a White Sox pitcher who had not won in his last 15 starts!!! The lack of clutch hitting really hurt in that one.
The Brewers play the Sox Monday night and Tuesday afternoon. They then head west to Los Angeles and San Diego.
If they do not play significantly better, they could return to Miller Park on July 23 very close to those 10 games or more below .500.
Gregg Hoffmann publishes The Brew Crew Review column on Mondays and Fridays and maintains a special news and message board on OMC.
