35-year old lefty swinging outfielder Geoff Jenkins will retire as a Milwaukee Brewer tonight. He played 10 years for the Brewers appearing in 1,234 games in which he was 1,221 of 4,407 (.277 avg, .843 OPS) with 661 runs scored, 212 homers, 704 RBIs and 31 stolen bases. Jenkins made the All-Star team in 2003 for the Brewers. He played in 124 games in 2003 and he was 144 of 487 (.296 avg, .913 OPS) with 81 runs scored, 28 homers and 95 RBIs. Jenkins finished his career #6 in Brewers’ history in games played with 1,234. He also is #5 in runs scored (661), #5 in hits (1,221), #4 in doubles (287), tied for #9 in triples (22), #2 in homers (212), #4 in RBIs (704) and #9 in walks (394) in Brewers’ history. Jenkins was a class act and a solid player for the Brewers.

The Brewers are 37-46 on the season which has them in 3rd place in the N.L. Central, 10.5 games behind the Reds. The Brewers will likely wait another week or two to see if they can get into a groove. If they can’t, they will be sellers later this month. Prince Fielder and Corey Hart are the two players the Brewers would likely get a incredible haul for them so they will likely put them both on the block. Smaller deals involving guys like Jim Edmonds, Craig Counsell, Dave Bush, Carlos Villanueva and Todd Coffey will also be likely. The Brewers need to rebuild for the future by giving up on the present unless they get really hot the next couple of weeks.

The Brewers have placed 24-year old righty starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo on the 15-day disabled list with a right oblique strain. He has started 18 games for the Brewers this season and he is 8-4 with a 2.58 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. This injury will cause Gallardo to miss his first All-Star Game next week. The Brewers have activated lefty starting pitcher Doug Davis from the D.L. to replace Gallardo in the rotation. Davis pitched in 3 games (all starts) on a rehab assignment in A+AAA-ball and he was 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. He pitched in 7 games (all starts) for the Brewers earlier this season and he was 1-4 with a 7.56 ERA and a 1.98 WHIP. The Brewers hope Davis will be better this time around.

The Brewers are sending OF Ryan Braun, righty starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo and OF Corey Hart to the All-Star Game. Ryan Braun has been elected to the All-Star Team by the fans so he will be starting. He has played in 80 games for the Brewers this season and he is 96 of 325 (.295 avg, .825 OPS) with 50 runs scored, 11 homers, 51 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. This will be the third time Braun has played in the mid-summer classic. 24-year old Yovanni Gallardo might miss his first All-Star Game as he was injured in yesterday’s game. Gallardo has started 18 games for the Brewers so far this season and he is 8-4 with a 2.58 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He has only given up 93 hits in 111 2/3 innings this season while whiffing 122 batters showing how nasty he has been. Gallardo’s only weakness is his control as he has walked 48 batters so far this year. Corey Hart has played in 74 games for the Brewers this season and he is 79 of 276 (.286 avg, .922 OPS) with 42 runs scored, 19 homers, 61 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. This will be Hart’s 2nd All-Star appearance which isn’t bad seeing how he was platooning with Jim Edmonds when the 2010 season started.

22-year old lefty reliever Zach Braddock came into this season as the Brewers’ #7 rated prospect according to Baseball America. He has pitched in 84 games (30 starts) in his five years in the majors and he is 12-12 with 1 save, a 3.62 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. Braddock has pitched in 15 games (0 starts) so far for the Brewers this season and he is 1-1 with a 5.54 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. He does however have 21 strikeouts in only 13 innings for the Brew Crew showing his potential. The bottom line is that he will have to start pitching better soon or he will likely wind up back in AAA.