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The Milwaukee Brewers sign Corey Patterson

chinmusic — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 23:50:00 +0000

The Brewers have signed 32-year old lefty swinging outfielder Corey Patterson. Patterson played in 133 games for the Cardinals & Blue Jays last year and he was 88 for 368 (.239 avg, .632 OPS) with 49 runs scored, 6 homers, 36 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. He has now played in 1,230 games in his first 13 years in the majors and he is 1,050 of 4,171 (.252 avg, .691 OPS) with 571 runs scored, 118 homers, 431 RBIs and 218 stolen bases. This was a good signing for the Brewers as Patterson can handle all three spots in the outfield. He will try to win a job on the bench this spring.

The Milwaukee Brewers have focused on adding bats this winter

chinmusic — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:27:32 +0000

With Prince Fielder likely leaving town and Ryan Braun likely to miss the first 50 games of the 2012 season, the Brewers have been scrambling to add some bats. 3B Aramis Ramirez was the big ticket player the Brewers signed over this winter. Here is a look at what they have done so far in the off-season:

In the field: The Brewers will have a new left side of the infield for 2012 and that’s a good thing. Out are 3B Casey McGehee (traded to Pirates) and SS Yuniesky Betancourt (signed with Royals) and in are 3B Aramis Ramirez and SS Alex Gonzalez. That is a nice upgrade for the Brewers. The Brewers are trying to sign outfielder Norichiku Aoki to help replace Braun while he is out of action. Travis Ishikawa, Cesar Izturis and Brooks Conrad have been signed to add depth to the bench for 2012.

On the mound: The Brewers have a rock solid pitching staff so they didn’t need to add much. They picked up a nice reliever from the Pirates in the Casey McGehee deal in righty Jose Veras. They have also brought in righty Seth McClung and lefty Juan Perez on minor league deals to compete for bullpen spots.

Overall: The Brewers have made some nice pickups in Ramirez, Gonzalez and Veras but they are nowhere near as good as they were at the end of the 2011 season right now.

The Milwaukee Brewers sign catcher Paul Phillips

chinmusic — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 23:24:33 +0000

The Brewers have signed 34-year old righty swinging catcher Paul Phillips to a minor league deal. Phillips played in 78 games in AAA-ball for the Indians last year and he was 63 of 266 (.220 avg, .703 OPS) with 26 runs scored, 3 homers and 24 RBIs. He last played in the majors back in 2010 with the Rockies. Phillips has played in 91 games in his first seven years in the majors and he is 58 of 221 (.262 avg, .655 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 3 homers and 26 RBIs. The Brewers will likely stash Phillips in AAA-ball in 2012.

The Milwaukee Brewers claim Jeff Bianchi off waivers

chinmusic — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 23:19:50 +0000

The Brewers have claimed 25-year old righty swinging SS/2B Jeff Bianchi off waivers from the Cubs. Bianchi played in 119 games in AA-ball last year and he was 115 of 444 (.259 avg, .654 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 2 homers, 48 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He has now played in 490 games in his first six years in the minors and he was 516 of 1,838 (.281 avg, .744 OPS) with 279 runs scored, 31 homers, 251 RBIs and 76 stolen bases. Bianchi will likely get a shot this spring to win a job on the Brewers’ bench.

The Milwaukee Brewers bring back Seth McClung

chinmusic — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 05:05:19 +0000

The Brewers have signed 30-year old righty reliever Seth McClung to a minor league deal. McClung pitched in 19 games (11 starts) in AAA-ball for the Rangers last year and he was 2-3 with a 5.19 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP. He last pitched in the majors back in 2009 for the Brewers. He has pitched in 92 games (14 starts) in his three years with the Brewers and he is 9-10 with a 4.32 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. McClung has pitched in 177 games (51 starts) overall in his first six years in the majors and he is 26-34 with 6 saves, a 5.46 ERA and a 1.58 WHIP. McClung will be a longshot to make the Brewers’ bullpen this spring.

The Milwaukee Brewers sign infielder Brooks Conrad

chinmusic — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 19:56:48 +0000

The Brewers have signed 31-year old righty swinging infielder Brooks Conrad to a minor league deal. Conrad played in 92 games for the Braves last year and he was 23 for 103 (.223 avg, .713 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 4 homers, 13 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. He has now played in 231 games in his first four years in the majors and he is 76 for 332 (.229 avg, .733 OPS) with 49 runs scored, 14 homers, 56 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Conrad is a hacker at the plate as he has whiffed 109 times already in his major league career. The Brewers will give Conrad a shot to win a bench job this spring.

The Milwaukee Brewers sign Cesar Izturis

chinmusic — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:19:20 +0000

The Brewers have signed 31-year old switch-hitting infielder Cesar Izturis to a minor league deal. Izturis played in 18 games for the Orioles last year and he was 6 for 30 (.200 avg, .450 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 0 homers and 1 RBI. He has now played in 1,185 games in his first 11 years in the majors and he is 1,036 of 4,055 (.255 avg, .618 OPS) with 422 runs scored, 15 homers, 290 RBIs and 109 stolen bases. This was a good signing for the Brewers as Izturis will likely be the top backup infielder on the team in 2012 because of his mitt, which is outstanding.

The Milwaukee Brewers sign Juan Perez

chinmusic — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:16:30 +0000

The Brewers have signed 33-year old lefty reliever Juan Perez to a minor league deal. Perez pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Phillies last year and he was 0-0 with a 3.60 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. He also pitched in 36 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year and he was 0-5 with 4 saves, a 5.70 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP. Perez has now pitched in 32 games (0 starts) in his first three years in the majors and he is 1-1 with a 4.79 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. Perez is going to have a good shot of making the Brewers’ bullpen next spring.

The Milwaukee Brewers re-sign infielder Andy Gonzalez

chinmusic — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 15:56:02 +0000

The Brewers have signed 30-year old lefty swinging infielder Andy Gonzalez to a minor league deal. Gonzalez played in 69 games in AA+AAA-ball for the Brewers last year and he was 57 for 197 (.289 avg, .819 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 4 homers and 23 RBIs. He last played in the majors back in 2009 with the Marlins. Gonzalez has now played in 91 games in his first three years in the majors and he is 41 for 225 (.182 avg, .539 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 3 homers, 13 RBIs and 1 stolen base.

The Milwaukee Brewers had the winning bid for outfielder Norichiku Aoki

chinmusic — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 02:28:20 +0000

The Brewers submitted the winning bid ($2.5 million bucks) for 29-year old lefty swinging outfielder Norichiku Aoki. The Brewers will now have a 30-day window to work out a deal with him. Aoki was 170 of 583 (.292 avg) with 4 homers, 44 RBIs and 8 stolen bases for the Yakult Swallows. He has played five seasons in Japan and he is 887 for 2,698 (.329 avg) with 68 homers, 295 RBIs and 93 stolen bases. The Brewers can use outfield help right now with Ryan Braun likely having to serve a 50-game suspension to start the 2012 season, so they need to get a deal done with Aoki.

UPDATE: (1/24/2012) - The Brewers have signed Norichiku Aoki to a 2-year contract with a club option for the 2014 season.