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Milwaukee Brewers All-Time Team
The Brewers franchise actually started out in 1969 as the Seattle Pilots, an expansion club in what was then the west coast's third largest metro area. They won their first game on the road, and their first home game, but ended up having a horrible season going 64-98 and finishing last in the AL West. After much dispute, a last-minute bankruptcy decision led to the team relocating to Milwaukee to become the Brewers for the 1970 season.
Unfortunately, their results didn't improve, as they won less than 70 games in each of the next three seasons, and then three more times from 1975-77. They came to life in 1978, and 79, winning 93 and 95 games respectively, and then made the post-season for the first time in strike-shortened 1981. In 1982, the powerful brew crew known as Harvey's Wallbangers (a play on the drink and the team's manager Harvey Kuenn) made it to the World Series before falling to the defense, speed, and pitching of the St. Louis Cardinals. Since then the Brewers have had little success. They were up and down from 1983-1992, with six seasons of .500 or better ball. But then the economics of being a small market team really began to have an effect, and they played sub-.500 every year from 1993-2004, managing to climb to only an 81-81 record finally in 2005. During that time they also had to adjust to first changing divisions with the American League (1994), and then switching leagues to the NL (1998), where they remain today.
As with any expansion-era club, their all-time team has some definite weak spots. But they also have some long-time players who are legit hall-of-famers, so their team overall isn't too shabby.
1st Base:
Cecil Cooper (.302, 201 HR, 944 RBI, 5 AS, 2 GG) is the obvious starter. After starting his career in Boston, he played 10+ seasons as the Brewer's 1B. He provided gold-glove defense, and hit for both power and average, with five seasons of 20+ HR, and seven hitting .300+. His best years were 1980 when he hit .352 with 25 HR, 122 RBI, and a career-high 17 SB, and then 1982 and 1983 when he hit 30+ HR and 120+ RBI.
Interestingly, the backup also started his career for Boston before having his best seasons in Milwaukee. George Scott (.283, 1 AS, 5 GG) was a Brewer for only five years, but provided respectable numbers every year, including a league-leading 36 HR and 109 RBI in 1975. And like Cooper, Scott provided outstanding defense, as he took home the gold glove each year in Wisconsin.
A couple of other sluggers were also considered. Richie Sexson (.276, 2 AS) was traded from the Indians as part of a multi-player deal for closer Bob Wickman. He then hit 119 HR from 2001-2003, with over 100 RBI every year. He struckout a lot, but hit in the .270s each season. So those are impressive seasons, and if he had stayed longer he would have made this roster, but he was dealt to the Diamondbacks in a massive trade after the 2003 season. And John Jaha (.268) also provided some good power, but only played two full seasons for the Brewers. His best year was easily 1996 when he hit .300 with 34 HR and 118 RBI.
2nd Base:
Since Jim Ganter (.274, 137 SB) has played nearly three times as many games at 2B (1449) as any other Brewer, he is clearly the starter (he also played 360 games at 3B). A lifetime Brewer, Ganter's numbers weren't as impressive as many of his longtime teammates, and he was never an All-Star. Indeed he only managed 50+ RBI twice, including his 1983 campaign which was the only season in which he hit double-digit HR. He also had only moderate speed, stealing 10+ bases six times. But with a pretty good glove and so much longevity, he is clearly deserving.
There aren't many strong candidates for the backup spot. Fernando Vina (.286, 1 AS) played parts of five seasons for the Brewers, but only two were full years. 1998 was his best, as he hit .311 with 39 doubles, 101 runs, and 22 SB (though he was caught 16 times). Ronnie Belliard (.263) started his career in Milwaukee, and had four seasons in which he played 100 or more games, mostly at 2B. But none were particularly impressive, so I'm forced to give this roster spot to Vina.
3rd Base:
Paul Molitor (.303, 1275 R, 405 D, 412 SB, 5 AS) played most of his career in Milwaukee, but at various positions (791 3B, 400 2B, 418 DH, 131 1B, 57 SS). He led the league in runs scored three times, and was regularly amongst the leaders in batting average. He had some power, but never hit more than 20 HR for the Brewers. More impressive was his speed, as he swiped 30+ bases eight times. This Hall of Famer is an obvious starter for this team, so he'll be used at the position he played the most.
Don Money (.270, 4 AS) also played many different positions for the Brewers () from 1973-1983. He had 10+ HR in eight seasons, including two when he had less than 300 at-bats. He was an all-star four times, so deserves to be the backup on this roster.
Jeff Cirillo (.307, 1 AS) actually played a few more games at the hot-corner than Molitor, but far fewer games overall and his resume is obviously much weaker. He had several fine seasons from 1994-1999, hitting 10+ HR four times and often batting over .300. He returned to Milwaukee in 2005, but only in a part-time role. And Sal Bando (.250) finished his fine career with the Brewers from 1977-81, though only three of them were full seasons.
Shortstop:
Robin Yount (.285, 251 HR, 583 D, 126 T, 1632 R, 1406 RBI, 3142 H, 271 SB, ) is by far the all-time Brewers leader in games, at-bats, hits, runs, doubles, triples, RBI, and even leads them in HR too. Playing his entire career in Milwaukee, he started at SS and then switched to CF. Amazingly, he managed to win an MVP award while playing at each position: first in 1982, when he hit .331 with 210 hits, 46 doubles, 29 HR, 129 runs and 114 RBI, then again in 1989 when he hit .318 with 21 HR , 101 runs, and 103 RBI. He had consistently good power and speed, hitting 15+ HR eight times, and stealing 15 bases nine times. For all his accomplishments and awards, it is worth pondering why he was only selected as an All-Star three times.
The backup will be Jose Valentin (.240) in part because he played more than twice as many games at SS as any other candidate. He had 10+ HR six times and 10+ SB five times, hitting 24 HR and 95 RBI in 1996. Bill Spiers (.256), Dale Sveum (.243), Pat Listach (.256), and Jose Hernandez (.261, 1 AS) were also considered, but none did enough to warrant much discussion.
Catcher:
There are many candidates to consider at catcher for this all-time team. B.J. Surhoff (.274, 102 SB) was a Brewer for his first nine seasons, providing little power, but stealing 10+ bases six times. He caught 704 games, but also spent time at other positions, and during his last two seasons in Milwaukee played mostly at 3B, 1B, and OF.
A lifetime Brewer for all but his season, Charlie Moore (.262) only played 130 or more games in a season three times. But he was with the team for parts fo 14 seasons, and played 850 games at C and 391 in the OF. He had virtually no power, and very little speed, but he was a fairly steady player overall. I'll go with Surhoff as the starter, but Moore makes for a fine backup in my opinion.
Many others deserve mention here. Darrell Porter (.229, 1 AS) started his career in Wisconsin (1971-76), hitting 10+ HR three times, but also hit for a rather low average. Mike Matheny (.231) also started his career for the Brewers, but only played five partial, unimpressive seasons for them. Australian Dave Nilsson (.284, 1 AS) was a lifetime Brewer, though his career only spanned 1992-99. Like many others I've discussed, he played all over the field: 309 games at C, 181 in the OF, 166 at 1B, and 163 as the DH. He twice hit 20+ HR, and batted .331 in 453 ABs in 1996. And finally Ted Simmons (.262, 2 AS) joined the Brewers for five seasons after having so many fine ones in St. Louis. In 1983 he hit .308 with 13 HR and 108 RBI, but played nearly as many games as the DH as he did behind the plate.
Outfield:
With Robin Yount already making this team as the starting SS, the starting outfield will start with Ben Oglivie (.277, 176 HR, 3 AS). After several mediocre seasons in Boston and Detroit, Ben really blossomed in Milwaukee where he played from 1978-86. In 1980 he led the AL in HR with 41 and was second in RBI with 118. And he was a key part of the 1982 pennant-winning team as he hit 34 HR with 102 RBI.
Geoff Jenkins (.278, 184 HR, 1 AS) has thus far played his entire career for the Brewers, hitting 20+ HR five times, though never topping the 100 RBI mark. 2000 was his best season, as he hit .303 with 34 HR and 94 RBI.
All-or-nothing slugger Gorman Thomas (.230, 208 HR, 1 AS) played most of his career with Milwaukee. He had some impressive HR totals including 45 to lead the league in 1979 and 39 to lead in 1982. He had 100+ RBI three times, but also struck out an awful lot: his 175 in 1979 and 170 in 1980 both led the league.
Jeromy Burnitz (.258, 165 HR, 1 AS) provided consistent power for five full seasons, and so is clearly deserving of the fourth OF spot. He hit 27-38 HR each year and had 100+ RBI three times. Another slugger, Greg Vaughn (.246, 169 HR) will get the fifth spot, as he played parts of eight seasons for Milwaukee hitting 17 or more HR every year but his first. In 1993 he hit 30 HR with 97 RBI. And the last spot will go to Sixto Lezcano (.275, 1 GG) who played for the Brewers from 1974-1980 and hit 10+ HR five times. His best year was 1979 when he hit .321 with 28 HR and 101 RBI.
There really weren't many others to consider. The only one worth mentioning is Rob Deer (.229, 137 HR), who like Thomas was a major power provider and a major strikeout risk. He hit 23-33 HR in each of his five Milwaukee seasons, but also struck out 147-186 times per year.
Starting Pitching:
The Brewers franchise has never had particularly strong pitching. This was evident when I began considering the starting spots for this all-time roster, as the pitcher with the most starts and wins actually had a losing record. Jim Slaton (117-121, 3.86, 1 AS) won 10+ games for the Milwaukee nine times, with his best season coming in 1979 when he went 15-9. It might be a little rude, but I'd say one of the best things Slaton did for the team was being traded away for one year. He and Rich Folkers were sent to Detroit for Ben Oglivie, and then Slaton he resigned with the Brewers as a free agent after the 1978 season.
Mike Caldwell (102-80, 3.74) is the only other Brewer with over 100 career wins for the club, so he'll easily make this staff. Traded from the Reds during the 1977 season, he quickly paid dividends. In 1978 he was runner-up for the NL Cy Young Award, going 22-9 with a 2.36 ERA and leading the league with 23 complete games. He never pitched that well again, but did manage 16-6 in 1979 and 17-13 in 1982. Because of his stronger peak performances, I'll actually choose Caldwell as the ace of this staff over Slaton.
Teddy Higuera (94-64, 3.61, 1 AS) only pitched six full seasons for Milwaukee (along with three partial ones). But they were quality seasons, starting with his 15-8 rookie campaign. The following year he was runner-up for the Cy Young Award after posting a 20-11 record with a 2.79 ERA and 207 strikeouts. Then he went 18-10 in 1987 with 240 strikeouts, and then 16-9 with a 2.45 ERA in 1988.
Moose Haas (91-79, 4.03) was a teammate of Caldwell's for most of his years in Milwaukee, pitching for them from 1976-1985. He won 10 or more games six times, but only once pitched 200 or more innings, in 1980 when he went 16-15 with a 3.10 ERA.
Along with these four, Bill Wegman (81-90, 4.16) is the only other Brewer who has started 200 or more games on the mound. A lifetime Brewer (1985-95), he only won 10 or more games four times. His best year was 1991 when he went 15-7 with a 2.84 ERA.
Chris Bosio (67-62, 3.76) makes this roster as the sixth starter, after posting 10 or more wins four times during sevent seasons with the club. In 1989 he went 15-10 with a 2.95 ERA, and then managed a 16-6 mark in 1992.
If you think Wegman and Bosio aren't really all-time team material, I completely agree. But unfortunately the bullpen candidates aren't very deep either, so I'm going to include a seventh starter. Jim Colborn (57-60, 3.65, 1 AS) had an outstanding 1973 season, his only year as an all-star. He went 20-12 with a 3.18 ERA, completing 22 games and pitching 314 innings. His other four Milwaukee seasons were mediocre at best, but that is enough of a resume to make this roster.
I certainly considered others, in fact, I look long and hard at them. Cal Eldred (64-65, 4.51), Jamie Navarro (62-64, 4.44), Bill Travers (65-67, 3.99), and Scott Karl (50-51, 4.57) all have lifetime Brewer records that were slightly below .500. Eldred was phenomenal in 14 games as a rookie in 1992, going 11-2 with a 1.79 ERA. But then he only won 10 or more games three times for Milwaukee after that. Navarro won 15 in 1991 and then 17 in 1992. Travers pitched for the club from 1974-1980, and won 10 or more games in four of those seasons. And Karl won 10+ games for the Brewers in four of his five seasons from 1995-99.
If you strongly value peak performance over longevity, then you Pete Vuckovich would make this roster. He won the Cy Young award in 1982 with an 18-6 record and a 3.34 ERA. And before that he led the league in wins with 14 during the strike-shortened 1981 season. But that is it really, so I can't justify including him.
And Ben Sheets (55-62, 3.83, 2 AS) has nearly earned a roster spot, having pitched his first five seasons for weak Milwaukee teams from 2001-05, winning 10-12 games each season. A hard thrower, he has been an all-star twice and posted 264 strikeouts in 2004.
Relief Pitching:
Hall-of-Famer Rollie Fingers (13-17, 2.54, 97 SV, 2 AS) will anchor this team's bullpen. Although he only pitched his final four seasons for the Brewers, three of them were outstanding. In strike-shortened 1981 he had 28 saves and an insane 1.04 ERA, capturing both the AL Cy Young and MVP awards. He followed that up with 29 saves and a 2.60 ERA in 1982, and then 23 saves and a 1.96 ERA in 1984 (after being out with injury the entire 1983 season).
Dan Plesac (29-37, 3.21, 133 SV, 3 AS) is the all-time leader in saves for the Brewers, so he clearly deserves a spot. He was a consistently good closer for the club from 1986-1990, and twice posted save totals of 30 or more.
For the third bullpen spot it is a close call between Mike Fetters (13-19, 2.99, 79 SV) and Bob Wickman (21-25, 3.20, 79 SV). Fetters pitched for the team for six years, so I'll give it to him. He had SV totals of 17, 22, and 32 from 1994-96. Wickman was the closer for two and half seasons, and posted 25 saves in 1998, 37 in 1999, and then 16 in 2000 before his trade to the Indians.
Extra Spot:
I'll go with Jeff Cirillo, because he was squeezed out at 3B by Molitor and Money, both of whom played significant time at other positions.
Team Captain:
For this club, this is an easy honor to bestow: Robin Yount, hands-down.
Starting Lineup
Paul Molitor 3B
Robin Yount SS
Cecil Cooper 1B
Ben Oglivie OF
Geoff Jenkins OF
Gorman Thomas OF
B.J. Surhoff C
Jim Ganter 2B
Mike Caldwell SP
This is a strong lineup 1-6, with three outstanding hitters at the top and three power guys in the middle. Since the DH has been around for most of this franchise's existence, it makes sense to envision a lineup with a DH included. There are lots of candidates, but Burnitz would be my choice, and I'd bat him fourth or fifth in this lineup.
Prospects for Current Players:
What are the prospects of current Brewers players making this all-time team? Geoff Jenkins is already on the roster. No position players are going to be added soon, though several youngsters are already showing promise, including Rickie Weeks, Prince Fielder, and Bill Hall. Ben Sheets probably just needs one strong season to be included at the bottom of this weak pitching staff, and fellow hurlers Doug Davis and Chris Capuano might make it someday as well. We'll see...
Other Lists
Brewers Retired Numbers (players only)
Paul Molitor (4), Robin Yount (19), Rollie Fingers (34), Hank Aaron (44)
2003 Rob Neyer's Big Book of Baseball Lineups
Neyer bites the bullet and goes with Charlie Moore as the starting catcher, writing "He spent 14-plus years in the majors, and was generally a good-hitting catcher except for three mid-career seasons in which he was a poor-hitting right fielder. Looking at his career, I'm not sure which three seasons Neyer is talking about, and it is a stretch to say describe Moore as "good-hitting" (not to mention that he was often just a platoon player). But this certainly is a very weak position for the Brewers, as Neyer's choice of Porter as the backup indicates.
The starting infield is the same as mine, as are his backups except for the choice of Cirillo at 3B (which is understandable). Neyer lists Molitor as starting DH as well, and also doubles up Yount in the OF. The other two starting OF are Oglivie in LF and Burnitz in RF, which makes sense since Jenkins hadn't done quite enough through the 2002 season. The backups are Thomas in CF and Lezcano in RF, with Johnny Briggs making it in LF. Briggs had some power, hitting 17-21 HR each season from 1971-74.
His top four starters are Higuera, Caldwell, Slaton, and Wegman. About Higuera he correctly writes "The closest thing to a superstar pitcher in franchise history, Higuera went 69038 in his first four season before injuries overwhelmed his career." The next four starters are Bosio, Sorensen, Haas, and Marty Pattin, who only pitched for the Brewers for two years, but was solid in each and an all-star in 1971. Plesac and Fingers are the two obvious relievers, though he gives the first spot to Plesac.
1985 The
All-Time All-Star Baseball Book by Bart Acocella,
Nick Acocella, and Donald Dewey
Written in 1985, the authors had only 15 years to draw on for their lineup. They write: "If this lineup seems familiar, it means you watched the 1982 World Series." And indeed they are right: Cooper, Ganter, Molitor, Yount, Oglivie, Thomas, Hisle, Simmons, Fingers. All of these were members of the 82 Brew Crew, although it was Hisle's last season and he only had 31 at-bats. I didn't mention him earlier because he had only one full season in Milwaukee, 1978 when he hit .290 with 34 HR and 115 RBI. In his other four seasons combined he only had 274 at-bats. The authors noted: "If you want to cheat a little, you can move Cooper into the outfield in place of Hisle and put George Scott at first, but on balance we prefer it as is." Also, note that the starting pitching choices were so bad, they went with a reliever as the top pitcher.
1995 Baseball
Ratings by Charles S. Faber
Written in 1995, the most recent stars would not
have yet been eligible. The Faber system produces a very credible lineup with no surprises: Cooper, Ganter, Yount, Molitor, Surhoff, Oglivie, Thomas, Lezcano, and Slaton.
TheBaseballPage.com (link)
This website (as of May 2006) selects Surhoff and Nilsson as the catchers, listing Moore as an honorable mention "utility" player. They have a fine infield with Coop as the lone 1B, Gantner and Money at 2B, Yount at SS, and Molitor and Cirillo at 3B. LF is Vaughn and Burnitz, CF is Thomas and Darryl Hamilton, and RF is Oglivie and Deer. I think this misses Jenkins for sure, though he is a LF mostly so has competition (he is listed as honorable mention). Darryl Hamilton probably deserved mention earlier: he played as a Brewer for seven years, hitting around .300 and provided some nice speed too (he stole 41 bases in 1992). They list Sexson as a DH which is fine with me.
The starting pitchers are listed as Higuera, Slaton, Caldwell, Haas, and Bosio. Then they list Bob McClure (who was both a starter and reliever for the club for ten years), Navarro, and Eldred. In the pen they have Plesac, Wickman, and then Ken Sanders, who was a short reliever from 1970-72, posting 31 saves and a 1.91 ERA in 1971. Mike Fetters is listed as honorable mention, and Rollie Fingers isn't eligible since he makes the all-time Athletics team.
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