Brian's Sports Report

Favre returns

2007-02-02T23:09:00.000-08:00

It’s amazing how two groups of people can see things in different views. A Democrat and Republican can look at a subject and come to totally different opinions, just like a Packer fan and a non Packer fan can do the same.
Today Packer legend Brett Favre announced he would be returning for his 17th season as quarterback. What a great day it has been as it has brought so much joy and excitement to everyone. The player that has given us so many memories after all these years, the man that has been there for us every single game, will be back.
As I expected, opinions in the media have been leaning toward the negative. They say Favre is holding the Packers back from being a true contender. Favre is after all an average quarterback and nobody can deny that. He’s also holding back the rebuilding process that began this year. But you know what? Nobody in Wisconsin gives a crap.
I’m sick of all you Chicago/Minnesota (hey der don’t ya know) fans that want him gone and talk bad about him. We hate you guys just as much as you hate us, but don’t tell me you don’t respect at man that:
Is the only three time MVP in NFL history
Is closing in to own every note worthy quarterback record
Has never missed a game since 1992 (including playoffs)
Has been in two Super bowls (Winning one in 1996)
Most importantly, playing the game it’s meant to be played.

Packer fans don’t really care that we might be side tracking in our success, we just care about seeing our hero play. Brett Favre is the most respected player in football because you know that guy will always give you everything he has. He has also has more fun than any other play and that makes him that much more likeable. Unless you are from Wisconsin, you don’t understand how special that guy is to us. Though I don’t speak for everyone, I would rather see him come back and take us to first round elimination into the playoffs than to not come back knowing he still has some gas in the tank. We owe him all of that after all the memories he’s given us.
Now for Chicago. You guys got into the Super Bowl with a quarterback that has a record of his own: he was the only quarterback to post a 0.0 passer rating. That’s pretty damn impressive. If I played I’m sure I could at least pull a .015 on a bad day. You also lost to the Packers on the last game of the season and you better believe that competition is coming next year. You guys have been at the bottom of the division for how many years now? Don’t think this one Super bowl appearance year will overtake the history and pride that Packer fans have. Let’s hope the most consistent quarterback in the world, Rex Grossman, can “lead” you guys again next year. Ditka would be proud of all of you.
I respect Chicago, but also dish crap back when you talk it about one of my hero’s. There is tradition in Chicago but it's just not the same.
I consider myself lucky to be able to tell my kids I grew up in the Brett Favre era. I watched one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play football. I got to see him in person at Lambeau and he was there for me every single football Sunday/Monday. Packer fans let us rejoice, number 4 is here to stay for another year. Chicago fans, bet me five bucks that Rex won’t landscaping my yard in 3 years.

Top 4 annoying aspects of Miller Park

2006-11-29T11:25:00.000-08:00

This writer thinks there is no greater feeling in the world than going to watch a ball game at Miller Park in Milwaukee, WI. Sure you can always watch the game at home, but there is just something great about the sounds, smells and excitement of being at the game. Actually going to the game means I get a lot more entertainment than just a baseball game. I get to put my hard earned high school diploma to use by playing the crazy cap shuffle and I get to see the world famous Klements sausages race to the death (literally they do race to the death. The losing sausage gets thrown into an industrial sized oven after the race. I’m not talking just the sausage suit but the actual person inside of the suit).
Along with any good in the world there must be something bad to go with it, just look at Rosie O Donnell on The View. Miller Park has numerous aspects that I’d like to see changed. This week, Brian’s Sport’s Report focuses on the top four most annoying parts of the Miller Park baseball experience.

1. I understand a business needs to make a profit. I’m all for a society where we make a product and sell it at a higher cost, but who decided that a hot dog should cost $2.75? You know a meal is expensive when as your eating it you are thinking of the hours you had to work in a day to pay for it. Don’t get me started on the ice cream! Would it be so hard to put a little extra ice cream in my dish? I just spent $5 on a bowl of ice cream that could feed a small rabbit for maybe an hour if kept frozen. Ok Suzie, I know you are a volunteer and your church leader told you not to put too much ice cream in anyone’s dish, but cut me a break!

2. Ethnic equality is a very important issue, but there are many other ways to appeal to a certain crowd than to keep adding a sausage to the Klements race every 2 years. If we keep adding sausages it will soon be mathematically impossible for all the sausages to be able to run in a half circle around the field. If you want to appeal to the Hispanic crowd, I say we go full out and release a live bull on the field in the 7th inning when the opposing team is on the field. No better way to celebrate Mexican heritage by allowing bull fighting. Now the player not only has to focus on catching a ball but also keeping himself alive by not getting gored by an angry animal of nature. If the player commits an error in the first 6 innings, then a big red cape must be worn by the outfielder for the rest of the game. If the outfielder commits two errors in the game, then the crowd gets to throw tacos at him on the field.

3. Out of all the items on this list, nothing gets me more fired up than the token drunk guy that tries to start the wave. Come on token drunk guy, sit down and watch the baseball game. If you get the wave going you won’t get any medal and you won’t even remember doing it the next day. I’m more impressed with a 4-6-3 double play than I am with your ability to get 30,000 people to put their hands in the air and say “woooooo”.

4. Does anyone else get the impression that a teenager holding the t shirt cannon automatically thinks they become God of the universe? They run out on the field and hold their hand next to their ear which signals to us that they can’t hear us. They point and try to see who can make the most noise to earn their respect which will motivate them to shoot a t shirt at us. I could care less about the t shirt; Lord knows it’s always an extra large! Shoot something interesting into the crowd like bananas or those little fish you get in the bags at the carnivals. That’s the stuff I’d put my body on the line for.

It’s quite apparent there are some annoying things going on at Miller Park, but that won’t stop me from going to the games. The positives will always out weigh the negatives. So put some ice cream in my dish and shoot me a banana damn it.

The Hot Dog

2006-06-20T09:53:00.000-07:00

Great places to watch sporting events not only have great teams playing in them, but also cater to the fans and make the experience of game day more exciting. Minute Maid Park in Houston has a big glorious train ride around part of the stadium when a home run gets hit. In St. Louis, a town so rich in baseball history, they built their stadium next to the St. Louis arc so the fans can see it at the ball game. At Miller Park in Milwaukee, we get four random people to dress up like sausages and run around the field in the 7th inning.
It’s true that on the list of the 100 exciting things to watch in life, the sausage race has to be towards the top. The bottom of the list is: 98- Olympic curling 99- NASCAR “pre game” shows 100 – any NASCAR race. For one and a half minutes every home game, we truly believe these sausages are real and are racing for our heritage. There’s nothing like a big drunk guy with his shirt off holding two fingers up for his sausage of choice, the Polish. The other sausages are 1- Bratwurst, 3 – Italian 4-Hot Dog. Brett Favre isn’t the only number 4 causing controversy as of late.

There is much debate in the sports world about if the hot dog is really a sausage and if it belongs in the race. So in this article, Brian’s Sports Report wants to focus on “The Hot Dog”.
According to http://www.worldwideworlds.com/, the hot dog was first sold by Harry Stevens at New York’s Polo grounds outside of Giants stadium. It was named by a cartoonist by the name of T.A Dorgan, who nick named it a hot dog because he couldn’t spell frankfurter (and I thought I had a hard enough time spelling tomarrow).

The hot dog is under speculation as of late as many fans ask the question: Does the hot dog belong in the sausage race? The answer my friends is yes. Yes the hot dog is an expansion sausage and was added recently within the past 10 years, but at one point the Brewers were an expansion team in the mid 1900’s. Us polish, Italian and German kids are lucky in that we have a sausage to cheer for at Miller Park every time they walk out of the gate. But let me ask you a question, how would you feel if you were African American or Latino? That’s right, you’d feel great because you’d have more natural dancing abilities than any white person, but you’d feel really bad because you don’t have a sausage to cheer for.

Regardless of whether the hot dog is actually a “sausage” or not does not concern me. What does though is the lack of respect for a hot dog that people have. African American’s, Chinese people and aliens from other planets now have a sausage they can cheer for. The hot dog not only symbolizes what’s great about the ballpark but what is great about America. Picture a small Chinese man cheering for the polish sausage. It’s just one of those things that don’t work, kind of like the endless sequels to Friday the 13th.
I say give the foreigners someone to cheer for! Give these people a sausage that they can call their own. A sausage that represents what our ancestors had to go through to make this country great. A sausage that shows we care about more people than just Polish, Italian and German folks. America is a beautiful….and so is Jessica Alba.

Albert Pujols

2006-05-24T22:01:00.000-07:00

" Guilty before proven innocent"

It's a saying that seems to be very evident in our soceity today. It's a term that is almost scary in how true that it is, especially when discussions around Major Leauge Baseball arrise. In 1998, we were captivated by a home run race between two superstars. Baseball was saved from a strike that cancled a world series and tore millions of baseball fans hearts. 6 years later, we find out that all that magic we witnessed could have been due to fraud.

We as baseball fans are pissed. We are mad that we were duked into the whole home run race when in reality, we feel it was due to steroid use. We as fans do have the right to be suspicious, there is nothing wrong with that. The problem is when we jump to conclusions about steroid use. All that mess has landed on the lap of the games greatest player, Albert Pujols.

Albert Pujols is a baseball machine. He has more home runs at this point in his career than any player in major leauge history. He's the fastest person to 23 home runs in baseball history. He was rookie of the year in 2001 and the MVP in 2005. If it wasen't for Barry Bonds, he could have added a couple more MVP's to his resume. As of 5/23/06, he's having the greatest season of any player in major leauge history and he's only 26 years old.

Albert Pujols is my absolute favorite athlete in any sport. He's one athlete I can truly say I look up to and admire. He's like my new Brett Favre. His numbers are incredible, his deminor, personality, work ethic and work with charaties are all great. If he continues at even a slightly lesser pace then he is now, he'll be the greatest player ever to play baseball.

I knew weeks ago with all this there would come speculation on steroid use. If you are an avid sports fan or even a casual one, you'll notice that ESPN and other major networks are now begining the steroid talks. Any player that puts up incredible numbers should have a question mark around them, I don't see anything wrong with that. The only problem is digging for something and starting to make it up in your mind if it isn't there (ex. George W. Bush). I started off an article today with a quote (which my english teacher told me never to do) "guilty until proven innocent".

Albert has stated numerous times that you can test him day in and day out. He's already been tested by major leauge baseball 3 times this season, thats an average of about 1.5 times a month. People need to stop all the speculation!!

If you are caught up in the speculation then you are missing something amazing happening. You are missing something great that we may never see again. If a possitive test comes up, then we all have the right to boo or speculate. But if he continues to pass his tests and claim he is drug free, lets let it slide and enjoy it. He's exciting, he's a great guy, he has fun on the field, he works incredibly hard, he's a fighter, he's clutch and a super athlete. Lets hope he's the savior of baseball. We should all be happy if he passes Barry Bonds and we should all root for it to happen (as long as none of the home runs are against the Brewers!)

Brett Favre saga.Updated new thoughts

2006-04-11T18:58:00.000-07:00

Good readers I've finally figured out the answer to the biggest mystery in the world! NO no no you already know if O.J did it and you also know if Britney's are real or not, this has to do with football.

I made a bet a few weeks ago that I was 100 percent possitive that Brett Favre was coming back to the Packers and if I was wrong, I would wash the car of whoever read it. Though I'm not completly sold on the fact that I'm wrong, some new things have happend since that quote that makes me want to change my mind. I've uncovered the truth and figured out why this whole Packers/Favre thing is taking so long. It's a game called "Chicken".

Let's start with what we know is true. Brett Favre has one year left of football left in him. He's said in interviews that if he did come back, it would be for one more year. We also know that Brett is in his late 30's and has been getting banged around for almost two decates by really big mean guys. Brett has also stated he wont come back unless he thinks he has a chance to win. Brett has also said he wants to finish his career in Green Bay.

Now lets look at the Packers. The Packers have stated publicly that they want Brett to return. The Packers have stated that Brett can have as much time as he needs to decide. Do the Packers want Brett back? More importantly, does Brett want to come back? Are both sides afraid to move?

It's like a basement chess game with your Uncle Bob that comes down to the last few moves and nobody wants to be the one to mess up. How could either side mess up in this situation?

Lets face it, Brett knows he wont come back unless he's seen that the team has improved from the last season. It's quite obvious that as of now, the team has not improved that much. Brett also knows he wants to play for a contender if he is going to put his body on the line. Lets face it, the Packers won't be a contender next year. As much as they don't want to admit it, I don't believe the Packers want Brett back. They want to start the rebuilding process with Aaron Rogers and start building through the draft. Brett Favre delays that.

Brett Favre doesn't want to come back to the Packers, since it serves no merrit to do so. Why put your body on the line for a team that doesn't matter? People made fun of me for saying it before, but I think it's a possiblity that Brett wants to play for another team.

So here we have a game of chicken being played under the eyes of the Green Bay faithful. If they Packers tell Brett they don't want him back, the public will hate Ted Thompson and the Packers organization for not wanting him back. If Brett tells the Packers he doesn't want to come back, the public will hate him for betraying us. So both sides are stuck. I believe both sides are waiting for the other to budge and as of now nobody is moving. Whoever moves first loses in the eye of public opinion. So it seems like the easy way out is for both camps would be if Brett called it quits. But when you are a competitor such as himself, you can't just call it quits when you know you have some left in you.

So it looks like I could be washing some cars this summer. I'll wash them with pride in a speedo with a Green Bay Packers logo right on my behind. I hope for the sake of everyone, that wont have to happen.

PS. The answers to the first two questions are yes and no.

NFL Draft

2006-03-14T20:45:00.000-08:00

Let's imagine you are on a game show, heck lets even imagine that I'm your host (no i won't kiss your cheek). You've won your choice of a grand prize because you correctly guessed how many more bad movies Eddie Murphy will make before he retires from acting. 5 doors roll out from behind a curtin and there is smoke everywhere. Out from the door walk five athletes: Matt Leinart, Vince Young, Reggie Bush, Mario Williams and A.J Hawk. You get to pick one of them to play for the Green Bay Packers, who's it gonna be? Oh yeah I forgot to tell you, 4 people get to pick before you....

With the NFL draft coming up, there has been much speculation on who will get chosen for what time. Up till this afternoon, I honestly had no clue, but my guess would have been:
1. Bush
2. Leinart
3. Young
4. Mario Willams
5. (Packers) = A.J Hawk

But that all changed today when two significant off season free agent deals went down. Daunte Cullpepper accepted a deal with the Miami Dolphins and more importantly, Drew Brees accepted a deal with the New Orelans Saints. The Saints are now set with their QB which now makes for an interesting draft. Now the Packers have a choice to make. Granted there is still time for New Orleans to trade their 2nd pick if the want, the draft now looks like this:
1. Bush
2. (No QB needed)
3. Leinart, Young, Cutler
4. No QB needed)
5. OB needed?

If the draft order stays the same that it is now, the frees up a QB for the Packers if they want one. Nobody is quite sure on Aaron Rogers, is he the guy that is going to lead us after Favre leaves us? I'd have to assume that Matt Leinart will get picked before Vince Young or Jay Cutler. That potentially means the Packers could get their choice of Young or Cutler.

The tough problem with football, unlike baseball, is that the draft actually means something. These picks are very important. Picking Barry Sanders or Peyton Manning can drasticly affect a teams future for the next ten years along with picking bad picks (Ryan Leaf you little baby you).

So what do the Packers do if they do get a choice of Young or Cutler at QB? My answer is honestly I don't know. It's too bad we couldn't have seen Aaron Rogers play a bit more this year. I don't know if he can be THE GUY. Vince Young put on a grade A performance at the Rose Bowl this year and complied amazing stats at Texas, but is he NFL ready?

If i had to guess, the Packers will most likely take Mario Williams (if available) or A.J Hawk. I haven't even brought up the fact yet that the decision might have alot to do if Brett Favre comes back or not. (One side note, my next article will be on Javon "piece of crap" Walker.)

This article is all over the place, kind of like Green Day this past year (if i hear that song one more time...) and it really doesn't make sense and it shouldn't. I can't make up my mind untill I know what Brett Favre will do and if New Orleans trades their pick. We shall see what happens. Wake me up when April ends.

New Barry Bonds book.

2006-03-08T12:09:00.000-08:00

I made up a game, yes thats right I made up a game (Trust me it's more fun that Monopoly, just ask Dane Cook). It's a fun one but it's almost impossible to win. It's called " Try to go a whole week without hearing or seeing the word 'Barry Bonds' ". I had a streak of 2 days going and then today I lost. And you thought Chutes and Ladders was hard!

Two writters from the San Francisco Bay area are making news today after they announced they will be publishing a book on the "supposed" use of steroids by Giants slugger and 7 time MVP Barry Bonds. The writters researched him for two years using jury grand testimony (from the BALCO trial), interviews and over 200 sources.

This book is great in my mind because it finally puts the nail in the coffin for Bonds. Yes everyone knows he put on 1,000 pounds of muscle in 5 years, but that still doesn't prove he actually used steroids. Yes he never hit anywhere close to 70 home runs in his career untill he got to his 40's, but again you can't just assume. Roger Clemmens, arguably the best right handed pitcher ever, is in his 40's and posted the best ERA in baseball last year and he has been tested many times. Thats what makes this book good. Barry is sort of like O.J Simpson, he's innocent untill proven guilty, but we all know the answer ("If the glove doesn't fit, you cannot aquit!" RIP Johnny).

Though I haven't read the whole book yet, I have read many transcripts from it in which they go into lots of detail of the cycle of drugs that Bonds was on, how it affected his life and why he did it. A group of reporters interviewed Bonds today outside his locker (complete with a big screen tv) and asked him his thoughts on the book. He stated that he wouldn't comment on it and he walked away. COME ON BARRY! Tell us you are sorry. Look what happend to Mark McGwire, everyone loved Mark and now he's an enemy to baseball fans. Whats scary is we all actually liked Mark untill he plead the 5th infront of congress on his steroid use. Just think what will happen to you in the years if you don't just admit it, I mean we already hate your guts with a passion and think you are a jerk.

Bonds has admitted that he did take steroids but he "didin't know" they were steroids. Rick Rieley, in a Sports Illustrated article last year said " Sure I believe Barry didin't know he was taking steroids. I mean the guy won't eat popcorn unless he knows the exact saturated fat content of it, so I'm sure he had no idea." I read the article and agreed with Rick, maybe he thought he was taking Flinstone vitamins and injecting candy into his butt?

Should Bonds be in the hall of fame? Thats another story and thats another article to be written. But for now we must put up with stories of our favorite athlete of Major Leauge Baseball, Barry Bonds. Alright I say you join me in round two of my game. Let's start now, you have to go one week without hearing or seeing his name, if you lose...then you have to dress up like Paula Abdul.

What's it gunna be Brett?

2006-03-03T07:44:00.000-08:00

Few things symbolize the great state of Wisconsin. We don't have the best weather, we don't have the most amazing vacation spots, we don't have any real big cities to visit and David Copperfield the magician still refuses to come back to perform at the Riverside Theatre (it's been 5 years come back!). One thing we are known for though is football, most notably the Green Bay Packers.

With the Packers, is a player that was a former 3rd string starter, to replacment player, to starter, to a MVP and then on to a Lambeau Legend. He's one of the t0p 10 quarterbacks in the history of football (if he's not on your list then you made a mistake) and he's on the verge of possibly calling it quits. What's going on with Brett Favre and will will the eventual outcome be?

After a disapointing 4-12 season (not Brett's fault), Brett Favre told many news outlets that it might have been his last season. There have been many reports on what people think Brett will end up doing. I have a prediction, but I'll save that for later on. I try as much as I can not to listen to an anylyst make their thoughts as much as I try to really look atevery interview Brett has done this offseason. There are lots of key things he has said.

Brett says over and over again that he can still play. He says his arm feels better now then ever before and he still has a shot gun attached to his shoulder. So for anyone that tries to say he's getting old and should call it quits, thats a weak argument. The one thing Brett did say that really shocked me was:

" I don't know if I want to be the guy anymore. If there are two minutes left in the game, I don't know if I want to be the guy with the ball.. I never throught I'd give up mentally before I did physically." Was that Brett Favre talking?? The iron man of football who's endured so much mental and physical pain has finally cracked?

There are really in my mind 3 scenario's that can happen: 1. Brett Favre returns to the Packers for 1-3 mroe years. 2. Brett Favre retires. 3. Brett Favre plays for another team. Yes I said it.

Though I think it's unlikely, it does make sense that Favre might want to play for another team instead of Mr. Personality Ted Thompson. Favre still has years left but just wants a team that is a contender. Just think how he'd do on a team like the Dolphins, who are a few pieces away from making some magic happen. He's running out of time and I'm sure he'd like the chance to win one more Super Bowl.

Favre has said he wants to wait to see how the draft goes and how Ted Thompson handles free agency this off season. Edgerrin James is a free agent and could sign with the Packers since we are still very far from our salary cap max. Also we have an opportunity to pick up some stars in the draft, A.J Hawk or Mario Williams to add some defensive help.

I don't believe Brett will return unless the Packers make some serious moves to prove that they can make a title run in the next 2 years. Brett has nothing left to prove. He's a 3 time MVP, Super Bowl champion, he's in the top 5 for almost every quarterback record and he's a first balot Hall of Famer. If the Packers do truly want Brett Favre back, they need to make some moves. If it is his last year, we can all be happy that we were lucky enough to grow up with him and watch him play every Sunday.

Thoughts on World Baseball Classic

2006-03-02T20:06:00.000-08:00

It's a dream come true to any baseball fan in the world. Finally for the first time ever, the world will see it's first "World Baseball Classic". The absolute best players in the world will come together to represent their countries to see who is the best baseball country on the planet. Though the idea seems great, there are many problems that are already forumlating. Scared baseball owners, player fear of injury, unwillingness to play in a "made up event", low American baseball and country pride and most of all the fact that the classic will take place before the MLB starts it's season. Those are the main problems.Let's take a look at the them more in depth.
The WBC is a great idea minus the fact that the timing is horrible. Now a strong counter argument would be the fact that there really is no other good time to have this event other than a month before the Major Leauge Baseball season begins. The timing of this event means players are not in top physical form to compete. Pitchers will be limited to strict pithing counts and games will even end in a tie to reduce the risk of pitching injuries after 14 innings. This in my mind takes away from a full out fight to the bone tournament atmoshre that would be cool to see.

Owners are also very upset that their star players, some playing for millions of dollars, might get hurt. If A Rod brakes his leg, his 100 million dollar contract still goes to him and he retires at the expense of George Steinbrenner. That also goes for everyother player. We must remember this isn't the olympics, it's a un tested tournament that players are risking their careers on. Is it worth playing in this tournament? A recent scare was with Milwaukee Brewers ace Ben Sheets and his desire to play in the games. Sheets, an olympic hero from the Olympics in 2000, wanted to be there. The Brewers filed a complaint to MLB asking that the star not be able to participate. Sheets is owed 11 million this season, the largest in Brewers history and they didin't want the teams future and his future risked.

Also it seems America wont care as much for the upcoming tournament as other countries with alot more pride (venesuala, panama, dominican republic). Every day that passes by, another star pulls out. Though lots of the players are recovering from injuries, some do not want to participate to not risk their bodies. Barry Bonds, Manny Rameirez and Ben Sheets are some big names that felt it was best to stay with their teams.

I love the idea of the tournament and look forward to watching every game that I can. I do however feel that one injured baseball star will give the classic lots of bad publicity. I hope America wins and hopefully as each classic comes and goes, they can learn something different to keep making it better each time to help eliminate some of these problems. GO USA!

Winter Olympics: Who cares??

2006-03-01T21:43:00.000-08:00

Did anyone realize that the winter olympics not only took place but are finished? The winter olympics came and went faster than the macarena (don't act like you never danced the dance!). The winter olympics have in my mind taken a huge plunge over the years and are starting to incresingly lose the interest of the American public. Why is this and what can be done to make it better?

The Winter Olympics (unlike the Summer games) are very un interesting. The Summer games are full of games that we actually know how to play and can do ourselves (volleyball, basketball, swimming, running) and not things we have no clue let alone care about (skeleton, bobsled, cross country shooting on ski's and of course curling). Some might even include hockey in that mix. Not only can we not relate to the games being played but we are confused by the ones we are actually interested in.

It's pretty clear that the most famous and well liked winter games competition is women's figure skaking (if you are like me then you like it for more than one reason "sasha coehen cough cough"). But who the heck actually knows how to score these events at home? Do you know what the difference between a 9.3 and a 9.4 performance is? No you don't and neither do I. Some might even argue that these types of competition should be eliminated from the games, just look at what happend in Salt Lake City with the corrupt French Judge.

I'm not anti national pride so don't go there girlfriend, but I am against the corporte monster that the olympics has become. It seems to much interest is in ratings, merchandise and money than on how our athletes do. A combonation of games we don't understand and games we don't know how to score makes it hard to watch.

I still remember the winter games of 1994. You had first class athletes and stories that made everyone interested. Dan Jansen, Bonnie Blair. In 1998 you had Tara Lapinski and Apollo Anton Ohno. We cared and were interested in these athletes, but had nothing like that this year. I'm all for the olympics, but corporate America needs to find a way to get America interested in the winter games. It seems like CSI and American Idol know what they are doing.

Milwaukee Brewers Season Preview Part 1: Roster analysis

2006-03-01T20:40:00.000-08:00

The sun is still barley shining here in my hometown of Muskego, WI, but in Arizona at Merryville Park, it's pretty hot. Not just because of the blairing sun but more so because of a baseball team on the rise.

For the first time in years, there is a sense of hope and excitment going into this Brewers season then in the past. For once the team has a stable owner, GM, manager and a steady set of players. Most sports publications are picking the Brewers to finsish 2nd or 3rd in the NL central behind the still strong (but declining) St. Louis Cardinals. Let's take a look at examine how the team will look as we enter the 2006 season.

Pitching wins baseball games and the Brewers have a fair reason to be ready for a good pitching year. Ben Sheets is still one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball, though his record over years hasen't actually shown it. I predict this is going to finally be his break out year to solidify himself as a star. A steady staff of Doug Davis, Chris Capuano, Tomo Ohka will also be key. We also have new comer Dave Bush (aquired in the Overbay trade) and Dana Eveland fighting for the 5th spot. Our set up guys are quality guys. Matt Wise had a great year last year but the real question mark will be if Danny Kohlb (aquired back from the Braves) will be able to return to All Star form this season. Derrick Turnbow (also a future star) tied a team record last year in saves and can only get better. Also must mention that he diidn't even have the whole season to do it.
Pitching = B

Our offense will be a question mark this year but does have high expectations. It's fair to say that our starting line up will most likely be:
1. Brady Clark
2. Ricky Weeks
3. Prince Fielder
4. Carlos Lee
5.Geoff Jenkins
6. Corey Koskie
7. Damian Miller
8. J.J Hardy
9. Pitcher

It might not be in that exact order, but that is our starting line up. It would be fair to say that the only proven consistant hitters from last season are Brady Clark, Damian Miller and Carlos Lee. The other players all had down parts of the season last year but they all show promise. Assuming all players can play to their potential, this could be a dangerous offense.
Offense: B

Brewers fans it's almost that time when we will be waking up, getting our grills ready, packing up the buns and dogs and heading to the ball park. Fan interest is at a high that it hasen't been in years and this team has a chance to do some great things, like playing into October for the first time in a long time.