Fire Ken Macha?

As the Brewers slide has reached 9 games and counting, the heat under manager Ken Macha’s seat has reached a boiling point. The Brewers are a miserable 15-25 for the second-worst record in the National League (only one game ahead of the Astros) so fans and the media believe that management needs to do something to shake things up and show that they are dedicated to winning. The pitching staff has the 3rd worst ERA in all of baseball, are one of only 8 teams that do not have a single complete game and have issued the 5th most walks in baseball. While I am not the biggest fan of Macha, I don’t believe that firing him will fix any of the problems the Brewers have.

What would firing Macha really accomplish? Would firing Kenny change the fact that the starting pitching rarely makes an appearance after the 6th inning? Would firing him cause Trevor Hoffman to stop blowing save opportunities? Would firing Macha solve the rest of the bullpen collapse that has taken place where there is not one reliable arm out there? Would firing Macha get Prince Fielder to focus on hitting and this season instead of looking ahead to his free agency? I think the answer to all of these questions is a resounding “No.” So why would they fire him? Because Macha has less personality (at least outwardly with the media) than Audrina Patridge, and therefore it appears he is incapable of rallying the team to stop the slide.

The demise of the Brewers was less of a surprise than the revelation of a sex tape involving Kendra Wilkinson. To fix their NL-worst starting rotation from last year, they signed a 33-year old who had just put together a couple of strong seasons (Randy Wolf) and a left-handed Jeff Suppan clone in Doug Davis, whom they had already let go a few seasons earlier. They brought back a 42-year old closer. They continue to hold out hope for a Manny Parra to become an average major league pitcher, and they have now held on too long and he has lost any and all trade value. Why did we believe that this pitching staff was good enough to compete with the Cardinals, Reds, or any of the other solid teams in the National League?

The other end of the equation, is who would be the replacement for Macha? Dale Sveum? Yes, he was the interim manager that held the post for the last few weeks of 2008 and into the playoffs. Did he really do anything other than have more life than Ned Yost? He was so unimpressive that he was not really considered for the full time gig for 2009. And now suddenly he is going to be the answer to fix the Brewers? I just don’t see it. So where do they go instead? Willie Randolph? Is he a big change from Macha? Probably not. The point is that the Brewers should not fire Macha without knowing who they are going to replace him with and if that person is really going to make a difference. Michaelangelo wouldn’t have been able to paint the Sistine Chapel if he was using finger paints.

Firing Macha might make the fans and the media happy, but be reasonable about what effect it will actually have on on the field performance.

Always An Adventure With Airtran

I’ve mentioned in the past my disdain for Airtran, easily the worst of the so-called value airlines. Flying Airtran is just like partying with the North Carolina basketball team…only the exact opposite. It was another recent adventure trying to get back to New York from Milwaukee this week with the airline. I had booked a one-way flight from Milwaukee to LaGuardia as I had flown into Chicago for my brother-in-law’s graduation. Get to the airport, through security and board the plane without issue. As I’m watching the plane board, I’m noticing that the flight is less than 40% full, which is always a bad sign. Sure enough, immediately after everyone has boarded, they announce that there is a 30 minute ground delay, which isn’t a big deal except that they are going to allow people to deplane while waiting. Always a bad sign, meaning they know it’s going to be more than 30 minutes. Sure enough, within 10 minutes, they announce the flight has been cancelled due to “weather in New York.” Really? Do they really think we’re this dumb and gullible? I had spoken with my wife and looked at the weather on my blackberry. I’m not a weather man (I’m right more than 30% of the time, so I’m overqualified) It was 60 degrees, cloudy with no rain and winds under 10 miles per hour in New York. So that’s the weather cancelling the flight? Or is it actually that the plane was so empty it didn’t make business sense to waste the fuel flying an empty plane out to New York? I understand the decision, but don’t just make things up.

As we’re deplaning the lady at the desk is overwhelmed by the people begging her for information about what’s going to happen and what flights they can get. She starts telling people they will either be on the next flight or be routed through Atlanta. As I’m walking to another agent at a gate 50 yards away (in order to circumvent the line and get rebooked immediately) I get an email from Airtran notifying me that my flight was cancelled. Thanks Airtran for keeping me informed about my flight after I’ve exited the plane and am already rebooked on a different flight.

--------

A couple of quick thoughts while cruising at 35,000 feet…..

The Celtics have absolutely dominated the Magic in no small part because Vince Carter has went back into his shell as a less than clutch performer. With a healthy Garnett, an accurate Pierce and a dominating point guard in Rajon Rondo, the Celtics look unstoppable. The Magic are lost offensively because the Celtics are inviting them to feed Howard in the post so they can foul him and not leaving the Magic shooters open on the perimeter. The only way the Magic can score is with penetration and the only guy on their roster capable of doing that is Carter because Rondo has owned Jameer Nelson. And Carter isn’t capable.

------------

I was going to save this for a separate post, but it may be time to put Trevor Hoffman out to pasture. It’s a shame that the future Hall Of Famer and all-time saves leader has fallen so far so fast, but he just doesn’t have it. He has blown 5 of 10 save opportunities and has an ERA over 13. The problem the Brewers have is who to put in that spot. LaTroy Hawkins has closing experience, yet he’s on the disabled list and has been hammered this season as well. Todd Coffey just came off a shelling at the hands of the Reds so his confidence can’t exactly be peaked. Does that leave Carlos Villanueva as the closer by default? The Brewers are on pace for a 100 loss season as of this moment and need to do something to turn the tide of this ship. More tomorrow on the people calling for Ken Macha’s head……..Kenny is not the one blowing late game leads and Kenny is not a starting pitcher that can’t last past the 6th inning and Kenny is not the underachieving first baseman worrying more about his contract than about earning this year’s salary.

-----------------

The Lakers will take a commanding lead in the series tonight, and the reason will be that despite the Suns playing better defense this year than they have in the past, they are still not playing complete defense. The biggest culprit? It’s easier to score on Amare Stoudemire than it is to score as a cast member on Gossip Girl. Doug Gotlieb described Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol as getting “microwaved” by Stoudemire’s “defense” because as soon as you see him guarding you, you’re already warmed up and about to be on fire. And then for Amare to come out and say Odom had a lucky game when he got lit up for 19 points and 19 rebounds? And yet despite his obvious deficiencies, Amare is going to opt out of his contract this summer and someone is going to give him an outrageous contract. Just doesn’t make sense and I’ve questioned it in the past as well.

Quick Hits - Hoffman on Fumes & Fielder's Contract

- Is Trevor Hoffman officially running on fumes? He has remained effective the past few years despite the lack of an overpowering fastball due to an above average slider and changeup. Yet in the first week of the season he blew two saves against the Cardinals by giving up gopher balls. On Friday night, the homer he gave up was a slider that stayed in the zone a little too long and it was golfed out of the park. On Sunday night he gave up consecutive dingers to Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday when he couldn’t get a fastball by either one of them. Hoffman is 42 years old and his fastball tops out at 87, which makes his change-up at 82-83 less effective. If the Brewers are going to stay close to the Cardinals, they are going to need Hoffman to be like Rene Russo in The Thomas Crown Affair – a strong closer able to slam shut games when the starters and set up guys give him a lead.

- Speaking of the Brewers, this article from John Heyman of Sports Illustrated reaks of a PR ploy from Scott Boras about a contract for Prince Fielder. Prince Fielder is NOT going to get a $200 million contract from any team in baseball. I like Prince a lot. He is one of the most fearsome power hitters in all of baseball. But the Brewers cannot and will not give him that big of a contract. The Yankees are already locked into Mark Texeiria at first base, so there goes the next big team that would spend on him. Combine that with the potential of Albert Pujols and Ryan Howard also being free agents at the same time and suddenly the market for Prince drops dramatically. I’m not smart enough to know the angle Boras is trying to play (make the Brewers look cheap when they offer him $160 over 8 years?) but I can’t see how this helps either side in the negotiation. Joe Mauer got $184 million from a bigger market team in Minnesota as the #1 catcher in all of baseball, and one of the best hitters in the game. Fielder may be the 4th best hitting first baseman (Pujols, Howard, Texiera) and is not a gold glove defensive player. As much as I want him signed, I’m concerned about how his portly frame will hold up in 6 or 7 years when he is 32 years old and there is no DH in the National League.

- Ben Roethlisberger is an idiot. We’ve already established that based purely on the circumstances of whatever happened at the Midgeville, GA bar. But listening to the details that the DA laid out in his press conference made it obvious that he thought Big Ben was a scumbag but he didn’t have the evidence needed to prosecute him. And Ben, when you’re about to go on national television and read a contrived apology, maybe you could shave or trim the hair? Just a thought so you don’t look like you just crawled out of your double wide down by the river and you’re in search of your smokes and another can of PBR. (Update: Ben shaved his face and his head before meeting with the Commissioner)

- Could there have been a more anti-Tiger story to win the Masters this weekend? Phil with his perfect family, and winning for his wife while she recovers from cancer. Absolutely incredible story, despite the fact that CBS and its announcers kept trying to make us believe that Tiger was going to make a run at him. Phil now has 3 green jackets and officially shed his choker label. He has become a guy that everyone can feel good rooting for.

- While out in Northern California this week, one of the news stories that was littered in all the newspapers was Don Nelson breaking the all-time wins record in the NBA. The national media didn’t seem to be paying much attention to the story, but being near the Bay Area, the local papers were all over stories of how Nellie revolutionized the game with his “small ball” approach and the invention of the “point forward” position. Does anyone know who the first point forward was? Paul Pressey of the Milwaukee Bucks. I guess I always thought of Pressey as a point guard and never realized he was actually a forward. I also didn’t know that Nelson turned down an offer to coach the Celtics at the tail end of the Bird/McHale/Parrish era out of loyalty to the Bucks general manager at the time. Had Nelson went to the Celtics, he would have certainly won the NBA title that has always eluded him and kept him out of the conversation for the leagues greatest coaches ever. And I thought all he did was revolutionize fashion with his fish ties. (I can’t find a picture of Nellie in a fish tie anywhere. Did he not wear them as much as I recall?)

- I can’t remember an NFL off-season where so many trades have taken place of big name players. The latest is Brandon Marshall being traded to the Dolphins. It follows the trade of Santonio Holmes, Donovan McNabb and Antonio Cromartie earlier in the off-season. In every case except McNabb, the teams tired of dealing with the turdish behavior of talented players and took discounted deals to get rid of them. A 5th round pick for a 26 year old former Super Bowl MVP coming off his best statistical season? Then again, if Hollywood could trade out of Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Simpson, Kate Gosselin any other number of pathetic divas, I’m sure they would. Even for a 5th round pick like Australian Michelle Hunziker.