Call it a hiatus

Until the Brewers season starts or sooner....Thanks for reading.


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Pack to the Future Part II. Ahman Green Resigned

First Mark Tauscher, now Ahman Green. Teddy Thompson's plan to save the Packers' '09 season apparently is to go Back to the Future to fix the holes in the offense. Green signed a one-year deal to return to the Pack, where he needs just 46 yards to become Titletowns' all-time leading rusher.

The deal gives the Packers some needed flexibility at running back and Green is expected to split carries with incumbent Ryan Grant.

Here's hoping Ahman regains the form of his first run in Green Bay and can avoid the distractions and injuries that made his Texans tenure a huge failure.

Brewers sign new Pitching Coach, starting pitching still crappy.

The Brewers have selected new pitching coach Rick Peterson (formally of the underachieving New York Mets staff) to help coach the underachieving Milwaukee Brewers pitching staff.

Peterson has ties to both Ken Macha and Willie Randolph and hopefully a PHD in psychology so he can deal with the head cases on this team, like Manny "I'm gonna freakout every time I give up a Homer" Parra.

The upside is he can't be any worse than Bill Castro. I mean there was a reason he was stuck as Bullpen Coach for 10 plus freakin' years. The downside is I believe he was fired from the Mets for being unable to fix the problems he will try to fix here.

How do you feel about the decision? Who would you like to see coaching the Brewers pitching staff. Post your feelings in the comment section.

Sherman Lewis makes a comeback!

A couple of weeks ago Sherman Lewis was retired, and as of today he will be taking over the play-calling for Jim Zorn. That must be awkward. Great idea, really must be building team chemistry in DC. Maybe owner Dan Snyder's plan is to now tempt Brett Favre back to the Redskins with his former offensive coordinator. Yeah, that's a joke, but with Snyder believable.

Can anyone get an offense in DC to work? This is the writing on the wall for Jim Zorn as the Redskins coach. Quite frankly, the Redskins have been terrible for the last few years, and Jason Campbell is not the future. Not to mention Clinton Portis seems to be on the decline. Dan Snyder needs to start brainstorming for his first successful idea as the Redskins owner. After this season, let the firestorm begin.

Packers Report - Week 6

Coming off the bye week, the Packers headed home for a showdown with the Detroit Lions. It was clearly a must win for Green Bay, and many were anxious to see which Packers team would show up.

Facing an injured and inferior Lions squad, it came as little surprise that the Packers prevailed. Putting up their first shutout since 07, Green Bay had a rather easy time defeating the Lions 26-0.

It was their 18 consecutive win at Lambeau against the Honolulu blue. And although the victory was achieved, the game itself left plenty of questions unanswered about Green Bay's ability going forward.

Here are the Grades for Week 6:

Quarterback: B - Aaron Rodgers had a solid performance, ending the game 29 of 37 for 358 yards and 2 touchdowns. Although feeling the pressure all day, Rodgers only threw one pick early in the fourth quarter. He finished the day with a 113.7 passer rating.

Running Back: C - Grant once again struggled throughout most of the game. It was only in the fourth quarter that he was pick up yards consistently on the ground. He did make 3 catches out of the backfield, but had one costly drop. He finished the day with 90 yards on 24 carries and no touchdowns with a 3.8 yard average.

Wide Receivers: B+ - The wide outs stepped it up this week. Both Jennings and Driver made spectacular one-handed catches, keeping drives alive. We didn't see the dropped passes of previous weeks either, which shows some much needed improvement. James Jones showed his face, catching the first of two Rodgers TD's, his with a 47 yard play to the end zone. and hat's off to Donald Driver, who broke the Packers all-time receptions record previously held by Sterling Sharpe.

Offensive Line: D+ - Coming off the bye week, and having 2 weeks to prepare, you would think the line would have made improvements. But none were seen. The line gave up 5 sacks to the Lions, who only had one stater active on the D-line. They were unable to make holes for Grant, and were over powered for most of the game. Chad Clifton, who made his return from injury this week, had 4 false start penalties, 2 of which were illegal formation, and 2 that were back to back on consecutive plays. There were also gap assignments missed, causing untouched linebackers to chase Rodgers around in the backfield. A poor performance once again from the big uglies.

Defense: A- - the defense definitely the highlight of the Packers performance. Although starting quarterback Matthew Stafford and wideout Calvin Johnson were out, the defensive play was very impressive. Allowing no points to any professional team is quite an accomplishment, even if it was the Lions. Aaron Kampman was finally allowed to spent most of his time blitzing, and it paid off with a sack and multiple disruptive plays. Clay Matthews, who got his first start, was all over the field, with 5 tackles, 2 sacks, and 3 tackles for loss. The secondary had three interceptions, including one in the endzone from the now healthy Atari Bigby. The Packers D held the Lions to just 149 total yards and only 19:12 minutes of possession, and a stellar 0-10 on third down. A great day for the seemingly re-charged Packers defense.

Final Grade: B-


Notable Stats: Penalties once again killed the Packers, including on the opening kickoff return by Jordy Nelson. With 13 penalties for 130 yards, it was clear that the issues of discipline are far from resolved. It was ugly for most of the game. The Packers were also unable to score touchdowns in the red zone, going 1-5 against a poor Lions defense.

Next Week: The Packers should have one this game 45-0 plain and simple. They were seemingly unable to dominate the way they should have. This poses a problem going forward. We can thank our lucky stars that they have one more week to figure it out. With the Cleveland Browns next in line, we can only hope that Green Bay can assert itself overwhelmingly on the Lake Erie shores. Because if we get another showing like this one, I have little hope for a W against Minnesota at Lambeau in two weeks.

Yost interviews for Astros

Former Brewers manager Ned Yost has interviewed for the vacant managerial position with the NL Central Houston Astros. The post previously held by Brewers great Cecil Cooper.

"It's a process where I get to know them and they get to know me," Yost said. "I think it's important that they know what I think about their organization and my thoughts and philosophies on managing a baseball club. It was a lot of fun to be able to sit and talk about it."

Yost stresses his credentials (MLB.com)

Yost does offer experience with turning around a club, and has a winning mentality (see Bobby Cox). Unfortunately, Yost never saw playoff baseball in Milwaukee last year due to him "losing" the club. He deserves another chance as a manager and prove to some critics that he has what it takes to manage a winning ball club. Just not at the Brewers expense.

Mat Gamel's future?

Jesse Motiff from Bleacher Report raises the question on what is the future of Mat Gamel?

Gamel could stay at third base and platoon with Casey McGehee or given the chance to win the job outright. He could also see a position change to either first base or the outfield. The Brewers could also trade him, either alone or in a package, to acquire a starting pitcher that the team desperately needs.

Is Mat Gamel's Future with the Milwaukee Brewers? (Bleacher Report)

As of right now without any moves I see Casey McGehee starting at third base next season. This makes me think that Gamel will be on the move for starting pitching this offseason. Gamel is a player I'd like the Brewers to keep, but not to sacrifice starting pitching if he will not getting routine at-bats next season.

Really Jon Heyman? Really?

Jon Heyman (@SI_JonHeyman for you twitter folk), baseball writer for Sports Illustrated released his ballot for the MVP voting. What isn't a surprise is he has Albert Pujols winning the NL MVP. I'm pretty sure we all know that Albert will have a runaway win. He also has Joe Mauer winning the AL MVP, once again, no surprise.

What is a surprise, is the name he left off of his list:

1. Albert Pujols 2. Troy Tulowitzki 3. Ryan Howard 4. Andre Ethier 5. Hanley Ramirez 6. Matt Kemp 7. Chris Carpenter 8. Adam Wainwright 9. Chase Utley 10. Matt Holliday

That's right, one Prince Fielder seems to be omitted!

I understand that writer's put a lot of emphasis on teams who make the playoffs, and they should! This is why Albert Pujols deserves to be a runaway winner with numbers just slightly better than Fielder's because his team made it. However, you can't ignore a player that has had a statistical monster of a season. Plus if playoffs is what Heyman was going for, why is Hanley Ramirez hanging out at #5 on his list?

In the end it is all for not, because no one will ever remember the 2nd or 3rd place MVP ballot winners, because they aren't actually MVP winners, but a little respect for Fielder's season would be nice. Jon Heyman, you lost almost all respect from me.

R.I.P. Marvin Fishman

Real estate developer Marvin Fishman, a figure who was instrumental in bringing the Bucks to Milwaukee in 1968, died Friday night. He was 84. Within three years of the Bucks being here in Milwaukee, they were winning the NBA title. So let's hope they can do it again, this time in honor of Marvin.

Packers sign Tauscher. Offensive line still crappy.

In a bit of non-shocking news, Jsonline.com is reporting that the Packers have signed veteran offensive lineman and former Packer Mark Tauscher to a contract. Tauscher will have the bye week and then two more bye weeks as the Packers will play the Lions and the Browns. Marky-Mark will have to get in shape soon though as the Packers face the monster D-Line of Minnie-land in just under a month.

Tauscher is clearly an upgrade over the single-ply strength of the Allen Barbre and Daryn Colledge combo, but he aint exactly Charmin. Tauscher is recovering off season ACL surgery and probably won't be ready to start right away.

This seems like a classic desperation move but what do you think?

Will the Pack trade Kampman?

Aaron Kampman might be the odd man out in the Packers new 3-4 scheme. He looked mostly lost all night against the Vikings and is struggling with the switch to linebacker. Greg Bedard of JS is reporting that the Packers may try to trade Kampman before Oct. 20 trade deadline.

3-4 defense sacking Kampman's impact (MJS)

Really Ted? You want to trade away your top defensive star, because you forced him to switch to linebacker? Ouch Ted, you're looking better every day.

Romo needs to step up

Everyone is bashing Cowboys QB Tony Romo. At first, we all thought it was the curse of Jessica Simpson, but we're finding out that was just smoke and mirrors. Romo has been inconsistent at best this season whether its fumbling, throwing INTs, or forgetting what down it is, Romo is a mess. I'm not quite sure this is what Jerry Jones envisioned when he opened Jerry World. The best replays that have been on the gigantic video board has been other team's touchdown dances.

Against the Giants Tony Romo threw three interceptions that led to Giant scoring drives. Last week, he was a hand off machine and still managed to cough up a fumble to help the Broncos come back from being down 10-0. The Cowboys continue to lose because their "star" quarterback is a turnover machine.

Wade Phillips insists that Romo is okay, and that he is a hard worker. The Cowboys head to Kansas City this weekend to play the winless Chiefs. Any quarterback should have success against this team, right? Romo must make a statement game this week, or the media bashing will continue.

"No one in that (Cowboys) facility, coaches' office, locker room knows what Tony is going through," Aikman told the DMN. "I do. It's a roller coaster. You feel like you are absolutely alone. No one else gets it.

Troy Aikman feels for Romo as sometimes it tough being the Dallas Cowboys starting QB. (Troy Aikman: Tony Romo feels the weight of Dallas on his back)

Tauscher works out with Green Bay

According to ESPNMilwaukee.com, former Packers right tackle Mark Tauscher worked out with the Pack today. Tauscher went down last season with a ACL tear, his second tear in his left knee, and has remained unsigned ever since. This is good news for Packer fans, who have had to watch their O-line get ran over all season. Let's hope this works out.

See the Link here:
http://www.espnmilwaukee.com/includes/blog/index.php?action=blog&blog_id=20&post_id=1190

Hoffman re-signs with the Brewers

At least for the 2010 season, Hells Bells will be ringing at Miller Park. As reported by Adam McCalvy of MLB.com, all time saves leader Trevor Hoffman has agreed to a 1 year, 8 million dollar contract with an option for 2011, which could equal 8.5 million. Hoffman, who finished the season with a 1.83 ERA, saved 37 of 41 games for the crew. He will be turning 42 Oct. 13.

See the full article here: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091005&content_id=7335018&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

Packers Report - Week 4

I really don't want to even write this.

But as a diligent sports blogger, it is my duty to recap and review what was, for me, a devastating and embarrassing loss. I'm going to keep it short this week, due to the fact that I'm uber hungover and i don't want my adrenaline to flare up again. So here we go with the grades for our now 2-2 Green Bay Packers, who were beaten last night by Favre and the Vikings, 30-23.

Quarterback: B- -There is not much more Rodgers could have done. With minimal protection all game, the mistakes were to be expected. Sacked 8 times, Rodgers was on the run all night long. He did have one horrible INT and a fumble caused by one of Jarred Allen's 4.5 sacks. But the only fair criticism I can levy at Aaron is that he seemed to once again hold on to the ball too long in the pocket. He finished the day 26-37 for 384 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Running backs: B - Grant showed some explosiveness throughout the game. He also made a few screen plays for big yards. His success, I contend, is hampered weekly by our offensive line. He also cannot be blamed for the offense abandoning the running game. Grant finished the day with 11 carries for 51 yards.

Wide Receivers: C - Drops were once again the theme. Donald Lee dropped a touchdown, which was the turning point in the game for Green Bay. Jennings was also again kept quiet, and Driver was mostly held in check all night. The one positive was Jermichael Finley, who finally had his breakout game, with 6 grabs for 128 yards and a long TD.

Offensive Line: F - 8 sacks. Enough said.

Defense: D+ - Despite doing a great job of containing Adrian Peterson for most of the game, The defense was overall poor. Favre had his way with our secondary on countless third downs, and really exposed Al Harris. The pass rush was also invisible, with only one knockdown on Favre and no sacks. Clay Matthews did make the one great play on defense, ripping the ball away from Peterson and returning it for a TD. It was very apparent throughout the match up how the new defensive scheme has taken Aaron Kampman out of his game. As long as he is staying at outside linebacker, he will continue to be an afterthought for opposing teams.

Final Grade: D+

Notable Stats: Green Bay was nailed for 7 penalties for 57 yards. The Vikings? 2 for ten. That seems about right, nothing shady about that... The Packers were also 0 for 2 in the red zone.

Next Week: We saw the return of the screen/dump off pass game last night, and it is my feeling that with our offensive line, we may have to make that the heart of our offense. The bye week comes with Green Bay at 2-2, and the Lions on the horizon. I will not make any predictions, but I have no confidence that the Packers can easily win any game this year. And I fear for the health of Aaron Rodgers.

Enjoy the week off Packer fans, lord knows we need it.

Dirty in the D

Don't cry Tony.

I, like any fan of real and respectable sports teams, loathes an organization like that ran by Jerry Jones. However I will suspend my disgust for the Dallas Cowboys and direct it towards something equally as disgusting: Sex in public bathrooms. Public bathrooms at a stadium no less. According to the story, this video was taken during the Cowboys/Giants game at the new Cowboys stadium. I will leave all other comments aside and hear from you.

Here is the link: http://deadspin.com/5370499/couple-christens-dallas-cowboys-stadiums-new-bathroom-stalls


Thank you Deadspin.com, for all the fine work you do.

Braun reaches milestone

Ryan Braun became just the fourth player in Brewers history to have 200 hits in a season last night. Braun joins the ranks of Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, and Cecil Cooper as the only players to accomplish this feet in Milwaukee. And Braun did it in dramatic fashion, belting a 2 run home run to left center, helping the crew establish the lead. The Brewers would go on to win 5-4.

From all of us here at Sheffieldshouse.com, and indeed all over Brewers nation, we raise our glasses to thee. Congrats!!!



See the full article and video here: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091003&content_id=7303576&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

Joe Mauer steals Tiger's signs

Who are the real contenders?

Four teams remain unbeaten in the NFL going into Week 4. The Denver Broncos, Minnesota Vikings, Indianapolis Colts, and the Baltimore Ravens all hold the record of 3-0. The Broncos have to be the surprise team of the season with a new QB, new head coach, and of course a league leading defense? Yes, they have only allowed 16 points on their way to 3-0. Even with facing the terrible offensives of Oakland and the Browns, but still giving up only 16 points to three NFL teams is quite the feat. However, that defense will be tested against Tony Romo and the Cowboys this weekend. In the biggest game of the season, Brett Favre will welcome his former team to the Metrodome, which should be a barn burner with these two offenses on the field. This will be a tough match up between both teams and the division lead hangs in the balance. Baltimore also has a big game against the Patriots, but with a Ray Lewis defense against a struggling Tom Brady and Co. the Ravens look like the better team. And finally, the Colts take on the Seahawks, and Seattle just doesn't match up well against the Colts offense (if anyone does) giving Peyton Manning plenty of time to find the Pierre Garcon's of the world and raise the Colts record to 4-0.

Out of the four undefeated teams, the Colts and Ravens seem to the real contenders. Minnesota needs to win this week, as they were able to hold off the 49ers last week to prove they can play back-to-back big games. Unfortunately, with Orton and the Broncos their schedule just gets tougher as they move forward, and they are the pretender of this group.