Welcome to Tuesday's edition of The Daily Dose. It's nice to have you. Let's review one of the most surprising moves in sports this season and get you all caught up on the little bits of news that continue to pour in as the season winds down for 22 teams, and picks up steam for the other lucky eight.
* The Brewers cut ties with manager Ned Yost on Monday. It was the first time in league history that a Major League Baseball manager was fired in September with his team in line for a playoff spot. It came as a shock to much of the baseball community, sans those fans in Milwaukee. The Brew Crew had lost 11 of it's last 14 games and squandered a 5 « game lead in the Wild Card hunt. The team they're fighting off, the Philadelphia Phillies, finished off a four-game sweep of the Brewers this weekend and has pulled to tie. There's no denying that the situation in Milwaukee was turning ugly. The team's upper management began having nightmares of the 2007 collapse that saw the Brewers drop an 8 « game lead in the NL Central and resulted in a 24th straight season without playoff baseball in Milwaukee. They didn't want to see a 25th. Those nightmares led to one of the most unprecedented moves in the history of coaching.
It was a shock, but it's a move that has been in the works for some time. Yost is a guy that learned under Bobby Cox's tutelage, but never really developed Cox's knack for making the right moves. at the right times. Yost was employed by the Braves as a bullpen coach and a third-base coach for 12 years, helping every one of those squads to a division championship, with the exception of the 1994 strike-shortened year. The Brewers finally gave him a shot at the "big time" before the 2003 season. A ton of talent began to surround Yost over the next few years. Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun, Corey Hart, and J.J. Hardy made their major league debuts under Yost's reign and Ben Sheets turned himself into a potential ace. The Brewers went 81-81 in 2005, 75-87 in '06, and 83-79 in '07. Before 2007, the Brewers hadn't had a winning record since 1992. But, with that kind of talent, Yost was not seen as any sort of savior. He was underachieving.
Yost couldn't seem to get over the hump and the fans in Milwaukee began to crave October baseball. Looking at their lineup, looking at their pitching staff, it's easy to understand why. The '08 Brewers are a playoff baseball team, at least on paper, and the head brass made a "let's win this now" swap of favorite prospect Matt LaPorta for starting pitcher CC Sabathia back in July. They wanted the playoffs. They still want the playoffs. And, especially after that four-game sweep in Philadelphia, something had to be done. Often a manager becomes the fall-guy for a struggling team. Brewers' fans might argue that the blame is warranted here. Whatever. There's so much gray area in that argument. Here are the facts: Yost likes to stick with his guys, even through slumps. Sometimes that faith works itself out. For Yost, it didn't. And now he's gone. Taking over will be third-base coach, Dale Sveum. Bench coach Ted Simmons will assume an advisory role. The Brewers have 12 games left on the schedule and a lot to prove.
* Dmitri Young has essentially been shut down for the rest of the season with a strained left hip. He came off the disabled list nine days ago, but hasn't appeared in a game. The 35-year-old signed a two-year contract extension in 2007, but has amassed just 150 at-bats this season and the Nationals can't expect much from him next year. In my eyes, his struggles are one-half health-related and one-half an issue of motivation. That's no refreshing cocktail. When asked if he would like to at least have a pinch-hit opportunity before the year is over, Young said: "If it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, I'm not going to lose sleep." Nice.
AL Quick Hits:Mike Lowell will need surgery after the 2008 season to repair a partially torn labrum in his right hip . Kenny Rogers is out for the rest of the season with a possible tired arm . Erick Aybar could return this week . Paul Konerko said he's ready to start Tuesday after missing five games with a sprained knee . Chorye Spoone is out for the rest of this season and most of next year after undergoing shoulder surgery . Julio Lugo wants to play this season . J.D. Drew won't return before Friday . Howie Kendrick could be out until later next week . Jarrod Washburn will join the Mariners' bullpen . Michael Cuddyer is not ready to play the field because he's not able to run, but he DH'd on Monday night . Scott Downs has re-injured his ankle . The Red Sox may be looking into acquiring Jarrod Saltalamacchia . David Murphy is unlikely to return from his right knee injury this season . Yankees recalled Francisco Cervelli, the catcher that was steamrolled during a play that ignited bad blood between the Rays and Yankees during spring training . Jeremy Guthrie was placed on the disabled list, and is done for the season, with an impingement in his right shoulder . Brandon McCarhty suffered a strained flexor tendon during his start Monday . Hideki Matsui may soon undergo knee surgery.
NL Quick Hits:Jody Gerut is expected to play again this season . Hiroki Kuroda having is finishing the season mightily strong . Stephen Drew should be available Tuesday after missing Sunday and Monday to attend the funeral of his grandmother . Jason Isringhausen plans to pitch in 2009, even after undergoing season-ending elbow surgery last week . Brandon Backe will rejoin the Astros' rotation for Wednesday's game against the Marlins . John Maine is still aiming to rejoin the Mets as a reliever and may get a shot at the closer's role . Hong-Chih Kuo complained of triceps pain after an impressive start over the weekend . Juan Pierre hit his first home run of the season on September 15 . Brad Penny is struggling in relief and is unlikely to have his wish of rejoining the Dodgers' rotation granted . Matt Antonelli hit his first major league home run Monday against the Rockies . Takashi Saito made his first major league relief appearance since July 12 Monday . Marlins recalled outfield prospect Cameron Maybin . Jesus Flores is unlikely to play again this season.
