Wednesday, June 3, 2009

The Doug Melvin Years: 2005

2005 would be better, and there was even hope for a winning season. The hopes would be dashed on the final day of the season, but still, 81-81 was to be celebrated given the sorry state of the organization just a few years before.

Melvin's penchant for free talent led him to the Atlantic League, where he plucked Mike Rivera off the Atlantic City roster. Rivera has been hitting as of late, and now catches for the team every five days.

The June Draft would bring both Ryan Braun and Mat Gamel. Braun is obviously an all-star left fielder, and Gamel is in a semi-platoon at third with Bill Hall. Good times all around here.

Junior Spivey would be traded for Tomo Ohka, and Ohka would start for two years, while Spivey wouldn't play after 2005.

It would be a quiet trade deadline again, and the first major move after the season was trading Lyle Overbay, who had no more useful purpose in Milwaukee with Prince Fielder on the horizon, as well as Ty Taubenheim for Dave Bush, who's done league average starting work for the Brewers, Gabe Gross, who was decent as a backup outfielder for a few years, and Zach Jackson, who didn't work out in the end.

The Brewers also added Corey Koskie for a minor league pitcher in Brian Wolfe, but Koskie would be laid low with injuries after delivering decent numbers over the first half of 2006.

2006 lay ahead with high expectations after the additions of Koskie and Bush, as well as Prince Fielder starting at first base every day.

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